PROV 30:4 Interlinear View

SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 30:1–33: Here are the sayings of Agur

This section is a collection of verses that were written or organized by Agur the son of Jakeh.Some scholars think that Agur wrote or collected only verses 1–4, 1–6, 1–9, or 1–14. UBS (page 617), Toy (page 518), and Longman (page 513) are among those who list some of these possibilities. The GNT indicates with quotation marks that Agur’s words end after v.6. No other versions indicate that Agur’s words end before the end of the chapter. Waltke (volume I, page 26) strongly defends the entire chapter as the “oracle” of Agur on the basis of its structural unity. Kidner (page 178) divides the chapter into two sections (1–9) and (10–33), but identifies both as coming from “the sage.” The title of this section (30:1a) is the only place in Scripture that Agur is mentioned. The section is divided into paragraphs that vary from one to five verses. The Notes will suggest a paragraph heading for all paragraphs after 30:1a. It is suggested that you use similar headings in your translation to help the readers follow the changes of topic and audience.

The first nine verses contain Agur’s personal thoughts and prayers. Some are addressed to God, others to his audience. The rest of the chapter contains proverbs on various topics. Some are individual warnings or statements (30:10, 17, 20, 32–33). Others contain several kinds of lists of four items each. The lists in verses 15b–16, 18–19, 21–23, and 29–31 have the same form as the numerical proverb in 6:16–19. (See the paragraph summary for 6:16–19 and the notes on 6:16a–b.) The lists in verses 11–14 and 24–28 have different forms. These will be described in the paragraph summaries where they first occur.

Some other headings for this section are:

The Words of Agur (ESV)

Wise Words from Agur (NCV)

Words that the LORD caused Agur to make known

Paragraph 30:4a–e Agur questioned his fellow people

Agur then asks the people who hear or read his words a series of rhetorical questions. The first four questions (4a–d) begin with the word “Who.” The function of these questions is to emphasize that no person has done these things. Only God can do them.

He then asks two sarcastic questions (4e) that begin with “What.” These questions and the sentence that follows challenge the people to tell Agur the name of anyone they know who has done these things.

^4aWho has ascended to heaven and come down?

^4bWho has gathered the wind in His hands?

^4cWho has bound up the waters in His cloak?

^4dWho has established all the ends of the earth?

^4eWhat is His name, and what is the name of His Son—surely you know!

In some languages, it may be appropriate to translate the rhetorical questions in 30:4a–d individually. Another alternative is to use a statement to introduce these questions as a group. For example:

^4a Think about these questions:

^4a Please answer these questions of mine:

See the General Comment on 30:4a–e after the note on 30:4e for a way to combine some of the questions.

30:4a

Who has ascended to heaven and come down?

¶ As for you^(plur) my fellow people, think about these questions: Who ascended to heaven and descended again?
¶ Is there anyone except God who went to heaven and then returned to earth? No one.
¶ I don’t know any person who rose/went upward to heaven and then returned.

Who has ascended to heaven and come down?: There are two ways to interpret this rhetorical question:

It asks if anyone has gone up to heaven and returned. For example:
Who has ascended into heaven, and then descended? (NET) (BSB, CEV, ESV, GW, KJV, NASB, NCV, NET, NIV, NJB, NJPS, NLT, NRSV, REB)
It asks if anyone has learned all heavenly knowledge. For example:
Have any ever mastered heavenly knowledge? (GNT) (GNT)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most versions and scholars.

Agur worded this question in a way that fits the viewpoint of a person on the earth. The implied answer is that no person can leave the earth, go up to heaven and then return. Although God does not start from the earth and then go up to heaven, only God has the power to move back and forth between the two places.Fox (page 856) objects that “the order ‘ascended’…‘come down’ is not the natural way to describe God’s movements, since his starting point is the heavens.” However, according to Whybray (page 409), this question shows that God is able to move freely between heaven and earth. He says that the order probably emphasizes that humans are unable to ascend to heaven in the first place. Waltke (page 471) agrees that the implied answer to this rhetorical question is “no human being, but only God.”

Some other ways to translate this question are:

Use a slightly different rhetorical question. For example:
Has anyone gone up to heaven and come back down? (CEV)
Use a rhetorical question and make the implied answer explicit. For example:
Is there any person who went to heaven and then returned to earth? Certainly not. Only God can do something like that.
Use a statement. For example:
I don’t know any person who went upward to heaven and then returned.

30:4a–e

(combined/reordered)

¶ You^(sing) my fellow people, can you answer these questions of mine?Who rose to heaven and then returned? Is there anyone who held the wind in his hands and bundled the rain in the clouds? Did any person make the boundaries between the land and the water? Of course not! Only God. But you probably know a person who done all these things, right? So tell me his name and the name of his child!

30:4b

Who has gathered the wind in His hands?

Who held/cupped the wind in his hands?
Is there anyone except God who caught/gripped the wind in his fists? No one.
I don’t know any person who used his hands/fists to control the wind.

Who has gathered the wind in His hands?: This line is more literally: “Who gathered the wind in both palms/hands/fists”? The word that the BSB translates as in His hands usually refers to the palm of the hand. It may describe God holding the wind in either his cupped hands or his closed fists.Delitzsch (page 446) agrees with Fox (page 858) that the word refers to the palm, but he points out that in this context the palms have closed shut around the wind, making fists. With either option, the line refers figuratively to God’s power to restrain or control the wind.NET footnote (b). Some other ways to translate this question are:

Use a slightly different rhetorical question. For example:
Who can hold the wind in his hand? (NCV)
Has anyone grabbed hold of the wind? (CEV)
Use a rhetorical question and make the implied answer explicit. For example:
Who can capture the wind with his hands? No one except God.
Use a figurative statement. For example:
I don’t know any person who gripped the wind in his fists.
Use a statement without a figure of speech. For example:
Only God can control the wind.

30:4c

Who has bound up the waters in His cloak?

Who bundled/folded the rain inside a garment/cloth?
Is there anyone except God who wrapped water in the clouds like a person who wraps something in a piece of cloth? No one.
I don’t know any person who caused the rain to remain in the clouds.

Who has bound up the waters in His cloak?: This rhetorical question contains a metaphor. In this metaphor, God’s power to hold water in the clouds is compared to a person’s insignificant ability to wrap an object inside a piece of cloth.

the waters: Many English versions translate this word as waters, because the word is plural in Hebrew. In Hebrew, there is no singular form of the word. The same form refers to water in rivers or oceans or water in a bottle. Here the word probably refers to the water (rain) that is held in the clouds, as in Job 26:8. That verse says that God “wraps up the waters in his clouds.”Longman (page 523), Whybray (page 409), Delitzsch (page 446), Toy (pages 521–522), Cohen (page 201), and Murphy (page 228) all identify the water (Hebrew: mayim) as rain and the garment as clouds that contain the rain. The CEV and NLT understand the “waters” to refer to “the sea” and “the oceans,” respectively. However, a different Hebrew word (yam) is used consistently in the OT for both “sea” and “ocean.”

His cloak: In Hebrew, this word can refer to a cloth. It can also refer to a cloak or other piece of clothing.

Some other ways to translate this rhetorical question and metaphor are:

Use a slightly different rhetorical question. Keep the metaphor. For example:
Did anyone ever fold water/rain inside a coat?
Use a rhetorical question and make the implied answer explicit. Make one or more parts of the metaphor explicit and change it to a simile. For example:
Who wrapped water in the clouds like a person who wraps something in a piece of cloth? No one except God.
Use a statement with a simile or metaphor. For example:
I don’t know any person who used the clouds like a cloth to fold up water/rain.
Use a statement without a figure of speech. For example:
God is the only one who can cause the clouds to hold rain.

30:4d

Who has established all the ends of the earth?

Who decided the edges of the land/earth in all directions?
Is there anyone except God who made all the boundaries that divide the land and the water? No one.
I don’t know any person who decided the size/width of the entire earth, including even the farthest places.

Who has established all the ends of the earth?: The phrase established all the ends of the earth refers to the boundaries or edges of the earth (dry land). It means that God decided and created all the boundaries between the dry land and the water, including the places on earth that are farthest away.UBS (page 622), NET footnote (d). Some other ways to translate this rhetorical question are:

Use a slightly different rhetorical question. For example:
Who has set up the earth from one end to the other? (GW)
Has anyone…marked out boundaries for the earth? (CEV)
Use a rhetorical question and make the implied answer explicit. For example:
Who decided the location of all the edges of the earth/land? No one except God.
Use a statement. For example:
I don’t know any person who determined the size/width of the earth in all directions.

30:4e

What is His name, and what is the name of His Son—surely you know!

What is the name of this person? And what is the name of his son/child? Of course you^(plur) know the answer, since you know so much!
But your intelligence is greater than mine, so I am sure that you know someone. You probably know the name of his child as well!
Even though I don’t know any person like that, there is no doubt that you know! So tell me his name and the name of his child!

What is His name, and what is the name of His Son—surely you know!: There are two ways to interpret these rhetorical questions and the sentence that follows:

They are sarcastic. They challenge Agur’s audience to admit that they do not know the name of any person who has done these things. Nor do they know the name of his child or children. For example:
What is the person’s name? And what is the name of the person’s child? Surely you know! (NRSV) (CEV, NRSV, GNT)Most versions have not been listed here, because they are ambiguous. They could indicate either sarcasm or emphasis.
They are not sarcastic. They invite Agur’s audience to affirm that they do know the name of God and the name of his child.According to Waltke (pages 471–475), the answers to the rhetorical questions in 30:4e are the LORD (Yahweh) and his firstborn son, Israel, as identified in Exodus 3:13–15 and Exodus 4:22–23. According to Ross (pages 1119–1120) and the NET footnote (e), there may be a hint that the son should be identified as the Logos or the Messiah. However, according to Fox (page 856), such an interpretation is “obviously anachronistic.” In addition, this rhetorical question bears no resemblance to other messianic prophecies. For example:
What is his name? What is his son’s name? Do you know? Indeed, you do. (Voice)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), along with most scholars. This interpretation better fits the theme of this paragraph (30:1b–4), which emphasizes the lack of human knowledge about God.

surely you know!: This clause is a sarcastic way to say, “You really don’t know!”

Another way to translate these sarcastic rhetorical questions and the sentence that follows is:

Who are they, if you know? Who are their children? (GNT)

General Comment on 30:4a–e

In some languages, it may be more natural to combine some of these rhetorical questions and/or to translate them in different ways to avoid being redundant. See 30:4a–e (combined/reordered) in the Display.

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion

מִ֤י עָלָֽה־שָׁמַ֨יִם ׀ וַ⁠יֵּרַ֡ד מִ֤י אָֽסַף־ר֨וּחַ ׀ בְּ⁠חָפְנָ֡י⁠ו מִ֤י צָֽרַר־מַ֨יִם ׀ בַּ⁠שִּׂמְלָ֗ה מִ֭י הֵקִ֣ים כָּל־אַפְסֵי־אָ֑רֶץ

who? ascended heaven and,has_he_come_down? who? gathered wind in,the_hollow_of,of_his_hands who? wrapped_up waters in,cloak who? established all/each/any/every ends_of earth

In this verse, the writer uses the question form four times to emphasize how much greater Yahweh is than people. If you would not use the question form for this purpose in your language, you could translate this as a statement or an exclamation. Alternate translation: “Surely, no human has ascended to heaven and descended! Surely, no one but Yahweh has gathered the wind in the hollow of his hands! Surely, no one but Yahweh has wrapped waters in the cloak! Surely, no one but Yahweh has raised up all the ends of the earth!”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

עָלָֽה־שָׁמַ֨יִם ׀ וַ⁠יֵּרַ֡ד

ascended heaven and,has_he_come_down?

Here, Agur speaks of someone going to the place where God dwells and returning from there as if heaven were a place that someone could go up to or come down from. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “has gone to and returned from the place where Yahweh dwells”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

מִ֤י אָֽסַף־ר֨וּחַ ׀ בְּ⁠חָפְנָ֡י⁠ו

who? who? gathered wind in,the_hollow_of,of_his_hands

Here, Agur speaks of controlling the wind as if it were something that a person could catch and hold in the palm of one’s hand. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “Who has controlled the wind”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit

בְּ⁠חָפְנָ֡י⁠ו

in,the_hollow_of,of_his_hands

Here, the word translated hollow refers to the palm of someone’s hand. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state this explicitly. Alternate translation: “in the palms of his hands”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

מִ֤י צָֽרַר־מַ֨יִם ׀ בַּ⁠שִּׂמְלָ֗ה

who? who? who? wrapped_up waters in,cloak

Here, Agur speaks of storing rainwater in clouds as if the waters were something that a person could wrap inside a cloak. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. If a translation is available in your language, see the similar use of waters in [Job 26:8](../job/26/08.md). Alternate translation: “Who has stored the water in clouds”

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

מִ֭י הֵקִ֣ים כָּל־אַפְסֵי־אָ֑רֶץ

who? established all/each/any/every ends_of earth

Here, Agur speaks of setting the boundaries of the dry land on the earth as if the ends of the earth were something that a person could raise up. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “has set up the limits for where the land ends” or “has marked the boundaries for the ends of the earth”

Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / irony

מַה־שְּׁמ֥⁠וֹ וּ⁠מַֽה־שֶּׁם־בְּ֝נ֗⁠וֹ כִּ֣י תֵדָֽע

what? name_of,[is]_his and,what? name_of his/its=son that/for/because/then/when know

Agur uses irony here to emphasize that no one knows of any person who can do those things described earlier in the verse, because such a person does not exist. If it would be helpful in your language, you could translate the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “Surely, none of you knows the name of someone who has done this or the name of his son, because such a person does not exist!”

OET-LV English word order (‘Reverse’ interlinear)

Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.

Acknowledgements: The Hebrew text, lemmas, and morphology are all thanks to the OSHB and some of the glosses are from Macula Hebrew.

OET interlinear PROV 30:4

Hebrew word order