PROV 30:16 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

OET (OET-RV) • 1. the grave,
• 2. a childless woman,
• 3. land that never has enough water, and
• 4. fire that never stops spreading.

Key: khaki:verbs, red:negative.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT Sheol, and the closure of the womb,
⇔ a land not satisfied with water,
⇔ and a fire—it does not say, ‘Enough!’

UST the place where dead people are,
⇔ childless women,
⇔ soil that never receives enough water,
⇔ and fire that keeps consuming more.

OEB No OEB PROV book available

WEBBE Sheol,[fn]
⇔ the barren womb,
⇔ the earth that is not satisfied with water,
⇔ and the fire that doesn’t say, ‘Enough!’

30:16 Sheol is the place of the dead.

WMBB (Same as above including footnotes)

NET the grave, the barren womb,
⇔ land that is not satisfied with water,
⇔ and fire that never says, “Enough!”

LSV Sheol, and a restrained womb,
Earth—it [is] not satisfied [with] water,
And fire—it has not said, “Sufficiency,”

FBV The grave, the womb that doesn't become pregnant, the earth thirsty for water, and the fire that never says, “Enough!”

T4T The place where the dead people are;
⇔ women who do not have any children;
⇔ ground that needs water/rain;
⇔ and a fire that always needs more wood.

LEB • Sheol[fn] and barrenness of womb, the land is not satisfied with water,
• and fire does not say “enough!”

30:? A term for the place where the dead reside, i.e., the Underworld

BBE The underworld, and the woman without a child; the earth which never has enough water, and the fire which never says, Enough.

Moff Death and a barren womb
⇔ Earth athirst ever for the rain,
⇔ Fire never to be satisfied.
¶ 

JPS The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not satisfied with water; and the fire that saith not: 'Enough.'

ASV Sheol; and the barren womb;
⇔ The earth that is not satisfied with water;
⇔ And the fire that saith not, Enough.

DRA Hell, and the mouth of the womb, and the earth which is not satisfied with water: and the fire never saith: It is enough.

YLT Sheol, and a restrained womb, Earth — it [is] not satisfied [with] water, And fire — it hath not said, 'Sufficiency,'

Drby — Sheol, and the barren womb; the earth which is not filled with water, and the fire which saith not, It is enough.

RV The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not satisfied with water; and the fire that saith not, Enough.
(The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not satisfied with water; and the fire that saith/says not, Enough. )

SLT Hades; and the closed womb; the earth not filled with water; and fire said not, Wealth.

Wbstr The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough.

KJB-1769 The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough.
(The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith/says not, It is enough. )

KJB-1611 The graue; and the barren wombe; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above)

Bshps The graue, the barren wombe, and the earth that hath neuer water enough: as for fire it sayth neuer hoe.
(The grave, the barren womb, and the earth that hath/has never water enough: as for fire it saith/says never hoe.)

Gnva The graue, and the barren wombe, the earth that cannot be satisfied with water, and the fire that sayeth not, It is ynough.
(The grave, and the barren womb, the earth that cannot be satisfied with water, and the fire that saith/says not, It is enough. )

Cvdl There be thre thinges that are neuer satisfied, and the fourth saieth neuer hoo. The hell, a womans wombe, and the earth hath neuer water ynough. As for fyre, it sayeth neuer: hoo.
(There be three things that are never satisfied, and the fourth saith/says never hoo. The hell, a woman’s womb, and the earth hath/has never water enough. As for fire, it saith/says never: hoo.)

Wycl helle, and the mouth of the wombe, and the erthe which is neuere fillid with water; but fier seith neuere, It suffisith.
(hell, and the mouth of the womb, and the earth which is never filled with water; but fire saith/says never, It suffisith.)

Luth die Hölle, der Frauen verschlossene Mutter, die Erde wird nicht Wassers satt, und das Feuer spricht nicht: Es ist genug.
(the hell, the/of_the women closed mother, the earth/land/ground becomes not waters full/fed_up, and the fire(n) speaks/says not: It is enough.)

ClVg Infernus, et os vulvæ, et terra quæ non satiatur aqua: ignis vero numquam dicit: Sufficit.[fn]
(Infernus, and mouth vulvæ, and earth/land which not/no satiatur water: fire indeed/however never he_says: Sufficit. )

30.16 Os vulvæ, et terra quæ non satiatur aqua, ut supra ignem, incendium gehennæ, qui nunquam desinit.

30.16 Os vulvæ, and earth/land which not/no satiatur water, as above fire, incendium hell, who/which never/certainly_not desinit.

SOTN 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 30:15b–16 Four things that are never satisfiedThe GW has the same paragraph heading.

This paragraph is a numerical proverb. A numerical proverb lists things that are similar in some way. In a numerical proverb, the second line contains a number (in this case, four) that is one greater than the parallel number (three) in the first line. This kind of proverb is always followed by a list of items that correspond to the number in the second line. The two numbers are primarily a poetic feature. They should not imply that the author is unsure of the number of items or that he changed his mind. They should also not imply that the items in the list are the only things that belong to that category. One way to avoid these wrong implications is to use a general phrase instead of the first number. For example:

There are some things that…four of them never say…This suggestion comes from UBS (page 633).

30:16

^16aSheol,

^16bthe barren womb,

^16cland never satisfied with water,

^16dand fire that never says, ‘Enough!’

30:16a

Sheol,

These are the grave/cemetery,
One of them is Sheol, the world/place of the dead.

Sheol: Sheol is the Hebrew name for the place where dead people stay. Some other ways to translate this word are:

the grave (NIV)

the world of the dead named Sheol

the world of the dead (GNT)

the cemetery (NCV)

If you use the Hebrew name Sheol by itself, as the BSB does, it is recommended that you include a footnote that explains the meaning. See the notes on 15:11a and 27:20a for more information and translation advice.

30:16b

the barren womb,

a barren woman/wife,
The second is a married woman who cannot bear a child.

the barren womb: In Hebrew, the phrase the barren womb is more literally “the closing of the womb.” It is a figure of speech in which the womb represents the woman herself. A barren woman is unable to conceive and bear children. In the context of 30:15b–c, it refers to the continual desire of a barren woman to become pregnant and give birth to children. Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

a barren woman (REB)

a childless wife (CEV)

a wife that cannot conceive a child

30:16c

land never satisfied with water,

dry ground that always needs more rain/water,
The third/next is a desert region where the rain does not suffice.

land never satisfied with water: This phrase refers to very dry ground. In the context of a country that regularly has periods of drought, it means that the land never gets enough rain. It can always absorb more water.Hubbard (page 464), Whybray (page 414). Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

a land thirsty for water (REB)

dry ground that needs rain (GNT)

a land that never gets enough water (GW)

30:16d

and fire that never says, ‘Enough!’

and fire that never says, “I have now burned/consumed enough.”
The fourth/last is a fire that always needs more fuel to keep burning.

and fire that never says, ‘Enough!’: The fire here probably refers to a cooking fire or a fire for heating a house that always needs more fuel to keep burning.UBS (page 634), Toy (page 529), Hubbard (page 464). It may also refer to a fire that does not stop burning as long as burnable material is within reach.UBS (page 634), Longman (page 529), Cohen (page 204). Either type of fire fits the context. Some other ways to translate this clause are:

and fire that never says, ‘I’ve had enough!’

and a fire burning out of control (GNT)

and a fire that is always ready for more fuel

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / genericnoun

וְ⁠עֹ֪צֶ֫ר רָ֥חַם אֶ֭רֶץ לֹא־שָׂ֣בְעָה מַּ֑יִם וְ֝⁠אֵ֗שׁ

and,barrenness_of womb earth/land not satisfied water and,fire

Here, the womb, a land, and a fire refer to these things in general, not specific things. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use more natural expressions. Alternate translation: “and the closure of any womb, any land not satisfied with water, and any fire”

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

וְ⁠עֹ֪צֶ֫ר

and,barrenness_of

Here Agur refers to a woman being unable to bear children as if her womb were closed. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “and the barrenness of”

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / synecdoche

רָ֥חַם

womb

Here, womb refers to the whole person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “a woman”

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / personification

אֶ֭רֶץ לֹא־שָׂ֣בְעָה מַּ֑יִם

earth/land not satisfied water

Here, Agur speaks of land that does not have enough water to grow crops as if it were a person who does not have enough water to drink. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “a land that never gets enough water to grow crops”

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / personification

וְ֝⁠אֵ֗שׁ לֹא־אָ֥מְרָה הֽוֹן

and,fire not says enough

Here, Agur speaks of fire requiring fuel to keep burning as if it were a person who never says Enough. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: “and a fire that never stops needing fuel to keep burning”