Proverbs 30:2

Proverbs 30:2 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Surely I am more brutish than any man, and have not the understanding of a man.
• New International Version (NIV)Surely I am only a brute, not a man; I do not have human understanding.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Surely I am too stupid to be a man. I have not the understanding of a man.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Surely I am more stupid than any man, And do not have the understanding of a man.

Context of Proverbs 30:2

1The words of Agur, son of Jakeh. Agur’s prophetic revelation. This man’s declaration: “I’m weary, O God. I’m weary and worn out, O God. I’m more ⌞like⌟ a dumb animal than a human being. I don’t ⌞even⌟ have human understanding. 3I haven’t learned wisdom. I don’t have knowledge of the Holy One. 4“Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Who has gathered the wind in the palm of his hand? Who has wrapped water in a garment? Who has set up the earth from one end to the other? What is his name or the name of his son? Certainly, you must know!

Proverbs 30:2 word by word

כִּ֤י בַ֣עַר אָנֹכִ֣י מֵאִ֑ישׁ וְלֹֽא־בִינַ֖ת אָדָ֣ם לִֽי׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• more brutishבַּ֫עַרba‛ar · stupidH1198
• manאִישׁ'îysh · man: anyoneH376
• and have not the understandingבִּינָהbîynâh · understandingH998
• of a manאָדָם'âdâm · manH120

Cross-references for Proverbs 30:2

• Job 42:3“⌞You said,⌟ ‘Who is this that belittles my advice without having any knowledge ⌞about it⌟?’ Yes, I have stated things I didn’t understand, things too mysterious for me to know.
• Psalms 73:22I was stupid, and I did not understand. I was like a dumb animal in your presence.
• Isaiah 6:5So I said, “Oh, no! I’m doomed. Every word that passes through my lips is sinful. I live among people with sinful lips. I have seen the king, the Lord of Armies!”
• Romans 11:25Brothers and sisters, I want you to understand this mystery so that you won’t become arrogant. The minds of some Israelites have become closed until all of God’s non-Jewish people are included.
• 1 Corinthians 3:18Don’t deceive yourselves. If any of you think you are wise in the ways of this world, you should give up that wisdom in order to become really wise.
• 1 Corinthians 8:2Those who think they know something still have a lot to learn.
• James 1:5If any of you needs wisdom to know what you should do, you should ask God, and he will give it to you. God is generous to everyone and doesn’t find fault with them.
• Proverbs 5:12“Oh, how I hated discipline! How my heart despised correction!
• Psalms 92:6A stupid person cannot know and a fool cannot understand
• Jeremiah 10:14Everyone is stupid and ignorant. Metalsmiths are put to shame by their idols. Their statues are false ⌞gods⌟. They can’t breathe.
• 2 Peter 2:12These false teachers insult what they don’t understand. They are like animals, which are creatures of instinct that are born to be caught and killed. So they will be destroyed like animals

Commentaries on Proverbs 30:2

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2Surely I am more brutish - These words can in no sense, nor by any mode of speech, be true of Solomon: for while he was the wisest of men, he could not have said that he was more brutish than any man, and had not the understanding of a man. It is saying nothing to the purpose, to say he was so independently of the Divine teaching. Had he put this in, even by innuendo, it might be legitimate: but he does not; nor is it by fair implication to be understood…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2A confession of ignorance, with which compare the saying of Socrates that he was wise only so far as he knew that he knew nothing, or that of Asaph Psalm 73:22.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-3Agur admits he does not know everything (compare Psalm 73:22, where the psalmist calls himself senseless). The first step toward wisdom is admitting our ignorance.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2-42-4. brutish--stupid, a strong term to denote his lowly self-estimation; or he may speak of such as his natural condition, as contrasted with God's all-seeing comprehensive knowledge and almighty power. The questions of this clause emphatically deny the attributes mentioned to be those of any creature, thus impressively strengthening the implied reference of the former to God (compare De 30:12-14; Is 40:12; Ep 4:8).Read the comment

Topics related to Proverbs 30:2

• Humility

In the dictionaries

• Agur
• Convenient
• Folk
• Food
• Brute; Brutish
• God
• Massa
• Proverbs, the Book of
• Zoology

Commentaries on Proverbs 30

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings