Proverbs 30:15

Proverbs 30:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough:
• New International Version (NIV)“The leech has two daughters. ‘Give! Give!’ they cry. “There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, ‘Enough!’:
• English Standard Version (ESV)The leech has two daughters: Give and Give. Three things are never satisfied; four never say, "Enough":
• New King James Version (NKJV)The leech has two daughters— Give and Give! There are three things that are never satisfied, Four never say, “Enough!”:

Context of Proverbs 30:15

13There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! and their eyelids are lifted up. 14There is a generation, whose teeth are as swords, and their jaw teeth as knives, to devour the poor from off the earth, and the needy from among men. The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough: 16The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough. 17The eye that mocketh at his father, and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, and the young eagles shall eat it.

Proverbs 30:15 word by word

לַֽעֲלוּקָ֨ה׀ שְׁתֵּ֥י בָנוֹת֮ הַ֤ב׀ הַ֥ב שָׁל֣וֹשׁ הֵ֭נָּה לֹ֣א תִשְׂבַּ֑עְנָה אַ֝רְבַּ֗ע לֹא־אָ֥מְרוּ הֽוֹן׃Read the interlinear

• The horseleachעֲלוּקָה‛ălûqâh · leechH5936
• hath twoשְׁנַ֫יִםshenayim shettayim · twoH8147
• daughtersבַּתbath · daughterH1323
• Giveיָהַבyâhab · to giveH3051
• There are threeשָׁלֹשׁshâlôsh shâlôsh shelôshâh shelôshâh · threeH7969
• are never satisfiedשָׂבֵעַώâba‛ ώâbêa‛ · to satisfyH7646
• fourאַרְבַּע'arba‛ 'arbâ‛âh · fourH702
• sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• enoughהוֹןhôn · substanceH1952

Cross-references for Proverbs 30:15

• Isaiah 57:3But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore.
• Ezekiel 16:44Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying, As is the mother, so is her daughter.
• Matthew 23:32Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
• John 8:39They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham’s children, ye would do the works of Abraham.
• Isaiah 56:11Yea, they are greedy dogs which can never have enough, and they are shepherds that cannot understand: they all look to their own way, every one for his gain, from his quarter.
• Hosea 4:18Their drink is sour: they have committed whoredom continually: her rulers with shame do love, Give ye.
• Micah 7:3That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up.
• Romans 16:18For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.
• 2 Peter 2:3And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.
• Jude 1:11Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Korah.
• Proverbs 30:21For three things the earth is disquieted, and for four which it cannot bear:
• Proverbs 6:16These six things doth Yhwh hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
• Amos 1:3Thus saith Yhwh; For three transgressions of Damascus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they have threshed Gilead with threshing instruments of iron:
• Amos 2:1Thus saith Yhwh; For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because he burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime:

Commentaries on Proverbs 30:15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15The horseleech hath two daughters, crying, Give, give - "This horseleech," says Calmet, "is Covetousness, and her two daughters are Avarice and Ambition. They never say, It is enough; they are never satisfied; they are never contented." Many explanations have been given of this verse; but as all the versions agree in render ing עלוקה alukah the horseleech or blood-sucker, the general meaning collected has been, "There are persons so excessively covetous…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15Note the numeration mounting to a climax, the two, the three, the four (Amos 1:3 etc.). The word rendered “horseleach” is found nowhere else, and its etymology is doubtful; but there are good grounds for taking the word in its literal sense, as giving an example, in the natural world, of the insatiable greed of which the next verse gives other instances. Its voracious appetite is here represented, to express its intensity, as two daughters, uttering the…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-17Verses 15-17 Cruelty and covetousness are two daughters of the horseleech, that still cry, "Give, give," and they are continually uneasy to themselves. Four things never are satisfied, to which these devourers are compared. Those are never rich that are always coveting. And many who have come to a bad end, have owned that their wicked courses began by despising their parents' authority.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15-16The number parallelism (three...four) is a method to list poetic examples. This list shows powers that are never satisfied and often dangerous. See also Proverbs 30:18–19, 21–23, 29–31. The grave, representing death, never seems to have enough—people keep dying (Proverbs 27:20). barren womb: Women unable to have children often long for them, like Sarah before Isaac, Rebekah before Esau and Jacob, and Hannah before Samuel. The thirsty desert and a fire…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 15-1615-16. horse leech--supposed by some to be the vampire (a fabulous creature), as being literally insatiable; but the other subjects mentioned must be taken as this, comparatively insatiable. The use of a fabulous creature agreeably to popular notions is not inconsistent with inspiration. There are three ... yea, four--(Compare Pr 6:16).Read the comment

Topics related to Proverbs 30:15

• Horse-Leech
• Riddle

In the dictionaries

• Agur
• Convenient
• Folk
• Food
• Hell
• Horseleech
• Four
• Horseleach
• Massa
• Night-Monster

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