Proverbs 30:24

There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise:

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
four	אַרְבָּ֣עָה 'ar.Ba.'ah	H702	four · cardinal number, both genders singular absolute
little	קְטַנֵּי ke.ta.nei-	H6996	abbreviated · adjective, masculine plural construct
earth	אָ֑רֶץ 'A.retz	H776	the earth (at large · noun, common feminine singular absolute
exceeding	מְחֻכָּמִֽים me.chu.ka.Mim	H2449	to be wise (in mind · verb, pual passive participle, masculine plural absolute
wise	חֲכָמִ֥ים cha.kha.Mim	H2450	wise · adjective, masculine plural absolute

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Job 12:7 But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee:

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 30:24-28

I. Agur, having specified four things that seem great and yet are really contemptible, here specifies four things that are little and yet are very admirable, great in miniature, in which, as bishop Patrick observes, he teaches us several good lessons; as, 1. Not to admire bodily bulk, or beauty, or strength, nor to value persons or think the better of them for such advantages, but to judge of men by their wisdom and conduct, their industry and application to business, which are characters that deserve respect. 2. To admire the wisdom and power of the Creator in the smallest and most despicable animals, in an ant as much as in an elephant. 3. To blame ourselves who do not act so much for our…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 30:24

These verses provide two classes of apt illustrations of various aspects of the moral world, which the reader is left to apply. By the first (Pro 30:25-28), diligence and providence are commended; the success of these insignificant animals being due to their instinctive sagacity and activity, rather than strength. The other class (Pro 30:30-31) provides similes for whatever is majestic or comely, uniting efficiency with gracefulness.

John Gill on Proverbs 30:24

There be four things which are little upon the earth,.... Small in bulk, that have little bodies, are the lesser sort of animals; but they are exceeding wise; show a great deal of art and wisdom in what they do; or "but they are wise, made wise" (e) by the instinct of nature, by the direction of Providence, by which they do things that are surprising. Some versions, that have no regard to the points, read the words, "but their are wiser than the wise" (f); than even wise men; wise men may learn much from the least of creatures; see Job 12:7. (e) "sapientia, sapientia imbuta"; Heb. "sapientificata", Piscator, Gejerus. (f) "Sapientiora sapientibus", so Sept. V. L. Arabic and Syriac versions…

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Keil & Delitzsch

The Church Fathers

Four things are the smallest on the earth, etc. The righteous often seem smaller on the earth than the wicked, that is, humbler and more despised by this world; but yet they are wiser than the worldly-wise, in that they savor eternal and heavenly goods, and for the sake of desiring these which the others do not know, they strongly desire to endure all the adversities of the world.
— Bede, Commentary on Proverbs

I do not quote these words, however, as taking them in their literal signification, but, agreeably to the title of the book (for it is entitled "Proverbs"), I investigate them as containing a secret meaning. For it is the custom of these writers [of Scripture] to distribute into many classes those writings which express one sense when taken literally but which convey a different signification as their hidden meaning; and one of these kinds of writing is "Proverbs." … It is not, then, the visible ants which are "wiser even than the wise," but they who are indicated as such under the "proverbial" style of expression. And such must be our conclusion regarding the rest of the animal creation.
— Origen of Alexandria, AGAINST CELSUS 4:87

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Agur — Gatherer; the collector, mentioned as author of the sayings in Prov. 30. Nothing is known of him beyond what is there recorded.
Coney — (Heb. shaphan; i.e., “the hider”), an animal which inhabits the mountain gorges and the rocky districts of Arabia Petraea and the Holy Land. “The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their…
Locust, The · A small insect — A small insect
Riddle · By Agur — By Agur

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Proverbs 30:24

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 30:24-28

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 30:24

John Gill on Proverbs 30:24

Keil & Delitzsch

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Proverbs 30:24

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Proverbs 30:24-28

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Proverbs 30:24

John Gill on Proverbs 30:24

Keil & Delitzsch

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Proverbs 30:24-28

Rashi on Proverbs 30:20