Proverbs 30:18-19

A Revolutionary War soldier named Charles Bowles became a Christian after the war and then became a prolific evangelist and church planter. On one occasion he was preparing to preach near a tavern/hotel and the landlord invited one of the guests, who was not a believer, to come hear the evangelist. He refused, saying the sermon was probably borrowed. He said he would only go if he could pick the text and give it to him at the last minute. So he went to the meeting and just before it began, he put the text on the preacher’s desk. The text was Proverbs 30:18-19. At first, Charles thought of declining, it was a new and difficult text, one which he had spent no time studying. But after being convinced by one of his friends, who was the worship leader, he decided to preach from the text. Charles then had his friend lead the people in a very long hymn, followed by a very long prayer, and finally another very long hymn. At the end of the second hymn, the text appeared clear in his mind. He spoke for a few minutes on the literal meaning, and then with spiritual applications. The man who had suggested the text was cut to the heart and received Christ. Although we do not have the text of his message, we do know that God can use any part of His word to open the heart of man.

"There are three things that are too amazing for me, four that I do not understand: the way of an eagle in the sky, the way of a snake on a rock, the way of a ship on the high seas, and the way of a man with a maiden." [Proverbs 30:18-19]

Resources on Proverbs 30:18-19
For help viewing these files, please click here

Proverbs 30:5; “Every word of God is flawless”

v. 18; There are three things that are too amazing [wonderful, extraordinary, surpassing] for me, four that I do not understand:
A. This is a Hebrew idiom that serves to give emphasis to the following statement
You can find this same idiom in Amos 1 & 2 eight times. “For three sins of Ammon, even for four, I will not turn back my wrath…” and interestingly enough, in seven of those instances, only one or two sins are covered. Now it just so happens that Agur covers 4 things, but he could have named 2 or 3 or 4 or more. What’s important is that he is giving examples that represent the “full meal deal” I’m sure God could easily have listed 4 sins of Ammon, or even 1,000, but the point is that these are examples that illustrate the principle. And the principle here is that no matter where you look you see things that are too amazing to be understood.
Notice that he covers air, land, and sea. He covers animals, man, and man-made objects.
All of creation is represented here as if to say that no matter where you look you will see things too amazing to be fully understood. There are intricacies and nuances in God’s creation such that no matter how much you study it, completely understanding it will elude you.

B. The writer, Agur, is saying that these things are too complex to fully understand.
**Principle of irreducible complexity—This brings glory to God
**Black boxes when opened reveal hundreds of more black boxes
**Same is true in outer space as it is in the cell
Jeremiah 31:37

v. 19 Introduction: Why does the author tell us about animals and ships on the sea, or a couple?
First: God’s creation brings glory to Himself and testifies to how awesome He really is. And it SCREAMS that this was all created by The Supreme Intelligent Designer, also known as JESUS! Job 12:7-8==comment on the latest UV theory on the origin of earth by evolutionists…
Second: There are specific application points for every one of these observations, i.e. Romans 15:4

v.19a; “The way of an eagle in the sky…”
Go over scientific aspect—nearly effortless movement!
** Boeing 737 had turned up wings “winglets” for fuel efficiency.
Without those thermal updrafts, the eagle couldn’t get as far, as quick and would expend a lot of energy to get very little accomplished…
God provides the eagle with the thermal updrafts…
Isaiah 40:30-31
1) Pre-salvation: I relied upon myself. I was spinning my wheels and missed out on God’s thermal updrafts.
2) Post salvation: There have been many times where I have relied upon myself to make changes that I know I need to make. Sins that I struggled with I dealt with on my own, and just spun my wheels.
3) It is easy for me to rely on myself at work.
4) Marriage; in our marriage, we have both tended to nag a bit when there is something that the other isn’t doing right or needs to change. But I have learned from Misha’s example that Proverbs 25:25 is right; “Through patience a ruler can be persuaded and a gentle tongue can break a bone.”

v.19b “The way of a snake on a rock…”
**Go over scientific aspect—many ingenious ways to move!
The snake seems to have a “tool” for every situation!
The serpent was made to crawl on its belly [Genesis 3:14]
So in the “imperfect” situation the serpent is in, it is given the ability, by God, to cope and even thrive under those circumstances. [Thriving is more than just living and existing…]
Thriving, not just surviving!

v.19c “The way of a ship on the high seas [in the middle of the sea (NASB) heart--Hebrew]…”
First time I read this in the NIV I had the idea of rough waters, but it just means that the ship is out at sea, not rowing along the shore.
Today it would be like us amazed at the way of a huge aircraft carrier at sea.
Ships at that time had sails, chain and anchor, pretty sophisticated for their time [due to friendship between Solomon and Hiram King of Tyre.
The way of a ship on the high seas:
1) A very large ship with tons of cargo stays afloat!
Surface tension of water
2) This large ship is propelled by the wind, the same wind that doesn’t knock us over when we are standing up!
3) The ships are steered by a very small rudder—James 3:4-5
4) A ship appearing on the horizon would first show its sails before its hull because the
earth is round. This is how Columbus realized that the earth is round

A rudders surface area is about 1.5% of the cross-sectional area of a slice taken lengthwise down the middle of the ship
**With the tongue we have the power to praise Jesus, tell others this lifegiving message. We can love people, bring good news and joy to their lives. We can encourage them, teach them, befriend them. With the tongue we can also hurt people, discourage them, bring disappointment and sadness into their lives. We can blaspheme God and inflict much damage to ourselves and others with our tongue.

v.19d “and the way of a man with a maiden.”
Almah = young woman, virgin, one who is ready for marriage
NASB, KJV = maid
RSV, NIV = maiden
ESV, NKJV = virgin
See Isaiah 7:14—A female pediatrician with Jews for Jesus said, “As a pediatrician I can tell you that it is not much of a sign from God to see a young woman pregnant!”

Betula- virgin. One who is still under the authority of her father and has had no intimacy
Issa=woman or wife
Nara= girl, age between child and young adult, is not available for marriage
Almah=scholars contend that this word primarily pertains to age, not sexual experience. A woman of marriageable age or is a newlywed, but usually before the first child.
--is the feminine form of ‘elem’ which means ‘young man’
“The way of a man with a maiden”
1) Men and women are different; there is such a thing as masculinity and femininity. Before I knew Christ I still recognized when a woman was a woman [describe when I met Misha]
2) The relationship is unique and different from all other relationships. It is not:
a) boss/subordinate relationship
b) parent/child relationship
c) friend/friend relationship
d) brother/sister relationship
Proverbs 18:22; “He who finds a wife, finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD”
All of these are wonderful, but the first relationship between humans that God created was “The way of a man with a maiden”
3) If you can see God in the eagle, the snake, and the sea, then how much more can we see Him in His image bearers!!!!
4) The relationship is an image of the relationship between Christ and the church
This is a picture of a relationship working the way it is supposed to work…at manufacturer’s specifications.

Site Map | Home
Family Adventures | Bible Lessons | God Bless America! | Homeschooling
Famous Quotes | Science | Holiday Resources

2004 EadsHome Ministries
All materials produced by EadsHome Ministries are free for your use as long as a profit is not made.
Materials copyrighted to others are specifically noted and linked.