This chapter was written by a man named Agur to friends Ithiel and Ucal. Where Solomon found this for his collection is a mystery. I think he (Agur) may have been the Rodney Dangerfield of his day. Rodney Dangerfield was a popular comedian who died in 2004. He once said his family was so poor when he was growing up that when he went to school, he couldn’t even pay attention.
Agur starts by saying, “I am tired out, O God, and ready to die. I am too stupid even to call myself a human being.” Here is a man who is willing to admit his ignorance. “I cannot understand man, let alone God. Who else but God goes back and forth to heaven? Who else holds the wind in his fists and wraps up the oceans in his cloak? Who but God created the world?” (Verses 2-4).
Solomon may have felt this way as he grew older. Maybe that is the reason he wound up worshipping the gods of his pagan wives: read 1 Kings 11:1-8. There is a great deal of difference between having great wisdom, knowledge, money, and understanding your purpose in life. Solomon had all the things in life one could ask for yet felt empty inside. Things don’t give us purpose. Solomon built a beautiful temple for God, built palaces, but always wondered what he was missing.
Agur continued in verses 5 and 6. “Every word of God proves true. He defends all who come to Him for protection. Do not add to His words, lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.” Remember, in his day, Agur had very little of the Bible as we know it today. Probably all he heard was the scriptures read at the synagogue on Saturday.
Finally, Agur wrote many observations about life, and some of them are funny. He must have lived a long life because young men usually don’t have time to contemplate these things.