The Meaning of Proverbs 30:4 Explained

Proverbs 30:4

KJV: Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou canst tell?

YLT: Who went up to heaven, and cometh down? Who hath gathered the wind in his fists? Who hath bound waters in a garment? Who established all ends of the earth? What is His name? and what His son's name? Surely thou knowest!

Darby: Who hath ascended up into the heavens, and descended? Who hath gathered the wind in his fists? Who hath bound the waters in a mantle? Who hath established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou knowest?

ASV: Who hath ascended up into heaven, and descended? Who hath gathered the wind in his fists? Who hath bound the waters in his garment? Who hath established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou knowest?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Who hath ascended up  into heaven,  or descended?  who hath gathered  the wind  in his fists?  who hath bound  the waters  in a garment?  who hath established  all the ends  of the earth?  what [is] his name,  and what [is] his son's  name,  if thou canst tell? 

What does Proverbs 30:4 Mean?

Context Summary

Proverbs 30:1-17 - The Advice Of A Shrewd Observer
This chapter contains a collection of sayings of one person, Agur, of whom we know nothing further. It is supposed that he lived after the return from the Exile. The opening verses of the chapter may be thus rendered: "The utterance of the man who has questioned and thought." I have wearied after God, I have wearied after God, and am faint; for I am too stupid for a man, and am without reason, and I have not learned wisdom, nor have I knowledge of the All-Holy."
Agur answers his complaint in Proverbs 30:5-9. You cannot know God by your own discovery, but He will make Himself known to you through the written Word, to which no addition may be made, Proverbs 30:6. See also John 1:18, which shows our clearest revelation of Him. But there are two conditions: We must put away vanity and lies; and we must be satisfied with God's arrangement of our daily food. Notice the following quatrain, Proverbs 30:11-14, which is descriptive of four kinds of evil men: the unfilial, the self-righteous, the haughty, and the rapacious. The next quatrain, Proverbs 30:15-16, treats of "the insatiable;" and this is followed by a further description of the doom of the disobedient: strong, wise, shrewd, and sanctified sense. [source]

Chapter Summary: Proverbs 30

1  Agur's confession of his faith
7  The two points of his prayer
10  The meanest are not to be wronged
11  Four wicked generations
15  Four things insatiable
24  four things exceeding wise
29  Four things stately
32  Wrath is to be prevented

What do the individual words in Proverbs 30:4 mean?

Who has ascended into heaven or descended has gathered the wind in His fists has bound the waters in a garment has established all the ends of the earth what [is] His name and what [is] name His Son's if you know
מִ֤י עָלָֽה־ שָׁמַ֨יִם ׀ ؟ וַיֵּרַ֡ד אָֽסַף־ ר֨וּחַ ׀ ؟ בְּחָפְנָ֡יו צָֽרַר־ מַ֨יִם ׀ ؟ בַּשִּׂמְלָ֗ה הֵקִ֣ים כָּל־ אַפְסֵי־ ؟ אָ֑רֶץ מַה־ שְּׁמ֥וֹ וּמַֽה־ שֶּׁם־ בְּ֝נ֗וֹ כִּ֣י ؟ תֵדָֽע

עָלָֽה־  has  ascended 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: סָלַק 
Sense: to go up, ascend, climb.
שָׁמַ֨יִם ׀  into  heaven 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: שָׁמַיִם  
Sense: heaven, heavens, sky.
؟ וַיֵּרַ֡ד  or  descended 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יָרַד  
Sense: to go down, descend, decline, march down, sink down.
אָֽסַף־  has  gathered 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָסַף 
Sense: to gather, receive, remove, gather in.
ר֨וּחַ ׀  the  wind 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: רוּחַ  
Sense: wind, breath, mind, spirit.
؟ בְּחָפְנָ֡יו  in  His  fists 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, mdc, third person masculine singular
Root: חֹפֶן  
Sense: handfuls, hollow of the hand.
צָֽרַר־  has  bound 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: צָרַר 
Sense: to bind, be narrow, be in distress, make narrow, cause distress, besiege, be straitened, be bound.
מַ֨יִם ׀  the  waters 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: מַיִם  
Sense: water, waters.
؟ בַּשִּׂמְלָ֗ה  in  a  garment 
Parse: Preposition-b, Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: שִׂמְלָה  
Sense: wrapper, mantle, covering garment, garments, clothes, raiment, a cloth.
הֵקִ֣ים  has  established 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: קוּם 
Sense: to rise, arise, stand, rise up, stand up.
אַפְסֵי־  the  ends 
Parse: Adverb
Root: אֶפֶס 
Sense: ceasing, end, finality.
؟ אָ֑רֶץ  of  the  earth 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֶרֶץ  
Sense: land, earth.
מַה־  what  [is] 
Parse: Interrogative
Root: לָמָּה 
Sense: what, how, of what kind.
שְּׁמ֥וֹ  His  name 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: שֵׁם  
Sense: name.
וּמַֽה־  and  what  [is] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Interrogative
Root: לָמָּה 
Sense: what, how, of what kind.
שֶּׁם־  name 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: שֵׁם  
Sense: name.
בְּ֝נ֗וֹ  His  Son's 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
؟ תֵדָֽע  you  know 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, second person masculine singular
Root: דָּעָה 
Sense: to know.