Amsal 4:19

4:19 The way of the wicked is like gloomy darkness; ¹ 

they do not know what causes them to stumble. ² 

Amsal 8:9

8:9 All of them are clear ³  to the discerning

and upright to those who find knowledge.

Amsal 30:3

30:3 I have not learned wisdom,

nor do I have knowledge ⁴  of the Holy One. ⁵ 

[4:19]  ¹ sn The simile describes ignorance or spiritual blindness, sinfulness, calamity, despair.

[4:19]  ² tn Heb “in what they stumble.”

[8:9]  ³ tn Heb “front of.” Describing the sayings as “right in front” means they are open, obvious, and clear, as opposed to words that might be twisted or perverse. The parallel word “upright” means “straight, smooth, right.” Wisdom’s teachings are in plain view and intelligible for those who find knowledge.

[30:3]  ⁴ sn The construction uses repetition to make the point emphatically: “I do not know the knowledge of the Holy One.” Agur’s claim to being “brutish” is here clarified – he is not one of those who has knowledge or understanding of God. C. H. Toy thinks the speaker is being sarcastic in reference to others who may have claimed such knowledge (Proverbs [ICC], 521).

[30:3]  ⁵ tn The epithet “the Holy One” is the adjective “holy” put in the masculine plural (as in 9:10). This will harmonize with the plural of majesty used to explain the plural with titles for God. However, NRSV takes the plural as a reference to the “holy ones,” presumably referring to angelic beings.