15 The leech has two daughters,
“Give,” “Give.”
There are three things that will not be satisfied,
Four that will not say, “Enough”:
16 [h]Sheol, and the barren womb,
Earth that is never satisfied with water,
And fire that never says, “Enough.”
17 The eye that mocks a father
And [i]scorns a mother,
The ravens of the valley will pick it out,
And the young eagles will eat it.18 There are three things which are too wonderful for me,
Four which I do not understand:
19 The way of an eagle in the sky,
The way of a serpent on a rock,
The way of a ship in the middle of the sea,
And the way of a man with a maid.
20 This is the way of an adulterous woman:
She eats and wipes her mouth,
And says, “I have done no wrong.”
This passage echoes similar statements from earlier verses, but with new analogies. We see multiple things that cannot be satiated, and then Agur seems to go off on a tangent. Perhaps it is just that, but there seem to be some connections nonetheless.
Starting with the insatiable, the implication becomes clearer in v. 17. Especially if we look back at “the kind of man who curses his father…”, we see that malcontent will drive us to despicable deeds. It doesn’t seem so bad at first. After all, shouldn’t we always strive to be better? Sure, so what is the difference, what drives someone from ambition to tread where one should not?
Let’s take a sidetrack, and look at vv. 18-19. Agur states that there are things too wonderful to comprehend, and while we may know some of these things (or think we do), taking a ship out to sea is still fraught with unknowns. Were it not, shipwrecks would be a thing of the past. Even then, we strive for more, we attempt to explain it all.
If we are not careful (and some have gone far afield), we get to a place where everything must be understood, or we cannot accept it. Yet, can we explain the rational mind? How did we come by it? Surely there must be some scientific explanation. What about the miracle of conception (v. 19), certainly we ought to be able to understand how two cells create a new being, and how the organs and limbs are formed.
But no, there is no solving some mysteries, at least not without faith. Behind each pursuit, there is a motive. Are we doing it for God, or for ourselves? Is it to improve the lives of others, or so we can obtain a hefty paycheck for our amazing discoveries?
In all things, we should seek to have God’s heart, to serve others rather than ourselves. Selfish ambition is a dangerous thing, and even “secular” markets will not reward those who fail to serve well. Find contentment and joy in what God has asked you to do, no matter how low or lofty it might seem. We can not (and dare not) improve upon the best designs of God, His calling is a “high calling” regardless of the details.