“Two things I request of You (Deprive me not before I die): Remove falsehood and lies far from me; Give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with the food allotted to me; Lest I be full and deny You, and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or lest I be poor and steal, and profane the name of my God.”
Proverbs 30:7–9

Most of us have probably heard of the prayer of Jabez, but how familiar are we with the prayer of Agur? His prayer is actually the only recorded prayer in the book of Proverbs. He asked the Lord for two specific things: integrity and contentment.

Agur wanted to live a life of integrity before his God, and he characterized this life as one without falsehood and lies. The word used for falsehood means emptiness or vanity. The word for lies means falsehood or deception. These two words capture the very character of this world with all its empty promises and deceptive ways. Agur does not pray merely for help to tell the truth; he prays to be kept from the lure of everything that is false and everything that is contrary to the truth.

It has often been said, “Reputation is what people think you are; integrity is what you are when no one else is around.” This world seeks to draw our affections away from following the Lord through false promises, false hopes, and false pleasures. But the Word of Truth, the Bible, points us to the One who is the Truth—the Lord Jesus Christ. Agur did not trust himself, and he put no confidence in the flesh.

The apostle John exhorts us, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:15–17).

The apostle James also warns us, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4). David prayed, “Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things, and revive me in Your way” (Psalm 119:37). This is really the thought behind Matthew 6:13: “And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.”

Anchor For Today:
Do we have the wisdom and devotion of Agur? May we “turn our eyes upon Jesus,” and may “the things of earth grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.”