Let us take our fill of costly wine and perfumes: The problem in this line is finding the right verb or verbs to go with wine and perfumes. Take our fill can go with wine, but hardly with perfumes, in spite of several English translations. Good News Translation uses two verbs, which are both obvious choices, and most translators will find this the proper course. Technically, costly goes only with wine, not with perfumes, but Good News Translation is not wrong in applying it to both (“most expensive wines and … finest perfumes”); this is clearly implied. Wine is an alcoholic drink made by fermenting grape juice. If wine is not known, translators can use a local alcoholic beverage, such as “palm wine,” or a descriptive phrase, such as “fermented fruit juice.” Perfumes could refer to sweet-smelling cosmetic oils as well as to sweet-scented substances used only in small amounts for the fragrance alone.

And let no flower of spring pass by us: This line and the next verse have the purpose of expressing an invitation to carefree living, unburdened by ethical concerns. Flowers and “rosebuds” (verse 8) are used as metaphors, so translators are free to be creative in conveying the idea underlying them. Probably this line is a figurative reference to youth, as in the previous verse. In this case, the meaning would be “let us take full advantage of our youth” or “While we are young, let’s enjoy life to the fullest.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Wisdom of Solomon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2004. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.