For thy sustenance manifested thy sweetness toward thy children: The connector For may be omitted (see Good News Translation). Sustenance refers to the manna. There is an implied comparison here between the sweet taste of manna and God’s sweet treatment of his people. In modern English we would not ordinarily describe God as “sweet”; that term conveys a sense of overindulgence. Good News Translation attempts to make the point by saying “All this showed how lovingly you care for your children.” A better rendering may be “The food you provided showed how lovingly…” or even “Your care for your children was as sweet as this food.”

And the bread, ministering to the desire of the one who took it, was changed to suit every one’s liking: Bread is not in the Greek text (this is what the Revised Standard Version footnote is pointing out); the reference is to the sustenance, and thus again to the manna. Good News Translation does well, but following the model suggested for the line above, in which “The food” was subject, translators could begin this sentence simply with “It satisfied….”

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.