Who are you, that have put God to the test: You in this verse is plural. The question Who are you is an accusation. Judith is speaking much the way that God speaks to Job in Job 38. Contemporary English Version uses a strong statement: “You have no right to test God like that.” Put God to the test refers to setting up conditions under which God must act. The town elders have decided to surrender if God does not deliver them within five days (7.30-31). This is “testing” God, seeing if he will do what they want him to do; see Deut 6.16; Matt 4.5-7.

Setting yourselves up in the place of God among the sons of men: As the Revised Standard Version note reads, in the place of God can be interpreted “above God,” but Revised Standard Version is correct; Good News Translation agrees. Among the sons of men means “among human beings.” Good News Translation expresses the idea with “in dealing with human affairs.” Contemporary English Version brings out the meaning clearly for this clause with “you certainly have no business trying to control the lives of people. God is in control of that.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Judith. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.