How attractive is wisdom in the aged, and understanding and counsel in honorable men!: This verse is closely parallel with verse 4, and if the translator can preserve the similarity, it would be good. Good News Translation does not try, and suffers for it. “Appropriate” is not a good translation of the Greek adjective for attractive. For the whole verse we could say (following after the suggested model for verse 4 above):

• It is a splendid thing when people who are old and respected show wisdom and insight, and can give good advice.

If this model repeats verse 4 too much for another language, a translator could try combining the two verses in some such way as this:

• When respected people, old enough to have gray hair, show wisdom, insight, and sound judgment, it is splendid.

The Handbook is not recommending this, but offers it as an option when it proves difficult to translate verse 5 without it sounding like a repetition of verse 4.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Sirach. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.