As a thirsty wayfarer opens his mouth and drinks from any water near him: Ben Sira lived in a relatively dry climate, and desert areas were not far away, areas where water was scarce. A traveler who gets thirsty in such an area will drink any water available, and do so eagerly. New English Bible translates “As a parched traveller with his tongue hanging out drinks from any spring that offers.” Contemporary English Version has “just as thirsty travelers will drink any water they can find.”

So she will sit in front of every post and open her quiver to the arrow: Post is more accurately translated “tent peg” (New Revised Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible). A quiver is a container for arrows, usually carried on the back of a hunter or soldier in such a way that an arrow could easily be drawn out by hand. The two lines here are parallel; the post and the arrow represent the penis, and the quiver is the vagina. There is no nice way of translating this; ben Sira is being crude. Good News Translation combines the two lines into one: “She’ll spread her legs anywhere for any man who wants her.” Saying “anywhere” and “any man” conveys something of the effect of the two parallel lines. The English expression “spread her legs” is crude enough to cause offense, but it is not actually obscene; this is probably the effect the translator should strive for. New English Bible translates these lines as “she will open her arms to every embrace, and her quiver to the arrow.” In spite of the fact that we are not talking about “arms” here, this prepares the reader to understand the literal translation of the last line. Ben Sira is saying that this impudent girl not only will “spread her legs” for any man that comes along, but will do so as eagerly as a thirsty traveler throws himself down to a source of water in the desert. However, translators must be careful not to offend their readers. If a rendering such as “spread her legs” will be offensive, we may say “she will try to have sex with every man she sees” or “she will try to live with [or, be with] ….” Or it may be necessary to use euphemisms (roundabout ways of saying something) that are the equivalents of post, quiver, and arrow. One possibility is:

• She’ll go to bed with any man and give herself to any man who wants her.

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.