All these were created for the wicked, and on their account the flood came: The Handbook suggests following Revised Standard Version and the Greek text here, rather than Good News Translation and the Hebrew. Good News Translation‘s footnote rendering of the Greek is not well done. The wicked did not cause the flood; the flood came about because of them. The reference, of course, is to the great flood of Gen 6–8. We could translate this verse as follows:

• The Lord created these things for [or, to punish] the wicked; he sent the flood because of them.

In such a translation it must be clear that “them” refers to “the wicked” and not to “these things.”

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.