The eye marvels at the beauty of its whiteness: Good News Translation says “We marvel” rather than The eye marvels. This is a bit easier. In this line The eye marvels is parallel to the mind is amazed in the next line, and Good News Translation will make a similar shift there. For at the beauty of its whiteness, we could say “at how beautiful and white it is.”

And the mind is amazed at its falling: Here Good News Translation offers a rewording that well describes what the Greek means. To say that the mind is amazed is to say that we are fascinated (not surprised) to watch snow fall. An alternative model for this line is “and we are fascinated as we watch it fall.”

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.