Do your work before the appointed time, and in God’s time he will give you your reward: God’s time is literally “his time,” but Revised Standard Version spells out the pronoun for clarity. It would be better to say “the Lord’s time” since ben Sira prefers “the Lord” rather than “God”. Good News Translation offers a possible, and appealing, interpretation of this verse. The Handbook, however, prefers to interpret this verse in light of 18.20. It means “Do what you must do [to get wisdom] before the time comes when the Lord judges you, and the Lord, at that time, will reward you.” This is not speaking of a final judgment in the life to come, but of God passing judgment on our actions here and now. Perhaps we could translate:

• Work to get wisdom while there is still time, and you will get your reward at the right time. The Lord will make sure that you do.

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.