The experience of death touched also the righteous may be rendered “Death also came to the righteous nation” (Good News Translation) or even “Your chosen people also died.”

And a plague came upon the multitude in the desert: The word translated plague is not the usual word. It literally means “smashing,” but could be translated “epidemic” (Good News Translation), “terrible disease” (Contemporary English Version), or even “mass slaughter” (Winston; according to Num 16.49 there were 14,700 who died).

But the wrath did not long continue: The wrath refers to God’s anger in punishing them, but it is interesting that it is not described as “your wrath,” as in 16.5. Revised Standard Version translates wrath in this verse, and also in verses 22, 23, and 25; it has “anger” in verse 21. Three different Greek nouns are used for this concept of wrath/anger (the same one is used in verses 20, 23, and 25), and none of them is said to be “your wrath.” The author is dissociating the manifestation of God’s anger from God himself, and speaking of a “punisher” (verse 22) or “destroyer” (verse 25). We are impressed by New Jerusalem Bible, which translates these words “Retribution,” with capital R (in verse 22 it is “Hostility”). It is an attempt to personalize the wrath as an entity separate from God, as the author is picturing it. This device may be too subtle for most translations, but we would suggest using “disaster” or something similar, rather than referring to “your anger” as Good News Translation does. The writer does seem to be trying deliberately not to say that.

Possible models for this verse are:

• The righteous nation [or, Your chosen people] also had an experience with death when large numbers of them were struck down by an epidemic in the desert. But this disaster did not last long.

• Your chosen people also came face-to-face with [or, confronted] death when a terrible disease killed many of them in the desert. But this….

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Wisdom of Solomon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2004. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.