Good News Translation rearranges these lines so that the references to the unborn child are in a more logical order; its arrangement is verses 1a, 1b, 2b, 2a, and 1c. We recommend this rearrangement, and the discussion below will discuss the lines in that order. However, we recognize that some translators may choose another arrangement.

I also am mortal, like all men: This brief statement is the theme of the section. The author knew that in ancient days the kings of Egypt were thought of as gods. So he has Solomon begin by stating that even he, the wisest of all kings, is mortal. Mortal may also be expressed as “destined to die” or “will eventually die.” Men refers to all human beings, so we may say “Like every human being, I am mortal” (Good News Translation) or “Like everyone else, I am destined to die” (Contemporary English Version).

A descendant of the first-formed child of the earth is literally “a descendant of one born of earth, first to be shaped.” The reference, of course, is to Adam (Gen 2.7). Kings, like all other human beings, are descendants of Adam. By joining first-formed to of the earth, Good News Translation does well, but “made” could be more precise as “shaped”; for example, “I too am a descendant of that first man who was shaped from the soil” or “… whom God shaped from the soil.”

From the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage: The leading verb here is I was molded in verse 1c. Good News Translation “I was conceived” refers to the beginning of life in the womb. Seed of a man refers to a man’s sperm. The pleasure of marriage (literally “the pleasure joined with sleep”) refers to sexual intercourse. One way to approach this line would be “My life began with my father’s sperm, released in the pleasure [or, ecstasy] of intercourse.” However, some translators may need to use euphemisms (roundabout ways of referring to sensitive subjects) here, rather than speaking so directly about sexual intercourse; for example, “father’s seed” instead of “father’s sperm.”

Within the period of ten months, compacted with blood: In speaking of ten months, the author is giving a period of time based on the shorter lunar month of 28 days. It is quite proper to translate this as “nine months,” as in Good News Translation. Compacted with blood refers to the body of the embryo beginning to take solid form. Compare Job 10.10-11.

And in the womb of a mother I was molded into flesh: This is a general statement that is expressed in more detail in the two lines of verse 2. Possible models for this line and the previous one are “For nine [or, ten] months I was growing in the womb of…” and “… I developed into flesh from….”

An alternative model for verses 1-2 is:

• Like every human being, I am destined to die [or, will die]. I too am a descendant of that first man whom God shaped from the soil. My life began with my father’s sperm, released in the pleasure [or, ecstasy] of intercourse. In nine [or, ten] months’ time, I developed into flesh from the blood in my mother’s womb.

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.