With thee is wisdom, who knows thy works: Here, and through verse 11, Wisdom is personified, that is, referred to as a (female) person. The picture is of Wisdom living with God, and translators may say “Wisdom lives with you….” In languages where it will be difficult to personify Wisdom, translators may include a footnote explaining to readers that the author is personifying Wisdom as a female. Then, if possible, the term Wisdom should be capitalized. Thy works refers primarily to God’s creation, not to his actions in history, as Good News Translation might suggest. We suggest that this line be combined with the following one (see the model below).

And was present when thou didst make the world may be rendered “She was present when you made the world.” The first two lines may be combined as suggested above: “Wisdom was with you when you created the world, and she is familiar with [or, she knows] all you made.”

And who understands what is pleasing in thy sight and what is right according to thy commandments: Wisdom not only understands the world and how it works, but knows God’s will for human conduct. Someone who is wise is therefore in a better position to know God’s will. These lines will be best dealt with as a separate sentence. Contemporary English Version has a helpful model: “Wisdom knows what pleases you, and she knows what is right according to your commands.” But we may also translate “… and she knows how to follow your commands correctly.”

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.