Let the farmers that till the ground mourn: Good News Bible omits the expression that till the ground since that is what farmers, by definition, do. Translators may include it or not. However, it will be helpful to add the word “there” or the phrase “in Egypt” to make it clear that God is still speaking only about Egypt; for example, this clause may be rendered “The farmers there [or, in Egypt] will mourn.”

Because their seed shall fail means that the seed which the farmers sow will not sprout (so Good News Bible).

And their trees shall be ruined by blight and hail and by a terrible tempest: Blight is a disease that comes on plants. Their trees shall be ruined by blight may be translated “their trees will die from disease” or “disease will kill their trees.” For hail destroying trees, compare Exo 9.25. The translation a terrible tempest (Good News Bible “terrible storms”) is very hard to justify. The Latin text is literally “a terrible star [or, constellation].” The Latin word for “star/constellation” (sidus) has only the loosest connection with the weather; people may have believed that an alignment of stars or planets may have influenced the weather. We suspect that the meaning here is astrological: one of the disasters that will strike the Egyptians is that the stars or planets will be positioned for them in such a way as to bring calamity and bad luck. The problem is that the text says “a terrible star” will destroy the trees. Perhaps this idea relates to the traditions of farmers all over the world, that seed should be planted and crops attended to at certain times that are determined by the phases of the moon or the stars. So a terrible tempest is better rendered “a terrible fate.”

An alternative model for this verse is:

• The farmers [who work the ground] in that land will mourn, because their seed will not sprout, and their trees will die from disease and be beaten down by hail. Their fate will be terrible.*
* The Latin of this sentence is not clear.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Esdras. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2019. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.