The third order, they see the witness which he who formed them bears concerning them, that while they were alive they kept the law which was given them in trust: Like a student who gets a good grade on a paper or test, the righteous learn that God their maker has given them a good “grade,” that God approves of the way they lived. Given them in trust may be rendered “that God entrusted to them.” Here is an alternative model for this verse:

• Third [or, In the third stage], they learn what their maker [or, God, who made them] has to say about them and about how, as long as they lived, they obeyed the Law that God entrusted to them.

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.