Do not revel in great luxury: Revel means “to take pleasure in.” For the whole line An American Translation translates “Do not indulge in too much luxury.” That is a good translation, and a good model. As 14.14 indicates, ben Sira would not consider luxury in itself bad; we are entitled to enjoy it—but not when pursuing it becomes dangerous, when it becomes “too much.”

Lest you become impoverished by its expense: There are four words in the Greek clause here, and three of them are problematic, resulting in some astounding differences in translation. Only the pronoun its is clear; it refers back to luxury. The problems are: (1) This line does not have to be interpreted as a result clause. The first word in Greek may be interpreted as introducing such a clause, but it may also introduce an independent clause parallel to the first line, so it may be rendered “Do not become impoverished….” (2) The Greek verb rendered become impoverished can be read as a form of a different verb, in which case the meaning would be “be/become tied.” (3) The Greek noun translated expense is splendidly ambiguous (its literal meaning is “a meeting, a coming together”). While most translate it along the lines of Revised Standard Version, La Bible Pléiade renders it “contract,” which is possible, and New Jerusalem Bible translates “society” (“do not get involved in such society”), which is also possible. We recommend (1) understanding the line as a result clause (although taking it as an independent clause does not significantly change the meaning); (2) interpreting the verb as a form meaning “be tied”; and (3) understanding the noun to mean “the demands of expensive living.” (Yes, this too is possible.) Possible models for the verse are:

• Do not indulge in too much luxury. If you do, you will become a prisoner to the financial demands [or, expenses] involved.

• … If you do, you might have to spend so much money that you will be unable to live like that.

The Hebrew text of this verse exists, but unfortunately, it is just as problematic as the Greek. It seems to say “Do not rejoice in a little pleasure that will produce twice as much poverty.”

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Sirach. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.