But understanding is gray hair for men, and a blameless life is ripe old age: The two lines are parallel; gray hair and old age have the same meaning.

Revised English Bible does well with verses 8-9, although the level of language is quite high: “It is not length of life and number of years which bring the honour due to age; if people have understanding, they have grey hairs enough, and an unblemished life is the true ripeness of age.” Good News Translation is good in both verses, but there is no satisfactory connection between the verses. The following is a possible approach to verses 7-9. Verses 8-9 are placed in parentheses, since they somewhat interrupt the flow between verse 7 and verse 10:

• Righteous people, however, will rest in peace, even if they die before reaching old age. (We show respect for old people, but not just because they have lived so long. We are really honoring the wisdom and righteousness [or, goodness] that we associate with old age. Anyone who is wise and righteous [or, good] should receive the same kind of respect.)

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.