While I was talking to her, behold …: Here the word behold introduces something surprising in the vision (compare the comments on 2 Esd 6.18). Good News Bible omits this word, but it may be kept by saying “I saw to my surprise.”

Her face suddenly shone exceedingly, and her countenance flashed like lightning: Compare Exo 34.29-30. These two clauses are similar in meaning. Good News Bible combines them by saying “her face suddenly began to shine with a light that flashed like lightning,” and so does Contemporary English Version with “her face started shining bright as lightning.”

So that I was too frightened to approach her, and my heart was terrified: The textual footnote in Revised Standard Version here is not quite accurate. The Latin here is literally “so that I feared very much to her.” There is nothing about “approaching” the woman. That idea does come from other versions, and the Latin is clearly defective. Good News Bible simply translates the Latin, adding only the word “stand” by saying “I was afraid to stand near her.” This is what we recommend. The verb approach really makes little sense here, since Ezra was already at the woman’s side, and the clause and my heart was terrified adds nothing.

We also like what Good News Bible has done by translating While I was wondering what this meant as an independent clause, rather than as a dependent clause at the beginning of a sentence continued in verse 26: “and wondered what all this meant.” We recommend Good News Bible as a model for this verse, and believe that this can be done legitimately without a textual footnote, but a possible one is:

* Stand: this word is not in the Latin, which is incomplete.

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.