For you have devoted your life to wisdom, and called understanding your mother: The conjunction for may be omitted (so Good News Bible, Contemporary English Version). The two clauses of this verse mean substantially the same thing. There is no meaningful difference between the Latin words for wisdom and understanding, and translators who wish may combine them. In the Wisdom literature of Scripture, particularly Proverbs and Sirach, wisdom is sometimes personified (compare Pro 7.4, and contrast Jer 2.27). To say that wisdom is one’s mother is to say that one has been willing to learn from wisdom. Here is a possible model for this verse:

• You have dedicated your life to finding wisdom, and have learned from wisdom as if learning from your mother.

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.