Therefore, Ezra, empty things are for the empty, and full things for the full: Here Uriel concludes with a mysterious statement to challenge Ezra (compare 2 Esd 4.26; 6.10, 34). If Revised Standard Version and Good News Bible sound a bit cryptic, they are only reflecting the author’s intention. Here is a possible model for this verse:

• And so, Ezra, empty people get empty things. Full people get full things.”

We prefer this cryptic model rather than one translating this verse as a clear statement that challenges no one to wonder about its meaning. However, translators who disagree, or who find the ideas of “empty people” and “full people” simply impossible, may consider the following model of Contemporary English Version:

• Ezra, that’s why evil people will receive nothing, and good people will receive much.

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.