He who fears the Lord will not be timid, nor play the coward, for he is his hope: Both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation have problems here. Revised Standard Version has a glaring problem with pronouns in the last clause. Good News Translation‘s use of the word “fear” twice in the same sentence, with two different meanings, is a much more serious problem (the Greek does not use the same word). We suggest expressing will not be timid in positive terms. This may serve as a possible model for the whole verse:

• If you honor the Lord, you can live your life in confidence, because if you trust in the Lord, you don’t have to be afraid of anything.

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.