Riches and strength lift up the heart: The security that money provides also makes a person confident. So does physical strength, which is perhaps better rendered “good health.” So we may say “Wealth and physical strength make a person confident” or “Many people rely upon wealth and physical strength.”

But the fear of the Lord is better than both: Nothing gives people more confidence than their fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord refers to honoring (or, obeying) the Lord and giving him due reverence and worship. This line provides the climax to the series of comparisons. So we may render the first two lines as “Many people rely upon wealth and physical strength, but if you honor [or, obey] the Lord, you will have even greater confidence.”

There is no loss in the fear of the Lord: This means that people who honor the Lord properly will have no lack (better than loss) of anything. They have all they need. Good News Translation expresses this thought in the second person: “you need nothing more.”

And with it there is no need to seek for help: There is no need to seek for help because you have “all the support you need” (Good News Translation).

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.