Give me the wisdom that sits by thy throne: Thy throne is literally “thy thrones,” but this is simply a way of emphasizing the majesty of God’s throne. In some languages it will be possible to capitalize “Wisdom” since she is pictured as a person sitting beside God’s throne; for example, “Give me Wisdom who sits beside your throne [or, chief seat/stool].” In some languages “Give me” will be too abrupt or even impolite. In such cases translators may say something like “Please give me…” or “Please let me have….”

And do not reject me from among thy servants: Revised English Bible is good with “and do not refuse me a place among your servants.” Good News Translation rewords this in order to state the petition positively: “give me a place among your children.” Either will work, although the Handbook prefers the Revised English Bible form.

The whole verse may be translated as follows:

• Please give me Wisdom who sits beside your throne; please do not refuse to let me have a place among your children.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Wisdom of Solomon. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2004. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.