In Revised Standard Version the verse numbers from 36 to 105 are set in square brackets. At verse [106] Revised Standard Version resumes with verse 36 numbered also as [106]. This continues through the end of the chapter, where the final verse is numbered 70 [140]. In some old translations, such as King James Version, the verses numbered [36]-[105] were unknown. It is thought a page was deliberately cut out from an early Latin copy from which manuscripts then known were derived (verse 105 was perhaps thought objectionable). All translations of 2 Esdras today are made from editions based on two Latin manuscripts that contain this material, as do the ancient versions. The old numbering no longer serves a function. Both Good News Bible and Contemporary English Version, as well as Myers and Stone in their commentaries, ignore the old verse numbers, and proceed from verse 1 through verse 140 without any kind of interruption. We urge translators to follow this, and we shall do so in this Handbook.

Then the pit of torment shall appear, and opposite it shall be the place of rest; and the furnace of hell shall be disclosed, and opposite it the paradise of delight: These two sentences are parallel in meaning. The first clause is parallel to the third one; the second clause is parallel to the fourth one. The pit of torment is the furnace of hell. The Latin text reads simply “place” instead of pit, and we recommend staying with the Latin. Also, we think it unnecessary to follow Revised Standard Version with a footnote that says hell translates the Latin word gehenna (see the comments on 2 Esd 2.29). We urge translators to combine the first and third clauses as do Good News Bible and Contemporary English Version. Alternative models are “Then hell will appear with all its fires, a place of torture for those who are condemned [or, whom God has condemned]” and “Then, on one side will be the fiery world of the dead where those whom God has condemned will be tortured [or, receive torture].” The place of rest is the paradise of delight. For paradise see the comments on 2 Esd 4.7. The second and fourth clauses may be combined also by saying “On the other side paradise will appear, a delightful place where the righteous may rest” or “On the other side will lie the happy place of paradise where righteous people will rest forever.” Translators may consider the following models for this verse:

• Then hell will appear with all its fires, a place for the torture of those who are condemned, and opposite it the delights of paradise will appear, a place of rest for the righteous.

• Then on one side the fiery place where the wicked will be tormented [or, where the wicked will suffer] will open up, and on the other side shall be a place of rest for the righteous. Yes, the fires of hell will appear, and opposite it, a delightful paradise.

• Then on one side the fiery place will open up where the people whom God has condemned will receive torture. And on the other side….

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.