In the mouth of the shameless begging is sweet: Good News Translation‘s interpretation of this line is possible (similarly New English Bible), but in the context it seems rather to mean “Food that one has begged for may taste sweet [or, good] to a person who has no shame.”

But in his stomach a fire is kindled: Another way to say this is “but it will make something inside him burn.” The idea is not that food given to a beggar will cause him a stomachache. Rather, the food may taste good when the beggar eats it, but afterward he will remember it only with shame and embarrassment. So a possible rendering is “but afterwards [or, after he has eaten] he feels only shame.”

An alternative model for this verse is:

• Food that one has begged for may taste good to a person who has no shame, but afterwards [or, after he has eaten] he will feel ashamed.

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.