Ruth Was a Young Moabite Widow Who Pledged Her Loyalty to Her Mother

7/31/2019 Ruth Was a Young Moabite Widow Who Pledged Her Loyalty to Her Mother

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Ruth was a young Moabite widow who pledged her loyalty to her mother-in-law, Naomi. They

returned to Bethlehem, Naomi's original home, and there Ruth met Boaz, a rich land-owner who

was immediately besotted. Naomi advised the young woman how to catch her man; the plan

succeeded; and Ruth became the mother of Obed and the great-grandmother of King David.

Two women, Ruth and Naomi, stood by each other

Ruthis a shortened version of 'retut', lovely friend.

Naomimeans pleasant, but the name she called

herself later in the story, Mara, means bitter.

Boazmeans powerful or strong.

MahlonandChilionmean sickness and used up.

Orpahmeans back of the neck; she turned her back

on Naomi.Elimelechmeans my God is king.

What the story is about

Ruth was poor, a foreigner, and a woman, and all this counted against her, but she was helped by an

older woman to overcome the difficulties she faced. She had the good sense to listen to the advice given

to her by Naomi, and the older woman was rewarded by Ruth's unfaltering loyalty. Her story illustrates the

triumph of courage and ingenuity over adverse circumstances. She has special significance for

Christians: in the gospel of Matthew, four women appear in the genealogy of Jesus (Matthew 1:2-17), and

Ruth was one of the four.

The story is set in the period of the Judges before the birth of King David, but it was almost certainly

written much later, when the two tribes of Judah were set free from their captivity in Babylon and allowed

to return to Jerusalem. It has the qualities of an historical novel - based on real people but with a

message and theme directed at a later audience.


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Migrants Arriving in Sydney - 1966, David Moore

The story contains four episodes that form a beautifully constructednovella:

1 Naomi and Ruth go to Bethlehem (Ruth 1) - the anguish of loss

Naomi and her family suffered great misfortune in a foreign land. Ruth, a girl from

that foreign land, decided to migrate with Naomi to Bethlehem. They arrived in time for the barley harvest.

2 Ruth meets Boaz (Ruth 2) - the love story

Ruth, a young widow, met Naomi's relative, a rich man called Boaz. It seems to have been love at first sight for him,

and he ordered that Ruth be well treated when she worked in his fields. The older woman Naomi saw immediately

what had happened, and encouraged Ruth to continue working in Boaz's fields.

3 Ruth proposes marriage to Boaz (Ruth 3) - ribald peasant humour. Ruth approached Boaz during the night, at the

threshing floor, and the text obliquely suggests that there may have been some sexual hanky-panky. The next

morning, Ruth suggested that they marry, reminding Boaz of his obligation to her as her nearest male kin. Boaz

promised to do all he could.

Ruth could not be budged. She had

shared loneliness, anxiety and grief

with Naomi, and now that the older

woman was completely alone, Ruth

would not abandon her.
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4 Ruth and Boaz marry (Ruth 4) - the happy ending

Boaz proved as good as his word, and he and Ruth were

married. She had a son called Obed, and Naomi cared for the child, who would grow up to be the

grandfather of King David.

Naomi and Ruth go to Bethlehem

(Book of Ruth, Chapter 1)

Naomi was an Israelite woman who, during a famine, had gone with her family to live in the country of

Moab. When her husband and two sons died, she decided to return to her home town, Bethlehem. She

had two daughters-in-law, Ruth and Orpah. All three women were widows.

It would be interesting to know why all three died; it's unusual forallthe men in a family to die at more or

less the same time. But it's not really important to the story, so the Bible leaves it out. What is important is

that their death leaves Naomi, Ruth and Orpah at the mercy of a predatory society. Unlike women in

modern society, they could not seek a widow's pension. They had to find a refuge, or starve. With a

husband, Ruth's life was more or less in balance; with the death of the three men, this balance was upset.

Young People in the Bible
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To complicate things, Ruth and Orpah were

Moabite women not Israelites. The Moabite

people were traditional enemies of the Israelites.

There was frequent warfare between the two

groups. According to the Israelite belief,Moabites originated from the act of incest

between Lot and his older daughter (Genesis

19:30-38), and so the whole nation was

intrinsically tainted and inferior. Naomi assumed

that Ruth and Orpah would not want to return

to Bethlehem with her, even though the women

respected and loved each other.

One of them, Orpah, decided to return to her

people and the Moabite way of life, but Ruth

could not be persuaded. She had shared

loneliness, anxiety and grief with Naomi, and

now that the older woman was completely

alone, Ruth would stand by her and return to

Bethlehem.

This part of the story contains Ruths famous

speech of loyalty to her mother-in-law

(Ruth 1:16-17).

But Ruth said,

Do not press me to leave you

or to turn back from following you!

Where you go, I will go;

Where you lodge, I will lodge;

Your people shall be my people and your God my

God.

Where you die, I will die

There I will be buried.

May the Lord do thus and so to me

And more as well

If even death parts me from you!

So the two women returned to Bethlehem in time for

Ruth was from Moab, east of the Jordan;

Naomi was from Bethlehem, south of Jerusalem
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the autumn harvest of barley.

(ReadRuth 1:1-22)

Ruth meets Boaz(Chapter 2)

Now although Naomi was destitute, she has good family connections. Furthermore, both she and Ruth

were women of initiative. They did not believe in sitting down and letting events simply happen. Women

took an active part in all stages of food production - seeBible Archaeology: Work, and Ruth decided she

would help to glean the barley in the fields, to feed herself and Naomi and to get a store of grain for

winter. Gleaning was a common practice in ancient Israel. It was a form of charity for the disadvantaged

in society (see Leviticus 23:22 and Deuteronomy 24:19). Recognized groups of the poor, such as widows,

orphans and foreigners, could walk behind the harvesters, picking up what was left. This is what Ruth

did.

Now Naomi had a kinsman on her husbands

side, a prominent rich man, of the family of

Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. And Ruth

the Moabite said to Naomi Let me go to the

field and glean among the ears of grain,

behind someone in whose sight I may findfavor. She said to her Go, my daughter. So

she went. She came and gleaned in the field

behind the reapers. As it happened, she came

to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who

was of the family of Elimelech. Just then Boaz

came from Bethlehem.

(ReadRuth 2:1-7)

Ruth 2:3 says that as it happened Ruth went

to the field of Naomis rich relative, Boaz. This

phrase is often used in the Bible to suggest

that God is setting the scene for something

significant. It also implied, with a touch of

Jewish humour, that Naomi and the people of

Bethlehem saw a good match for Ruth and

Here's something to do: Tell the storyfrom the point of view of eachcharacter, one at a time. You'll seehow rich, how complex the story is.

Ruth meets Boaz, drawing by Edward Burne-Jones
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edged her into meeting Boaz.

Naomi knew that Ruth was beautiful and respected, and she knew that a rich husband for Ruth would

solve all their problems. Boaz was the ideal choice. He was available, childless, well respected and rich.

He was also a relative of Naomis through her husbands family, so he had a legal obligation to help

Naomi. Boaz was second in line to the position ofgoelin Naomis, and therefore Ruths, family.

In English, the word goelis often translated as nearest kin, but in ancient Judah it meant more than that.

Agoelwas a close male relative with the duty of looking after a family when the male head of the family

was absent. In earlier times, the goelof the family was expected to marry the widow of an Israelite man if

she wished it (Deuteronomy 25). Ruth, who may not have understood the niceties of Israelite law, called

Boaz go'el.

(ReadRuth 2:8-23)

Love was in the air...

By great good luck, Boaz seems to have been smitten from the outset. He went to great lengths to get

extra grain for Ruth, to protect her from young men who might harass her, and to see that she was

properly fed.

'At mealtime Boaz said to her Come here, and eat some of this bread, and dip your morsel in the sour

wine.

So she sat beside the reapers, and he heaped up for her some parched grain. She ate until she was
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satisfied, and she had some left over.'

Of course, the point of the story is that it was not just love or luck, but God who nudged them into their

destiny.

Return to top

Ruth proposes marriage to Boaz

(Chapter 3)

This part of the story took place at the threshing floor, at a golden time of the year when the harvest had

been brought in and the weather was still warm. Love was in the air, with the fertility of Nature reflected in

the lives of the characters. (Read about the riotious harvest festivals atJerusalem's Threshing Floor.)

Naomi was a shrewd older woman who had seen a lot of life, and she now

devised a plan to prod Boaz into proposing to Ruth. She knew men, and she

gave Ruth specific instructions on everything she must do.

Fortunately, Ruth had the good sense to heed the older woman.

She perfumed herself, dressed in her most becoming clothes - seeClothing

and Housing in the Bible for the type of clothes she might have worn, and

waited until Boaz had eaten a good meal - both women knew a man with a

full stomach was easier to handle. When Boaz finally lay down to sleep, Ruth

approached him where he lay on the threshing floor - someone always slept

there at night until the grain was removed, to guard against thieves.(Read

Ruth 3:1-18)

'When Boaz had eaten and drunk, and he was in a contented mood, he went

to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came stealthily and

uncovered his feet, and lay down.'

This action would seem strange unless you knew that in ancient times 'foot'

was a euphemism for the male genital organ, as 'sandal' was for the female

organ.
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Threshing floors at

harvest time were often

the scene of sexual

shenanigans, what the

old Irish priests used torail against as 'fockin' in

the fields', a time for

license forbidden at

other times.

Lying beside Boaz,

Ruth suggested that he,

as thego-elof Naomis

family, should cover

her with his blanket, a

euphemism for

marriage. She had the right to demand marriage of the go-elof her family, so that she could have the

children that Israelite women longed for. Boaz happily agreed, but pointed out to her that there was

another man who had that right, a closer relative even than himself. Boaz had to square matters with him

before he could marry Ruth. He seems to have been at pains to do everything correctly, so that there

could be no question about the legality of the marriage.

Ruth stayed beside Boaz until morning, stealing away before first light to return to Naomi, who pounced

on her and demanded to know how things had gone, and whether the plan had worked. Was Ruth to bemarried or single? The two women waited impatiently to see how events would unfold.

The marriage of Ruth and Boaz

(Chapter 4)

An ancient threshing floor
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Of course, the villagers were well aware of what was

happening, as people in small towns usually are. When

Boaz went next morning to the meeting place at the

gate of the town, he was met almost immediately by the

official go-elof Naomis family - and probably by a goodmany interested onlookers as well.

Some complicated negotiation went on regarding a

small parcel of land that Naomi either owned outright or

had put up for sale at some previous time, but this was

just a formality. The outcome of this story was never in

doubt.

So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife.

When they came together, the Lord made her conceive,

and she bore a son. Then the women said to Naomi

Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day

without next of kin. May his name be renowned in

Israel! He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourishment for your old age. For your daughter-in-law

who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has borne him.

Then Naomi took the child and laid him in her bosom, and became his nurse.

(ReadRuth 4:1-22)

Ruth and Boaz were married, and she had a son, Obed.

Eventually, Ruth would be the great-grandmother of King

David.

The marriage of Ruth and Boaz created a family with a good

chance of success, because

- Naomi was shrewd, courageous and persevering

- Ruth was intelligent, strong, loyal and level-headed

- Boaz was a good manager of people, and not afraid toget his hands dirty.

The full Bible text of the Book of Ruth is available here.

Summary

The Bride, Frederick Goodall

Childbirth in ancient times.

In the ancient world, women hunched

over a hole hollowed in the ground,

standing on bricks or stones placed at

either side. They gave birth in a

squatting position, with relatives and

friends taking turns to support them

under the arms.
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The story of Ruth celebrates the family and the way it continues through many generations. Ruth, a

childless widow at the beginning of the story, became the great-grandmother of Israels greatest king,

David.

The story of her family, and the

way it endured despite

misfortune, is the story of the

Israelite people, who continued

despite all that happened to

them. Even an unlikely person

like Ruth, a foreigner from the

despised Moabite nation, could

be used to move God's plan a

step further towards completion.

But it is also the story of two

simple women who clung to each other through thick and thin - see Bible Top Ten Heroines: Ruth and

Naomi- Ruth was loyal when she need not have been, and Naomi was clever and far-sighted. We could

all try to have a little of their virtue.

The Story of Ruth, Thomas Matthews Rooke, 1876
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For a short version of the story of Ruth, go to Bible Men and Women: Ruth

TryBible Study Activitiesfor interesting ways of delving into this story.
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Ruth Was a Young Moabite Widow Who Pledged Her Loyalty to Her Mother

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