|















| |
INDEX
PREVIOUS
NEXT
|
COLLECTIONS
Commentaries,
Word Studies, Devotionals, Sermons, Illustrations
Old and New Testament. |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Ruth
2:19
Her
mother-in-law
then
said to her,
"Where did you
glean
today and
where did you
work ? May he
who
took
notice of you
be
blessed." So
she
told her
mother-in-law
with
whom she had
worked and
said, "The
name of the
man with
whom I
worked
today is
Boaz." (NASB:
Lockman) |
|
BBE: And her mother-in-law said to her,
Where did you take up the grain today, and where were you working? May
a blessing be on him who gave such attention to you. And she gave her
mother-in-law an account of where she had been working, and said, The
name of the man with whom I was working today is Boaz.
CEV:
Naomi said, "Where did you work today? Whose field was it? God bless
the man who treated you so well!" Then Ruth told her that she had
worked in the field of a man named Boaz. (CEV)
GWT:
Her mother-in-law asked her, "Where did you gather grain today? Just
where did you work? May the man who paid attention to you be blessed."
So Ruth told her mother-in-law about the person with whom she worked.
She said, "The man I worked with today is named Boaz." (GWT)
KJV: And her mother in law said
unto her, Where hast thou gleaned to day? and where wroughtest thou?
blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee. And she showed her
mother in law with whom she had wrought, and said, The man's name with
whom I wrought to day is Boaz.
NLT:
"So much!" Naomi exclaimed. "Where did you gather all this grain
today? Where did you work? May the LORD bless the one who helped you!"
So Ruth told her mother-in-law about the man in whose field she had
worked. And she said, "The man I worked with today is named Boaz."
(NLT
- Tyndale House)
Young's Literal: And
her mother-in-law saith to her, 'Where hast thou gleaned to-day? and
where hast thou wrought? may he who is discerning thee be blessed.'
And she declareth to her mother-in-law with whom she hath wrought, and
saith, 'The name of the man with whom I have wrought to-day is Boaz. |
|
Septuagint (LXX):
kai
eipen
aute
e
penthera
autes
pou
sunelecas
semeron
kai
pou
epoiesas
eie
o
epignous
se
eulogemenos
kai
apeggeilen
Routh
te
penthera
autes
pou
epoiesen
kai
eipen
to
onoma
tou
andros
meth'
ou
epoiesa
semeron
Boos
English of
Septuagint: And her
mother-in-law said to her, Where hast thou gleaned to-day, and
where hast thou wrought? blessed be he that took notice of thee.
And Ruth told her mother-in-law where she had wrought, and said,
The name of the man with whom I wrought to-day is Booz |
|
|
|
|
HER MOTHER IN
LAW THEN SAID TO HER "WHERE DID YOU GLEAN TODAY? WHERE DID YOU WORK?
MAY HE WHO TOOK NOTICE OF YOU BE BLESSED": (Ruth 2:10;
Ps 41:1;
2Cor 9:13-15)
Although the text does not state
it clearly, there is little doubt that Naomi noticed that the amount
of barley Ruth had gleaned in one day was considerably more than one
would have expected from simply following the reapers and picking up
the leftovers. Ruth’s return ended Naomi’s emptiness and filled her
with a renewed sense of hope and thankfulness.
Applying the question "Where
did you glean today?"
to each of our lives, it is a good question
for us to ask ourselves each night: "Where have I gleaned today? What
improvement have I made in knowledge and grace? What have I done that
will turn to a good account? Let us not glean in any other field
but that of our Lord and Master's and our labor will always yield
fruit.
After two rapid fire questions, Naomi offers up a prayer of blessing
for Boaz, whose identity is still unknown to her. This is a good
practice to follow - we can pray for others without knowing their
name, being confident that the Lord does know!
"Took notice"
(05234) (nakar)
means to consider carefully and indicates a process of investigation
and conveys the idea to "inspect" or "look over" something with the
intention of recognizing it or of looking at it intently. Nakar is the same verb used by Ruth when she asked
Boaz
"Why have I found favor in your sight that you should
take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?"
(see note
Ruth 2:10)
SO SHE TOLD
HER MOTHER IN LAW WITH WHOM SHE HAD WORKED AND SAID "THE NAME OF
THE MAN WITH WHOM I WORKED TODAY IS BOAZ"
:
Matthew Henry adds that
"Ruth told her mother what
kindness Boaz had shown her, that she might take some occasion or
another to acknowledge it and return him thanks; but she did not tell
her how Boaz had commended her, (see note
Ruth 2:11). Humility teaches us, not only not to praise ourselves, but not to
be forward to publish others' praises of us." |
|
|
Ruth
2:20
Naomi
said to her
daughter-in-law,
"May he be
blessed of the
LORD
who has not
withdrawn his
kindness to the
living and to
the
dead." Again
Naomi
said to her,
"The
man is our
relative, he is
one of our
closest
relatives." (NASB:
Lockman) |
BBE: And Naomi said to her
daughter-in-law, May the blessing of the Lord, who has at all times
been kind to the living and to the dead, be on him. And Naomi said to
her, The man is of our family, one of our near relations.
CEV: "The LORD bless
Boaz!" Naomi replied. "He has shown that he is still loyal to the
living and to the dead. Boaz is a close relative, one of those who is
supposed to look after us." (CEV)
GWT:
Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, "May the LORD bless him. The LORD
hasn't stopped being kind to people--living or dead." Then Naomi told
her, "That man is a relative of ours. He is a close relative, one of
those responsible for taking care of us." (GWT)
KJV: And Naomi said unto
her daughter in law, Blessed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off
his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her,
The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen.
NLT:
"May the LORD bless him!" Naomi told her daughter-in-law. "He is
showing his kindness to us as well as to your dead husband. That man
is one of our closest relatives, one of our family redeemers." (NLT
- Tyndale House)
Young's Literal: And
Naomi saith to her daughter-in-law, 'Blessed is he of Jehovah who hath
not forsaken His kindness with the living and with the dead;' and
Naomi saith to her, 'The man is a relation of ours; he is of our
redeemers.' |
|
Septuagint (LXX):
kai
eipen Noemin
te
numphe
autes
eulogetos
estin
(3SPAI) to
kurio
hoti
ouk
egkatelipen
(3SAAI) to
eleos
autou
meta
ton
zonton
(PAPMPG)
kai
meta
ton
tethnekoton
(RAPMPG)
kai
eipen
aute Noemin
eggizei
hemin
o
aner
ek
ton agchisteuonton
emas
estin
English of
Septuagint: And Noemin said to
her daughter-in-law, Blessed is he of the Lord, because he has
not failed in his mercy with the living and with the dead: and
Noemin said to her, The man is near akin to us, he is one of our
relations |
|
|
NAOMI SAID TO
HER DAUGHTER IN LAW "MAY HE BE BLESSED OF THE LORD": (Ru
3:10;
2Sa2:5;
Job 29:12
13;
2Ti 1:16-18)
Naomi's first reaction upon the identification of the master of the
field as Boaz is fascinating. She offers up a second prayer "May
he be blessed of Jehovah".
How wonderful if prayer would be our first and natural "reflex" when
we hear "good news". Clearly "bitter" Mara
of chapter one is now turning into "blessing" Naomi, blessing in the name of Jehovah.
As Wiersbe says
"It
is encouraging to see the changes that have taken place in Naomi
because of what Ruth did. God used Ruth to turn Naomi’s bitterness
into gratitude, her unbelief into faith, and her despair into hope.
One person, trusting the Lord and obeying His will, can change a
situation from defeat to victory. Ruth’s faith in God’s Word led her
to the field of Boaz. The love of Boaz for Ruth compelled him to pour
out his grace upon her and meet her every need. (Grace is love that
pays the price to help the undeserving one.) Ruth’s experience of
grace gave her new hope as she anticipated what her kinsman redeemer
would do. “And now abide faith, hope, love” (1Cor 13:13), and they still abide
with us as we abide in Jesus Christ and trust in Him." (Wiersbe,
W: Be Committed: An Old Testament Study. Ruth and Esther. Victor. 1993)
The
blessing of Jehovah
is a frequent prayer in Ruth - the field workers to Boaz in (see
note
Ruth 2:4),
Naomi to Boaz in (Ruth
2:19;
2:20), Boaz to Ruth in
(see note
Ruth 3:10) and
finally the Bethlehemite woman to Naomi (see note
Ruth 4:14). Naomi
is beginning to see and understand the unfolding of God’s
sovereign plan regarding
her and Ruth the Moabitess and as she is reminded of the covenant
loyalty of Jehovah, her emotions begin to shift from bitterness to
blessing.
Spurgeon writes that...
"There is no more blessed way of living than a life of dependence upon
a covenant-keeping God. We have no care, for He careth for us; we have
no troubles, because we cast our burdens upon the Lord."
Life is swayed by care. Concern is unavoidable but in the NT it is
given a new orientation in Christ. Liberation from care comes as one
casts it upon God, not because God grants every wish, but because
prayer grants freedom from care.
WHO HAS NOT WITHDRAWN HIS KINDNESS TO THE LIVING OR TO THE DEAD":
(2Sa 9:1;
Pr 17:17;
Php 4:10)
"The
LORD always keeps his promises to the living and the dead"
(TEV)
"the
LORD, Who has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!" (NKJV)
"The
Lord still continues to be kind to all people--the living and the dead!" (ICB)
"The
LORD hasn't stopped being kind to people--living or dead." (GWT)
"Kindness"
(02617) (hesed or Greek eleos = mercy) as
noted earlier (see note
Ruth 1:8)
is the idea of faithful love in action and usually refers to
God's lovingkindness expressed in His covenant relationship with
Israel. God's hesed denotes persistent and unconditional tenderness,
kindness, and mercy, a relationship in which He seeks after man with
love and mercy.
Naomi acknowledged that it was Jehovah Who had not stopped showing His "kindness"
to the living and the dead (cf
Ge 24:27;
2Sa 2:5). When burdened with adversity and
affliction, an awareness of even the little kindnesses
Jehovah does for us can bring release, revival and rejoicing. Naomi
was bitter but not so bitter that she had completely closed her heart
to see the hand of the Almighty working in her behalf. Are you
embittered with God? Like Naomi you may have lost someone very near
and dear to you, but Naomi's example should encourage you to be on the
lookout for the the "footprints" of Jehovah walking and working in
your life. He is still Jehovah Shammah, the God Who is there and He
ever seeks to heal and revive those downcast spirit.
Malachi says that
"for you who fear My name the
Sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will
go forth and skip about like calves from the stall." (Mal
4:2)
By
showing His kindnesses
"He
heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds" (Ps
147:3)
Bible Knowledge Commentary
adds that Naomi's
"night
of sorrow with its fog of depression had broken into the dawning of a
new day of joy. As God was the source of her sorrow, He was now the
source of her joy. God’s kindness again rested on the living, Ruth and
herself."
(Walvoord,
J. F., Zuck, R. B., et al: The Bible Knowledge Commentary. 1985.
Victor).
What does the reference of "His
kindness...to the dead"
refer to? One reasonable explanation is that the name of
Elimelech, Naomi's dead husband, could "live on" through Ruth
and Boaz, who as a kinsman -redeemer could redeem property and persons
and thus perpetuate the lineage of Elimelech.
AND AGAIN
NAOMI SAID TO HER "THE MAN IS
OUR RELATIVE. HE IS ONE OF OUR CLOSEST RELATIVES": (see
note
Ruth 3:9;
Ruth 4:6;
Lv 25:25;
Dt
25:5-7;
Job 19:25)
"The
man is a relation of ours; he is of our redeemers" (YLT)
"The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen" (KJV),
"That man is our close relative; he is one of our kinsman-redeemers"
(NIV)
"That
man is one of our closest relatives, one of our family redeemers" (NLT)
"Boaz
is one of our close relatives, one who will take care of us" (ICB)
"That
man is a relative of ours. He is a close relative, one of those
responsible for taking care of us" (GWT)
This first use of "our
relative"
(07138) (qarob) refers to one who is near whereas "closest
relatives" is one of
the key words of this book, the Hebrew word ga'al which
is used 20 times in the 85 verses in Ruth. The total number of Old
Testament uses of ga'al is 98 and Ruth has about 20% of
the all the uses in Scripture.
Observe how the narrator has
masterfully step by step unveiled the identity of Boaz. First, Boaz is
merely presented as an "acquaintance" (Young's Literal
Translation) or "relative" of Naomi’s, then as "of
the family of Elimelech" (see note
Ruth 2:1).
This family relationship ("of the family of Elimelech")
is repeated in (see note
Ruth 2:3)
and finally after again stressing his family nearness ("our
relative"), he is dramatically presented as the NIV translates
it as "one of our kinsman-redeemers" or as a potential
‘goel’
which is the key to the plot of this book and of "The Book"!
|
THE KINSMAN
REDEEMER |
|
QUALIFICATIONS TO BE
MET |
FULFILLMENT IN THE
MESSIAH |
|
Blood Relative = A
Kinsman |
Gal 4:4,
4:5
Heb 2:14,15,
16,
17 |
|
Possessing the
necessary resources |
1Cor 6:20
Gal
3:13
1Pet 1:18,
19 |
|
Willing to pay the
purchase price |
Jn 10:15
16
17
18
1Jn 3:16 |
|
Willing to take as
one's bride |
Ro 7:4
2Cor 11:2
Eph 5:25,
26,
27,
28,
29,
30
31
32
Rev 19:7 |
|
|
|
Ruth
2:21 Then
Ruth the
Moabitess
said,
"Furthermore, he
said to me, 'You should
stay
close to my
servants
until
* they have
finished
all my
harvest.' " (NASB:
Lockman) |
|
BBE: And Ruth the Moabitess said, Truly,
he said to me, Keep near my young men till all my grain is cut.
CEV: Ruth told her, "Boaz
even said I could stay in the field with his workers until they had
finished gathering all his grain." (CEV)
GWT:
Ruth, who was from Moab, told her, "He also said to me, 'Stay with my
younger workers until they have finished the harvest.'" (GWT)
KJV: And Ruth the Moabitess said,
He said unto me also, Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they
have ended all my harvest.
NLT:
Then Ruth said, "What's more, Boaz even told me to come back and stay
with his harvesters until the entire harvest is completed." (NLT
- Tyndale House)
Young's Literal: And
Ruth the Moabitess saith, 'Also he surely said unto me, Near the young
people whom I have thou dost cleave till they have completed the whole
of the harvest which I have.' |
|
Septuagint (LXX):
kai
eipen
Routh
pros
ten
pentheran
autes
kai
ge
| | |