Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges · Ruth Kapitel 2

Ch. 2. The generosity of Boaz: his first meeting with Ruth

1. a kinsman] Strictly the word does not mean more than familiar friend 2 Kings 10:11, Proverbs 7:4.

a mighty man of wealth] a wealthy man, 1 Samuel 9:1, 2 Kings 15:20; sometimes the phrase means a valiant man (marg.) Jdg 6:12; Jdg 11:1; in Ruth 3:11 the word for wealth has a moral sense.

Boaz] Cf. 1 Kings 7:21. The derivation of the name is uncertain: possibly, ‘in him is strength’ (for Ruth). More probably the name is traditional, and a contraction of Ba‘al-‘az i.e. ‘B. is strong’; cf. in Phoenician Bomilcar for Ba‘al-melḳarth, Salambo for Ṣalm-ba‘al etc.

2. Permission to glean in the harvest field was allowed to the poor, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow; naturally it depended on the goodwill of the owner; see Deuteronomy 24:19, Leviticus 19:9 f., Leviticus 23:22.

3. her hap … Boaz] The word for hap occurs in 1 Samuel 6:9 (‘a chance’), 1 Samuel 20:26. Throughout the story the writer intends us to share his strong belief in Providence, over-ruling unpremeditated actions and words (cf. Ruth 2:12; Ruth 2:19 f.), and rewarding those who trust it (Ruth 3:4; Ruth 3:9; Ruth 3:11, Ruth 4:6; Ruth 4:14). ‘The cosmos is a fighter for the righteous,’ says the Jewish sage, Wis 16:17

4. The Lord be with you] Cf. Jdg 6:12, Psalm 129:8. A religious spirit governs the relations between employer and employed on this estate.

7. save that she tarried a little in the house] lit. ‘her dwelling in the house is (but) short’: not the house of Boaz, which is out of the question; possibly her own house, in which case the meaning will be ‘she has but recently come to live here.’ It is doubtful, however, whether the words can bear this sense; the text is probably corrupt. The LXX. reads ‘and she hath not rested in the field (even) a little time’; the Vulg., ‘and not even for a moment hath she returned to the house.’ Something can be said for each of these emendations, but neither is quite satisfactory.

9. after them] i.e. the maidens Ruth 2:8, who followed the reapers and did the binding.

10. take knowledge of me] with kindly purpose, Ruth 2:19, Psalm 142:4. A stranger had no right or claims on protection in a foreign land. The Hebr. has a subtle play on the two words take knowledge of me and stranger; the roots are distinct, but they sound alike.

11. Ruth’s uncommon devotion, which induced her to leave her native land and the natural guardians of her widowhood, is one of the main features of the story.

12. the Lord recompense] Cf. Ruth 1:8.

under whose wings … refuge] This beautiful idea is repeated in Psalm 36:7; Psalm 57:2; Psalm 91:4; the figure is that of an eagle, Deuteronomy 32:11. May the God of Israel take care of the homeless stranger from a heathen country! The prayer was answered through the agency of him who uttered it—a fine touch, as Bertholet points out.

13. comforted … spoken kindly unto] The same words in Isaiah 40:1-2. See on Jdg 19:3.

though I be not] As a stranger Ruth is not like one of his handmaidens; she has no right to expect such friendly treatment.

14. in the vinegar] i.e. sour wine. It is said to be still used in Palestine by the harvesters as relish with bread.

parched corn] i.e. grain taken from the newly reaped corn and roasted in a pan, and eaten with bread or as a substitute for bread.

16. the bundles] Only here; in Assyr. the root (ṣabâtu) means ‘to grasp’; in the Mishnah and Jewish Aram., ‘to bind.’

17. she beat out] Cf. Jdg 6:11.

an ephah] Approximately equivalent to our bushel.

18. her mother in law saw] A slight change of pronunciation gives a more expressive sense: she shewed her mother in law.

19. blessed be he] Naomi invokes a blessing on the benefactor before she knows who he is; the author delights in such dramatic fitness, cf. Ruth 2:12, Ruth 3:11.

20. one of our near kinsmen] See marg. and note on Ruth 3:9. Here the word go’el occurs for the first time in the story.

22. in any other field] In the field of a less pious man than Boaz a poor maiden might come to mischief; cf. Ruth 2:9.

23. wheat harvest] followed two or three weeks later.

she dwelt with] Or, with a slight change, she returned unto; so Vulg.