17 So she gleaned in the field until even, and beat out that she had gleaned: and it was about an ephah of barley.
18 And she took it up, and went into the city: and her mother in law saw what she had gleaned: and she brought forth, and gave to her that she had reserved after she was sufficed.
19 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.
20 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.
21 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.
22 And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter in law, It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, that they meet thee not in any other field.
23 So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and dwelt with her mother in law.
17 So she gleaned H3950 in the field H7704 until even, H6153 and beat out H2251 that she had gleaned: H3950 and it was about an ephah H374 of barley. H8184
18 And she took it up, H5375 and went H935 into the city: H5892 and her mother in law H2545 saw H7200 what she had gleaned: H3950 and she brought forth, H3318 and gave H5414 to her that she had reserved H3498 after she was sufficed. H7648
19 And her mother in law H2545 said H559 unto her, Where hast thou gleaned H3950 to day? H3117 and where H375 wroughtest H6213 thou? blessed H1288 be he that did take knowledge H5234 of thee. And she shewed H5046 her mother in law H2545 with whom she had wrought, H6213 and said, H559 The man's H376 name H8034 with whom I wrought H6213 to day H3117 is Boaz. H1162
20 And Naomi H5281 said H559 unto her daughter in law, H3618 Blessed H1288 be he of the LORD, H3068 who hath not left off H5800 his kindness H2617 to the living H2416 and to the dead. H4191 And Naomi H5281 said H559 unto her, The man H376 is near of kin H7138 unto us, one of our next kinsmen. H1350
21 And Ruth H7327 the Moabitess H4125 said, H559 He said H559 unto me also, Thou shalt keep fast H1692 by my young men, H5288 until they have ended H3615 all my harvest. H7105
22 And Naomi H5281 said H559 unto Ruth H7327 her daughter in law, H3618 It is good, H2896 my daughter, H1323 that thou go out H3318 with his maidens, H5291 that they meet H6293 thee not in any other H312 field. H7704
23 So she kept fast H1692 by the maidens H5291 of Boaz H1162 to glean H3950 unto the end H3615 of barley H8184 harvest H7105 and of wheat H2406 harvest; H7105 and dwelt H3427 with her mother in law. H2545
17 So she gleaned in the field until even; and she beat out that which she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley.
18 And she took it up, and went into the city; and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned: and she brought forth and gave to her that which she had left after she was sufficed.
19 And her mother-in-law said unto her, Where hast thou gleaned to-day? and where hast thou wrought? 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.
20 And Naomi said unto her daughter-in-law, Blessed be he of Jehovah, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man is nigh of kin unto us, one of our near kinsmen.
21 And Ruth the Moabitess said, Yea, he said unto me, Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.
22 And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter-in-law, It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, and that they meet thee not in any other field.
23 So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz, to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law.
17 And she gleaneth in the field till the evening, and beateth out that which she hath gleaned, and it is about an ephah of barley;
18 and she taketh `it' up, and goeth into the city, and her mother-in-law seeth that which she hath gleaned, and she bringeth out and giveth to her that which she left from her satiety.
19 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.'
20 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.'
21 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.'
22 And Naomi saith unto Ruth her daughter-in-law, `Good, my daughter, that thou goest out with his young women, and they come not against thee in another field.'
23 And she cleaveth to the young women of Boaz to glean, till the completion of the barley-harvest, and of the wheat-harvest, and she dwelleth with her mother-in-law.
17 And she gleaned in the field until even, and beat out what she had gleaned; and it was about an ephah of barley.
18 And she took [it] up, and came into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned; and she brought forth and gave to her that which she had reserved after she was sufficed.
19 And her mother-in-law said to her, Where hast thou gleaned to-day? and where hast thou wrought? Blessed be he that did regard thee! And she told her mother-in-law with whom she had wrought, and said, The man's name with whom I wrought to-day is Boaz.
20 And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, Blessed be he of Jehovah, who has not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead! And Naomi said to her, The man is near of kin to us, one of those who have the right of our redemption.
21 And Ruth the Moabitess said, He said to me also, Thou shalt keep with my young men until they have ended all my harvest.
22 And Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, that they meet thee not in any other field.
23 So she kept with the maidens of Boaz to glean, until the end of the barley-harvest and of the wheat-harvest. And she dwelt with her mother-in-law.
17 So she gleaned in the field until even; and she beat out that which she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley.
18 She took it up, and went into the city; and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned: and she brought forth and gave to her that which she had left after she was sufficed.
19 Her mother-in-law said to her, Where have you gleaned today? and where have you worked? blessed be he who did take knowledge of you. She shown her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, The man's name with whom I worked today is Boaz.
20 Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, Blessed be he of Yahweh, who has not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. Naomi said to her, The man is a close relative to us, one of our near kinsmen.
21 Ruth the Moabitess said, Yes, he said to me, You shall keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.
22 Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his maidens, and that they not meet you in any other field.
23 So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz, to glean to the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and she lived with her mother-in-law.
17 So she went on getting together the heads of grain till evening; and after crushing out the seed it came to about an ephah of grain.
18 And she took it up and went into the town; and she let her mother-in-law see what she had got, and after taking enough for herself she gave her the rest.
19 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.
20 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.
21 And Ruth the Moabitess said, Truly, he said to me, Keep near my young men till all my grain is cut.
22 And Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, It is better, my daughter, for you to go out with his servant-girls, so that no danger may come to you in another field.
23 So she kept near the servant-girls of Boaz to take up the grain till the cutting of the early grain and the cutting of the late grain were ended; and she went on living with her mother-in-law.
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Commentary on Ruth 2 Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
Ruth Gleans in the Field of Boaz - Ruth 2
Ruth went to the field to glean ears of corn, for the purpose of procuring support for herself and her mother-in-law, and came by chance to the field of Boaz, a relative of Naomi, who, when he heard that she had come with Naomi from Moabitis, spoke kindly to her, and gave her permission not only to glean ears in his field and even among the sheaves, but to appease her hunger and thirst with the food and drink of his reapers (vv. 1-16), so that in the evening she returned to her mother-in-law with a plentiful gleaning, and told her of the gracious reception she had met with from this man, and then learned from her that Boaz was a relation of her own (Ruth 2:17-23).
The account of this occurrence commences with a statement which was necessary in order to make it perfectly intelligible, namely that Boaz, to whose field Ruth went to glean, was a relative of Naomi through her deceased husband Elimelech. The Kethibh מידע is to be read מידּע , an acquaintance (cf. Psalms 31:12; Psalms 55:14). The Keri מודע is the construct state of מודע , lit . acquaintanceship, then an acquaintance or friend (Proverbs 7:4), for which מודעת occurs afterwards in Ruth 3:2 with the same meaning. That the acquaintance or friend of Naomi through her husband was also a relation, is evident from the fact that he was “of the family of Elimelech. ” According to the rabbinical tradition, which is not well established however, Boaz was a nephew of Elimelech. The ל before אישׁהּ is used instead of the simple construct state, because the reference is not to the relation, but to a relation of her husband; at the same time, the word מודע has taken the form of the construct state notwithstanding this ל (compare Ewald , §292 , a ., with § 289, b .). חיל גּבּור generally means the brave man of war (Judges 6:12; Judges 11:1, etc.); but here it signifies a man of property. The name Boaz is not formed from עז בּו , in whom is strength, but from a root, בּעז , which does not occur in Hebrew, and signifies alacrity .
Ruth 2:2-3
Ruth wished to go to the field and glean at (among) the ears, i.e., whatever ears were left lying upon the harvest field (cf. Ruth 2:7), אשׁר אחר , behind him in whose eyes she should find favour. The Mosaic law (Leviticus 19:9; Leviticus 23:22, compared with Deuteronomy 24:19) did indeed expressly secure to the poor the right to glean in the harvest fields, and prohibited the owners from gleaning themselves; but hard-hearted farmers and reapers threw obstacles in the way of the poor, and even forbade their gleaning altogether. Hence Ruth proposed to glean after him who should generously allow it. She carried out this intention with the consent of Naomi, and chance led her to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, a relation of Elimelech, without her knowing the owner of the field, or being at all aware of his connection with Elimelech. מקרה ויּקר , lit., “ her chance chanced to hit upon the field .”
Ruth 2:4-7
When Boaz came from the town to the field, and had greeted his reapers with the blessing of a genuine Israelites, “ Jehovah be with you ,” and had received from them a corresponding greeting in return, he said to the overseer of the reapers, “ Whose damsel is this? ” to which he replied, “ It is the Moabitish damsel who came back with Naomi from the fields of Moab, and she has said (asked), Pray, I will glean (i.e., pray allow me to glean) and gather among the sheaves after the reapers, and has come and stays (here) from morning till now; her sitting in the house that is little .” מאז , lit . a conjunction, here used as a preposition, is stronger than מן , “ from then ,” from the time of the morning onwards (see Ewald , §222, c.). It is evident from this answer of the servant who was placed over the reapers, (1) that Boaz did not prohibit any poor person from gleaning in his field; (2) that Ruth asked permission of the overseer of the reapers, and availed herself of this permission with untiring zeal from the first thing in the morning, that she might get the necessary support for her mother-in-law and herself; and (3) that her history was well known to the overseer, and also to Boaz, although Boaz saw her now for the first time.
The good report which the overlooker gave of the modesty and diligence of Ruth could only strengthen Boaz in his purpose, which he had probably already formed from his affection as a relation towards Naomi, to make the acquaintance of her daughter-in-law, and speak kindly to her. With fatherly kindness, therefore, he said to her (Ruth 2:8, Ruth 2:9), “ Dost thou hear, my daughter? (i.e., 'thou hearest, dost thou not?' interrogatio blande affirmat ;) go not to reap in another field, and go not away from here, and keep so to my maidens (i.e., remaining near them in the field). Thine eyes (directed) upon the field which they reap, go behind them (i.e., behind the maidens, who probably tired up the sheaves, whilst the men-servants cut the corn). I have commanded the young men not to touch thee (to do thee no harm); and if thou art thirsty ( צמת , from צמה = צמא : see Ewald , §195, b .), go to the vessels, and drink of what the servants draw. ”
Deeply affected by this generosity, Ruth fell upon her face, bowing down to the ground (as in 1 Samuel 25:23; 2 Samuel 1:2; cf. Genesis 23:7), to thank him reverentially, and said to Boaz, “ Why have I found favour in thine eyes, that thou regardest me, who am only a stranger? ” הכּיר , to look at with sympathy or care, to receive a person kindly (cf. Ruth 2:19).
Boaz replied, “ Everything has been told me that thou hast done to ( את , prep. as in Zechariah 7:9; 2 Samuel 16:17) thy mother-in-law since the death of thy husband, that thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and thy kindred, and hast come to a people that thou knewest not heretofore ” (hast therefore done what God commanded Abraham to do, Genesis 12:1). “ The Lord recompense thy work, and let thy reward be perfect (recalling Genesis 15:1) from the Lord the God of Israel, to whom thou hast come to seek refuge under His wings! ” For this figurative expression, which is derived from Deuteronomy 32:11, compare Psalms 91:4; Psalms 36:8; Psalms 57:2. In these words of Boaz we see the genuine piety of a true Israelite.
Ruth replied with true humility, “ May I find favour in thine eyes; for thou hast comforted me, and spoken to the heart of thy maiden (see Judges 19:3), though I am not like one of thy maidens, ” i.e., though I stand in no such near relation to thee, as to have been able to earn thy favour. In this last clause she restricts the expression “thy maiden.” Carpzov has rightly pointed this out: “But what am I saying when I call myself thy maiden? since I am not worthy to be compared to the least of thy maidens.” The word אמצא is to be taken in an optative sense, as expressive of the wish that Boaz might continue towards her the kindness he had already expressed. To take it as a present, “I find favour” ( Clericus and Bertheau ), does not tally with the modesty and humility shown by Ruth in the following words.
This unassuming humility on the part of Ruth made Boaz all the more favourably disposed towards her, so that at meal-time he called her to eat along with his people ( לה without Mappik , as in Numbers 32:42; Zechariah 5:11; cf. Ewald , §94, b . 3). “ Dip thy morsel in the vinegar. ” Chomez , a sour beverage composed of vinegar (wine vinegar or sour wine) mixed with oil; a very refreshing drink, which is still a favourite beverage in the East (see Rosenmüller , A. and N. Morgenland, iv. p. 68, and my Bibl. Archäologie, ii. p. 16). “ And he reached her parched corn. ” The subject is Boaz, who, judging from the expression “come hither,” either joined in the meal, or at any rate was present at it. קלי are roasted grains of wheat (see at Leviticus 2:14, and my Bibl. Arch. ii. p. 14), which are still eaten by the reapers upon the harvest field, and also handed to strangers.
(Note: Thus Robinson (Pal. ii. p. 394) gives the following description of a harvest scene in the neighbourhood of Kubeibeh: “In one field nearly two hundred reapers and gleaners were at work, the latter being nearly as numerous as the former. A few were taking their refreshment, and offered us some of their 'parched corn.' In the season of harvest, the grains of wheat not yet fully dry and hard, are roasted in a pan or on an iron plate, and constitute a very palatable article of food; this is eaten along with bread, or instead of it.”)
Boaz gave her an abundant supply of it, so that she was not only satisfied, but left some, and was able to take it home to her mother (Ruth 2:18.)
When she rose up to glean again after eating, Boaz commanded his people, saying, “ She may also glean between the shaves (which was not generally allowed), and ye shall not shame her (do her any injury, Judges 18:7); and ye shall also draw out of the bundles for her, and let them lie (the ears drawn out), that she may glean them, and shall not scold her, ” sc., for picking up the ears that have been drawn out. These directions of Boaz went far beyond the bounds of generosity and compassion for the poor; and show that he felt a peculiar interest in Ruth, with whose circumstances he was well acquainted, and who had won his heart by her humility, her faithful attachment to her mother-in-law, and her love to the God of Israel, - a face important to notice in connection with the further course of the history.
Thus Ruth gleaned till the evening in the field; and when she knocked out the ears, she had about an ephah (about 20-25 lbs.) of barley.
Ruth 2:18
This she brought to her mother-in-law in the city, and “ drew out (sc., from her pocket, as the Chaldee has correctly supplied) what she had left from her sufficiency, ” i.e., of the parched corn which Boaz had reached her (Ruth 2:14).
Ruth 2:19-20
The mother inquired, “ where hast thou gleaned to-day, and where wroughtest thou? ” and praised the benefactor, who, as she conjecture from the quantity of barley collected and the food brought home, had taken notice of Ruth: “ blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee! ” When she heard the name of the man, Boaz, she saw that this relative of her husband had been chosen by God to be a benefactor of herself and Ruth, and exclaimed, “ Blessed be he of the Lord, that he has not left off (withdrawn) his favour towards the living and the dead! ” On חסדּו עזב see Genesis 24:27. This verb is construed with a double accusative here; for את cannot be a preposition, as in that case מאת would be used like מעם in Gen. l.c . “ The living, ” etc., forms a second object: as regards (with regard to) the living and the dead, in which Naomi thought of herself and Ruth, and of her husband and sons, to whom God still showed himself gracious, even after their death, through His care for their widows. In order to enlighten Ruth still further upon the matter, she added, “ The man (Boaz) is our relative, and one of our redeemers. ” He “ stands near to us, ” sc., by relationship. גּאלנוּ , a defective form for גּאלינוּ , which is found in several MSS and editions. On the significance of the goël , or redeemer, see at Leviticus 25:26, Leviticus 25:48-49, and the introduction to Ruth 3.
Ruth 2:21
Ruth proceeded to inform her of his kindness: כּי גּם , “ also (know) that he said to me, Keep with my people, till the harvest is all ended. ” The masculine הנּערים , for which we should rather expect the feminine נערות in accordance with Ruth 2:8, Ruth 2:22, Ruth 2:23, is quite in place as the more comprehensive gender, as a designation of the reapers generally, both male and female; and the expression לי אשׁר in this connection in the sense of my is more exact than the possessive pronoun: the people who belong to my house, as distinguished from the people of other masters.
Ruth 2:22
Naomi declared herself fully satisfied with this, because Ruth would be thereby secured from insults, which she might receive when gleaning in strange fields. “ That they meet thee not, ” lit . “that they do not fall upon thee.” בּ פּגע signifies to fall upon a person, to smite and ill-treat him.
Ruth 2:23
After this Ruth kept with the maidens of Boaz during the whole of the barley and wheat harvests gleaning ears of corn, and lived with her mother-in-law, sc., when she returned in the evening from the field. In this last remark there is a tacit allusion to the fact that a change took place for Ruth when the harvest was over.