Ruth 1:6-14

Ruth 1:6-14

[6] Then she arose  with her daughters in law,  that she might return  from the country  of Moab:  for she had heard  in the country  of Moab  had visited  his people  in giving  them bread.  [7] Wherefore she went forth  out of the place  where she was, and her two  daughters in law  on the way  to return  unto the land  of Judah.  [8] And Naomi  said  unto her two  daughters in law,  return  each  to her mother's  house:  the LORD  deal  kindly  with you, as ye have dealt  with the dead,  and with me. [9] The LORD  grant  you that ye may find  rest,  each  of you in the house  of her husband.  Then she kissed  them; and they lifted up  their voice,  and wept.  [10] And they said  unto her, Surely we will return  with thee unto thy people.  [11] And Naomi  said,  Turn again,  my daughters:  with me? are there yet any more sons  in my womb,  [12] Turn again,  my daughters,  your way; for I am too old  to have an husband.  If I should say,  I have  hope,  if I should have an husband  also to night,  and should also bear  sons;  [13] Would ye tarry  for them  till they were grown?  would ye stay  for them  from having husbands?  nay, my daughters;  for it grieveth  me much  for your sakes that the hand  of the LORD  is gone out  against me. [14] And they lifted up  their voice,  and wept again:  and Orpah  kissed  her mother in law;  but Ruth  clave  unto her.

What does Ruth 1:6-14 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

God eventually withdrew the famine from Judah ( Ruth 1:6), probably in response to His people"s calling out to Him for deliverance (cf. Judges 3:9; Judges 3:15; Judges 4:3; Judges 6:6; Judges 10:10; Judges 16:28). This verse sounds one of the major themes of the story: Yahweh"s gracious intervention. [1]
"Here is a central theme in the Bible: all of life is traced directly to the hand of God. To concentrate primarily on second causes may encourage us to seek to be manipulators of the system. It is concentration on the Great Cause which teaches us to live by faith." [2]
Naomi"s words to her daughters-in-law are very important. Of the book"s85 verses, 56 report dialogue, indicating that dialogue is one of its dominant literary techniques. [3] She appealed to them to maintain their strongest earthly ties by returning to their mothers" families ( Ruth 1:8). "Return" in its various Hebrew forms is a key word in Ruth (e.g, Ruth 1:6-8; Ruth 1:10; Ruth 1:15-16; Ruth 1:22 [4]; Ruth 2:6; Ruth 4:3). Ruth is a story of return to the Promised Land, blessing, and primarily return to the Lord. Naomi incorrectly believed that there was more hope for her daughters-in-law by staying in Moab than there was by going with her to God"s chosen people and land.
"Naomi should have said to them what Moses said to his father-in-law, "Come thou with us, and we will do thee good; for the Lord has spoken good concerning Israel" ( Numbers 10:29, KJV)." [5]
"I may be wrong, but I get the impression that Naomi didn"t want to take Oprah and Ruth to Bethlehem because they were living proof that she and her husband had permitted their two sons to marry women from outside the covenant nation. In other words, Naomi was trying to cover up her disobedience." [6]
". . . the phrase "mother"s house" occurs in contexts having to do with love and marriage. It seems likely, then, that Naomi here referred to some custom according to which the "mother"s house"-probably her bedroom, not a separate building-was the place where marriages were arranged." [7]
Second, Naomi prayed that Yahweh would pay back loyal love ("deal kindly," Heb. hesed), to Ruth and Orpah since they had shown loyal love to their husbands and Naomi ( Ruth 1:8).
"Here emerges a key theological assumption of the book: the intimate link between human action and divine action. In this case, human kindness has earned the possibility (even likelihood) of a God-given reward." [8]
Third, Naomi wished "rest" (Heb. menuhah) for her daughters-in-law in the household of their next husbands ( Ruth 1:9). Rest was one of the great blessings God had promised the Israelites as they anticipated entrance into the Promised Land ( Exodus 33:14; Deuteronomy 3:20; Deuteronomy 12:9-10; Deuteronomy 25:19; Joshua 1:13; Joshua 1:15; Joshua 21:44; Joshua 22:4; Joshua 23:1; cf. Genesis 49:15; Exodus 16:23; Exodus 31:15; Exodus 35:2; Leviticus 16:31; Leviticus 23:3; Leviticus 23:32; Leviticus 25:4-5; Psalm 95:11; Hebrews 3:11; Hebrews 3:18). It refers to security, which in this case marriage would give Ruth (lit. friendship) and Orpah (lit. neck), rather than freedom from work. Probably Ruth"s parents named her hoping that she would demonstrate friendship, which she did admirably. Perhaps Orpah"s parents thought she had an attractive neck when she was born. Ironically, some of the later rabbis referred to her as "she of the turned neck" since she turned back to Moab (cf. Lot"s wife).
After the two daughters-in-law refused to leave their mother-in-law ( Ruth 1:10), which in Orpah"s case was only a polite refusal but in Ruth"s a genuine one, Naomi urged them again. Here one reason for her counsel comes out. She was too old to remarry, bear sons, have those sons marry their brothers" (Mahlon"s and Chilion"s) widows, and raise up seed. That seed would perpetuate the families begun by Mahlon and Chilion with Ruth and Orpah. Levirate marriage was the practice of a single brother marrying his deceased brother"s widow to father children who would carry on the dead brother"s name and extend his branch of the family tree. It was common throughout the ancient Near East and in Israel (cf. Genesis 38:8-10; Deuteronomy 25:5-10). [4]2 The word "levir" comes from the Latin translation of the Hebrew term for brother-in-law. Naomi was too old to remarry and bear sons who could provide loyal love and rest for Ruth and Orpah. (Had she forgotten what God had done for Sarah by enabling her to bear a son at age90?) Consequently she urged her daughters-in-law to return home and start married life over with new Moabite husbands. She evidently did not even consider the possibility that God could provide for them if they sought refuge in Him. She was not presenting the God of Israel in a positive light or demonstrating much faith in Him.
It was harder for Naomi than for Ruth and Orpah ( Ruth 1:13), because while Ruth and Orpah had hope of marrying again and bearing children, Naomi did not, in view of her advanced age. She bitterly regarded her situation as a judgment from God ( Ruth 1:13; cf. Genesis 30:1-2; Genesis 42:36). Naomi was bitter rather than broken. Really her situation in life was the result of the decisions she and her husband and sons had made when they chose to leave the Promised Land. She did not realize that God would yet graciously bless her with a descendant through Boaz. Boaz would father a son who would carry on the name and lines of Ruth"s dead husband and Naomi"s dead husband.
"Ruth and Orpah demonstrate the two kinds of members in the church-the professors and the possessors. Orpah made only a profession of faith and failed at the climactic moment; Ruth possessed genuine faith, which produced fruit and works." [4]8
Ruth clung to Naomi. The Hebrew word for "clung to" is dabaq, which elsewhere refers to the ideal closeness that can be experienced in a marriage relationship (cf. Genesis 2:24). [11] Ruth determined to stick to her mother-in-law as closely as a husband would cleave to his wife (cf. James 1:27).
"It is a mistake to make the purpose of raising an heir to the deceased head of the family the exclusive purpose of each of the protagonists at every point and so dismiss the equally valid and legitimate concern of these women to find for themselves the security of home and husband-the only identity their patriarchal world afforded them." [4]4