The Meaning of Ruth 2:7 Explained

Ruth 2:7

KJV: And she said, I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves: so she came, and hath continued even from the morning until now, that she tarried a little in the house.

YLT: and she saith, Let me glean, I pray thee -- and I have gathered among the sheaves after the reapers; and she cometh and remaineth since the morning and till now; she sat in the house a little.

Darby: and she said, I pray you, let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers. And she came, and has continued from the morning until now: her sitting in the house has been little as yet.

ASV: And she said, Let me glean, I pray you, and gather after the reapers among the sheaves. So she came, and hath continued even from the morning until now, save that she tarried a little in the house.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And she said,  I pray you, let me glean  and gather  after  the reapers  among the sheaves:  so she came,  and hath continued  even  from the morning  until now, that she tarried  a little  in the house. 

What does Ruth 2:7 Mean?

Context Summary

Ruth 2:1-13 - Gleaning After The Reapers
In great desolation of soul, Naomi had returned. She was no longer the happy woman of earlier days. Ruth also must sometimes have experienced the depression of homesickness which often steals over the heart of the stranger. But the two women found solace where sad hearts will always find it, first in God and then in ministry to each other, 2 Corinthians 1:4; 2 Corinthians 7:6. In fact, Ruth's devotion to her mother became the common talk of the village, Ruth 2:11.
Notice the beautiful old-time salutations between the employer and his employees. The omission of these courteous greetings is one of the mistakes of our modern civilization. We live in a time when the relations between master and servant, between mistress and maid, are strangely altered, being largely financial and selfish. Each tries to get as much as possible out of the other, and thus the personal touch is absent. Is it to be wondered at that the human machine runs hard and sometimes breaks down? But Boaz was clearly a good man. He had won the respect of the whole neighborhood, and his tender words to the young stranger, saluting her as a nestling under the wings of Jehovah, indicated that he dwelled "in the secret place of the Most High." [source]

Chapter Summary: Ruth 2

1  Ruth gleans in the field of Boaz
4  Boaz takes notice of her
8  and shows her great favor
18  That which she got, she carries to Naomi

What do the individual words in Ruth 2:7 mean?

And she said let me glean please and gather among the sheaves after the reapers so she came and has continued from morning and until now though she rested in the house a little
וַתֹּ֗אמֶר אֲלַקֳטָה־ נָּא֙ וְאָסַפְתִּ֣י בָֽעֳמָרִ֔ים אַחֲרֵ֖י הַקּוֹצְרִ֑ים וַתָּב֣וֹא וַֽתַּעֲמ֗וֹד מֵאָ֤ז הַבֹּ֙קֶר֙ וְעַד־ עַ֔תָּה זֶ֛ה שִׁבְתָּ֥הּ הַבַּ֖יִת מְעָֽט

וַתֹּ֗אמֶר  And  she  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
אֲלַקֳטָה־  let  me  glean 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect Cohortative, first person common singular
Root: לָקַט  
Sense: to pick up, gather, glean, gather up.
נָּא֙  please 
Parse: Interjection
Root: נָא  
Sense: I (we) pray, now, please.
וְאָסַפְתִּ֣י  and  gather 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, first person common singular
Root: אָסַף 
Sense: to gather, receive, remove, gather in.
בָֽעֳמָרִ֔ים  among  the  sheaves 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine plural
Root: עֹמֶר 
Sense: omer.
אַחֲרֵ֖י  after 
Parse: Preposition
Root: אַחַר 
Sense: after the following part, behind (of place), hinder, afterwards (of time).
הַקּוֹצְרִ֑ים  the  reapers 
Parse: Article, Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: קָצוּר 
Sense: to be short, be impatient, be vexed, be grieved.
וַתָּב֣וֹא  so  she  came 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
וַֽתַּעֲמ֗וֹד  and  has  continued 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
הַבֹּ֙קֶר֙  morning 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: בֹּקֶר 
Sense: morning, break of day.
וְעַד־  and  until 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: עַד  
Sense: as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as.
עַ֔תָּה  now 
Parse: Adverb
Root: עַתָּה  
Sense: now.
זֶ֛ה  though 
Parse: Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
שִׁבְתָּ֥הּ  she  rested 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct, third person feminine singular
Root: יָשַׁב 
Sense: to dwell, remain, sit, abide.
הַבַּ֖יִת  in  the  house 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: בַּיִת 
Sense: house.
מְעָֽט  a  little 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: מְעַט  
Sense: littleness, few, a little, fewness.