In hebrew, ruths name is comprised of the letters reish, vav, tav, which add up to a numerical value of 606. According to the talmud jewish tradition, the prophet samuel wrote the book of ruth. The book of ruth is their starting point, but it simply opens a door into a centuriesold conversation among jewish people about the book of ruth. The hebrew uses the same term for sons to show in inclusio naomis loss of sons to her regaining of a child. The tension and tragedy lies in the empty and lonely naomi. The book of ruth is a hebrew short story, told with consummate skill. Jonah, ruth, and esther cliffsnotes study guides book.
Ruths joining naomi is seen by the rabbis, in different texts, as the process of full. The book of ruth is read on shavuot, the holiday celebrating the giving of the torah on mount sinai. Jewish exegesis of the book of ruth journal for the study. Lessons from the book of ruth jewish theological seminary. The book of ruth is one of the bibles shortest books, telling its story in just four chapters. Ruth has, in essence, fully embraced the more dignified standards at the heart of her new jewish life. Its main character is a moabite woman named ruth, the daughterinlaw of a jewish widow named naomi. Book of ruth overview insight for living ministries. The book of ruth, which appears in the third section of the hebrew bible, ktuvim, writings, is a beautiful folktale written in four short chapters.
Ruth was a moabite princess of very fine character, who became the greatgrandmother of king david. The book of leviticus comes to life here, with its injunctions to leave part of the harvest for the needy, and with all of its concern and compassion for the underprivileged within the society. Search for library items search for lists search for contacts. The book of ruth is an important historical work in hebrew scripture, our old testament of the bible, as it traces the lineage of king david and ultimately that of the messiah, jesus christ. The hidden symbolism you never saw in the book of ruth. What did it mean to spread the corner of your garment over. See the commentary of the gaon of vilna on the book of ruth. Ruth s name provides the title for the book of ruth, probably a piece of historical fiction set in the time of the judges.
It is a story about a hebrew woman named naomi who lives during the period of the judges, prior to the establishment of the monarchy. By ismar schorsch, rabbi herman abramovitz distinguished service professor of jewish history and. Ruth was a moabite princess of very fine character, who became the. The second reason why ruth is read on shavuot concerns the genealogical information at the very end of the book. The book of ruth tells a touching story of the love and devotion of an ancestor of david and jesus christ. Jewish exegesis of the book of ruth journal for the study of the old testament. The foundation is dedicated to revitalizing jewish identity through. The eschatological meaning of the book of ruth vol. May 14, 2002 the first one seems quite straightforward, at least at first glance. However, as a comedy, there is rebirth in the end, literally in. Jewish exegesis of the book of ruth journal for the study of. It discusses the meaning and definition of midrash as a distinctive approach in jewish interpretation. I included a commentary of esther in the book and a commentary of judith.
In traditional settings, the book of ruth is read on the second day of shavuot. The rabbis maintain that orpah and ruth were sisters, the daughters of king eglon of moab ruth rabbah 2. It celebrates the loyalty and reward of a young moabite widow ruth who chooses to follow her israelite motherinlaw naomi back to bethlehem after naomi was bereaved of her own husband and two sons. Traditionally read in many synagogues on the holiday, the narrative quality of this book itself is masterful and its delineation of the main characters is sharp and arresting. She was a moabite princess who converted to judaism in the 10th century. Among historical narratives in scripture it is unexcelled in its compactness, vividness, warmth, beauty and dramatic effectiveness an exquisitely wrought jewel of hebrew narrative art. Rabbi david gedzelman explores the book of ruth with an eye toward. Click download or read online button to get the theology of the book of ruth book now. The meanings of hebrew names can almost tell the whole story by themselves. We hope that you find the ruth summary from the kjv bible chapters and verses helpful to your bible studies and for references as a guide to further reference to the book of ruth.
Ruth is a book for all times, whether written in post. Moreover, jewish canonical tradition links judges and ruth, together as one book, again pointing to an early date. The following is what i wrote for the final chapter of ruth. The story of ruth begins with death, moves toward marriage, and finds its ultimate fulfillment in birth. Jewish sources offer six explanations for the custom of reading the book of ruth on shavuot, the festival commemorating the giving of the torah at sinai. See the full text of the book of ruth in hebrew and english with rashis commentary. The law required property owners to leave some grain for the poor and widows, like ruth ruth 2. The book of ruth, which is poetically idyllic in character, although the narrative is in the form of prose, contains an episode from the period of the judges. Link to eerdmans this book joins ian boxalls discovering matthew as the first volumes of a new or rebooted discovering the bible series from eerdmans and spck. Listen to chuck swindolls overview of ruth in his audio message from the classic series gods masterwork. The book of ruth, which appears in the third section of the hebrew bible. Following jewish customs, ruth lets boaz know he is a kinsmanredeemer and that she is eligible to marry him ruth 3.
Sick and ailing, the literal meaning of their names as their names describe them, they are still paired. Jewish exegesis of the book of ruth journal for the study of the old testament beattie, derek robert george on. An easytoread english rendition of the book of ruth. Oct 19, 2017 ruth has, in essence, fully embraced the more dignified standards at the heart of her new jewish life. Book of ruth, old testament book belonging to the third section of the biblical canon, known as the ketuvim, or writings. However, they have failed to decipher the full religious nature of the book. The hebrew term can be translated either way, but the context makes the translation of garment more likely. Philosophy and religion bible and literature criticism and interpretation bible as literature biblical literature genealogy analysis jewish symbolism. Lineage the rabbis state that ruth was orpah s sister, as well as her sisterinlaw, and both were the daughters of king eglon of moab ruth rabbah 2. Ruth was a moabite woman, whose sense of piety and devotion to her motherinlaw naomi led to her marriage to the prominent boaz of bethlehem in judah.
In the hebrew bible, ruth stands with the song of solomon, lamentations, ecclesiastes, and esther. Why we read the book of ruth on shavuot my jewish learning. The hidden symbolism you never saw in the book of ruth,andrew wilson, alastair robert study from the bible and be encouraged to grow your faith. The jewish publication societys highly acclaimed bible commentary series provides a critical linebyline commentary of the biblical text, which is presented in its original hebrew, complete with vocalization and cantillation marks, as well as the jps english translation. Later i passed by, and when i looked at you and saw that you were old enough for love, i spread the corner of my garment over you and. Thus seen, the book of ruth provides its readers with a light of spiritual faithfulness in a period of otherwise spiritual darkness.
The usual interpretation, as given here, is that ruth is told to uncover boazs genitals, but see kirsten nielsen, other writings, in mckenzie and graham. Ruth, biblical character, a woman who after being widowed remains with her husbands mother. Jewish law assigns this book to the festival of shavuot for various reasons. We, who were all present as a nation at mount sinai, who experienced the revelation of god and became jews by nature of the overwhelming force of that revelation, have much to learn from ruth, who converted on her own and whose whole life was. This is the pastor bringing the early morning message entitled the spirit. The book of ruth tells of ruth the moabite choosing to make the israelites her people. The book of ruth starts out right away with a famine in the land 1. The book of ruth does not mention that boaz had a wife and children. To you who listen on the radio, you are sharing with us the services of the first baptist church in dallas. The similarities between the judahtamar episode and ruth have long been recognized. If we could learn to emulate ruth in our own act of torah acceptance, the act of divine service that is the essence of shavuot, we would succeed in absorbing the entire spiritual input offered by god on the shavuot holiday.
And a certain man of bethlehemjudah went to sojourn in the country of moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. The book of ruth is identified with chesed, kindness, in three places. This allegorical interpretation answers the perennial question why is the book of ruth recited on shavuot. The two of them travel to bethlehem together, where ruth wins the love of boaz. As we will see as we go along, the sages viewed this separation of orpah and ruth as representing the point of separation of good and evil as a prelude to redemption. To understand it requires that we examine key aspects of the book anew, as well as the biblical text which is most clearly linked to ruth, the story of judah and tamar in genesis 38.
This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. In establishing that ruth was the great grandmother of david, the book of ruth serves as a prologue into 1 samuel by affirming king davids rights to the throne of israel. Kjv bible verses from ruth offer free, online access, for those of the christian faith, to study scriptural passages for biblical studies, contained in the words. Shavuot commemorates the acceptance of the torah by the jewish people, and the book of ruth describes the acceptance of the torah by a single individual through an act of conversion. Ruth most likely comes from a moabite andor hebrew word meaning friendship. Yet they were expected to greet the jews with food and drink.
The use of midrash in the exegesis of the book of ruth gap. The book of ruth summary ruth was a moabite princess of very fine character, who became the greatgrandmother of king david. Both the torah, which was given on shavuot, and ruth are all about kindness and generosity hesed. Mahlon and chilion have a role to play in the story. In stark contrast, the book of ruth was the highest example of responsible living. Because they the peoples of amon and moab did not greet you with bread and water on. The book of ruth, the second of the tanakhs five scrolls to be read on shavuot, turns on at. She represents our spirit which is the only part of man which can respond to gods offer of friendship through the finished work of jesus christ. Naomis advice to ruth, the meeting on the threshing floor, and ruths return home.
I completed my commentary of ruth and it will be published within a couple of months. The story of ruth ruth was a moabite princess of very fine character, who became the greatgrandmother of king david. Its an intimate family tale of misfortune, crafty use of kinship ties, and ultimately, loyalty. Ruth s kindness as noted in the book of ruth by boaz is seen in the jewish tradition as in rare contradistinction to the peoples of moab where ruth comes from and amon in general, who were noted by the torah for their distinct lack of kindness. The story of ruth offers vital lessons to every generation and has enjoyed nearly universal acceptance by biblical scholars and critics throughout the centuries. Ruth, naomi and boaz all occupy the stage in turn, and gods.
This exegetical trend is finally illustrated with some examples of interpretation of the book of ruth. The traditional hebrew text with the new jps translation. Ruth is wellloved for her loyalty to her motherinlaw naomi and is often called judaisms most famous convert, or j. It is set in the time of the judges not the best ones, if we assign it to the period of gideon and samson and it attempts to define the rights of widows and aliens within a society fallen upon hard times. Posted on june 12, 2005 5765 main commentary holidays. This makes ruth the greatgrandmother of king david.
Shavuot is our celebration of gds giving the torah to the jewish people. Ruth is wellloved for her loyalty to her motherinlaw naomi and is often called judaisms most famous convert, or. It has been called the most beautiful short story ever. These nations did not attack the passing straggling group of jewish slaves as the amalekites did. In the narrative, she is not an israelite but rather is from moab. Depending on whether youre using a jewish or christian version, the book of ruth is placed between judges and samuel or between the song of songs and lamentations. Jewish readers want to know about ruth and naomi and boaz but they are equally interested in the midrashim and traditions about them as they are in the story in the canonical book of ruth. Atla religion database with atlaserials, ebscohost accessed july 20, 2016. Thirdly, in the torah wives do not inherit their husbands num. The story is told in the book of ruth, part of the biblical canon called ketuvim, or writings. The book of ruth abbreviated rth is included in the third division, or the writings ketuvim, of the hebrew bible.
Ruth is a type of the church, the gentile bride, and boaz as the kinsman redeemer is a type of christ. Jan 10, 2018 the book of ruth is one of the bibles shortest books, telling its story in just four chapters. The text itself says nothing of the author, but whoever wrote it was a skilled storyteller. Ruth returns to judah from moab with her motherinlaw, naomi ruth 1. This is the pastor bringing the early morning message entitled the spiritual meaning of the book of ruth. Upon his death she becomes a childless widow who chooses to accompany her motherinlaw, naomi, to judah. Like the book of jonah, the book of ruth, a masterpiece of storytelling, has a moral lesson, but this lesson may not be the chief reason why the book was written. Gaining a sense of the hebrew meaning of redeem gaal the.
They give insight to the hidden meaning of the allegory. The sisterhood of the book of ruth judy gruen may 21, 2020 0 when 7yearold jenna bishop asked her mother, please tell me about god and heaven and what it. This article deals with the exegetical approach of the early jewish school. She was dissatisfied with the idolworship of her own people, and when the opportunity arose, she gladly gave up the privileges of royalty in her land and accepted a life of poverty among people she admired. May 25, 2017 this allegorical interpretation answers the perennial question why is the book of ruth recited on shavuot. Whats more, from moabite society which valued me, with a capital m, ruth has transformed herself to a point where she is committed to laboring in the fields in. It suffices to point out for now that they clearly viewed the key to interpretation of this book in that it is about redemption.
She was dissatisfied with the idolworship of her own. Whats more, from moabite society which valued me, with a capital m, ruth has transformed herself to a point where she is committed to laboring in the fields in order to support her motherinlaw. Jewish exegesis of the book of ruth book, 1977 worldcat. The book of ruth begins by highlighting the judges theme of israel needing a king and exploring the misery and emptiness a singular family might experience during these dark times ruth 1. On the festival of shavuot pentecost, the season of the barley harvest, we read the bucolic tale of ruth the moabite lady, a. Ruth s story is celebrated during the jewish festival of shavuot, the feast of weeks, 50 days after passover. Ruth is a moabite woman who marries a judean immigrant named mahlon 1. The book of ruth, which appears in the third section of the hebrew bible, ktuvim, writings, is a beautiful folktale. The theology of the book of ruth download ebook pdf. She was the greatgreat grandmother of david, and the genealogy of ruth 4, is the chief reason for the book being written.