Ruth 3:1 - Arthur Peake's Commentary on the Bible

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Ruth 3. Boaz as a Goë l. Elimelech and his two sons were dead. Would any member of the family have enough right and proper feeling to save his name from extinction? The nearest relative was in this case silent and inactive. But, with the originality of love, Naomi devised a plan not merely for the redemption of her late husband's estate and the continuation of the family succession, but for the happy settlement of Ruth in a Judæ an home. Ignorant of the customs of Bethlehem, Ruth follows her mother-in-law's instructions to the letter. According to the sentiment of the time there was nothing immodest or unwomanly in their bold and unusual line of action. Rightly understood, it was only a gentle and delicate way of appealing to a kinsman's chivalry; and Ruth did not appeal in vain.

Ruth 3:1. Better a resting-place (mg.); the beautiful Heb. word (mĕ? nûḥ?â) has much the same associations as our home (Psalms 132:14).

Ruth 3:3. The time of the threshing was from four o-' clock in the afternoon till half an hour after sunset, during which time a cool wind blows up from the sea.

Ruth 3:4. The peasants of Palestine still sleep in the open air at the threshing time (Robinson, ii. 720).

Ruth 3:7. The merriness of Boaz's heart seems as natural as its unaffected piety. The charm of this idyll lies in its perfect humanity.

Ruth 3:8-10. The hero of a western song is represented as saying, O wert thou in the cauld blast. my plaidie to the angry airt, I-' d shelter thee; here it is the unsheltered woman who, greatly daring, takes the initiative with the prayer, Spread thy skirt over thine handmaiden. This act had a symbolic, indeed a sacred, meaning, being a kinsman's mode of signifying that, in loyalty to the dead, he was ready to act the part of a redeemer, wedding and protecting one who would otherwise be homeless and friendless.

Ruth 3:11. By this time all the city, lit. the gate, knew Ruth's character. Just inside the gate of the city was the broad place (the Rĕ? hṓ? b), where all business was transacted and the news of the day discussed (Ruth 4:1). Ruth was a virtuous woman in the sense of Proverbs 31:10.

Ruth 3:16. Naomi's question, Who art thou? can only mean How is it with thee? How hast thou fared? (mg.).

Related Commentaries of Ruth 3:1

Ruth 3:1-18

1 Then Naomi her mother in law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?

2 And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night in the threshingfloor.

3 Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking.

4 And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncovera his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.

5 And she said unto her, All that thou sayest unto me I will do.

6 And she went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother in law bade her.

7 And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down.

8 And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turnedb himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet.

9 And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.

10 And he said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich.

11 And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou requirest: for all the cityc of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman.

12 And now it is true that I am thy near kinsman: howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I.

13 Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman's part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth: lie down until the morning.

14 And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another. And he said, Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor.

15 Also he said, Bring the vaild that thou hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and she went into the city.

16 And when she came to her mother in law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her.

17 And she said, These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother in law.

18 Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day.