Ruth 1 Study Notes: Naomi and Ruth Return to Bethlehem
Famine drives Naomi’s family to Moab in the era of the judges, and there her husband and both sons die. Hearing the LORD has provided food, she heads home; Orpah turns back, but Ruth vows to take Naomi’s people and God as her own, and Naomi reaches Bethlehem lamenting that the LORD has made her life bitter.
General
True or False: The text explains that Mahlon and Chilion died because their family had moved to Moab.
Answer: False
This is false. Elimelech dies first, and Naomi still has her two sons. They marry Moabite women, women from the nation of Moab, named Orpah and Ruth. After roughly ten years in Moab, both sons also die, and Naomi is left without husband or sons (1:3-5). The narrator records these deaths but gives no reason for them and no verdict on the family’s choices. Scripture teaches that the LORD rules over death and life (Deuteronomy 32:39), yet the reasons for His dealings often stay hidden with Him (Deuteronomy 29:29). Job, stripped of his children, still blessed the LORD who gives and takes away (Job 1:21). Naomi’s emptiness here is the starting point of the whole book.
- Ruth 1:3-5 (BSB)“Then Naomi’s husband Elimelech died, and she was left with her two sons, who took Moabite women as their wives, one named Orpah and the other named Ruth. And after they had lived in Moab about ten years, both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and without her husband.”Elimelech dies, his sons marry Moabite women, and after about ten years both sons die, leaving Naomi alone.
- Deuteronomy 32:39 (BSB)“See now that I am He; there is no God besides Me. I bring death and I give life; I wound and I heal, and there is no one who can deliver from My hand.”The LORD declares that He alone brings death and gives life, so these deaths are not outside His rule.
- Deuteronomy 29:29 (BSB)“The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, so that we may follow all the words of this law.”God’s hidden purposes belong to Him; His people live by what He has revealed, not by guessing at what He has not.
- Job 1:21 (BSB)“saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.””Job confesses that the LORD gave and the LORD has taken away, and blesses His name in his loss.
Theological
True or False: The narrator identifies the move to Moab as the cause of Mahlon’s and Chilion’s deaths.
Answer: False
This is false. The narrator reports Elimelech’s death, the sons’ marriages to the Moabite women Orpah and Ruth, and then, after about ten years, the deaths of Mahlon and Chilion (1:3-5), without assigning a cause or passing judgment on the move. The LORD’s sovereignty over life and death is affirmed elsewhere (Deuteronomy 32:39), but His particular purposes are not disclosed (Deuteronomy 29:29), and Job in his losses still blessed the LORD who gives and takes away (Job 1:21). The bereavement establishes Naomi’s emptiness, which the rest of the book reverses.
- Ruth 1:3-5 (BSB)“Then Naomi’s husband Elimelech died, and she was left with her two sons, who took Moabite women as their wives, one named Orpah and the other named Ruth. And after they had lived in Moab about ten years, both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and without her husband.”Elimelech dies, his sons marry Moabite women, and after about ten years both sons die, leaving Naomi alone.
- Deuteronomy 32:39 (BSB)“See now that I am He; there is no God besides Me. I bring death and I give life; I wound and I heal, and there is no one who can deliver from My hand.”The LORD declares that He alone brings death and gives life, so these deaths are not outside His rule.
- Deuteronomy 29:29 (BSB)“The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, so that we may follow all the words of this law.”God’s hidden purposes belong to Him; His people live by what He has revealed, not by guessing at what He has not.
- Job 1:21 (BSB)“saying: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.””Job confesses that the LORD gave and the LORD has taken away, and blesses His name in his loss.
General
What led Elimelech to take Naomi and their two sons from Bethlehem to live in Moab (Ruth 1:1-2)?
Answer: A famine had come upon the land
The book opens during the period of the judges, an unsettled time without a king, when people did as they saw fit (Judges 21:25). A famine came, and Elimelech of Bethlehem in Judah took his wife Naomi and their sons Mahlon and Chilion to live in Moab, a neighboring nation to the east (1:1-2). Famine had uprooted God’s people before: Abram traveled to Egypt, and Isaac moved to Gerar among the Philistines (Genesis 12:10; 26:1). The text simply reports the move. It does not say whether going to Moab was right or wrong, and it names no reason for the move other than the famine.
- Ruth 1:1 (BSB)“In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. And a certain man from Bethlehem in Judah, with his wife and two sons, went to reside in the land of Moab.”The story opens in the time of the judges, when famine drives a Bethlehem family to Moab.
- Ruth 1:2 (BSB)“The man’s name was Elimelech, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah, and they entered the land of Moab and settled there.”The family members are named, and the narrator records that they settled in Moab.
- Judges 21:25 (BSB)“In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”The closing verse of Judges describes the lawless, kingless era in which Ruth’s story is set.
- Genesis 12:10 (BSB)“Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe.”Famine had driven Abram out of the land as well, showing how often hunger moved families abroad.
- Genesis 26:1 (BSB)“Now there was another famine in the land, subsequent to the one that had occurred in Abraham’s time. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines at Gerar.”A later famine in Isaac’s day sent him to live among the Philistines at Gerar.
Theological
According to the opening verses, what prompted Elimelech’s family to leave Bethlehem in Judah for Moab (Ruth 1:1-2)?
Answer: A famine had come upon the land
Ruth is set in the period of the judges, the era Judges itself sums up as kingless and lawless (Judges 21:25). The occasion for the move is a famine, and Elimelech settles his household, Naomi, Mahlon and Chilion, in Moab (1:1-2). Famine had likewise uprooted the patriarchs, sending Abram to Egypt and Isaac to Gerar, a Philistine town (Genesis 12:10; 26:1). The narrator offers no verdict on the decision to live in Moab; he records it and supplies no motive beyond the famine.
- Ruth 1:1 (BSB)“In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. And a certain man from Bethlehem in Judah, with his wife and two sons, went to reside in the land of Moab.”The story opens in the time of the judges, when famine drives a Bethlehem family to Moab.
- Ruth 1:2 (BSB)“The man’s name was Elimelech, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah, and they entered the land of Moab and settled there.”The family members are named, and the narrator records that they settled in Moab.
- Judges 21:25 (BSB)“In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”The closing verse of Judges describes the lawless, kingless era in which Ruth’s story is set.
- Genesis 12:10 (BSB)“Now there was a famine in the land. So Abram went down to Egypt to live there for a while because the famine was severe.”Famine had driven Abram out of the land as well, showing how often hunger moved families abroad.
- Genesis 26:1 (BSB)“Now there was another famine in the land, subsequent to the one that had occurred in Abraham’s time. And Isaac went to Abimelech king of the Philistines at Gerar.”A later famine in Isaac’s day sent him to live among the Philistines at Gerar.
General
What news did Naomi hear in Moab that moved her to set out for home (Ruth 1:6)?
Answer: The LORD had given His people food again
Naomi heard news: the LORD had come to the aid of His people by giving them food, so she got ready to leave Moab with Orpah and Ruth (1:6). The narrator says plainly that the famine ended because the LORD acted. This is one of only two places in the book where the narrator directly credits God with an event; the other is the birth of Obed (4:13). Scripture consistently presents food and harvest as God’s gift (Psalm 145:15; Acts 14:17), and He keeps alive in famine those who hope in Him (Psalm 33:18-19).
- Ruth 1:6 (BSB)“When Naomi heard in Moab that the LORD had attended to His people by providing them with food, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to leave the land of Moab.”Naomi hears that the famine in Judah is over because the LORD has acted for His people.
- Psalm 145:15 (BSB)“The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in season.”The psalmist confesses that the LORD is the one who gives all creatures their food in season.
- Acts 14:17 (BSB)“Yet He has not left Himself without testimony to His goodness: He gives you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness.””Paul tells the people of Lystra that God’s gifts of rain, harvests and food bear witness to His goodness.
- Psalm 33:18-19 (BSB)“Surely the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His loving devotion to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.”The LORD keeps alive in famine those who hope in His loving devotion.
Theological
What report prompted Naomi’s decision to return to Judah (Ruth 1:6)?
Answer: The LORD had given His people food again
Naomi’s return is triggered by news that Judah again had food because the LORD had come to the aid of His people (1:6). This is one of only two statements in Ruth where the narrator himself names God as the actor (compare 4:13); elsewhere His hand is hidden in ordinary events. The end of the famine is presented as an act of divine providence, consistent with the Bible’s confession that the LORD feeds His creatures (Psalm 145:15), testifies to His goodness through harvests (Acts 14:17), and preserves His people in famine (Psalm 33:18-19).
- Ruth 1:6 (BSB)“When Naomi heard in Moab that the LORD had attended to His people by providing them with food, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to leave the land of Moab.”Naomi hears that the famine in Judah is over because the LORD has acted for His people.
- Psalm 145:15 (BSB)“The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in season.”The psalmist confesses that the LORD is the one who gives all creatures their food in season.
- Acts 14:17 (BSB)“Yet He has not left Himself without testimony to His goodness: He gives you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness.””Paul tells the people of Lystra that God’s gifts of rain, harvests and food bear witness to His goodness.
- Psalm 33:18-19 (BSB)“Surely the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear Him, on those whose hope is in His loving devotion to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.”The LORD keeps alive in famine those who hope in His loving devotion.
General
When the women of Bethlehem greet her, why does Naomi say they should call her Mara (Ruth 1:20-21)?
Answer: The Almighty had made her life bitter and left her empty
The whole town is stirred, and the women ask whether this can really be Naomi (1:19). She tells them to call her Mara instead, explaining the new name by the bitterness the Almighty has brought on her. She left with a full household, she says, yet the LORD has led her home with nothing; He has borne witness against her and brought affliction on her (1:20-21). Naomi speaks with raw honesty, and she still speaks of the LORD as the One in control of her life. The Bible makes room for such lament: Job spoke the same way of the Almighty (Job 27:2), and Scripture holds that though God may bring grief, He shows compassion out of His great loving devotion (Lamentations 3:32-33). The book does not end in this emptiness. By its close the women of Bethlehem will bless the LORD over Naomi (4:14-15). The two women arrive just as the barley harvest begins (1:22).
- Ruth 1:19 (BSB)“So Naomi and Ruth traveled until they came to Bethlehem. When they entered Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women of the town exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?””The whole town is stirred at Naomi’s return, and the women wonder whether this can be Naomi.
- Ruth 1:20-21 (BSB)““Do not call me Naomi,” she replied. “Call me Mara, because the Almighty has dealt quite bitterly with me. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? After all, the LORD has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me.””Naomi asks to be called Mara and says the Almighty has dealt bitterly with her and brought her back empty.
- Job 27:2 (BSB)““As surely as God lives, who has deprived me of justice—the Almighty, who has embittered my soul—”Job also spoke of the Almighty as the One who had made his soul bitter, an honest lament from a righteous sufferer.
- Lamentations 3:32-33 (BSB)“Even if He causes grief, He will show compassion according to His abundant loving devotion. For He does not willingly afflict or grieve the sons of men.”Even when the LORD brings grief, He shows compassion out of His abundant loving devotion.
- Ruth 4:14-15 (BSB)“Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a kinsman-redeemer. May his name become famous in Israel. He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.””The women of Bethlehem later bless the LORD over Naomi, showing that her emptiness was not the end of her story.
Theological
What reason does Naomi give the women of Bethlehem for renaming herself Mara (Ruth 1:20-21)?
Answer: The Almighty had made her life bitter and left her empty
Greeted by the astonished women of Bethlehem (1:19), Naomi asks to be called Mara, explaining the name by the Almighty’s bitter dealings with her: she left with a full household, the LORD has led her home with nothing, and He has borne witness against her and brought affliction on her (1:20-21). Her lament is neither commended nor rebuked by the narrator. It is honest grief that still confesses God’s sovereign hand, in the manner of Job (Job 27:2), and Scripture sets such affliction within God’s compassion and abundant loving devotion (Lamentations 3:32-33). The empty-to-full reversal begins here and is completed when the women bless the LORD for Naomi’s redeemer (4:14-15). Their arrival at the start of barley harvest (1:22) sets the scene for chapter 2.
- Ruth 1:19 (BSB)“So Naomi and Ruth traveled until they came to Bethlehem. When they entered Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women of the town exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?””The whole town is stirred at Naomi’s return, and the women wonder whether this can be Naomi.
- Ruth 1:20-21 (BSB)““Do not call me Naomi,” she replied. “Call me Mara, because the Almighty has dealt quite bitterly with me. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? After all, the LORD has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me.””Naomi asks to be called Mara and says the Almighty has dealt bitterly with her and brought her back empty.
- Job 27:2 (BSB)““As surely as God lives, who has deprived me of justice—the Almighty, who has embittered my soul—”Job also spoke of the Almighty as the One who had made his soul bitter, an honest lament from a righteous sufferer.
- Lamentations 3:32-33 (BSB)“Even if He causes grief, He will show compassion according to His abundant loving devotion. For He does not willingly afflict or grieve the sons of men.”Even when the LORD brings grief, He shows compassion out of His abundant loving devotion.
- Ruth 4:14-15 (BSB)“Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you this day without a kinsman-redeemer. May his name become famous in Israel. He will renew your life and sustain you in your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given him birth.””The women of Bethlehem later bless the LORD over Naomi, showing that her emptiness was not the end of her story.
General
As Naomi urges Orpah and Ruth to go home, what does she ask the LORD to give them (Ruth 1:8-9)?
Answer: His kindness, and rest in a new husband’s home
Naomi tells Orpah and Ruth to go back to their mothers’ homes, and she blesses them in the LORD’s name. She asks Him to show them loving devotion, His faithful, loyal kindness, just as they have shown kindness to their dead husbands and to her, and to give each of them rest and security in a new husband’s household (1:8-9). Naomi, an Israelite, prays to Israel’s God on behalf of two Moabite women. The LORD’s own character is rich in loving devotion (Exodus 34:6; Psalm 117:2), and the theme of kindness she names here runs through the whole book (3:10).
- Ruth 1:8 (BSB)“Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back, each of you to your mother’s home. May the LORD show you loving devotion, as you have shown to your dead and to me.”Naomi urges Orpah and Ruth to go home and asks the LORD to show them the kindness they have shown.
- Ruth 1:9 (BSB)“May the LORD enable each of you to find rest in the home of your new husband.” And she kissed them as they wept aloud”Naomi prays that each will find rest in a new husband’s home, and they weep together.
- Exodus 34:6 (BSB)“Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,”The LORD proclaims Himself as abounding in loving devotion, the same quality Naomi asks Him to show.
- Psalm 117:2 (BSB)“For great is His loving devotion toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Hallelujah!”The psalm praises the greatness of the LORD’s loving devotion toward His people.
- Ruth 3:10 (BSB)“Then Boaz said, “May the LORD bless you, my daughter. You have shown more kindness now than before, because you have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.”Boaz later praises Ruth for her kindness, carrying forward the theme Naomi introduces here.
Theological
What does Naomi’s parting blessing ask the LORD to grant Orpah and Ruth (Ruth 1:8-9)?
Answer: His kindness, and rest in a new husband’s home
Naomi’s blessing has two parts: that the LORD would deal with them in loving devotion, matching the loyal kindness they have shown to their dead husbands and to her, and that He would grant each of them rest in a new husband’s home (1:8-9). She invokes Israel’s covenant God on behalf of two Moabite women. Loving devotion is the LORD’s self-described character (Exodus 34:6; Psalm 117:2), and the human kindness that reflects it becomes a thread through the book (3:10).
- Ruth 1:8 (BSB)“Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back, each of you to your mother’s home. May the LORD show you loving devotion, as you have shown to your dead and to me.”Naomi urges Orpah and Ruth to go home and asks the LORD to show them the kindness they have shown.
- Ruth 1:9 (BSB)“May the LORD enable each of you to find rest in the home of your new husband.” And she kissed them as they wept aloud”Naomi prays that each will find rest in a new husband’s home, and they weep together.
- Exodus 34:6 (BSB)“Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,”The LORD proclaims Himself as abounding in loving devotion, the same quality Naomi asks Him to show.
- Psalm 117:2 (BSB)“For great is His loving devotion toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Hallelujah!”The psalm praises the greatness of the LORD’s loving devotion toward His people.
- Ruth 3:10 (BSB)“Then Boaz said, “May the LORD bless you, my daughter. You have shown more kindness now than before, because you have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.”Boaz later praises Ruth for her kindness, carrying forward the theme Naomi introduces here.
General
What reason does Naomi give for urging Orpah and Ruth not to come with her (Ruth 1:11-13)?
Answer: She has no more sons who could become their husbands
Both young women weep and insist they will go back with Naomi to her people (1:10). Naomi answers that she has no more sons to give them as husbands. She is too old to remarry, and even if she married that very night and bore sons, the young widows could not wait years until such sons were grown (1:11-13). Her argument resembles a custom found in God’s law, in which a dead man’s brother married his widow to carry on the dead man’s name (Deuteronomy 25:5-6). Judah had once asked Tamar to wait for a younger son in a similar way (Genesis 38:11). Naomi adds that her lot is more bitter than theirs, because she sees the LORD’s hand as having turned against her (1:13). She speaks honestly of her grief and of God’s control over it.
- Ruth 1:10 (BSB)“and said, “Surely we will return with you to your people.””Orpah and Ruth weep and insist on going back with Naomi to her people.
- Ruth 1:11-13 (BSB)“But Naomi replied, “Return home, my daughters. Why would you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb to become your husbands? Return home, my daughters. Go on, for I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was hope for me to have a husband tonight and to bear sons, would you wait for them to grow up? Would you refrain from having husbands? No, my daughters, it is much more bitter for me than for you, because the hand of the LORD has gone out against me.””Naomi argues that she has no sons left to offer as husbands and says the LORD’s hand has gone out against her.
- Deuteronomy 25:5-6 (BSB)“When brothers dwell together and one of them dies without a son, the widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband’s brother is to take her as his wife and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law for her. The first son she bears will carry on the name of the dead brother, so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel.”The law describes a brother marrying his dead brother’s widow to carry on his name, a custom Naomi’s argument resembles.
- Genesis 38:11 (BSB)“Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Live as a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up.” For he thought, “He may die too, like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s house.”Judah told Tamar to wait as a widow until his younger son grew up, a similar situation to the one Naomi describes.
Theological
On what grounds does Naomi try to dissuade Orpah and Ruth from returning with her (Ruth 1:11-13)?
Answer: She has no more sons who could become their husbands
When both women protest that they will return with her to her people (1:10), Naomi’s answer is about remarriage: she has no further sons to offer, is too old to remarry, and even a hypothetical marriage and births that night would leave the widows waiting impossibly long (1:11-13). Her reasoning resembles the brother-in-law custom of Deuteronomy 25:5-6, in which a brother raises up a name for the deceased; Genesis 38:11 shows the same expectation in Judah’s dealings with Tamar. She closes by attributing her bitter lot to the LORD’s hand turned against her (1:13), an honest acknowledgment of God’s sovereignty over her bereavement.
- Ruth 1:10 (BSB)“and said, “Surely we will return with you to your people.””Orpah and Ruth weep and insist on going back with Naomi to her people.
- Ruth 1:11-13 (BSB)“But Naomi replied, “Return home, my daughters. Why would you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb to become your husbands? Return home, my daughters. Go on, for I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was hope for me to have a husband tonight and to bear sons, would you wait for them to grow up? Would you refrain from having husbands? No, my daughters, it is much more bitter for me than for you, because the hand of the LORD has gone out against me.””Naomi argues that she has no sons left to offer as husbands and says the LORD’s hand has gone out against her.
- Deuteronomy 25:5-6 (BSB)“When brothers dwell together and one of them dies without a son, the widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband’s brother is to take her as his wife and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law for her. The first son she bears will carry on the name of the dead brother, so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel.”The law describes a brother marrying his dead brother’s widow to carry on his name, a custom Naomi’s argument resembles.
- Genesis 38:11 (BSB)“Then Judah said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Live as a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up.” For he thought, “He may die too, like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s house.”Judah told Tamar to wait as a widow until his younger son grew up, a similar situation to the one Naomi describes.
General
When Naomi urges Ruth to follow Orpah, what does she say Orpah has returned to (Ruth 1:15)?
Answer: Her own people and her own gods
After weeping again, Orpah kisses Naomi goodbye and leaves, but Ruth clings to her (1:14). Naomi then tells Ruth that Orpah has returned to her own people and her own gods, and urges Ruth to do the same (1:15). The text does not condemn Orpah; she did what Naomi urged her to do. But Naomi’s words show what going back meant: returning to Moab meant returning to Moab’s gods, such as Chemosh, whom Scripture names as Moab’s god (1 Kings 11:33; Numbers 21:29). That sets the stakes for Ruth’s reply.
- Ruth 1:14 (BSB)“Again they wept aloud, and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth clung to her.”After more weeping, Orpah kisses Naomi goodbye, while Ruth clings to her.
- Ruth 1:15 (BSB)““Look,” said Naomi, “your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her gods; follow her back home.””Naomi points out that Orpah has returned to her own people and her own gods, and urges Ruth to follow.
- 1 Kings 11:33 (BSB)“For they have forsaken Me to worship Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites. They have not walked in My ways, nor done what is right in My eyes, nor kept My statutes and judgments, as Solomon’s father David did.”Chemosh is named as the god of the Moabites, showing what Moab’s gods were.
- Numbers 21:29 (BSB)“Woe to you, O Moab! You are destroyed, O people of Chemosh! He gave up his sons as refugees, and his daughters into captivity to Sihon king of the Amorites.”Moab is called the people of Chemosh, tying the nation to its god.
Theological
In urging Ruth to follow Orpah, how does Naomi describe what Orpah has returned to (Ruth 1:15)?
Answer: Her own people and her own gods
Orpah’s kiss of farewell is set against Ruth’s clinging (1:14), and Naomi describes Orpah’s choice as a return to her own people and her own gods (1:15). Orpah is not censured; she complied with Naomi’s repeated urging. Yet the description makes clear that the choice is religious as well as national: Scripture names Chemosh as Moab’s god and calls Moab the people of Chemosh (1 Kings 11:33; Numbers 21:29). Ruth’s answer in the next verses stands in contrast to that choice.
- Ruth 1:14 (BSB)“Again they wept aloud, and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth clung to her.”After more weeping, Orpah kisses Naomi goodbye, while Ruth clings to her.
- Ruth 1:15 (BSB)““Look,” said Naomi, “your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her gods; follow her back home.””Naomi points out that Orpah has returned to her own people and her own gods, and urges Ruth to follow.
- 1 Kings 11:33 (BSB)“For they have forsaken Me to worship Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites. They have not walked in My ways, nor done what is right in My eyes, nor kept My statutes and judgments, as Solomon’s father David did.”Chemosh is named as the god of the Moabites, showing what Moab’s gods were.
- Numbers 21:29 (BSB)“Woe to you, O Moab! You are destroyed, O people of Chemosh! He gave up his sons as refugees, and his daughters into captivity to Sihon king of the Amorites.”Moab is called the people of Chemosh, tying the nation to its god.
General
How does Ruth answer Naomi’s urging to go back with Orpah (Ruth 1:16-17)?
Answer: She binds herself for life to Naomi, to Israel, and to Israel’s God
Ruth refuses to leave. She vows to share Naomi’s road and home, to belong to Naomi’s people and worship Naomi’s God, and to stay with her even in death and burial (1:16-17). This is more than loyalty to a mother-in-law. Naomi has just urged Ruth to follow Orpah home to her own people and her own gods (1:15). Ruth, a Moabite, a woman from a nation outside Israel, refuses that road and takes the LORD, Israel’s God, as her own God, putting her trust in Him. Boaz later says she has come to shelter under the LORD’s wings (2:12). God’s grace reaches outsiders: Matthew names Ruth in the family line of Jesus (Matthew 1:5), and the gospel likewise welcomes believing foreigners into the household of God (Ephesians 2:19).
- Ruth 1:16-17 (BSB)“But Ruth replied: “Do not urge me to leave you or to turn from following you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.””Ruth refuses to turn back and commits herself to Naomi, to Naomi’s people, and to Naomi’s God, sealing it with an oath.
- Ruth 2:12 (BSB)“May the LORD repay your work, and may you receive a rich reward from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have taken refuge.””Boaz later describes Ruth as having come to take refuge under the wings of the LORD, the God of Israel.
- Matthew 1:5 (BSB)“Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,”Matthew names Ruth in the family line of Jesus, showing how fully she was received among God’s people.
- Ephesians 2:19 (BSB)“Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household,”Paul describes believing Gentiles as no longer foreigners but members of God’s household, a fuller picture of the welcome Ruth received.
Theological
What does Ruth’s reply to Naomi commit her to (Ruth 1:16-17)?
Answer: She binds herself for life to Naomi, to Israel, and to Israel’s God
Ruth’s reply is a lifelong, unconditional commitment: she will share Naomi’s journey, home, people, God, death and grave (1:16-17). Spoken in direct reply to Naomi’s urging to follow Orpah home to her own people and her own gods (1:15), it is a choice of Naomi’s God over the gods Naomi has just pointed her back to, and an act of trust in the LORD, as Boaz recognizes when he speaks of her taking refuge under the wings of Israel’s God (2:12). A Moabite widow is brought into the covenant people by grace, and Matthew’s genealogy places her in the line of the Messiah (Matthew 1:5), anticipating the gospel’s inclusion of Gentiles as fellow members of the household of God (Ephesians 2:19).
- Ruth 1:16-17 (BSB)“But Ruth replied: “Do not urge me to leave you or to turn from following you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.””Ruth refuses to turn back and commits herself to Naomi, to Naomi’s people, and to Naomi’s God, sealing it with an oath.
- Ruth 2:12 (BSB)“May the LORD repay your work, and may you receive a rich reward from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have taken refuge.””Boaz later describes Ruth as having come to take refuge under the wings of the LORD, the God of Israel.
- Matthew 1:5 (BSB)“Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,”Matthew names Ruth in the family line of Jesus, showing how fully she was received among God’s people.
- Ephesians 2:19 (BSB)“Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household,”Paul describes believing Gentiles as no longer foreigners but members of God’s household, a fuller picture of the welcome Ruth received.
General
True or False: Ruth backed her promise with an oath, calling on the LORD to punish her if anything other than death came between her and Naomi.
Answer: True
This is true. Ruth seals her commitment with an oath sworn by the LORD, Israel’s God, asking Him to deal with her severely if anything except death separates her from Naomi (1:17). An oath is a solemn promise made before God. Taking oaths in the LORD’s name was a mark of those who feared and served Him (Deuteronomy 6:13), and the LORD spoke of people from other nations who would learn to swear by His name and be established among His people (Jeremiah 12:16). Ruth, a Moabite, does exactly that. When Naomi sees how determined she is, she stops urging her to go back (1:18).
- Ruth 1:17 (BSB)“Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.””Ruth seals her pledge with an oath in the LORD’s name, binding herself to Naomi until death.
- Ruth 1:18 (BSB)“When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped trying to persuade her.”Seeing Ruth’s determination, Naomi stops trying to persuade her.
- Deuteronomy 6:13 (BSB)“Fear the LORD your God, serve Him only, and take your oaths in His name.”Taking oaths in the LORD’s name marked those who feared and served Him.
- Jeremiah 12:16 (BSB)“And if they will diligently learn the ways of My people and swear by My name, saying, ‘As surely as the LORD lives’—just as they once taught My people to swear by Baal—then they will be established among My people.”The LORD speaks of other peoples who learn to swear by His name and are established among His people.
Theological
True or False: Ruth sealed her pledge with a self-imprecating oath in the LORD’s name, binding herself to Naomi until death.
Answer: True
This is true. Ruth calls on the LORD to punish her severely if anything short of death parts her from Naomi (1:17). Her oath is significant because it is sworn by the covenant name of Israel’s God, not by the gods of Moab. Swearing by the LORD’s name was an expression of covenant allegiance (Deuteronomy 6:13), and Jeremiah speaks of foreign peoples who learn to swear by His name being established among His people (Jeremiah 12:16). Naomi recognizes the resolve behind it and ceases her urging (1:18).
- Ruth 1:17 (BSB)“Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.””Ruth seals her pledge with an oath in the LORD’s name, binding herself to Naomi until death.
- Ruth 1:18 (BSB)“When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped trying to persuade her.”Seeing Ruth’s determination, Naomi stops trying to persuade her.
- Deuteronomy 6:13 (BSB)“Fear the LORD your God, serve Him only, and take your oaths in His name.”Taking oaths in the LORD’s name marked those who feared and served Him.
- Jeremiah 12:16 (BSB)“And if they will diligently learn the ways of My people and swear by My name, saying, ‘As surely as the LORD lives’—just as they once taught My people to swear by Baal—then they will be established among My people.”The LORD speaks of other peoples who learn to swear by His name and are established among His people.