This blog is about the biblical book, not my wife, obviously. That said, the two are inextricably linked in my mind. At my wedding ceremony in 2005, one of my wife's family friends, who's also a church elder, quoted the famous passage from the book of Ruth, which contains the line: "
And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God" (1:16).
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| William Blake's depiction of Naomi, Ruth and Orpah |
These famous words of loyal devotion that Ruth addresses to her mother-in-law Naomi, who had just recently lost her husband and then both her sons, form the core of this short, idyllic biblical book, which follows the drawn-out mayhem of Judges. Its placement here in the Christian Old Testament, between the long accounts of Jewish chieftains and kings, serves the purpose of historical chronology (scholars believe the Book of Ruth was actually written before the Books of Judges and Samuel). At the end of the book of Ruth, we're told about the lineage that leads to the future king, David. In the Hebrew Bible, however, Ruth is one of the five scrolls of the "megilloth", along with the Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations and Esther, all of which are relatively short and used for worship.
The events of the book of Ruth first take place in the kingdom of Moab, before Naomi and Ruth travel to Bethlehem in Israel. Ruth is often referred to as "the Moabite", and her migration and future marriage with Boaz is a powerful symbol of love having no boundaries, and of the need to embrace outsiders, a theme which runs counter to the ethnic tensions that have arisen in previous books. Like Abraham, Ruth puts her love of God above family ties, while also rekindling sweetness and love in the soul of the bereaved Naomi. We often see in the Old Testament how people change their name, or christen towns or places, based on recent events; this time, Naomi wishes to change her name to Mara (1:20) to reflect the bitterness she feels at her loss. This Hebrew word is the etymological root of "amara" in Italian and "amère" in French, both meaning bitter.
Anyone with any sensitivity can see that the book of Ruth is about sweetness and devotion; devotion to work (gathering barley), family and God, as a path to salvation from bereavement and conflict. In chapter 2, Naomi is reunited in Bethlehem with Boaz, a relative on her late husband Elimelech's side of the family. Boaz is impressed by Ruth's devotion to her new family, such that she left her parents behind in Moab to follow Naomi to Bethlehem (2:11), and is invited to eat with Boaz and "dip thy morsel in the vinegar". I think the sour symbolism of the vinegar is similar to the bitterness associated with the name Mara; in both cases, Ruth has come to offer sweetness that transcends ethnic boundaries.
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| Ruth on the fields of Boaz (Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld) |
After a day of gleaning and reaping in the cornfields of Bethlehem, Ruth successfully wins the affection of her "near kinsman" (or guardian-redeemer) Boaz. She lies down at his feet on the threshing floor, and he spreads his garment over her (in the KJV, it's confusingly referred to as his "skirt"), a symbolic gesture that reveals his wish to marry this widow. Ruth is then given six measures of barley, a powerful symbol of fertility. Together, Ruth and Boaz will have a son, and Naomi is given a role as nurse to Obed, who we're told is the grandfather of Israel's future king, David.
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