Ruth 3:2–9

Footnotes

1. 3 Heb “Is not Boaz our close relative, with whose female servants you were?” The idiomatic, negated rhetorical question is equivalent to an affirmation (see Ruth 2:8–9; 3:1) and has thus been translated in the affirmative (so also , , , , ).
2. 4 Heb “look, he is winnowing the barley threshing floor tonight.” Winnowing the threshed grain involved separating the kernels of grain from the straw and chaff. The grain would be thrown into the air, allowing the wind to separate the kernels (see O. Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel, 65–66). The threshing floor itself was usually located outside town in a place where the prevailing west wind could be used to advantage (Borowski, 62–63).
3. 5 The perfect with prefixed vav (ו) consecutive here introduces a series of instructions. See §112.aa for other examples of this construction.
4. 6 For the meaning of the verb סוּךְ (sukh), see II סוך, and F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther (), . Cf. , “anoint yourself”; “perfume yourself”; “put on perfume.”
5. 7 The consonantal text (Kethib) has the singular שִׂמְלֹתֵךְ (simlotekh, “your outer garment”), while the marginal reading (Qere) has the plural שִׂמְלֹתַיִךְ (simlotayikh) which might function as a plural of number (“your outer garments”) or a plural of composition (“your outer garment [composed of several parts]).” Heb “and put your outer garment on yourself”; “put on your best attire.” The noun שִׂמְלָה (simlah) may refer to clothes in general (see R. L. Hubbard, Jr., Ruth [], , n. 7) or a long outer garment (see F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther [], ). Mourners often wore mourning clothes and refrained from washing or using cosmetics (Gen 38:14, 19; 2 Sam 12:20; 14:2), so Ruth’s attire and appearance would signal that her period of mourning was over and she was now available for remarriage (see Bush, 152).
6. 8 The consonantal text (Kethib) has וְיָרַדְתִּי (véyaradtiy, “then I will go down”; Qal perfect 1st person common singular), while the marginal reading (Qere) is וְיָרַדְתְּ (véyaradt, “then you go down”; Qal perfect 2nd person feminine singular) which makes more much sense in context. It is possible that the Kethib preserves an archaic spelling of the 2nd person feminine singular form (see F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther [], ).
7. 9 Heb “until he finishes eating and drinking”; , , , , “until he has finished.”
8. 10 Heb “and let it be when he lies down”; “But when he lies down.”
9. 11 Some define the noun מַרְגְּלוֹת (margélot) as “the place for the feet” (see ; cf. , , , , ), but in Dan 10:6 the word refers to the legs, or “region of the legs.” For this reason “legs” or “lower body” is the preferred translation (see F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther [], ). Because “foot” is sometimes used euphemistically for the genitals, some feel that Ruth uncovered Boaz’s genitals. For a critique of this view see Bush, 153. While Ruth and Boaz did not actually have a sexual encounter at the threshing floor, there is no doubt that Ruth’s actions are symbolic and constitute a marriage proposal.
10. 12 The consonantal text (Kethib) has וְשָׁכָבְתִּי (véshakhavtiy, “then I will lie down”; Qal perfect 1st person common singular), while the marginal reading (Qere) is וְשָׁכָבְתְּ (véshakhavt, “then you lie down”; Qal perfect 2nd person feminine singular) which makes more sense. It is possible that the Kethib preserves an archaic spelling of the 2nd person feminine singular form (see F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther [], ).
11. 13 The words “beside him” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons; cf. “lie down there.”
12. 14 The disjunctive clause structure (vav [ו] + subject + verb) highlights this final word of instruction or signals the conclusion of the instructions.
13. 15 Heb “she said to her.” The referents (Ruth and Naomi) have been specified in the translation for clarity.
14. 16 The Hebrew imperfect is used, even though Naomi’s instructions appear to be concluded. The imperfect can sometimes express actions which although (strictly speaking) are already finished, yet are regarded as still lasting into the present, or continuing to operate in it ( §107.h).
15. 17 The (Kethib) lacks the preposition אֵלַי (’elay, “to me”) which is attested in the marginal reading (Qere). Many medieval Hebrew agree with the marginal reading (Qere) by including the phrase.
16. 18 Heb “everything which you are saying I will do.” The Hebrew word order emphasizes Ruth’s intention to follow Naomi’s instructions to the letter.
17. 19 Heb “and she did according to all which her mother-in-law commanded her” ( similar). Verse 6 is a summary statement, while the following verses (vv. 7–15) give the particulars.
18. 20 Heb “and Boaz ate and drank and his heart was well and he went to lie down at the end of the heap”; “at the edge of the sheaves.”
19. 21 Heb “she”; the referent (Ruth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
20. 22 Ruth must have waited until Boaz fell asleep, for he does not notice when she uncovers his legs and lies down beside him.
21. 23 See the note on the word “legs” in v. .
22. 24 The words “beside him” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. Cf. “at his feet”; “near his feet.”
23. 25 Heb “trembled, shuddered”; , “suddenly woke up.” Perhaps he shivered because he was chilled.
24. 26 The verb לָפַת (lafat) occurs only here, Job 6:18, and Judg 16:29 (where it seems to mean “grab hold of”). Here the verb seems to carry the meaning “bend, twist, turn,” like its Arabic cognate (see לפת, and F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther [], ).
25. 27 Heb “and behold” (so , ). The narrator invites the reader to view the situation through Boaz’s eyes.
26. 28 Now he saw a woman. The narrator writes from Boaz’s perspective. Both the narrator and the reader know the night visitor is Ruth, but from Boaz’s perspective she is simply “a woman.”
27. 29 Heb “[at] his legs.” See the note on the word “legs” in v. .
28. 30 When Boaz speaks, he uses the feminine form of the pronoun, indicating that he knows she is a woman.
29. 31 Here Ruth uses אָמָה (’amah), a more elevated term for a female servant than שִׁפְחָה (shifkhah), the word used in 2:13. In Ruth 2, where Ruth has just arrived from Moab and is very much aware of her position as a foreigner (v. 10), she acknowledges Boaz’s kindness and emphasizes her own humility by using the term שִׁפְחָה, though she admits that she does not even occupy that lowly position on the social scale. However, here in chap. 3, where Naomi sends her to Boaz to seek marriage, she uses the more elevated term אָמָה to describe herself because she is now aware of Boaz’s responsibility as a close relative of her deceased husband and she wants to challenge him to fulfill his obligation. In her new social context she is dependent on Boaz (hence the use of אָמָה), but she is no mere שִׁפְחָה.
30. 32 Heb “and spread your wing [or skirt] over your servant.” Many medieval Hebrew have the plural/dual “your wings” rather than the singular “your wing, skirt.” The latter is more likely here in the context of Ruth’s marriage proposal. In the metaphorical account in Ezek 16:8, God spreads his skirt over naked Jerusalem as an act of protection and as a precursor to marriage. Thus Ruth’s words can be taken, in effect, as a marriage proposal (and are so translated here; cf. “So please marry me”). See F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther (), .
31. 33 Heb “for you are a גֹאֵל [go’el],” sometimes translated “redeemer” (cf. “a kinsman-redeemer”; “my family redeemer”). In this context Boaz, as a “redeemer,” functions as a guardian of the family interests who has responsibility for caring for the widows of his deceased kinsmen. For a discussion of the legal background, see F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther (), . By proposing marriage, Ruth goes beyond the letter of Naomi’s instructions (see v. 4, where Naomi told Ruth that Boaz would tell her what to do). Though she is more aggressive than Naomi told her to be, she is still carrying out the intent of Naomi’s instructions, which were designed to lead to marriage.