Book of Ruth - Analysis

Analysis

The mood of the story is fashioned from the start through names of the participants: Naomi, which means "my gracious one" or "my delight," later asks to be called Mara, "the bitter one"; her two sons are Mahlon, "sick", and Chilion, "weakening" or "pining" and Orpah, meaning "mane" or "gazelle", is from the root for "nape" or "back of the neck", appropriate for the daughter-in-law who turns her back on Naomi and returns to her people. Ruth, meaning "friend", pledges loyalty to Naomi, and Boaz, "fleetness" or "strength is (in) him" or "he comes in strength" becomes the kinsman redeemer, while Obed's name appropriately means "servant."

The marriage of Boaz and Ruth was of a type known as a Levirate marriage. Since there is no heir to inherit Elimelech's land, levirate custom required a close relative (usually the dead man's brother) to marry the widow of the deceased in order to continue his family line (Deuteronomy 25:5–10). The case in the book of Ruth is not the simplest type of Levirate marriage (Boaz is not Mahlon's brother); therefore, some scholars refer to Boaz’s duty as "Levirate-like" or as a "kinsman-marriage."

Moreover, it seems that an understanding of this kind of redemption among the Israelites included both that of people and of land. In Israel land had to stay in the family. The family could mortgage the land to ward off poverty; and the law of Leviticus 25:25ff required a kinsman to purchase it back into the family. The kinsman, who Boaz meets at the city gate, first says he will purchase the land, but, upon hearing he must also take Ruth as his wife, withdraws his offer. His decision was primarily a financial decision since a child born to Ruth through the union would inherit Elimelech's land, and he would not be reimbursed for the money he paid Naomi. Boaz becomes Ruth and Naomi's "kinsman-redeemer."

The Israelites' understanding of redemption is woven into their understanding of and appreciation of the nature of the "Almighty One". God stands by the oppressed and needy. Through his servants, he extends his love and mercy, liberating through hope. God has a deep concern for the welfare of his people, materially, emotionally and spiritually. The redemption theme extends beyond this biblical book through the genealogy. First, in Ruth 4:13 God made Ruth conceive. Second, through the genealogy it is shown that the son born to Ruth is more than just a gift from God to continue her lineage. The history of God's rule through the David line connects the book's theme in to the Bible's main theme of redemptive history.

Hesed, sometimes translated as "loving kindness", also implies loyalty. The theme of hesed is woven throughout Ruth, beginning at 1:8 with Naomi blessing her two daughters-in-law as she urges them to return to their Moabite families. She says, "May the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me." Both Ruth and Boaz demonstrate hesed to their family members throughout the story. These are not acts of kindness with an expectation of measure for measure. Rather, they are acts of hesed that go beyond measure and demonstrate that a person can go beyond the minimum expectations of the law and choose the unexpected. However, the importance of the law is evident within the Book of Ruth, and the story reflects a need to stay within legal boundaries. Boaz, in going beyond measure in acquiring the property (demonstrating hesed), redeems not only the land but both Naomi and Ruth as well. The two widows now have a secure and protected future. However, Ruth's and Naomi's story has also occasionally been interpreted as sexual in nature.