Bible Commentaries
Ruth 2

Verse 1

And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his name was Boaz. No JFB commentary on this verse.

Verse 2

And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace. And she said unto her, Go, my daughter.

Ruth ... said ... Let me now go to the field, and glean. The right of gleaning was conferred by a positive law on the widow, the poor, and the stranger (see the note at Leviticus 19:9-10; Deuteronomy 24:21). But liberty to glean behind the reapers was not a right that could be claimed: it was a privilege granted or refused according to the good-will or favour of the owner.

Verse 3

And she went, and came, and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech.

A part of the field belonging unto Boaz. Fields in Palestine being unenclosed, the phrase signifies that portion of the open ground which lay within the landmarks of Boaz.

Verse 4

And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers, The LORD be with you. And they answered him, The LORD bless thee.

The Lord be with you. This pious salutation between the master and his labourers strongly indicates the state of religious feeling among the rural population of Israel at that time, as well as the artless, happy, and unsuspecting simplicity which characterized the manners of the people. The same patriarchal style of speaking is still preserved in the East.

Verse 5

Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers, Whose damsel is this?

His servant that was set over the reapers - an overseer, whose special duty was to superintend the operations in the field, to supply provisions to the reapers, and pay them for their labour in the evening.

Verse 6

And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab:

No JFB commentary on this verse.

Verse 7

And she said, I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves: so she came, and hath continued even from the morning until now, that she tarried a little in the house.

After the reapers among the sheaves. Various modes of reaping are practiced in the East. Where the crop is thin and short, it is plucked up by the roots. In other states it is cut with the sickle. Whether reaped in the one way or the other, the grain is cast into sheaves loosely thrown together, to be subjected to the process of threshing, which takes place for the most part immediately after the reaping. Field labours were begun early in the morning, before the day became oppressively hot.

She tarried a little in the house - i:e., the field tent, erected for the occasional rest and refreshment of the labourers.

Verse 8

Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens:

Abide here fast by my maidens. The reaping was performed by women, while the assortment of sheaves was the duty of men-servants. The same division of harvest labour obtains in Syria still. Boaz not only granted to Ruth the full privilege of gleaming after his reapers, but provided for her personal comforts.

Verse 9

Let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go thou after them: have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee? and when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels, and drink of that which the young men have drawn.

Go unto the vessels. Gleaners were sometimes allowed, by kind and charitable masters, to partake of the refreshments provided for the reapers. The vessels alluded to were skin bottles filled with water; and the bread was soaked in vinegar (Ruth 2:14), a kind of poor, weak wine, sometimes mingled with a little olive oil, very cooling, as would be required in harvest-time. This grateful refection is still used in the harvest field (see Robinsons' 'Biblical Researches,' 2:, p. 394).

Verses 10-13

Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him, Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger?

No JFB commentary on these verses.

Verse 14

And Boaz said unto her, At mealtime come thou hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers: and he reached her parched corn, and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left.

He reached her parched grain - some of the new grain, roasted on the spot, and fit for use after being rubbed in the hands-a favourite viand in the East. He gave her so much, that after satisfying her own needs she had some (Ruth 2:18) in reserve for her mother-in-law.

Verse 15

And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, Let her glean even among the sheaves, and reproach her not:

Boaz commanded his young men ...

Verse 16

And let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her, and leave them, that she may glean them, and rebuke her not.

Let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her. The gleaners in the East glean with much success; because a great quantity of grain is scattered in the reaping, as well as in their manner of carrying it. One may judge, then, of the large quantity which Ruth would gather, in consequence of the liberal orders given to the servants. These extraordinary marks of favour were not only given from a kindly disposition, but from regard to her good character and devoted attachment to her venerable relative. Besides, the law of Moses directed very liberal treatment of the poor at the seasons of harvest and ingathering of the crops; and Boaz, who was a pious man, had fully imbibed the spirit of the law.

Verse 17

So she gleaned in the field until even, and beat out that she had gleaned: and it was about an ephah of barley.

And beat out that she had gleaned. When the quantity of grain was small, it was beat out by means of a stick. This process is frequently seen at the present day on the same fields by women who beat out with a stick handfuls of the grain which they have glossed (Robinsons' 'Biblical Researches,' 2:, p. 385).

An ephah - supposed to contain about a bushel.

Verses 18-19

And she took it up, and went into the city: and her mother in law saw what she had gleaned: and she brought forth, and gave to her that she had reserved after she was sufficed. No JFB commentary on these verses.

Verse 20

And Naomi said unto her daughter in law, Blessed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen.

The man is ... one of our next kinsmen - Hebrew, 'one of our redeemers,' on whom it devolves to protect us, to purchase our lands, and marry you, the relict of his next kinsman. She said, 'one of them,' not that there were many in the same close relationship, but that he was a very near kinsman, one other individual only having the precedence.

Verse 21

And Ruth the Moabitess said, He said unto me also, Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.

All my harvest - both barley and wheat harvests. The latter was at the end of May or the beginning of June.

Verse 22

And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter in law, It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, that they meet thee not in any other field.

It is good ... that thou go out with his maidens - a prudent recommendation to Ruth to accept the generous invitation of Boaz, lest, if she were seen straying into other fields, she might not only run the risk of rude treatment, but displease him by seeming indifferent to his kind liberality. Moreover, the observant mind of the old matron had already discerned, in all Boaz' attentions to Ruth, the germs of a stronger affection, which she wished to increase.

Verse 23

So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and dwelt with her mother in law.

She kept fast by the maidens of Boaz to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest. The reaping of barley commenced the harvest (2 Samuel 21:9), and that of wheat followed almost without any interval.