Ruth (biblical figure)

The figure of Ruth the Moabite is one of the most familiar and most debated characters in Judeo-Christian scripture. Because Ruth willingly sacrifices everything for her family, abides by conventional codes of betrothal and matrimony, and readily and selflessly toils for her family, she is lauded by some as a model of a strong woman with a giving heart. However, she is also a difficult role model for contemporary women who see themselves as strong because they are independent, view conventional society as binding, and define themselves apart from the traditional roles of mother and daughter.

Ruth utters one of the most familiar passages in the Hebrew Bible, or Christian Old Testament : “Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people and your god my God” (Ruth 1:16). Although it is frequently recited during weddings as a testimonial of spousal love and devotion, Ruth is actually speaking not to her husband (who has died) but rather to her mother-in-law, Naomi, in an effort to reach out to her at a moment of deep grief and bitterness. Indeed, the book of Ruth is less the story of Ruth and more the story of Naomi. Ruth acts as catalyst for the salvation of her mother-in-law, who has taken a series of great misfortunes as reason to doubt God. In the process of rehabilitating her mother-in-law, Ruth, who begins as a childless widow, is rewarded by God with the gifts of a loving husband and a son, who in turn will be the grandfather of the great Jewish king David. This makes the poor, humble stranger Ruth a great-grandmother to a king and, according to Christian biblical genealogy, a direct ancestor of Jesus Christ.

Brief History

According to the book of Ruth, when a drought creates a massive famine in Israel, Naomi and her husband make the difficult decision to leave Bethlehem and relocate to the state of Moab (contemporary Jordan ), long a traditional foe of the Israelites but a land whose farmlands have not been affected. They live there for ten years, and their two sons marry Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth. Then, in a series of sudden misfortunes, all three men die mysteriously. Great misfortune in biblical tradition often signals divine intervention, and Naomi becomes embittered, alone in a strange land, inconsolable, and angry with God. She decides to return to Israel and tells her two daughters-in-law to stay with their families of origin. Orpah, because she is still of marriageable age and unwilling to live among the Israelites, stays; Ruth, seeing the pain in her mother-in-law, assures Naomi that she will not leave her in her sorrows. Far more important for the development of the story, Ruth not only stays with her family by marriage but also agrees to embrace wholeheartedly the foreign god of Israel and the Jewish people.

In Bethlehem, Ruth, an impoverished widow, undertakes grueling farm work, following behind the men as they harvest great fields of barley and gathering whatever is left behind in the field to keep herself and her mother-in-law fed. The field is owned by an eligible bachelor named Boaz, who is a cousin of Naomi’s dead husband. The connection inspires Naomi to encourage Ruth to seduce him in a supposedly chance encounter in the threshing room. But such manipulations are unnecessary; Boaz has already noticed the beautiful young woman toiling in his fields and wants to make Ruth his legal wife. With bold legal maneuvering, Boaz arranges with the elders to “redeem” the land that belonged to Naomi’s dead husband (Ruth’s father-in-law) and, along with it, Ruth herself. The two marry and have a son named Obed, who becomes the father of Jesse, who in turn fathers David.

Ruth Today

As with other Old Testament figures, such as Job or Noah, many contemporary interpretations of Ruth abound. For instance, Ruth’s actions could seem to a modern audience as a simple model of sacrifice and friendship, a kind of love that is not bound by blood ties but rather reaches out to the broadest definitions of family. Her story has been read as a life parable of the importance of humility and an exemplum of devotion to family and commitment to the dynamics of marriage and children. For her devotion to her mother-in-law, Ruth is profoundly rewarded, beginning as a bereaved widow and ending as a direct ancestor of Jesus. Her handling of the marriage to Boaz—a deft maneuvering of Jewish law—makes Ruth, for many contemporary women, a model of cleverness and empowerment in a world of powerful men. Yet critics dismiss Ruth, citing her servile mentality, abnegation of self in favor of securing a husband and family, and passivity in the face of an overpowering, selfish mother-in-law.

Within Jewish tradition, Ruth’s story is not about her at all. Rather, it is about her embrace of the Jewish faith and the Jewish nation, a signal that God favors the salvation of nations not yet under his covenant. Ruth saves Naomi from her spiraling abandonment of God, then in turn accepts that god as her own. It is that god who rewards the humble Ruth and makes her an important figure in the rise of King David, the legendary ruler of the united Kingdom of Israel during its golden age. In the New Testament, the central text of Christianity, King David is named as a direct ancestor of Jesus Christ, and by extension Ruth is as well.

Bibliography

Alter, Robert, trans. Strong as Death Is Love: The Song of Songs, Ruth, Esther, Jonah, and Daniel. New York: Norton, 2015. Print.

Holy Bible. San Francisco: Harper, 1989. New Rev. Standard Vers. BibleGateway.Web. 3 Sept. 2014.

Lau, Peter H. W. Identity and Ethics in the Book of Ruth: A Social Identity Approach. Berlin: de Gruyter, 2011. Print.

“Ruth (Biblical Figure).” Encyclopedia Britannica. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 June 2011. Web. 3 Sept. 2014.

Schottroff, Luise, and Marie-Theres Wacker, eds. Feminist Biblical Interpretation: A Compendium of Critical Commentary on the Books of the Bible and Related Literature. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012. Print.

Tucker, Ruth A. Dynamic Women of the Bible: What We Can Learn from Their Surprising Stories. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2014. Print.

Walzer, Michael, et al., eds. Membership. Vol. 2 of The Jewish Political Tradition. New Haven: Yale UP, 2003. Print.

West, Gerald. “Ruth.” Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible. Ed. James D. G. Dunn and John William Rogerson. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003. 208–11. Print.

Wolfe, Lisa M. Ruth, Esther, Song of Songs, and Judith. Eugene: Cascade, 2011. Print.