Ruth 2:2

2:2 One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go ¹  to the fields so I can gather ²  grain behind whoever permits me to do so.” ³  Naomi ⁴  replied, “You may go, my daughter.”

Ruth 2:15

2:15 When she got up to gather grain, Boaz told ⁵  his male servants, “Let her gather grain even among ⁶  the bundles! Don’t chase her off! ⁷ 

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¹ tn The cohortative here (“Let me go”) expresses Ruth’s request. Note Naomi’s response, in which she gives Ruth permission to go to the field.

² tn Following the preceding cohortative, the cohortative with vav conjunctive indicates purpose/result.

³ tn Heb “anyone in whose eyes I may find favor” (ASV, NIV similar). The expression אֶמְצָא־חֵן בְּעֵינָיו (’emtsa’-khen bÿ’enayv, “to find favor in the eyes of [someone]”) appears in Ruth 2:2, 10, 13. It is most often used when a subordinate or servant requests permission for something from a superior (BDB 336 s.v. חֵן). Ruth will play the role of the subordinate servant, seeking permission from a landowner, who then could show benevolence by granting her request to glean in his field behind the harvest workers.

⁴ tn Heb “she”; the referent (Naomi) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵ tn Or “commanded” (so KJV, NASB, NCV).

⁶ tn Heb “even between”; NCV “even around.”

⁷ tn Heb “do not humiliate her”; cf. KJV “reproach her not”; NASB “do not insult her”; NIV “don’t embarrass her.” This probably refers to a verbal rebuke which would single her out and embarrass her (see v. 16). See R. L. Hubbard, Jr., Ruth (NICOT), 176-77, and F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther (WBC), 126.