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Ruth 2:12-14
New English Translation
Ruth 2:12-14
New English Translation
12 May the Lord reward your efforts![a] May your acts of kindness be repaid fully[b] by the Lord God of Israel, from whom you have sought protection.”[c] 13 She said, “You really are being kind to me,[d] sir,[e] for you have reassured[f] and encouraged[g] me, your servant,[h] even though I will[i] never be like[j] one of your servants.”[k]
14 Later during the mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here and have[l] some food! Dip your bread[m] in the vinegar.” So she sat down beside the harvesters. Then he handed[n] her some roasted grain. She ate until she was full and saved the rest.[o]
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- Ruth 2:12 tn Heb “repay your work”; KJV, ASV “recompense thy work.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive of prayer (note the jussive form in the next clause).
- Ruth 2:12 tn Heb “may your wages be complete”; NCV “May your wages be paid in full.” The prefixed verbal form is a distinct jussive form, indicating that this is a prayer for blessing.
- Ruth 2:12 tn Heb “under whose wings you have sought shelter”; NIV, NLT “have come to take refuge.”
- Ruth 2:13 tn Heb “I am finding favor in your eyes.” In v. 10, where Ruth uses the perfect, she simply states the fact that Boaz is kind. Here the Hebrew text switches to the imperfect, thus emphasizing the ongoing attitude of kindness displayed by Boaz. Many English versions treat this as a request: KJV “Let me find favour in thy sight”; NAB “May I prove worthy of your kindness”; NIV “May I continue to find favor in your eyes.”
- Ruth 2:13 tn Heb “my master”; KJV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “my lord.”
- Ruth 2:13 tn Or “comforted” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV, NLT).
- Ruth 2:13 tn Heb “spoken to the heart of.” As F. W. Bush points out, the idiom here means “to reassure, encourage” (Ruth, Esther [WBC], 124).
- Ruth 2:13 tn Ruth here uses a word (שִׁפְחָה, shifkhah) that describes the lowest level of female servant (see 1 Sam 25:41). Note Ruth 3:9 where she uses the word אָמָה (ʾamah), which refers to a higher class of servant.
- Ruth 2:13 tn The imperfect verbal form of הָיָה (hayah) is used here. F. W. Bush shows from usage elsewhere that the form should be taken as future (Ruth, Esther [WBC], 124-25).
- Ruth 2:13 tn Or “will never be the equivalent of one of your maidservants” (see F. Bush, Ruth [WBC], 107).
- Ruth 2:13 tn The disjunctive clause (note the pattern vav [ו] + subject + verb) is circumstantial (or concessive) here (“even though”).
- Ruth 2:14 tn Heb “eat” (so KJV, NRSV).
- Ruth 2:14 tn Heb “your portion”; NRSV “your morsel.”
- Ruth 2:14 tn The Hebrew verb צָבַט (tsavat) occurs only here in the OT. Cf. KJV, ASV “he reached her”; NASB “he served her”; NIV “he offered her”; NRSV “he heaped up for her.” For discussion of its meaning, including the etymological evidence, see BDB 840 s.v.; R. L. Hubbard, Jr., Ruth (NICOT), 174; and F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther (WBC), 125-26.
- Ruth 2:14 tn Heb “and she ate and she was satisfied and she had some left over” (NASB similar).
New English Translation (NET)
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