Ruth 1 Don't call me Naomi

seekeroftruth

Well-Known Member
Ruth 1:19 So the two women went on until they came to Bethlehem. When they arrived in Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred because of them, and the women exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?”

20 “Don’t call me Naomi,(b)” she told them. “Call me Mara,[c] because the Almighty[d] has made my life very bitter. 21 I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The Lord has afflicted[e] me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.”

22 So Naomi returned from Moab accompanied by Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, arriving in Bethlehem as the barley harvest was beginning.

b. Ruth 1:20 Naomi means pleasant.
c. Ruth 1:20 Mara means bitter.
d. Ruth 1:20 Hebrew Shaddai; also in verse 21
e. Ruth 1:21 Or has testified against

This is from Bible.org.

The chapter ends with the author’s assessment of where things stand, with a hint of what lies ahead. Naomi returned to her homeland accompanied by her Moabite daughter-in-law, Ruth. They arrived, in fact, just in time for the barley harvest. They came “empty” (at least according to Naomi’s assessment – see verse 21), but God would not let them go hungry (or childless). The barley harvest will play a significant role in moving this story forward in the next two chapters.

This is from the easy English site.

Ruth and Naomi travelled together. They arrived at Bethlehem when the men were beginning to harvest the barley. The women from the town recognised Naomi. They were surprised at how she appeared. She explained her circumstances. She thought that her name should now be Mara. Mara means ‘bitter’. She was without a husband or sons. She had nothing. She thought that God was against her. Only Ruth, the young woman from Moab, remained with her. But in all that she had suffered, Naomi did not stop believing God. She did not understand why her life was sad. She only knew that God was in command.

This came from a site named desiringgod.org.

According to 1:1, the story took place during the time of the judges. This was a 400-year period after Israel entered the promised land under Joshua and before there were any kings in Israel (roughly 1500 BC to 1100 BC).​


This is from the livingpreacher.org site.

But, despite Ruth's statement, verse 18 is enigmatic at best. Perhaps Naomi realizes she has been defeated in the quest to be alone. But it is far from clear that she is happy about it, or happy with Ruth. All we hear is that Naomi "said no more" to Ruth. Indeed, the rest of chapter one suggests that Naomi continues to take solitary refuge in her pain. Pain is not easily overcome, after all, nor is it easily shared, even by those with the best of intentions and with comparable pain (Ruth, too, is a widow who loved Naomi's son).



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