What does Ruth 1:7 mean?
An Israelite widow living in Moab, Naomi, has heard that the famine in Bethlehem is over. She decides to return home. Her two daughters-in-law, widows of Naomi's late sons, go with her (Ruth 1:4–6).Orpah and Ruth, Naomi's daughters-in-law, clearly love her deeply. In modern times, societies emphasize the individual over the clan. This makes it harder to understand the close relationship between a woman and her husband's relatives one would find in ancient cultures. At first, it seems perfectly reasonable to Orpah and Ruth to stay with Naomi. As they approach Bethlehem, however, it seems Naomi realizes that these young, unprotected Moabitesses will face hardship and even danger in Israel. They will be seen as outsiders, even enemies (Numbers 22:1—25:5; 31:16), unlikely to find husbands on their own, at risk from cruel men and with no other family to rely on.
Naomi makes the hard choice to tell them to return to their birth-families so they can find new husbands who will care for them (Ruth 1:8–13).
The details many Western readers would prefer are not given; they're not important to the story. We don't know where in Moab Naomi and her husband Elimelech settled. Nor do we know what route Naomi and her daughters-in-law take to Bethlehem. They may go south, around the southern shore of the Dead Sea, cross the Jordan, and make the long trek north to Bethlehem, just a few miles south of Jerusalem. Or they may travel north and cross near Jericho.
Judah is the tribe controlling the territory surrounding Bethlehem. It is the largest tribe of Israel, other than Manasseh, and hosts the future capital, Jerusalem. Prominent descendants of Judah include David, Solomon, and Jesus. Bethlehem of Judah distinguishes it from the Bethlehem in Zebulun.
Ruth 1:6–14 records Naomi receiving good news: the famine in Bethlehem is over. She and her family fled to Moab ten years prior. Now, her husband and sons are gone, but she has two loving daughters-in-law. At first, they accompany her. Yet Naomi becomes convinced their arrangement cannot work. Orpah and Ruth can live with her in poverty, or they can find rest in a new family. After a persuasive argument, Orpah tearfully agrees to leave, but Ruth stays. Naomi is bitter now, but Ruth will prove to be everything the mourning widow needs.
Ruth 1 depicts how a person can feel "starved" for things other than food. Elimelech and his wife, Naomi, flee a famine in Bethlehem and settle in Moab where there is plenty of food and their sons find devoted wives. Within ten years, however, Naomi's husband and sons are dead. When she hears Judah has food again, she prepares to return as an old, bitter widow. One daughter-in-law, Ruth, insists on accompanying her. On the surface, a young Moabite widow in Israel would be the last person who could help, but God honors Ruth's lovingkindness and eventually uses her to restore Naomi's hope and future.
