Ruth 1

A famine drives a family from Bethlehem to Moab, where Naomi loses her husband and both sons. She returns home empty, but her Moabite daughter-in-law Ruth refuses to leave her and pledges herself to Naomi and to Naomi’s God. The chapter ends in Bethlehem at the start of the barley harvest, a quiet sign that hope is returning.

Ruth 1:1

The story opens in the dark time of the judges, when Israel often did what was right in its own eyes. Famine strikes even Bethlehem, whose name means ‘house of bread.’ A family leaves the promised land to live in Moab, hoping to find food.

BSA: famine (“a time of hunger, lack of spiritual nourishment”): The hunger in the land was real, and it also fits the spiritual poverty of the age. Bethlehem (“house of bread”): The irony is plain: there is no bread in the town named for bread.

See also: Judges 21:25.

Ruth 1:2

The family is named: Elimelech, Naomi, Mahlon and Chilion. Elimelech’s name means ‘my God is king,’ yet he leaves God’s land. Ephrathites were old families of the Bethlehem area. What was meant as a short stay becomes a settled life in Moab.

BSA: Elimelech (“my God is king”): His name states a faith that his move away from the land seems to leave behind.

Ruth 1:3-5

Grief comes in quick strokes. Elimelech dies, the sons marry Moabite women, and after about ten years both sons die as well. Three widows are left in a foreign land with no protector. Naomi has lost husband and children, the whole support of her life.

BSA: left (“remained, bereaved”): Naomi is the one who remains while everything else is taken away.

Ruth 1:6

News reaches Moab that God has visited His people with bread. Naomi sees the LORD’s hand in the ending of the famine and decides to go home. Her turning begins with hearing of God’s kindness to His people.

BSA: attended to (“visited, overseen, and cared for”): God does not merely observe His people. He comes to them with care and supply.

Hebrew: פָּקַד (pāqad, H6485) — “to visit, to look after.” This Hebrew word is used when God steps in to help or rescue His people. It means a caring visit that brings change.

See also: Exodus 4:31; Luke 1:68.

Ruth 1:7

The three women set out together on the road back to Judah. The road is the picture of the chapter: Naomi is returning, and the daughters-in-law must decide how far they will follow her. The first steps are taken in grief but also in hope.

BSA: road (“way, path”): It is the path of return, and it also becomes the place where each woman’s choice is tested.

Ruth 1:8

Naomi urges the younger women to go back to their mothers’ homes. She blesses them in the LORD’s name, asking Him to repay their kindness to her sons and to her. Her concern is for them, even in her own grief.

BSA: loving devotion (“kindness, mercy”): This is faithful, covenant-style love that keeps loyal when it is costly.

Hebrew: חֶסֶד (ḥesed, H2617) — “steadfast, loyal love.” It describes love that keeps its promises. It is the very word often used of God’s faithfulness, and it becomes a main theme of Ruth.

See also: Exodus 34:6.

Ruth 1:9

Naomi prays that each young woman may find rest in a new husband’s house. For a widow in that world, marriage meant security and belonging. The women answer her kiss with loud weeping, showing how deep their bond has grown.

BSA: rest (“a resting place, peaceful home, or state of quietness”): Naomi wants for them a settled home where they are safe and at peace.

See also: Ruth 3:1.

Ruth 1:10

Both women refuse to be sent away. They say they will go with Naomi to her people. Their love for her is stronger than their ties to their own homeland, though the real cost has not yet been counted.

BSA: people (“nation, relatives”): They speak of joining Naomi’s whole community, not only of walking with her.

Ruth 1:11-13

Naomi gives plain reasons for them to go back. She has no more sons to marry them, and she is too old to bear any. Waiting years for sons to grow up is unthinkable. She believes the LORD’s hand is against her, and she feels that grief for their sake.

BSA: grieves (“causes bitter sorrow, provokes intense emotion”): Naomi is not hiding her pain. She speaks of it honestly, and it is a bitterness that grows through the chapter. hand (“power, direction”): She sees God’s strong hand acting in her troubles, even if she cannot see its purpose.

See also: Job 1:21.

Ruth 1:14

The two women respond differently. Orpah kisses Naomi goodbye and goes home, a choice that was sensible and not wicked. Ruth clings to Naomi. The point is that one holds on and the other lets go.

BSA: clung (“cleaved to, stuck to”): It pictures Ruth holding fast with loyalty and devotion, not just walking beside Naomi.

Hebrew: דָּבְקָה (dāveqāh, H1692) — “clung, held fast.” This is the word used in Genesis 2:24 of a man holding fast to his wife. Ruth’s loyalty is as firm as a covenant bond.

See also: Genesis 2:24.

Ruth 1:15

Naomi points to Orpah’s example and urges Ruth to follow. She names the real issue: Orpah has gone back to her people and her gods. Going with Naomi would mean leaving behind the gods of Moab and turning to the LORD.

BSA: gods (“idols, false deities”): Moab worshiped other gods, so Ruth’s choice would be a spiritual one, not only a family one.

Ruth 1:16-17

Ruth’s answer is one of the great pledges of loyalty in Scripture. She binds herself to Naomi’s road, home, people, God, and even her grave. She calls on the LORD by His covenant name, and only death will part them. A foreigner chooses the God of Israel.

BSA: your God (“Elohim, the one true God”): Ruth turns from Moab’s gods to the one true God. separates (“parts us, comes between us”): Nothing but death will divide her from Naomi.

See also: 2 Kings 2:2; Matthew 16:24.

Ruth 1:18

Naomi sees that Ruth has made up her mind and stops arguing. Ruth’s resolve is settled, not a passing feeling. The two women walk on together toward Bethlehem as the argument ends.

BSA: determined (“stedfastly minded, strongly resolved”): Ruth’s decision is firm and carries her all the way.

Ruth 1:19

Their arrival stirs the whole town. The women of Bethlehem can hardly believe that this worn woman is Naomi. Years of loss have changed her so much that old friends barely know her.

BSA: stirred (“to make a loud noise, to be excited”): The whole town buzzes with talk at Naomi’s return.

Ruth 1:20

Naomi means ‘pleasant,’ but she asks to be called Mara, which means ‘bitter.’ She believes the Almighty has dealt harshly with her. Her honest complaint is spoken to God and about God, not away from Him, and Scripture lets her speak it.

BSA: Almighty (“Shadday, the all-powerful One”): She names the God who has power over everything, and she faces that power in her pain. bitterly (“with intense suffering, pain”): Her word points to deep, lasting hurt, not a passing complaint.

Hebrew: מָרָא (mārā, H4755) — “bitter.” Naomi picks a new name that matches her feelings. The name ‘Mara’ also calls to mind the bitter water of Marah in Exodus.

See also: Exodus 15:23; Psalm 62:8.

Ruth 1:21

Naomi describes her story in two words: full and empty. She left with a husband and sons and returns with none. She sees only loss, and she does not yet see that Ruth walks beside her and that God is still working.

BSA: empty (“without anything, destitute”): Naomi feels stripped of everything, though the story will show she is not without help. afflicted (“caused me to suffer, brought me trouble”): She believes her suffering has come from God’s own hand.

Ruth 1:22

The chapter closes with a gentle sign of hope. The women arrive just as the barley harvest begins. After famine and death, the fields are ripe again, and God is already preparing provision. Ruth is still named ’the Moabitess,’ a reminder of her outsider status.

BSA: barley harvest (“a time of gathering, a season of reaping”): It marks a season of new supply after hunger and loss.

See also: Ruth 2:23.