2:7a
She has said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the harvesters.’: The foreman was reporting Ruth’s words. So Ruth’s words were reported as direct speech embedded in the speech of the foreman. Translate this in whatever way is natural in your language, using either direct or indirect speech.
Here are some ways to do this using indirect speech:
She asked if she might glean…. (Revised English Bible)
-or-
She asked me to let her follow the workers and gather grain. (Good News Translation)
Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the harvesters: There is a textual issue in this verse part:
(1) The Masoretic Text includes the words which the Berean Standard Bible translates as among the sheaves. Ruth either asked to gather among the sheaves or “into sheaves.” (See the note just below addressing the interpretation issue.) For example:
She asked, ‘May I follow the harvesters and gather grain among the bundles?’ (NET Bible)
(2) The words among the sheaves are omitted. Ruth only asked to follow after or behind the harvesters and gather grain. For example:
‘Please let me follow the workers cutting grain and gather what they leave behind.’ (New Century Version)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) along with most versions. This interpretation also has strong textual support.
Normally in Jewish practice, gleaners were not permitted to begin to glean in a field until the harvesters had finished their work and removed their bundles of grain from the field. As a result, the Hebrew words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as among the sheaves have different emphases. Ruth may have wanted to gather grain into “sheaves/bundles” after the harvesters had finished their work. She may also have wanted to gather grain at the same time as the other women harvesters.
Here are some other ways to translate this verse part:
‘I would like to gather the gleanings into sheaves after the harvesters.’ (New American Bible, Revised Edition)
-or-
She asked me this morning if she could gather grain behind the harvesters. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
She said, ‘Please let me gather grain. I will only gather among the bundles behind the reapers.’ (God’s Word)
Translate in a way that shows that Ruth was being polite and humble. She was also determined to provide for the needs of Naomi and herself.
You may want to include a footnote to explain that Ruth asked for a special privilege in gleaning that went beyond what was customary. Here is a suggested footnote:
While it is not stated specifically in the Old Testament, scholars believe that the custom was that gleaners could only glean in a field after the harvesters had completed their work and removed their bundles of grain. Ruth requested the special privilege to glean close to his woman workers at the same time as they were bundling the harvest.
sheaves: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as sheaves means stalks of grain that have been gathered into a “bundle.” A bundle was often the amount formed by filling the arms with stalks of grain. A sheaf is a bundle that has been tied or bound. Sheaves were left in the fields until they were gathered up and taken to the threshing floor.
2:7b
So she came out and has continued: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as has continued has a range of meaning including “stand, continue, remain.” In this context, it probably means that she “remained.” Many versions are ambiguous about where Ruth remained. The context seems to indicate that Ruth continued to work in the field after the foreman had given her permission to do so.
Some versions make explicit what Ruth did in the field. For example:
She asked if she could pick up grain left by the harvest workers (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
She asked me to let her follow the workers and gather grain. (Good News Translation)
from morning until now: This is literally “from then, the morning, and until now.” “From then” probably refers to the time when the foreman had talked to Ruth. He was saying that Ruth had stayed in their field and worked steadily at gleaning. For example:
She has been hard at work ever since (New Living Translation (2004))
now: The workers had probably come early in the morning. It was later when Boaz came to see how they were doing. It may have been mid-morning, since the mealtime at midday mentioned in 2:14a seems to have been a little later.
2:7c
There are two textual issues in this part of the verse.
except that she rested a short time: One textual issue has to do with the Hebrew phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as except that she rested a short time :
(1) The Hebrew Masoretic text says that Ruth rested in the shelter for a short time (literally “a little”). That is, she worked for most of the morning but took a brief rest. For example:
except for a few minutes’ rest (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
She has stopped only a few moments to rest (New Century Version)
(2) The LXX (Septuagint) indicates that Ruth did not rest at all. For example:
without resting even for a moment (New Revised Standard Version)
It is recommended that you follow option (1).
in the shelter: The other textual issue has to do with the Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as in the shelter :
(1) The Masoretic text includes the word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as in the shelter. For example:
except for a short rest in the shelter (New International Version)
(2) The Septuagint (LXX) does not include a word meaning “house” or shelter. For example:
with hardly a rest (New Jerusalem Bible)
It is recommended that you follow option (1).
shelter: The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as shelter (literally “house”) was probably a temporary building that provided shade for the harvest workers when they rested. Perhaps it was built with poles and had a roof made from leafy branches or straw. People in many cultures build some similar type of temporary shelter when their garden or field is not near their homes. If your language has a name for such a shelter, use it here.
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