1:9a
May the LORD enable each of you to find rest: This clause is a continuation of the blessing from 1:8b. The clause is more literally “May Yahweh give to you and find rest [each] woman.” The syntax is unusual. In Hebrew, the wish/prayer “May Yahweh give to you” has no object. Also, the verb find is a command form. There are two main interpretations of this clause:
(1) The phrase “and find rest” is not a command. Rather, it is the object of the prayer “May Yahweh give to you.” For example:
May the Lord grant that each of you find security. (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
(2) The phrase “and find rest” is the consequence of the prayer “May Yahweh give to you.” For example:
May the Lord repay each of you so that you may find security. (God’s Word)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) along with most versions.
May the LORD enable: This phrase is a wish/prayer of Naomi. Here are some other ways to translate it:
May the Lord give (New Century Version)
-or-
May the Lord grant (New International Version)
-or-
May the Lord bless you (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
And may the Lord make it possible (Good News Translation)
each of you: This phrase makes explicit that Naomi’s wish/prayer is for the benefit of both of her daughters-in-law. For example:
for each of you (Good News Translation)
Some versions leave the phrase each of implied. For example:
May the Lord give you (New Century Version)
rest: In Hebrew, this word means either “rest” or “resting place.” Here it refers to a situation that is secure and free from anxiety “after wandering, uncertainty, and pain.”
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
that you may each find happiness (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
the security (NET Bible)
in the home of your new husband: This phrase describes the kind of rest that Naomi wants for her daughters-in-law. The best way for a young widow to have security was to marry another husband.
to marry again and have a home (Good News Translation)
-or-
with a husband! (New Jerusalem Bible)
1:9b
And she kissed them as they wept aloud: This clause describes Naomi’s gesture of farewell to her daughters-in-law before they parted ways.
Here are some ways to indicate the connection of 1:9b to the previous clauses. Either of these options is acceptable:
• Indicate that this clause talks about the next action in the story. For example:
And she kissed them farewell. (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
-or-
Then she kissed them goodbye (NET Bible)
• Indicate that this clause talks about the result of Naomi urging Orpah and Ruth to return to Moab and blessing them. For example:
So Naomi kissed them good-bye. (Good News Translation)
And she kissed them: This clause describes a leave-taking custom. She probably kissed them on both cheeks. This was a proper gesture of farewell in that culture. However, in some cultures, this kind of kiss may be considered to be improper or unusual.
Here are some other ways to translate this gesture:
• Add a footnote to explain the meaning. Here is a possible footnote example:
In that culture, a proper leave-taking gesture was to give a small kiss on both cheeks.
• Make explicit the purpose of the gesture in a general way. For example:
Then Naomi expressed a fond farewell to them
• Substitute a different gesture that has the same function in your language. For example:
Then they embraced in farewell
as they wept aloud: This clause describes what happened when Naomi kissed them goodbye. The phrase wept aloud means that they wept/cried loudly.
There are two ways to interpret the referents of the pronoun they in this clause:
(1) Orpah and Ruth wept aloud. For example:
but they began weeping loudly, 10 and said, ‘No, we shall go back with you…” (New Jerusalem Bible)
(2) All three women wept aloud. For example:
and they all broke down and wept (New Living Translation (2004))
Some versions are ambiguous as to the interpretation that they follow. It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) along with the majority of versions. Orpah and Ruth were distressed when Naomi kissed them good-bye, so they cried and told Naomi that they wanted to stay with her.
© 2024 by SIL International®
Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.
