Passage

Ruth 1.5

Book: Ruth · NASB95

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

3. And Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. 4. And they took them wives of the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they dwelt there about ten years.

5. And Mahlon and Chilion died both of them; and the woman was left of her two children and of her husband.

Then she arose with her daughters-in-law, that she might return from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the country of Moab how that Jehovah had visited his people in giving them bread. 7. And she went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return unto the land of Judah. (Ruth 1:3-7, ASV)

WEB

3. Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. 4. They took for themselves wives of the women of Moab. The name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other was Ruth. They lived there about ten years.

5. Mahlon and Chilion both died, and the woman was bereaved of her two children and of her husband.

Then she arose with her daughters-in-law, that she might return from the country of Moab; for she had heard in the country of Moab how Yahweh had visited his people in giving them bread. 7. She went out of the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her. They went on the way to return to the land of Judah. (Ruth 1:3-7, WEB)

KJV

3. And Elimelech Naomi's husband died; and she was left, and her two sons. 4. And they took them wives of the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they dwelled there about ten years.

5. And Mahlon and Chilion died also both of them; and the woman was left of her two sons and her husband.

Then she arose with her daughters in law, that she might return from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the country of Moab how that the LORD had visited his people in giving them bread. 7. Wherefore she went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters in law with her; and they went on the way to return unto the land of Judah. (Ruth 1:3-7, KJV)

YLT

3. And Elimelech husband of Naomi dieth, and she is left, she and her two sons; 4. and they take to them wives, Moabitesses: the name of the one [is] Orpah, and the name of the second Ruth; and they dwell there about ten years.

5. And they die also, both of them, Mahlon and Chilion, and the woman is left of her two children and of her husband.

And she riseth, she and her daughters-in-law, and turneth back from the fields of Moab, for she hath heard in the fields of Moab that God hath looked after His people,, to give to them bread. 7. And she goeth out from the place where she hath been, and her two daughters-in-law with her, and they go in the way to turn back unto the land of Judah. (Ruth 1:3-7, YLT)

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Setting

Speaker: the narrator of Ruth, an anonymous storyteller
Audience: the readers of the book
Location: "the country of Moab" (Ruth 1:1-2)
Time period: the period of the judges (Ruth 1:1), after "about ten years" in Moab (1:4)

Theological reading

"And Mahlon and Chilion died both of them; and the woman was left of her two children and of her husband." The verse reduces Naomi to "the woman," defined by what she has lost. The narrator records the deaths without explanation.

"Left" (Strong's H7604 in the KJV) frames Naomi as a survivor. She has no husband, no sons, and no male heir to carry on Elimelech's name, which is the problem the book resolves when Boaz acts "to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance" (4:10).

The book's end answers this verse directly. The women tell Naomi that Ruth "is better to thee than seven sons" (4:15), and a child is laid in Naomi's bosom (4:16). The loss of two sons in Moab gives way to "a son born to Naomi" (4:17).

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word.

H4191 - mut, mut, Strong's H4191

Notes

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Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.