Passage

Ruth 4.15

Book: Ruth · NASB95

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

13. So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife; and he went in unto her, and Jehovah gave her conception, and she bare a son. 14. And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be Jehovah, who hath not left thee this day without a near kinsman; and let his name be famous in Israel.

15. And he shall be unto thee a restorer of life, and a nourisher of thine old age, for thy daughter-in-law, who loveth thee, who is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him.

And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. 17. And the women her neighbors gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David. (Ruth 4:13-17, ASV)

WEB

13. So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife; and he went in to her, and Yahweh enabled her to conceive, and she bore a son. 14. The women said to Naomi, “Blessed be Yahweh, who has not left you today without a near kinsman. Let his name be famous in Israel.

15. He shall be to you a restorer of life, and sustain you in your old age, for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

Naomi took the child, and laid him in her bosom, and became nurse to it. 17. The women, her neighbors, gave him a name, saying, “A son is born to Naomi”. They named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David. (Ruth 4:13-17, WEB)

KJV

13. So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son. 14. And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel. ^{left: Heb. caused to cease unto thee} ^{kinsman: or, redeemer}

15. And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him. ^{a nourisher of: Heb. to nourish} ^{thine: Heb. thy gray hairs}

And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. 17. And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David. (Ruth 4:13-17, KJV)

YLT

13. And Boaz taketh Ruth, and she becometh his wife, and he goeth in unto her, and Jehovah giveth to her conception, and she beareth a son. 14. And the women say unto Naomi, 'Blessed [is] Jehovah who hath not let a redeemer cease to thee to-day, and his name is proclaimed in Israel,

15. and he hath been to thee for a restorer of life, and for a nourisher of thine old age, for thy daughter-in-law who hath loved thee, who is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him.'

And Naomi taketh the lad, and layeth him in her bosom, and is to him for a nurse; 17. and the neighbouring women give to him a name, saying, 'There hath been a son born to Naomi,' and they call his name Obed; he [is] father of Jesse, father of David. (Ruth 4:13-17, YLT)

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Setting

Speaker: the women of Beth-lehem, speaking to Naomi (Ruth 4:14)
Audience: Naomi
Location: Beth-lehem
Time period: the period of the judges (Ruth 1:1), after the birth of Obed (4:13)

Theological reading

"And he shall be unto thee a restorer of life, and a nourisher of thine old age, for thy daughter-in-law, who loveth thee, who is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him." The women who once asked "Is this Naomi?" (1:19) now bless her.

"Restorer" is Strong's H7725, shuv, the "return" word of chapter 1. Naomi said, "Jehovah hath brought me home again empty" (1:21); now the child will "return" her life to her. "Life" is nephesh (Strong's H5315).

The praise of Ruth reverses the sorrow of 1:5, where Naomi "was left of her two children and of her husband." One daughter-in-law "who loveth thee" is reckoned "better to thee than seven sons." In a culture that measured security by sons, the women count loyal love as the greater gift.

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.

H2896 - tov, tov, Strong's H2896
H5315 - nephesh, nephesh, Strong's H5315
H7725 - shuv, shuv, Strong's H7725
H1121 - ben, ben, Strong's H1121

Quoted in

Arguments and defeaters:

Gentiles Cannot Be Saved Objection Defeater, via Ruth 4.13-22

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.