Ruth 2:1 KJV,ASV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Ruth 2:1-3

Naomi had now gained a settlement in Bethlehem among her old friends; and here we have an account, I. Of her rich kinsman, Boaz, a mighty man of wealth, Ruth 2:1. The Chaldee reads it, mighty in the law. If he was both, it was a most rare and excellent conjunction, to be mighty in wealth and mighty in the scriptures too; those that are so are mighty indeed. He was grandson of Nahshon, who was prince of the tribe of Judah in the wilderness, and son of Salmon, probably a younger son, by Rahab,... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Ruth 2:1

And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's ,.... That was her kinsman by her husband's side, who now lived at Bethlehem; and yet it does not appear that Naomi made any application to him for assistance in her circumstances, though well known to her, as the word used signifies; which might arise from her modesty, and being loath to be troublesome to him, especially as he was a relation, not of her own family, but of her husband's; but, what is more strange, that this kinsman had taken no notice... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Ruth 2:1

A mighty man of wealth - We have already seen that some suppose Boaz to have been one of the judges of Israel; he was no doubt a man of considerable property. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ruth 2:1

EXPOSITION IT is by way of introduction to the remaining narrative that the writer says:— And Naomi had, on her husband's side, a friend. The C'tib reading מְיֻדַּע (absolute מְיֻדָע ) is much to be preferred to the K'ri מוֹדַע . But מְיֻדָּע is ambiguous in import. It primarily means known , well-known , acquainted , an acquaintance (see Job 19:14 ; Psalms 55:13 ; Psalms 88:8 , Psalms 88:18 ). But as intimate acquaintances, especially in a primitive and... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ruth 2:1-9

The harvest-field. RUTH WAS EAGER TO WORK (see Ruth 2:2 ). 1. Work is honorable; it is wholesome; inspiriting too; the best antidote to ennui . If not immoderate, nothing is so efficacious in giving full development to man's physique ; nothing is so potent to put reins upon passions, and a curb on the tendency to morbid imaginations. All great men and women have been diligent workers. Jesus worked. He who is his Father and ours "worketh hitherto." 2. Ruth did... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ruth 2:1

A kinsman - More literally “an acquaintance”; here (and in the feminine, Ruth 3:2) denoting the person with whom one is intimately acquainted, one’s near relation. The next kinsman of Ruth 2:20, etc. גאל gā'al, is a wholly different word.Boaz - Commonly taken to mean, “strength is in him” (compare 1 Kings 7:21). read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Ruth 2:1-23

2:1-4:22 START OF A NEW LIFE IN ISRAELRuth works in the field of Boaz (2:1-23)Back in Israel it soon became clear that God was in control of affairs in the lives of the two widows. According to Israelite law, when a farmer reaped his harvest he was not to send his workers through the field a second time to pick up the odd stalks of grain that the reapers dropped. These were to be left for the poor, who would follow the reapers and glean what grain they could (Leviticus 23:22; Deuteronomy... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Ruth 2:1

RUTH'S SUCCESS AS A GLEANERGLEANING IN THE FIELD OF BOAZ (RUTH 2:1-7)"And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his names was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor. And she said unto her, Go, my daughter. And she went, and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and her hap was to light on the portion of the field belonging unto... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Ruth 2:1-7

1. God’s providential guidance of Ruth 2:1-7The motif of God’s providence, His working out His own plan through the circumstances of life, which runs through the Book of Ruth, is especially strong in this pericope.The writer introduced Boaz as a kinsman (lit. acquaintance or friend, Heb. myd’) of Elimelech. "According to the rabbinic tradition, which is not well established however, Boaz was a nephew of Elimelech." [Note: Keil and Delitzsch, p. 447.] Scholars debate the etymology of Boaz’s name... read more

John Dummelow

John Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible - Ruth 2:1-23

Ruth the Gleaner1. Boaz] (’quickness’) was a kinsman of Elimelech’s. We are not informed of the precise degree of relationship. Here and at Ruth 3:2 he is designated an ’acquaintance.’ It is by no means certain that we are to think of him as a mighty man of wealth’; the phrase here employed sometimes points out a capable, active man (1 Kings 11:28; Nehemiah 11:14). The Targum is of course wrong in explaining it by ’a man strong in the Law’—an explanation which reminds us of Apollos, ’mighty in... read more