Before we start; let us read this section of Ruth.
14 And they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her. 15 Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” 16 But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the LORD do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.” 18 When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
19 So they both went until they came to Bethlehem. And when they had come to Bethlehem, all the city was stirred because of them, and the women said, “Is this Naomi?” 20 She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went out full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the LORD has witnessed against me and the Almighty has afflicted me?”
22 So Naomi returned, and with her Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, who returned from the land of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of barley harvest. Ruth 1:14-22
Commentary
So we saw that Naomi was dedicated to the Lord. Although her future seemed completely destroyed God was active and at work on her behalf and Ruth’s behalf as she had great faith in the face of adversity. So Orpah cried, kissed her mother in law and left back to her people. Ruth clung onto Naomi and it is in the perfect form. As Orpah was leaving Ruth was clinging and it is in the cal perfect 3rd person singular. Ruth was already determined to stay with Naomi even before Naomi tried to discourage her from going to Bethlehem with her. Still Naomi was trying to persuade Ruth to go back to the old life. Naomi said look your sister in law has gone back (cal perfect). Orpah is gone and she is not coming back, that’s what the cal perfect means here. but Ruth did not, on the contrary what did she say?
16 But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus, may the LORD do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.” 18 When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
This is packed with information about the determination of Ruth. Ruth is clinging and this clinging is a symbol of staying around way into the future. Then when Ruth speaks it is in the imperfect with will. The imperfect carries the idea that it is not a completed state but rather takes Naomi into a future relationship. She hasn’t left like Orpah this is a continual state and into the future and Ruth will die as a true Jew worshipping the Lord. The story continues in the imperfect into verse 19 when the villagers ask if this is Naomi. They were excited. Naomi was really sad and she says a few things in the perfect as if this was the end of the situation;
20 She said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went out full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the LORD has witnessed against me and the Almighty has afflicted me?” NASB
From Naomi’s point of view there was disaster from the Lord and the destiny of Elimelech’s name was going to be cut off. She is thinking in the perfect. The men died (Perfect); Orpah left her (perfect). The Lord has acted bitterly towards her (Perfect). Naomi’s personal world had collapsed and in her soul, she was a broken woman (on the surface of things.)
Verse 22.
The return was a real thing and these verbs are in the perfect. It looks like Naomi and Ruth’s situation is now going to start to change for the better. The reason I say this is because Deuteronomy tells us about the widow, orphan and foreigner. God will fight their case. Rabbi Sacks made this point in a you tube video where he talks about Ruth and Naomi.
Deuteronomy 10:18 says,” 18 He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the stranger by giving him food and clothing.”
These are indicators from the Torah. Naomi is a true widow. Ruth is a true foreigner. God says that they will not be abandoned. Ruth also has no family as her family is Naomi. Naomi has also come to a place of the first beatitude “Blessed are the poor in spirit”. God will step in, there is no question about tha
Weaver1has's Blog 
Leave a Reply