Praise Her Works: Conversations with Biblical Women

12 Naomi

89 o Chapter 2 Naomi RUTH SOHN :iIÇhàc¢tÇ¡k vÃ¥jàK¤· ¥vh¢Äs*h& ý u /// “… her hands are stretched out to the needy” (Prov. 31:20). 'vbhfav hpbf ,j, ,ur ,t vxhbfva hngb uz 'iuhctk vjka vhshu /vhkt rcsk ksj,u v,t ,fkk thv ,mnt,n hf tr,u ch,fs Her hands are stretched out to the needy, this is Naomi, who brought Ruth beneath the wings of Shekhinah (indwelling presence of God), as it is written, “When [Naomi] saw how determined she was to go with her, she ceased to argue with her” (Ruth 1:18). —Midrash ha-Gadol Naomi’s story begins in Bethlehem in the time of the Judges, shortly before the monarchy is established. Her husband, Elimelech, is, according to later lore, one of the great men of his generation. When Judea is struck by famine, Elimelech decides to leave with Naomi and their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion. They settle in Moab, the country east of the Dead Sea. There Elimelech dies and leaves Naomi a widow with two sons. Perhaps they should have returned to Bethlehem, but the boys marry Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth, and stay on in Moab for about 10 years. When Mahlon and Chilion suddenly die, Naomi is left mourning these new losses along with the loss of her husband, for whom she has never stopped grieving. Naomi hears that there is a great harvest back in Israel, and she returns home with one of her daughters-in-law, Ruth. There, by chance, Ruth gleans in the fields of Boaz, a member of Elimelech’s family. When Boaz discovers Ruth is gleaning in his 90 Praise Her Works fields,hegreetsherwarmlyandurgeshertocontinueworkingthrough the harvest, for he has already heard of and been impressed by her devotion to Naomi. Boaz sends Ruth home at the end of the day with an unusually large amount of barley. When Naomi learns that it was Boaz who treated Ruth so generously, we hear for the first time a note of hope in Naomi’s voice as she recalls that he is a redeeming kinsman, a member of Elimelech’s family. This implies that he could marry Ruth and continue the family line. At the end of the harvest, Naomi advises her daughter-in-law to approach Boaz and let him know that she would be interested in marriage . Boaz responds favorably and makes the necessary arrangements to marry Ruth. Ruth later gives birth to a son, and the women of the town sing out God’s praises and celebrate Ruth’s love for Naomi. Naomi helps nurture and raise the new baby, whom we are told will one day be the grandfather of David. Commentary We first meet Naomi as a woman all but swallowed up in grief at the loss of her two sons. The loss of a child, even a grown child, is one of the greatest tragedies a human being can experience. Anyone who has suffered loss will be able to identify with Naomi’s deep grief. The loss of both sons, terrible in itself, has reawakened the pain at the loss of her husband, Elimelech, 10 years earlier. As our tradition teaches, “The death of a man is felt by no one as much as his wife, and for a woman, by no one as much as her husband” (Sanhedrin 22a). Naomi first shares her pain and hopelessness when she begs her two daughters-in-law not to follow her but to return to their own families where they have the chance to begin anew. Naomi’s grief is compounded by the recognition that she cannot bear more children, and even if she could, she still could not help her daughters-in-law marry and bear children of their own. “Turn back, my daughters, for I am too old to be married. Even if I thought there was hope for me, even if I were married tonight 91 Chapter 12 Naomi and I also bore sons, should you wait for them to grow up? … My lot is far more bitter than yours, for the hand of the Lord has struck out against me” (Ruth 1:12,13). When Naomi and Ruth arrive in Bethlehem, Naomi again gives voice to her grief, this time even more powerfully as she renames herself . “Do not call me Naomi,” she replies. “Call me Mara, for Shaddai has made my lot very bitter. I went away full, and the Lord has brought...