“She may also glean between the shaves (which was not generally allowed), and ye shall not shame her (do her any injury, Jdg 18:7); and ye shall also draw out of the bundles for her, and let them lie (the ears drawn out), that she may glean them, and shall not scold her,” sc., for picking up the ears that have been drawn out. These directions of Boaz went far beyond the bounds of generosity and compassion for the poor; and show that he felt a peculiar interest in Ruth, with whose circumstances he was well acquainted, and who had won his heart by her humility, her faithful attachment to her mother-in-law, and her love to the God of Israel, - a face important to notice in connection with the further course of the history.
Thus Ruth gleaned till the evening in the field; and when she knocked out the ears, she had about an ephah (about 20-25 lbs.) of barley.
Verse 18
Rth 2:18
This she brought to her mother-in-law in the city, and “drew out (sc., from her pocket, as the Chaldee has correctly supplied) what she had left from her sufficiency,” i.e., of the parched corn which Boaz had reached her (Rth 2:14).
Verses 19-20
Rth 2:19-20
The mother inquired, “where hast thou gleaned to-day, and where wroughtest thou?” and praised the benefactor, who, as she conjecture from the quantity of barley collected and the food brought home, had taken notice of Ruth: “blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee!” When she heard the name of the man, Boaz, she saw that this relative of her husband had been chosen by God to be a benefactor of herself and Ruth, and exclaimed, “Blessed be he of the Lord, that he has not left off (withdrawn) his favour towards the living and the dead!” On חסדּו עזב see Gen 24:27. This verb is construed with a double accusative here; for את cannot be a preposition, as in that case מאת would be used like מעם in Gen. l.c. “The living,” etc., forms a second object: as regards (with regard to) the living and the dead, in which Naomi thought of herself and Ruth, and of her husband and sons, to whom God still showed himself gracious, even after their death, through His care for their widows. In order to enlighten Ruth still further upon the matter, she added, “The man (Boaz) is our relative, and one of our redeemers.” He “stands near to us,” sc., by relationship. גּאלנוּ, a defective form for גּאלינוּ, which is found in several MSS and editions. On the significance of the goël, or redeemer, see at Lev 25:26, Lev 25:48-49, and the introduction to Ruth 3.
Verse 21
Rth 2:21
Ruth proceeded to inform her of his kindness: כּי גּם, “also (know) that he said to me, Keep with my people, till the harvest is all ended.” The masculine הנּערים, for which we should rather expect the
