Ruth 4:17
in Ruth 4The neighbor women said, “A son has been born to Naomi,” and they named him Obed. He became the father of Jesse, the father of David.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
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.
KJV
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.
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This verse in Ruth 4
Commentary
3 notes on this verseAnd the women her neighbours gave it a name,.... Josephus says (q) Naomi gave it, by the advice of her neighbours; very probably on the eighth day when he was circumcised, and the neighbours were invited on that occasion, at which time it seems it was usual to give names to children, see Luk 1:
This site's exposition
And Naomi took the child
on Ruth 4:16-17
The neighbour women give the child his name and neither parent is recorded doing it, which is odd enough that John Gill cites Josephus making Naomi the namer on their advice. There is a son born to Naomi is said of a child who is legally the heir of Mahlon and the son of Boaz, and it closes the account the book opened when she lost a husband and two sons. Obed means serving, and verse 15 has already said whom he serves, the old age of the woman holding him. The name David enters Scripture in this verse, and the chapter ends on it.
The record, by era
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
The neighbors gave it a name - That is, they recommended a name suitable to the circumstances of the case; and the parents and grandmother adopted it. They called his name Obed - עובד obed, serving, from עבד abad, he served. Why was this name given? Because he was to be the nourisher of her old age, Rth 4:15. And so he must be by lying in her bosom, even if services in future life were wholly left out of the question. These neighbors of Naomi were skillful people. See on Rth 4:16 (note).
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
On the verses either side of this one
"And she nourished." It means to care for and sustain, as in the phrase "And Joseph nourished his father." Some also interpret it as "to provide," as in "And who will provide for the day of his coming."
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 2 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתִּקְרֶאנָה֩ | vatikrenah | and they called | H7121 → | 733 times |
| ל֨וֹ | lo | <to> <the> him | ||
| הַשְּׁכֵנ֥וֹת | hashekhenot | the [female] neighbors | H7934 → | |
| שֵׁם֙ | shem | a name | H8034 → | 864 times |
| לֵאמֹ֔ר | lemor | <to> saying | H559 → | 5305 times |
| יֻלַּד־ | yulad- | he has been born | H3205 → | 496 times |
| בֵּ֖ן | ben | a son | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| לְנָעֳמִ֑י | lenoomi | to Naomi | H5281 → | 21 times |
| וַתִּקְרֶ֤אנָֽה | vatikrenah | and they called | H7121 → | 733 times |
| שְׁמוֹ֙ | shemo | name his | H8034 → | 864 times |
| עוֹבֵ֔ד | oved | Obed | H5744 → | 10 times |
| ה֥וּא | hu' | he | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| אֲבִי־ | ʾavi- | [was] [the] father of | H1 → | 1212 times |
| יִשַׁ֖י | yishai | Jesse | H3448 → | 42 times |
| אֲבִ֥י | ʾavi | [the] father of | H1 → | 1212 times |
| דָוִֽד׃ פ | david | David | H1732 → |
וַתִּקְרֶאנָה֩and they called
vatikrenahH7121 →733 times
ל֨וֹ<to> <the> him
lo
הַשְּׁכֵנ֥וֹתthe [female] neighbors
hashekhenotH7934 →
שֵׁם֙a name
shemH8034 →864 times
לֵאמֹ֔ר<to> saying
lemorH559 →5305 times
יֻלַּד־he has been born
yulad-H3205 →496 times
בֵּ֖ןa son
benH1121 →4930 times
לְנָעֳמִ֑יto Naomi
lenoomiH5281 →21 times
וַתִּקְרֶ֤אנָֽהand they called
vatikrenahH7121 →733 times
שְׁמוֹ֙name his
shemoH8034 →864 times
עוֹבֵ֔דObed
ovedH5744 →10 times
ה֥וּאhe
hu'H1931 →1879 times
אֲבִי־[was] [the] father of
ʾavi-H1 →1212 times
יִשַׁ֖יJesse
yishaiH3448 →42 times
אֲבִ֥י[the] father of
ʾaviH1 →1212 times
דָוִֽד׃ פDavid
davidH1732 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
On this chapter
About Ruth
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament.