Ruth 4:20
in Ruth 4Amminadab was the father of Nahshon, Nahshon was the father of Salmon,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon,
KJV
And Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon,
⋯
This verse in Ruth 4
Commentary
5 notes on this verseAnd Amminadab begat Nahshon,.... The prince of the tribe of Judah, as the Targum adds; and so he was when the Israelites were come out of Egypt, and were in the wilderness at the time of the dedication of the altar, Num 7:12 called Nahsson, Mat 1:4, and Nahshon begat Salmon; or, as in the Hebrew text, Salmah, and in 1Ch 2:11, Salma; and yet in the verse following Salmon, as we read it.
This site's exposition
Now these are the generations
on Ruth 4:18-20
These are the generations is the formula Genesis uses ten times, from the heavens and the earth at 2:4 to Jacob at 37:2, and this verse is where it next falls in Scripture. Ten names run from Pharez to David, the same count as Adam to Noah in Genesis 5 and Shem to Abraham in Genesis 11. Nahshon fixes the middle of the list at the exodus, since Numbers 1:7 and 7:12 make him prince of Judah in the wilderness and Exodus 6:23 makes him brother in law to Aaron. From Nahshon to David is four names for something near four centuries, and Albert Barnes says the difficulties in this list remain unsolved; whether a Hebrew genealogy of this kind names every father or selects among them is where readers differ.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
8 Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it for thee. Boaz calls a court immediately. It is probable he was himself one of the elders (or aldermen) of the city; for he was a mighty man of wealth.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
Amminadab begat Nahshon - The Targum adds, “And Nahshon was chief of the house of his father in the tribe of Judah.” Nahshon begat Salmon - In the Hebrew it is שלמה Salmah, which Houbigant thinks was an error of an ancient scribe, before any final letters were acknowledged in the Hebrew alphabet: for then the word would be written שלמון Salmon, which a scribe, after final letters were admitted, might mistake for שלמה Salmah, and so write it, instead of שלמון Salmon, the ו vau and final nun in conjunction (ון) bearing some resemblance to ה.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
these are the generations of Pharez--that is, his descendants. This appendix shows that the special object contemplated by the inspired author of this little book was to preserve the memory of an interesting domestic episode, and to trace the genealogy of David.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
The words behind it
8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְעַמִּֽינָדָב֙ | veaminadav | and Amminadab | H5992 → | |
| הוֹלִ֣יד | holid | he fathered | H3205 → | 496 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| נַחְשׁ֔וֹן | nachshon | Nahshon | H5177 → | |
| וְנַחְשׁ֖וֹן | venachshon | and Nahshon | H5177 → | |
| הוֹלִ֥יד | holid | he fathered | H3205 → | 496 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שַׂלְמָֽה׃ | salmah | Salmah | H8009 → |
וְעַמִּֽינָדָב֙and Amminadab
veaminadavH5992 →
הוֹלִ֣ידhe fathered
holidH3205 →496 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
נַחְשׁ֔וֹןNahshon
nachshonH5177 →
וְנַחְשׁ֖וֹןand Nahshon
venachshonH5177 →
הוֹלִ֥ידhe fathered
holidH3205 →496 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
שַׂלְמָֽה׃Salmah
salmahH8009 →
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Matthew 1:4Ram was the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon.
it leads to
- Numbers 7:12
On the first day Nahshon son of Amminadab from the tribe of Judah drew near with his offering.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Numbers 2:3
On the east side, toward the sunrise, the divisions of Judah are to camp under their standard:
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 Chronicles 2:10–12
Ram was the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab was the father of Nahshon, a leader of the descendants of Judah.
- Numbers 1:7
from Judah, Nahshon son of Amminadab;
- Numbers 7:12
Through
Luke 3:32the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Sala, the son of Nahshon,
it leads to
- Ruth 4:18–22
Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron,
- Matthew 1:3–6
Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram.
- Isaiah 11:1–2
Then a shoot will spring up from the stump of Jesse, and a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.
- Ruth 4:18–22
Through
Numbers 1:7from Judah, Nahshon son of Amminadab;
it leads to
- Luke 3:32
the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Sala, the son of Nahshon,
- Luke 3:32
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
About Ruth
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.