Ruth 1:1. There was a famine in the land This makes it probable that the things here recorded came to pass in the days of Gideon, for that is the only time when we read of a famine in the days of the judges; namely, when the Midianites, Amalekites, &c., came and destroyed the increase of the earth, and left no sustenance for Israel, nor for their cattle, Judges 6:3-4. read more
1:1-22 TEN YEARS OF HARDSHIP IN MOABWhen a severe famine struck Israel, Elimelech took his wife Naomi and their two sons across the Jordan and south to the land of Moab, in the hope of finding a living there. But Elimelech died, and within ten years his two sons, who had married Moabite wives, died also (1:1-5).Naomi saw no future for herself in Moab, so, upon hearing that the famine in Israel had passed, she decided to return home. Her daughters-in-law loved her and decided to go with her to... read more
Now it came to pass in the days. Occurs five times. Always denotes impending trouble, followed by happy deliverance. Compare Genesis 14:1 .Esther 1:1 .Isaiah 7:1 .Jeremiah 1:3 . when the judges ruled. Doubtless, in the early days, before the sin of Judges 1:0 developed the later internal disorders, and outward oppressions. a famine. See note on Genesis 12:10 . country = fields. read more
THE AFFLICTIONS OF NAOMI AND HER RETURN TO BETHLEHEMELIMELECH FLEES THE FAMINE IN JUDAH TO SOJOURN IN MOAB (RUTH 1:1-5)"And it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem-Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem-Judah. And they came into the... read more
Ruth 1:1. It came to pass—when the judges ruled— Though these words point out the general epocha of this event, yet they leave us at a loss to determine under what particular judge it happened. Bishop Usher places it in the 2686th year of the world, one hundred and thirty-three years after the conquest of Canaan. See his Chronolog. Sac. p. 1 Chronicles 12:0 and Judges 6:3-4. read more
1. in the days when the judges ruled—The beautiful and interesting story which this book relates belongs to the early times of the judges. The precise date cannot be ascertained. read more
A. The deaths of Naomi’s husband and sons 1:1-5God had promised the Israelites that if they departed from Him He would discipline them by sending famine on the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 28:17; Deuteronomy 28:23; Deuteronomy 28:38-40; Deuteronomy 28:42). [Note: See George M. Harton, "Fulfillment of Deuteronomy 28-30 in History and in Eschatology" (Th.D. dissertation, Dallas Theological Seminary, 1981).] The famine on Israel at this time indicates God’s judgment for unfaithfulness. As Abram had... read more
The Exile and the Return of Naomi1. Beth-lehem-judah] two hours’ journey S. of Jerusalem, is to be distinguished from Bethlehem in Zebulun (Joshua 19:15). It was but a short distance from Moab, which, in the days here referred to, was a fertile, highly cultivated country. Travellers still speak of it as a land of streams. Nothing short of the compulsion of famine could have induced a Hebrew to migrate into this foreign country where he would have no right of citizenship, this unclean land where... read more
(1) When the judges ruled.—Literally, when the judges judged. This note of time is by no means definite. As we have seen, some have proposed to connect the famine with the ravages of the Midianites Judges 6:1); or, supposing the genealogy to be complete (which is more likely, however, to be abridged, if at all, in the earlier generations), then since Boaz was the son of Salmon (Salma, 1 Chronicles 2:11) and Rahab (Matthew 1:5), whom there can be no reasonable grounds for supposing to be other... read more
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Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ruth 1:1
In the days when the Judges ruled - “Judged.” This note of time, like that in Ruth 4:7; Judges 18:1; Judges 17:6, indicates that this Book was written after the rule of the judges had ceased. The genealogy Ruth 4:17-22 points to the time of David as the earliest when the Book of Ruth could have been written.A famine - Caused probably by one of the hostile invasions recorded in the Book of Judges. Most of the Jewish commentators, from the mention of Bethlehem, and the resemblance of the names... read more