Naomi: From Brokenness to Redemption

The opening words of the book of Ruth, “In the days when the judges ruled” (Ruth 1:1), immediately place this story in one of the most chaotic times in Israel’s history. The book of Judges shows a nation lacking central authority, marked by moral chaos and social disorder. As the refrain in Judges 17:6 states, “In those days there was no king in Israel; all the people did what was right in their own eyes.” This period saw terrible events like Jephthah’s sacrifice of his daughter and the Levite’s dismemberment of his concubine, acts that reflect a society without moral guidance or divine order. Against this background of national turmoil, the story of Naomi stands out as a powerful counterpoint, illustrating how divine providence works through human faithfulness to bring order, hope, and ultimately salvation to both individual lives and the larger story of salvation history.

The Nature of Naomi’s Suffering

Naomi’s story begins with famine, a situation that forces her family to leave their homeland in Judah and move to the foreign land of Moab (Ruth 1:1–2). Her husband, Elimelech, along with their sons, Mahlon and Chilion, form a family of Ephrathites trying to survive in a land that was traditionally hostile to Israel. Moab, located in the Transjordan east of the Dead Sea, held significant theological implications for any Israelite family choosing to live there. The Mosaic law explicitly forbade Moabites from entering “the assembly of the LORD” even up to the tenth generation (Deuteronomy 23:3), a ban based on their hostile actions against Israel during their wilderness wanderings and their efforts to curse Israel through Balaam (Numbers 22–24). Additionally, the Moabites’ origins from Lot’s incestuous relationship with his daughters (Genesis 19:30–38) and their worship of the deity Chemosh identified them as a people fundamentally opposed to Israel’s covenant relationship with Yahweh.

The theological importance of Elimelech’s choice to move his family to Moab cannot be overstated. Although the text does not outright condemn this decision, the subsequent tragedies that strike the family suggest divine disapproval of abandoning the Promised Land. Elimelech’s death leaves Naomi widowed in a foreign country, and the marriages of Mahlon and Chilion to Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth, respectively, further deepen the family’s disconnect from the covenant community. These unions breached the spirit, if not the letter, of Israel’s ban on intermarriage with foreign nations, especially those specifically excluded from the assembly of the LORD.

The deaths of both sons after ten years in Moab leave Naomi utterly devastated. She is left without a husband, children, or any hope of continuing her family line. In ancient Near Eastern society, a woman’s safety and identity were closely tied to her relationships with male relatives. Without a husband or sons, Naomi faces not only financial hardship but also social invisibility and spiritual emptiness. Her choice to return to Judah after hearing that “the LORD had considered his people and given them food” (Ruth 1:6) is both a practical decision and a recognition that blessings come from the LORD in the land of promise, not from foreign lands, no matter their temporary benefits.

The Complexity of Naomi’s Character

Naomi’s first response to her daughters-in-law reveals the deep complexity of her character and spiritual outlook. Her instruction for Ruth and Orpah to return to their mothers’ houses (Ruth 1:8) demonstrates both practical wisdom and genuine love. She understands the complex realities facing foreign women in Israel and wants to prevent them from unnecessary hardship. Her blessing that “the LORD deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me” (Ruth 1:8) acknowledges their faithful service to her family and requests divine blessing on their future endeavors.

Nevertheless, Naomi’s insistence that the women leave her also uncovers her spiritual struggles. When Ruth and Orpah express their desire to stay with her, Naomi’s reply becomes more desperate: “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb that they may become your husbands?” (Ruth 1:11). This harsh attitude persists as she argues that even if she were to remarry and have sons, the women couldn’t reasonably wait for those future children to grow up. Her statement that “it has been far more bitter for me than for you, because the hand of the LORD has turned against me” (Ruth 1:13) shows a woman grappling with the effects of her suffering.

Danna Nolan Fewell and David Gunn suggest that Naomi’s withdrawal from Ruth after the younger woman’s declaration of loyalty indicates not anger but deep grief and self-protection (1990:27). Naomi has come to believe she has nothing to offer anyone, making her hesitant to accept even loyal companionship. This interpretation portrays Naomi as a model of selflessness whose primary concern remains the well-being of her daughters-in-law, even in her own suffering. Her insistence on release does not come from rejection but from a protective love that aims to prevent others from sharing her perceived curse.

The extent of Naomi’s bitterness becomes clear when she returns to Bethlehem. When the women of the town recognize her and ask, “Is this Naomi?” she responds with a request for a new name: “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty” (Ruth 1:20–21). This speech shows Naomi’s struggle with divine providence. She does not deny God’s sovereignty but questions the purpose behind her suffering. Her statement of emptiness contrasts sharply with her original name, Naomi (meaning “pleasant”), and sets the stage for the dramatic reversal that will define the rest of the story.

The Emergence of Hope

The transformation of Naomi’s circumstances begins with Ruth’s decision to glean in the harvest fields. The narrator’s note that Ruth “happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech” (Ruth 2:3) illustrates what can be called providence. In Hebrew storytelling, such seemingly random events often reveal divine guidance of events for redemptive purposes. Boaz’s quick recognition of Ruth’s virtue and his protective measures for her while she gleans show how God works through human agents to fulfill His plans.

Boaz’s characterization of Ruth as someone who has “come to take refuge under the wings of the LORD, the God of Israel” (Ruth 2:12) provides key insight into her shift from Moabite paganism to Yahwistic faith. This imagery of divine protection echoes Moses’ description of God’s care for Israel as an eagle caring for its young (Deuteronomy 32:11) and anticipates the marriage metaphor where Boaz will literally spread his wing (cloak) over Ruth (Ruth 3:9). Ruth’s transformation from foreign widow to covenant member highlights the universal reach of divine grace that extends beyond ethnic boundaries.

Naomi’s reaction to Ruth’s encounter with Boaz marks the start of her own change. Her exclamation that “the man is a close relative of ours, one of our redeemers” (Ruth 2:20) shows her acknowledgment of divine guidance at work. The Hebrew word go’el (redeemer/kinsman-redeemer) has profound theological importance throughout the Old Testament, symbolizing someone who restores what has been lost or damaged. Naomi’s description of Boaz using these terms indicates her growing realization that God has not abandoned her but is working through human agents to bring about restoration.

The institution of the go’el outlined in Leviticus 25 provided economic and social protections for vulnerable members of Israelite society. A kinsman-redeemer was responsible for buying back family property that hardship had forced a relative to sell, keeping ancestral land in the clan. This system upheld the idea that the land ultimately belonged to the LORD and was entrusted to individual families. Naomi’s recognition of Boaz as a potential go’el shows she understands that her family’s property rights and her own well-being might be restored through this divine institution.

The Significance of Redemption

Naomi’s strategic planning regarding Ruth’s approach to Boaz at the threshing floor is arguably the most controversial part of her character development. Her instructions for Ruth to “wash and anoint yourself, and put on your best clothes” before approaching Boaz, and then to “uncover his feet and lie down” (Ruth 3:3-4), have sparked extensive scholarly debate about their exact meaning and appropriateness. The Hebrew term margelot (feet/place of feet) may serve as a euphemism for genitals, implying that Naomi’s plan involved considerable sexual risk and potential scandal.

Understanding Naomi’s instructions requires recognizing the vulnerable position of women in patriarchal society and the extraordinary measures sometimes necessary for survival and maintaining family lines. Biblical examples include Tamar’s deception of Judah (Genesis 38), Lot’s daughters’ seduction of their father (Genesis 19), and Bathsheba’s efforts to secure the throne for Solomon (1 Kings 1). While these stories do not necessarily endorse such actions, they reveal the complex moral world in which biblical women operated when traditional means of ensuring safety and lineage were blocked.

Ruth’s response to Boaz’s awakening, “I am Ruth, your servant; spread your cloak over your servant, for you are a redeemer” (Ruth 3:9), transforms a potentially compromising situation into a formal marriage proposal. Her use of the term go’el and her request for Boaz to spread his cloak (kanaph) over her invoke both legal terminology and marriage imagery. The same Hebrew word used earlier for God’s protective wings now describes the human relationship that will accomplish divine purposes. Ruth’s proposal thus becomes a statement about how divine redemption operates through human covenant relationships.

Boaz’s response shows both his moral character and his understanding of proper legal steps. His blessing of Ruth for her loyalty and his promise to serve as go’el if the closer kinsman declines make him an honorable man acting within appropriate limits. His giving grain for Ruth to take to Naomi also shows his dedication to both women’s well-being and his growing responsibilities toward them.

The Completion of Redemption

The legal proceedings at the city gate (Ruth 4:1–12) mark the formal resolution of Naomi’s crisis and illustrate how divine providence interacts with human legal systems. Boaz’s presentation of the case to the closer kinsman highlights the complexity of ancient Near Eastern redemption law. The unnamed kinsman’s initial willingness to redeem the property changes when Boaz explains that acquiring the land also involves marriage to Ruth “to restore the name of the dead to his inheritance” (Ruth 4:5). This additional obligation, seemingly linked to levirate marriage customs, creates financial and legal issues that the closer kinsman cannot accept.

Brad Embry’s analysis of the “redeem-acquire” terminology in Ruth 4:4–5 connects these legal actions to broader theological themes found throughout Scripture (2013:257). The Hebrew concepts of redemption (ga’al) and acquisition (qanah) recall the Exodus story, where God redeemed Israel from Egypt and claimed them as his covenant people (Exodus 15:13–16). This link demonstrates that Boaz’s redemption of Ruth and Naomi’s property fits into the larger pattern of divine redemption that shapes God’s relationship with his people throughout history.

The completion of the legal transaction, symbolized by the exchange of sandals before the elders (Ruth 4:7–8), confirms Boaz’s legal rights to both property and marriage. The elders’ blessing that Ruth may be “like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel” (Ruth 4:11) and that Boaz’s house may be “like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah” (Ruth 4:12) ties this marriage to Israel’s founding stories and highlights its significance for the nation’s future.

Alan T. Levenson’s observation that the blessing invokes Rachel and Leah as collaborative rather than competitive matriarchs offers important insight into the narrative’s theological goals. Unlike the rivalry that characterized Jacob’s wives, Ruth and Naomi show cooperative faithfulness that achieves positive results for everyone involved. This shift from competition to collaboration suggests that the Ruth story presents an idealized view of covenant relationships that goes beyond the conflicts and divisions seen earlier in Israel’s history.

Conclusion

The book of Ruth depicts Naomi’s story as an example of divine redemption working through human faithfulness and covenants. Her change from bitter emptiness to renewed fullness shows that God’s caring hand reaches people in challenging situations beyond their control, and that divine goals can be achieved through unlikely people and unusual circumstances. The placement of the story during the chaotic time of the judges indicates that God’s work of redemption continues even in periods of social turmoil and spiritual confusion.

Naomi’s character development reveals the complexity of faithful response to suffering and the possibility of transformation even in the midst of profound loss. Her initial bitterness and withdrawal, while understandable given her circumstances, give way to renewed engagement with divine providence as she recognizes God’s hand in Ruth’s loyalty and Boaz’s kindness. Her willingness to risk scandal through her strategic planning for Ruth’s approach to Boaz
demonstrates courage born of necessity and hope founded on recognition of divine grace.

Ultimately, Naomi’s journey from brokenness to redemption highlights the biblical idea that divine grace works through human relationships and covenant faithfulness to achieve purposes that go far beyond immediate circumstances. Her transformation shows that even the most devastating losses can serve divine purposes that only become clear through faithful endurance and trust in God’s providential care. The story suggests that transformation happens not by escaping difficult circumstances but through faithful engagement with divine providence as it works through human agents and covenant relationships.

NOTE: For a complete list of studies on all the women in the Old Testament, read my post All the Women of the Old Testament.

Claude Mariottini
Emeritus Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Embry, Brad. “Redemption-Acquisition: The Marriage of Ruth as a Theological Commentary on Yahweh and Yahweh’s People.” Journal of Theological Interpretation 7 (2013): 257–273.

Fewell, Danna N. and David Miller Gunn. Compromising Redemption: Relating Characters in the Book of Ruth. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster Press, 1990.