Ruth 2:2 New English Translation
2 One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go[a] to the fields so I can gather[b] grain behind whoever permits me to do so.”[c] Naomi[d] replied, “You may go, my daughter.”
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- Ruth 2:2 tn The cohortative here (“Let me go”) expresses Ruth’s request. Note Naomi’s response, in which she gives Ruth permission to go to the field.
- Ruth 2:2 tn Following the preceding cohortative, the cohortative with vav conjunctive indicates purpose/result.
- Ruth 2:2 tn Heb “anyone in whose eyes I may find favor” (ASV, NIV similar). The expression אֶמְצָא־חֵן בְּעֵינָיו (ʾemtsaʾ khen beʿenayv, “to find favor in the eyes of [someone]”) appears in Ruth 2:2, 10, 13. It is most often used when a subordinate or servant requests permission for something from a superior (BDB 336 s.v. חֵן). Ruth will play the role of the subordinate servant, seeking permission from a landowner, who then could show benevolence by granting her request to glean in his field behind the harvest workers.
- Ruth 2:2 tn Heb “she”; the referent (Naomi) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
New English Translation (NET)
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