The JPS Bible Commentary: Ruth

by Tamara Cohn Eskenazi, Tikva Frymer-Kensky

Thanks to these generous donors for making the publication of this book Dr. and Mrs. Lawrence Deutsch. The latest in the JPS Bible Commentary series, 2011 National Jewish Book Award Winner, Barbara Dobkin Award in Women’s Studies The moving story of Ruth, with its themes of loyalty, loving kindness ( hesed ), and redemption, is one of the great narratives of the Bible. Socially, the Israelites were aware of their responsibility to protect the weak and unprotected among them. Redemption secures the life of the people as a community, not just as individuals. In this story, Boaz fills the familial obligation to marry the widow of a deceased relative who never was able to father children, both to continue the family line and protect an otherwise vulnerable woman. The authors provide a critical, line-by-line commentary of the biblical text, presented in its original Hebrew, complete with vocalization and cantillation marks, as well as the 1985 JPS English translation. The extensive introduction places the book within its historical, literary, and critical context, discusses contemporary interpretations of the story of Ruth, and examines its major motifs and themes, among family, marriage and levirate marriage in biblical and ancient Israel, redemption and inheritance, hesed, and the book’s connection with the Jewish holiday of Shavuot.

Genres: Judaism, Reference, Religion

216 pages, Hardcover

First published July 6, 2011

Reviews

[Fred Kohn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was concerned whether I would get much out of this commentary on the Hebrew text of Ruth, since the amount of Hebrew I know comes in at about a thimbleful. Not to worry. The commentary has a 60 page introduction which in and of itself is worth the price of admission. As to the commentary proper, the Hebrew text amounted to only a few half-lines of text at the top of each page (sometimes only 1 and never more than 6). Key Hebrew terms were often transliterated into Latin characters so many times I was able to identify them in the Hebrew text. One thing which may have made this commentary even better would have been if the authors had been allowed to make their own translation of the Hebrew text instead of being constrained to use the New JPS translation, which they criticized on a number of occasions.

[edit] My occasion for reading this book again was a lengthy AI generated word wall which contained the following:

"In The Jewish Study Bible and elsewhere, Eskenazi emphasizes Ruth’s status as a foreign woman and how the story challenges Israelite boundaries. She highlights the persistent use of 'Ruth the Moabite' and notes that her foreignness is integral to the story’s message, not erased by assimilation."

This AI machine was trained by somebody from the Israel Only movement, a strange cult-like sect that insists that in the Bible salvation is for ancient Israelites only, and not for anybody today. Integral to this idea is that it is impossible for anyone to change their ethnicity and become an Israelite, including Ruth. Does Cohn Eskenazi ever say anything like this? Not that I can tell.

In the introduction, Cohn Eskenazi cites an important paper concerning ethnicity in Ruth:

"[Neil Glover] reviews three basic views about ethnic identity that anthropologists (specifically ethnologists) identify in cultures: (1) a view that unilaterally allows a person to choose their identity, in which case Ruth’s words in 1.16-17 could constitute a 'conversion'; (2) a 'constructive' view of ethnicity that supposes that biological descent is not always necessary for ethnic belonging and that constructs specific criteria for membership; and (3) the view that ethnicity is immutable and therefore excludes the possibility of changed ethnic identity, in which case Ruth could never erase her Moabite 'gene', as it were.

"According to Glover, the Book of Ruth reflects the middle position: that ethnicity is mutable.Ruth becomes a member of the Judean community by undergoing stages of assimilation into the community. She begins as a Moabite and remains so for most of the book. Her 'Moabiteness' is highlighted by the narrator (1.22; 2.2, 21) and by Boaz (4.5, 10). This epithet characterizes her long after she proclaims her commitment to Naomi, Naomi’s people, and Naomi’s God—an act that many interpret as a conversion (Ruth 1.16-17). But despite her retaining her Moabite marker, the book also charts her journey through specific stages whereby her initial pledge is gradually affirmed by others—by Boaz, by the people of Bethlehem, and finally by God. …"

While it is true that Cohn Eskenazi does not endorse Glover's opinion on Ruth's ethnicity, neither does she reject it. In fact she goes on to say:

"However we understand Ruth’s social status, her story functions as a counterpoint to the negative attitude toward Moabite and other foreign women in the biblical accounts in Ezra-Nehemiah. In its own biblical context, then, the book of Ruth exemplifies the way that a Moabite woman can marry a Judean and join the community, despite what we read in Deuteronomy 23."

This paragraph is important, because if you read the AI/IO generated paragraph on Cohn Eskenazi's work, you can easily believe that she denies that Ruth is integrated into the Israelite community, whereas in fact, she asserts over and over again that Ruth is *eventually* assimilated into the community, but it is a *process*. To that point, the following passages from the book are pertinent:

On her comment on 2.2, Cohn Eskenazi does note the highlighting of Ruth’s status as an outsider, but importantly notes that it is highlighted "at this point," leaving open the possibility that it could be erased later (which indeed it is)

Comment on 2.11 As Trible observes, "Boaz’s language envelops Ruth in the Abrahamic paradigm" which breaks with the past.

Comment on 2.23. In contrast to 1.22, the narrator emphasizes Ruth’s identity solely as she relates to Naomi

Comment on 3.16 For LaCoque, three questions at 3.16, 2.5, 3.8 illustrate that Ruth’s slippery identity is a theme in this book

Comment on 4.5 Ruth remains a Moabite in the eyes of the community

Comment on 4.10 Ruth is not regarded as an Israelite in the eyes of the community. However she is not referred to as a Moabite from this point on

Comment on 4.11 the people warmly welcome Ruth into the community. In the remainder of the narrative, Ruth is no longer identified as a Moabite.

Comment on 4.15 The women credit Ruth, not Boaz, as producing the redeemer (but) affirming the worth of a Moabite woman is an even more astonishing claim.

The Book of Ruth expands from personal fortunes of specific individuals to the larger thematic arc of biblical narrative, in which reconciliation reverses legacies of conflict and alienation (as between Israel and Moab). … Moreover, the book illustrates, through its depiction of Ruth, her actions and influence, just how one can cultivate such influences [spiritual audacity and moral grandeur] so as to bring about personal and even national transformation. (Introduction p. xv)

The proponents of a postexilic/Persian-period date [which include Cohn Eskenazi] for Ruth understand the genealogy of David as support for integrating worthy foreigners into the Jewish community. (Introduction p. xix)

This prophetic work [Isaiah 56.1-7] proclaims that God welcomes into the community of Israel those previously excluded, namely eunuchs and foreigners, when they keep the covenant, especially the Sabbath. (Introduction p. xxv)

My conclusion is that we should not trust AI overly much, particularly AI that has been preprogrammed to arrive at a certain conclusion.

[Margaret Klein · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ruth. Four short chapters. An ancient and modern text. This modern commentary, combined with two other recent commentaries helped my seven week adult study class and my confirmation class really wrestle with the text. The introduction is long, scholarly and useful. However, what really sets this apart is the use of the new JPS translation, more accessible than the old JPS and the commentary below. Eskenazi and Frymer-Kensky did an impeccable job!

[Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great commentary, with extensive end-notes.

[Joshua Turpin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes you read a book and get a lot out of it, then you return to it and discover that it’s actually just apologetics that, although using modern scholarship, nonetheless rejects it in favor of a traditional interpretation.

That said, it’s great for learning which rabbis said what and where to find that information.

[Kisha Gallagher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I treasure the JPS commentaries on the Bible. These books are pricy, but are bound well in a hard cover and written in an easy to read format. You can expect high quality and years of use. The wealth of information inside each commentary is worth the price alone.

[Aaron Carlberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Their Torah commentary is excellent...one of the best (if want to know the Jewish view of things). This one is good as well, wish it was a bit longer.