Rut 1:20

1:20 But she replied ¹  to them, ²  “Don’t call me ‘Naomi’! ³  Call me ‘Mara’ ⁴  because the Sovereign One ⁵  has treated me very harshly. ⁶ 

Rut 2:12

2:12 May the Lord reward your efforts! ⁷  May your acts of kindness be repaid fully ⁸  by the Lord God of Israel, from whom you have sought protection!” ⁹ 

Rut 4:12

4:12 May your family ¹⁰  become like the family of Perez ¹¹  – whom Tamar bore to Judah – through the descendants ¹²  the Lord gives you by this young woman.”

[1:20]  ¹ tn Heb “said.” For stylistic reasons the present translation employs “replied” here.

[1:20]  ² tn The third person feminine plural form of the pronominal suffix indicates the women of the village (see v. 19) are the addressees.

[1:20]  ³ sn The name Naomi means “pleasant.”

[1:20]  ⁴ sn The name Mara means “bitter.”

[1:20]  ⁵ tn Heb “Shaddai”; traditionally “the Almighty.” The etymology and meaning of this divine name is uncertain. It may be derived from: (1) שָׁדַד (shadad, “to be strong”), cognate to Arabic sdd, meaning “The Strong One” or “Almighty”; (2) שָׁדָה (shadah, “mountain”), cognate to Akkadian shadu, meaning “The Mountain Dweller” or “God of the Mountains”; (3) שָׁדַד (shadad, “to devastate”) and שַׁד (shad, “destroyer”), Akkadian Shedum, meaning “The Destroyer” or “The Malevolent One”; or (4) שֶׁ (she, “who”) plus דִּי (diy, “sufficient”), meaning “The One Who is Sufficient” or “All-Sufficient One” (HALOT 1420-22 s.v. שַׁדַּי, שַׁדָּי). In terms of use, Shaddai (or El Shaddai) is presented as the sovereign king/judge of the world who grants life/blesses and kills/judges. In Genesis he blesses the patriarchs with fertility and promises numerous descendants. Outside Genesis he blesses/protects and also takes away life/happiness. In light of Naomi’s emphasis on God’s sovereign, malevolent deprivation of her family, one can understand her use of this name for God. For discussion of this divine name, see T. N. D. Mettinger, In Search of God, 69-72.

[1:20]  ⁶ tn Or “caused me to be very bitter”; NAB “has made it very bitter for me.”

[2:12]  ⁷ tn Heb “repay your work”; KJV, ASV “recompense thy work.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive of prayer (note the jussive form in the next clause).

[2:12]  ⁸ tn Heb “may your wages be complete”; NCV “May your wages be paid in full.” The prefixed verbal form is a distinct jussive form, indicating that this is a prayer for blessing.

[2:12]  ⁹ tn Heb “under whose wings you have sought shelter”; NIV, NLT “have come to take refuge.”

[4:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “your house” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[4:12]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, from the offspring whom the Lord gives to you from this young woman.”

[4:12]  sn Perez is an appropriate comparison here, because (1) he was an ancestor of Boaz, (2) he was born to Tamar by a surrogate father (Judah) after the death of her husband, and (3) he had an unbroken line of male descendants extending over several generations (see vv. 18-22).

[4:12]  ¹² tn Heb “from the seed” (KJV, ASV both similar); NASB, NIV “through the offspring”; NRSV “through the children.”