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19 So they continued on until they reached Bethlehem.

Naomi and Ruth Arrive in Bethlehem

Now when the two of them arrived in Bethlehem, the entire town got excited at the news of their arrival[a] and they asked one another, “Can this be Naomi?”

20 But Naomi replied, “Don’t call me ‘Naomi’![b] Call me ‘Mara’![c] That’s because the Almighty has dealt bitterly with me. 21 I left here full, but the Lord brought me back empty. So why call me ‘Naomi’? After all, the Lord is against me, and the Almighty has broken[d] me.”

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Footnotes

  1. Ruth 1:19 Lit. at them
  2. Ruth 1:20 I.e. pleasant
  3. Ruth 1:20 I.e. bitter
  4. Ruth 1:21 Or has done evil toward

19 So the two women went on until they came to Bethlehem.(A) When they arrived in Bethlehem, the whole town was stirred(B) because of them, and the women exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?”

20 “Don’t call me Naomi,[a]” she told them. “Call me Mara,[b] because the Almighty[c](C) has made my life very bitter.(D) 21 I went away full, but the Lord has brought me back empty.(E) Why call me Naomi? The Lord has afflicted[d] me;(F) the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.”

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Footnotes

  1. Ruth 1:20 Naomi means pleasant.
  2. Ruth 1:20 Mara means bitter.
  3. Ruth 1:20 Hebrew Shaddai; also in verse 21
  4. Ruth 1:21 Or has testified against