Ruth 2:15-16

2:15 When she got up to gather grain, Boaz told ¹  his male servants, “Let her gather grain even among ²  the bundles! Don’t chase her off! ³  2:16 Make sure you pull out ⁴  ears of grain for her and drop them so she can gather them up. Don’t tell her not to!” ⁵ 

¹ tn Or “commanded” (so KJV, NASB, NCV).

² tn Heb “even between”; NCV “even around.”

³ tn Heb “do not humiliate her”; cf. KJV “reproach her not”; NASB “do not insult her”; NIV “don’t embarrass her.” This probably refers to a verbal rebuke which would single her out and embarrass her (see v. 16). See R. L. Hubbard, Jr., Ruth (NICOT), 176-77, and F. W. Bush, Ruth, Esther (WBC), 126.

⁴ tn The infinitive absolute precedes the finite verb for emphasis. Here שָׁלַל (shalal, “pull out”) is a homonym of the more common Hebrew verb meaning “to plunder.” An Arabic cognate is used of drawing a sword out of a scabbard (see BDB 1021 s.v.).

⁵ tn Heb “do not rebuke her” (so NASB, NRSV); CEV “don’t speak harshly to her”; NLT “don’t give her a hard time.”