Genesis 23:7

23:7 Abraham got up and bowed down to the local people, ¹  the sons of Heth.

Genesis 33:3-7

33:3 But Jacob ²  himself went on ahead of them, and he bowed toward the ground seven times as he approached ³  his brother. 33:4 But Esau ran to meet him, embraced him, hugged his neck, and kissed him. Then they both wept. 33:5 When Esau ⁴  looked up ⁵  and saw the women and the children, he asked, “Who are these people with you?” Jacob ⁶  replied, “The children whom God has graciously given ⁷  your servant.” 33:6 The female servants came forward with their children and bowed down. ⁸  33:7 Then Leah came forward with her children and they bowed down. Finally Joseph and Rachel came forward and bowed down.

Genesis 43:26

43:26 When Joseph came home, they presented him with the gifts they had brought inside, ⁹  and they bowed down to the ground before him.

Genesis 43:28

43:28 “Your servant our father is well,” they replied. “He is still alive.” They bowed down in humility. ¹⁰ 

Genesis 44:14

44:14 So Judah and his brothers ¹¹  came back to Joseph’s house. He was still there, ¹²  and they threw themselves to the ground before him.

Ruth 2:10

2:10 Ruth ¹³  knelt before him with her forehead to the ground ¹⁴  and said to him, “Why are you so kind ¹⁵  and so attentive to me, ¹⁶  even though ¹⁷  I am a foreigner?” ¹⁸ 

Ruth 2:2

2:2 One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go ¹⁹  to the fields so I can gather ²⁰  grain behind whoever permits me to do so.” ²¹  Naomi ²²  replied, “You may go, my daughter.”

Ruth 2:15

2:15 When she got up to gather grain, Boaz told ²³  his male servants, “Let her gather grain even among ²⁴  the bundles! Don’t chase her off! ²⁵ 

[23:7]  ¹ tn Heb “to the people of the land” (also in v. 12).

[33:3]  ² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:3]  ³ tn Heb “until his drawing near unto his brother.” The construction uses the preposition with the infinitive construct to express a temporal clause.

[33:5]  ⁴ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “lifted up his eyes.”

[33:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “and he”; the referent (Jacob) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[33:5]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew verb means “to be gracious; to show favor”; here it carries the nuance “to give graciously.”

[33:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “and the female servants drew near, they and their children and they bowed down.”

[43:26]  ⁹ tn Heb “into the house.”

[43:28]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and they bowed low and they bowed down.” The use of synonyms here emphasizes the brothers’ humility.

[44:14]  ¹¹ sn Judah and his brothers. The narrative is already beginning to bring Judah to the forefront.

[44:14]  ¹² tn The disjunctive clause here provides supplemental information.

[2:10]  ¹³ tn Heb “she”; the referent (Ruth) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:10]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “she fell upon her face and bowed to the ground” (KJV, NASB similar).

[2:10]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “Why do I find favor in your eyes…?” The expression מָצַא חֵן בְּעֵינֶי (matsa’ khen bÿ’eney, “to find favor in the eyes of [someone]”) is often characterized by the following features: (1) A subordinate or servant is requesting permission for something from a superior (master, owner, king). (2) The granting of the request is not a certainty but dependent on whether or not the superior is pleased with the subordinate to do so. (3) The granting of the request by the superior is an act of kindness or benevolence; however, it sometimes reciprocates loyalty previously shown by the subordinate to the superior (e.g., Gen 30:27; 32:6; 33:8, 10, 15; 34:11; 39:4; 47:25, 29; 50:4; Num 32:5; Deut 24:1; 1 Sam 1:18; 16:22; 20:3, 29; 27:3; 2 Sam 14:22; 16:4; 1 Kgs 11:19; Esth 5:8; 7:3; BDB 336 s.v. חֵן). While Boaz had granted her request for permission to glean in his field, she is amazed at the degree of kindness he had shown – especially since she had done nothing, in her own mind, to merit such a display. However, Boaz explains that she had indeed shown kindness to him indirectly through her devotion to Naomi (v. 11).

[2:10]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “Why do I find favor in your eyes by [you] recognizing me.” The infinitive construct with prefixed לְ (lamed) here indicates manner (“by”).

[2:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “and I am a foreigner.” The disjunctive clause (note the pattern vav + subject + predicate nominative) here has a circumstantial (i.e., concessive) function (“even though”).

[2:10]  ¹⁸ sn The similarly spelled Hebrew terms נָכַר (nakhar, “to notice”) and נָכְרִי (nokhriy, “foreigner”) in this verse form a homonymic wordplay. This highlights the unexpected nature of the attentiveness and concern Boaz displayed to Ruth.

[2:2]  ¹⁹ 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.

[2:2]  ²⁰ tn Following the preceding cohortative, the cohortative with vav conjunctive indicates purpose/result.

[2:2]  ²¹ tn Heb “anyone in whose eyes I may find favor” (ASV, NIV similar). The expression אֶמְצָא־חֵן בְּעֵינָיו (’emtsa’-khen bÿ’enayv, “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.

[2:2]  ²² tn Heb “she”; the referent (Naomi) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:15]  ²³ tn Or “commanded” (so KJV, NASB, NCV).

[2:15]  ²⁴ tn Heb “even between”; NCV “even around.”

[2:15]  ²⁵ 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.