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Did Ruth have sex with Boaz?

Claim:

After Boaz lay down, the text says that Ruth “uncovered his feet and lay down” with him. Some critics argue that this is a way of saying that Ruth had sex with Boaz.

Response:

CLAIM: After Boaz lay down, the text says that Ruth “uncovered his feet and lay down” with him. Some critics argue that this is a way of saying that Ruth had sex with Boaz.

RESPONSE: The terms used in verse 4 can have sexual connotations. Block writes, “Each of the three Hebrew words that make up this sentence is capable of more than one meaning, and each is capable of bearing an overtly sexual meaning.”[1] This is most likely because Ruth was showing that she wanted to be married.

However, this is different from saying that the text teaches or implies that Boaz and Ruth had sexual intercourse:

(3:4) “Uncover…” (gālâ) Hubbard writes, “The verb glh in the Piel (‘to uncover, make visible’ something hidden) occurs primarily in expressions describing varieties of illicit sexual relations.”[2] Block[3] states that this can be used as a euphemism for “uncovering someone’s nakedness” or “uncovering someone’s skirt” (e.g. Lev. 18:6-19; 20:11, 17-21; Ezek. 22:10; Deut. 22:30; 27:20). However, in his footnote, Hubbard also notes that “uncovering” is usually explicitly followed by the term “nakedness” (Lev. 18-20) or some other referent. Here, she merely uncovers his feet.

(3:4) “His feet…” (margĕlôt) Hubbard,[4] Block,[5] and Cundall[6] note that the Hebrew term (margĕlôt) is a euphemism for sexual organs. However, the passages that they cite fail to make the connection (Ex. 4:25; Judg. 3:24; 1 Sam. 24:4). Moreover, the only other time this Hebrew term (margĕlôt) used is in Daniel 10:16, where it simply means “feet” or perhaps “legs.”[7] Despite his speculations, Hubbard concludes, “In any case, ‘place of feet’ meant the place where his feet lay.”[8] Block states that the use of this word “actually draws the reader’s attention away from the genitals and diffuses it over the limbs as a whole.”[9] Huey,[10] Cundall,[11] and Hubbard[12] believe that Ruth uncovered Boaz’ feet to make them cold, so that he would wake up naturally.

(3:4) “And lie down…” (šākab) This can also have sexual connotations only when paired with the Hebrew terms “with” (ʾeṯ and ʿim) as in many passages (Gen. 19:32-35; Exod. 22:15; Lev. 18:22; Deut. 22:22; 1 Sam. 2:22; 2 Sam. 11:4).[13] Furthermore, the text says that she “lay at his feet until morning” (vv.13-14). The most natural reading of this text is that she slept there until morning—not that she slept with Boaz until morning. Boaz kept Ruth with him until morning, because of the monstrous men who roamed Israel at this time. That is, he wanted to ensure her protection.[14]

(3:9) “Spread your covering over your maid…” When Ruth asks him to spread his covering over her (v.9), this was a Hebrew idiom for marriage (Ezek. 16:8; Deut. 22:30; 27:20; Mal. 2:16).[15] Ruth probably came at night so Boaz wouldn’t feel pressured into making a public decision to marry her. For instance, consider how pressured a woman feels, when a man proposes to her in front of 30,000 people at a baseball game broadcast on the JumboTron! It’s difficult to say, “No thanks,” when you’re in that position. In the same way, Ruth didn’t want to put Boaz in a difficult situation.

Further observations can be made: First, Boaz was asleep this entire time, and when he awoke, the text says he was “startled” (v.8). If Boaz had just engaged in sex with Ruth, he obviously wouldn’t have been startled.

Second, Boaz also refers to Ruth as a “woman of excellence” (Ruth 3:11). This is the same phrase used for a godly wife (Prov. 31:10). He could hardly say these words after just engaging in fornication.

Third, Boaz was careful to keep and follow the kinsman-redeemer laws—even though he clearly loved Ruth and wanted to marry her (vv.12-13). This shows his integrity—not his sexual permissiveness.

Fourth, fornicating with a single man is thought to be a way to secure a husband in today’s culture. But in ancient Israel, this would be the worst way to get married. Israelite men didn’t view premarital sex as a way to find a good spouse. Thus, Block writes, “Far from securing Ruth’s welfare, this poor Moabite woman would have returned home broken in body and bruised in spirit.”[16]

Conclusion

To be sure, the language in this section is sexually suggestive, and we see no problem in seeing this as descriptive—not prescriptive—because it takes place in the days of the Judges. That being the case, in our view, the biblical data do not lead to the conclusion that Ruth engaged in a sexual act with Boaz.


[1] Daniel Isaac Block, Judges, Ruth, vol. 6, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 685.

[2] Robert L. Hubbard, The Book of Ruth, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1988), 203.

[3] Daniel Isaac Block, Judges, Ruth, vol. 6, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 685.

[4] Robert L. Hubbard, The Book of Ruth, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1988), 203.

[5] Daniel Isaac Block, Judges, Ruth, vol. 6, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 685.

[6] Arthur E. Cundall and Leon Morris, Judges and Ruth: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 7, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1968), 277.

[7] Robert L. Hubbard, The Book of Ruth, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1988), 203.

[8] Robert L. Hubbard, The Book of Ruth, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1988), 203.

[9] Daniel Isaac Block, Judges, Ruth, vol. 6, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 686.

[10] F. B. Huey Jr., “Ruth,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992), 537.

[11] Arthur E. Cundall and Leon Morris, Judges and Ruth: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 7, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1968), 278.

[12] Robert L. Hubbard, The Book of Ruth, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1988), 204.

[13] See footnote. Robert L. Hubbard, The Book of Ruth, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1988), 204.

[14] Boaz tells Ruth to “remain the night” (v.13). In modern terms, it is morally questionable to have a woman spend the night with a single man. However, in this setting, Boaz was looking out for Ruth, because the alternative (i.e. walking home at night alone) would have been worse. Remember, this was during the time of the Judges (Ruth 1:1), when women were often caught and raped (Ruth 2:21-23; Judg. 19). So Boaz was doing the morally honorable thing to protect her overnight.

[15] Walter C. Kaiser, More Hard Sayings of the Old Testament (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1992), 139.

[16] Daniel Isaac Block, Judges, Ruth, vol. 6, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999), 687.

About The Author
James Rochford

James earned a Master’s degree in Theological Studies from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, graduating magna cum laude. He is the founder of Evidence Unseen and the author of several books. James enjoys serving as a pastor at Dwell Community Church in Columbus, Ohio, where he lives with his wife and their two sons.