Ruth 3 · Verse 9

Ruth 3:9

And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.
Ruth 3:9, King James Version

Ruth 3:9 in other translations

BSB“Who are you?” he asked. “I am your servant Ruth,” she replied. “Spread the corner of your garment over me, for you are a kinsman-redeemer.”
WEBHe said, “Who are you?” She answered, “I am Ruth your servant. Therefore spread the corner of your garment over your servant; for you are a near kinsman.”
ASVAnd he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thy handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.
YLTAnd he saith, ‘Who art thou?' and she saith, ‘I am Ruth thy handmaid, and thou hast spread thy skirt over thy handmaid, for thou art a redeemer.'
DARBYAnd he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth, thy handmaid: spread thy skirt over thy handmaid; for thou hast the right of redemption.
BBEAnd he said, Who are you? And she answering said, I am your servant Ruth: take your servant as wife, for you are a near relation.
WebsterAnd he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thy handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.

What does Ruth 3:9 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
9. I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman--She had already drawn part of the mantle over her; and she asked him now to do it, that the act might become his own. To spread a skirt over one is, in the East, a symbolical action denoting protection. To this day in many parts of the East, to say of anyone that he put his skirt over a woman, is synonymous with saying that he married her; and at all the marriages of the modern Jews and Hindus, one part of the ceremony is for the bridegroom to put a silken or cotton cloak around his bride.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 9 Spread therefore thy skirt over thine hand maid - Hebrew, Spread thy wing. The wing is the emblem of protection, and is a metaphor taken from the young of fowls, which run under the wings of their mothers, that they may be saved from birds of prey. The meaning here is, Take me to thee for wife; and so the Targum has translated it, Let thy name be called on thy handmaid to take me for wife, because thou art the redeemer; i.e., thou art the גאל goel, the kinsman, to whom the right of redemption belongs. See on Rut 2:20 (note). Even to the present day, when a Jew marries a woman, he throws the skirt or end of his talith over her, to signify that he has taken her under his protection.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Ruth 3:6-13

What in one age or nation would be improper, is not always so in another age or another nation. Being a judge of Israel, Boaz would tell Ruth what she should do; also whether he had the right of redemption, and what methods must be taken, and what rites used, in order to accomplishing her marriage with him or another person. The conduct of Boaz calls for the highest praise. He attempted not to take advantage of…

Read the full comment on Ruth 3:6-13 →

Ruth 3:9 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיֹּ֖אמֶרvai.Yo.merand he saidH559
מִי\־mi-who?H4310
אָ֑תּ'At[are] youH859
וַתֹּ֗אמֶרva.To.merand she saidH559
אָנֹכִי֙'a.no.KhiIH595
ר֣וּתrut[am] RuthH7327
אֲמָתֶ֔ךָ'a.ma.Te.khamaidservant yourH519
וּפָרַשְׂתָּ֤u.fa.ras.Taand you will spread outH6566
כְנָפֶ֙ךָ֙khe.na.Fe.khaskirt yourH3671
עַל\־'al-overH5921
אֲמָ֣תְךָ֔'a.Ma.te.khamaidservant yourH519
כִּ֥יkiforH3588
גֹאֵ֖לgo.'El[are] a kinsman-redeemerH1350
אָֽתָּה\׃'A.tahyouH859

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Ruth 3:9

  • Ezekiel 16:8

    Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God, and thou becamest mine.

  • Ruth 2:20

    And Naomi said unto her daughter in law, Blessed be he of the Lord, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man is near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen.

  • Ruth 3:12

    And now it is true that I am thy near kinsman: howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I.

  • Ruth 2:10-13

    Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him, Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger? And Boaz answered and said unto her, It hath fully been shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law since the death of thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore. The Lord recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust. Then she said, Let me find favour in thy sight, my lord; for that thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken friendly unto thine handmaid, though I be not like unto one of thine handmaidens.

  • Luke 14:11

    For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

  • 1 Samuel 25:41

    And she arose, and bowed herself on her face to the earth, and said, Behold, let thine handmaid be a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Ruth.
2:10-13; 1Sa 25:41; Lu 14:11
spread therefore.Hebrew "spread thy wing;" the emblem of protection; and a metaphor taken from the young of fowls, which run under the wings of their mother from birds of prey. Even to the present day, when a Jew marries a woman, he throws the skirts of his {talith} over her, to signify that he has taken her under his protection.
Eze 16:8
a near kinsman. or, one that has right to redeem.
12; 2:20

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Ruth 3:8

    And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet.

  • Ruth 3:9

    And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.

  • Ruth 3:10

    And he said, Blessed be thou of the Lord, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich.

Read all of Ruth 3

Ruth 3:9 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Entonces él dijo: ¿Quién eres? Y ella respondió: Yo soy Ruth tu sierva: extiende el borde de tu capa sobre tu sierva, por cuanto eres pariente cercano.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et il dit: Qui es-tu? Et elle dit: Je suis Ruth, ta servante; et étends ton aile sur ta servante, car tu as le droit de rachat.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und er sprach: Wer bist du? Und sie sprach: Ich bin Ruth, deine Magd; so breite deine Flügel aus über deine Magd, denn du bist ein Blutsverwandter.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		et ait illi: Quæ es? Illaque respondit: Ego sum Ruth ancilla tua: expande pallium tuum super famulam tuam, quia propinquus es.