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19 So the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem. And when they came[a] to Bethlehem, all of the town was stirred because of them. And they said, “Is this Naomi?” 20 And she said to them, “You should not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for Shaddai[b] has caused me to be very bitter.[c] 21 I went away full, but Yahweh brought me back empty-handed! Why call me Naomi when Yahweh has testified against me[d] and Shaddai[e] has brought calamity upon me?” 22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabite her daughter-in-law with her, returning from the countryside of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of the harvest of barley.

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Footnotes

  1. Ruth 1:19 Literally “And it happened at the moment of coming”
  2. Ruth 1:20 Often translated “the Almighty”
  3. Ruth 1:20 Literally “caused very bitterness to me”
  4. Ruth 1:21 Literally “and Yahweh answered against me”
  5. Ruth 1:21 Often translated “the Almighty”

19 So both of them went along until they arrived at Bethlehem. When they arrived at Bethlehem, the whole town was excited on account of them, and the women of the town asked, “Can this be Naomi?”

20 She replied to them, “Don’t call me Naomi,[a] but call me Mara,[b] for the Almighty[c] has made me very bitter. 21 I went away full, but the Lord has returned me empty. Why would you call me Naomi, when the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has deemed me guilty?”

22 Thus Naomi returned. And Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, returned with her from the territory of Moab. They arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.

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Footnotes

  1. Ruth 1:20 Naomi means pleasant.
  2. Ruth 1:20 Mara means bitter.
  3. Ruth 1:20 Heb El Shaddai or God of the Mountain