Ruth 1:13 (LSB)

Passage

would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is more bitter for me than for you, for the hand of Yahweh has gone forth against me.”

Nearby Context

Ruth 1:11 But Naomi said, “Return, my daughters. Why should you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?

Ruth 1:12 Return, my daughters! Go, for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope, if I should even have a husband tonight and also bear sons,

Ruth 1:13 would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is more bitter for me than for you, for the hand of Yahweh has gone forth against me.”

Ruth 1:14 And they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

Ruth 1:15 Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has returned to her people and her gods; return after your sister-in-law.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "therefore", "wait", "until", "grown", "refrain", "marrying", and "daughters". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "therefore" and "wait", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "Return my daughters Go for I am..." into verse 14's "And they lifted up their voices and...", so "therefore" and "wait" belong inside that flow. In Ruth context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "therefore" and "wait" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.