Ruth 4:18 (WEB)

Passage

Now this is the history of the generations of Perez: Perez became the father of Hezron,

Nearby Context

Ruth 4:16 Naomi took the child, and laid him in her bosom, and became nurse to it.

Ruth 4:17 The women, her neighbors, gave him a name, saying, “A son is born to Naomi”. They named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

Ruth 4:18 Now this is the history of the generations of Perez: Perez became the father of Hezron,

Ruth 4:19 and Hezron became the father of Ram, and Ram became the father of Amminadab,

Ruth 4:20 and Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon became the father of Salmon,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "history", "generations", "perez", "became", "father", and "hezron". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "history" and "generations", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "The women her neighbors gave him a..." into verse 19's "and Hezron became the father of Ram...", so "history" and "generations" 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 "history" and "generations" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.