Ruth 1:21 (YLT)

Passage

I went out full, and empty hath Jehovah brought me back, why do ye call me Naomi, and Jehovah hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath done evil to me?'

Nearby Context

Ruth 1:19 and they go both of them till their coming in to Beth-Lehem; and it cometh to pass at their coming in to Beth-Lehem, that all the city is moved at them, and they say, `Is this Naomi?'

Ruth 1:20 And she saith unto them, `Call me not Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly to me,

Ruth 1:21 I went out full, and empty hath Jehovah brought me back, why do ye call me Naomi, and Jehovah hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath done evil to me?'

Ruth 1:22 And Naomi turneth back, and Ruth the Moabitess her daughter-in-law with her, who hath turned back from the fields of Moab, and they have come in to Beth-Lehem at the commencement of barley-harvest.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "went", "full", "empty", "hath", "jehovah", "brought", "back", and "call". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "went" and "full", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "And she saith unto them Call me..." into verse 22's "And Naomi turneth back and Ruth the...", so "went" and "full" 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 "went" and "full" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.