The Targum of Ruth
Translated, with Introduction, Apparatus, and Notes
By Derek Robert George Beattie
Michael Glazier Books (1994), 270 pages
ISBN-13: 978-0814654552
Very few people who enjoy reading biblical commentaries know about the Targums, the translations of the biblical books from the original Hebrew into Aramaic, the language that Jews spoke during the first millennium of the common era when these translations were made. With the exception of Targum Onkelos, which was composed for the five books of Moses, these works are not literal, but contain additional midrashic – imaginative - elaborations that the original text does not suggest. These elaborations are frequently based on rabbinic ideas, but the Targums also contain original material, sometimes even thoughts that do not reflect rabbinic law.
The following is a selection of such additions to the biblical book Ruth:
Naomi and her family felt they had to leave Judea not only because there was a famine; this was the tenth famine.
When the males in her family arrived in Moab, they became governors there.
Ruth, who married one of Naomi's sons, was no ordinary woman; she was the daughter of King Eglon of Moab.
Naomi's two sons died because they intermarried with non-Judeans.
An angel told Naomi to return to Judea.
The famine in Judea stopped because Boaz, a relative of Naomi, prayed for it to stop.
Ruth begged to join Naomi when mother-in-law returned and said she wanted to be a proselyte to Judaism. Naomi taught her about the Sabbath, that Jews must obey 613 commandments, and not worship idols. (This concept of becoming a proselyte that the Targum mentions probably did not exist until close to a millennium after the episode, around the second century BCE. Ruth in the Bible was probably only seeking citizenship.)
Since the Bible states that a Moabite cannot join the Israelites, Ruth and Boaz discuss whether this rule only applies to men, and decide that women are accepted.
Ruth says she is happy because now she knows that she will have a place in the world to come. (Contrary to the Targum, the rabbis teach that all good people of all religions will have a place in the world to come.)
Naomi advises Ruth to wash and put on perfume and jewelry, and go see Boaz during the night while he is sleeping.
The Targum assures its readers that Ruth and Boaz did not have sex that night.
This book is in a volume with The Targum of Chronicles.
Dr. Israel Drazin is the author of seventeen books, including a series of five volumes on the Aramaic translation of the Hebrew Bible, which he co-authors with Dr. Stanley M. Wagner, and a series of four books on the twelfth century philosopher Moses Maimonides. The Orthodox Union (OU) and Yeshiva University publish weekly chapters of Drazin and Wagner's book Let's Study Onkelos on www.ou.org/torah and on www.yutorah@yutorah.org. His website is http://booksnthoughts.com.
The views expressed in this review/article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Jewish Eye.
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