Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have an husband also to night, and should also bear sons;

RUTH 1:12KJV
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Ruth 1:12 (KJV)

What does Ruth 1:12 mean?

Ruth 1:12 shows Naomi telling her daughters-in-law to return to their own homes because she is too old to remarry and have more sons for them to marry. Naomi is emphasizing that even if she could hope for a new husband and children, it would not help their situation.

In this verse, Naomi is speaking to Ruth and Orpah after the death of their husbands, her sons. Naomi is urging them to go back to their families in Moab, explaining that she cannot provide new husbands for them, which would have been a way to secure their future in that culture. Her words highlight her sense of hopelessness and the practical difficulties they all face.

The Hebrew behind Ruth 1:12

  • The word "again" (שׁוּב, shuv) means to turn back or return, stressing Naomi’s plea for her daughters-in-law to go back to their own lives rather than follow her.
  • The word "hope" (תִּקְוָה, tiqvah) means expectation or hope, showing that Naomi sees no realistic future for herself or for them if they stay with her.
  • The word "old" (זָקֵן, zaqen) means aged or too advanced in years, underlining Naomi’s belief that she is beyond the age of starting over with a new family.

Why Ruth 1:12 matters

  • This verse helps clear up any idea that Naomi is being selfish; instead, she is thinking about the practical needs and future of Ruth and Orpah.
  • Ruth 1:12 makes Naomi’s hopelessness and the bleakness of her situation very clear, setting the stage for the loyalty and faith Ruth will soon show.
  • The verse connects to the wider themes of family, loyalty, and survival in the book of Ruth, showing the real challenges faced by widows in ancient Israel.

Where else these words appear

“old” Hebrew H2204 · used in 26 verses

  • Genesis 18:12 Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?
  • Joshua 23:2 And Joshua called for all Israel, and for their elders, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and said unto them, I am old and stricken in age:
  • 1 Kings 1:1 Now king David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he gat no heat.

“hope” Hebrew H8615 · used in 33 verses

  • Joshua 2:18 Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by: and thou shalt bring thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee.
  • Job 14:19 The waters wear the stones: thou washest away the things which grow out of the dust of the earth; and thou destroyest the hope of man.
  • Proverbs 23:18 For surely there is an end; and thine expectation shall not be cut off.

“have” Hebrew H3426 · used in 129 verses

  • Genesis 18:24 Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city: wilt thou also destroy and not spare the place for the fifty righteous that are therein?
  • 1 Samuel 23:23 See therefore, and take knowledge of all the lurking places where he hideth himself, and come ye again to me with the certainty, and I will go with you: and it shall come to pass, if he be in the land, that I will search him out throughout all the thousands of Judah.
  • Psalms 135:17 They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there any breath in their mouths.