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Midrash Rabbah on
Ruth Chapter 4 verses 13-16 (Naomi gets a son)
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יג וַיִּקַּח בֹּעַז אֶת-רוּת וַתְּהִי-לוֹ לְאִשָּׁה, וַיָּבֹא אֵלֶיהָ; וַיִּתֵּן יְהוָה לָהּ הֵרָיוֹן, וַתֵּלֶד בֵּן. 13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife; and he went in unto her, and the LORD gave her conception, and she bore a son.
יד וַתֹּאמַרְנָה הַנָּשִׁים, אֶל-נָעֳמִי, בָּרוּךְ יְהוָה, אֲשֶׁר לֹא הִשְׁבִּית לָךְ גֹּאֵל הַיּוֹם; וְיִקָּרֵא שְׁמוֹ, בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל. 14 And the women said unto Naomi: 'Blessed be the LORD, who hath not left thee this day without a near kinsman, and let his name be famous in Israel.
טו וְהָיָה לָךְ לְמֵשִׁיב נֶפֶשׁ, וּלְכַלְכֵּל אֶת-שֵׂיבָתֵךְ: כִּי כַלָּתֵךְ אֲשֶׁר-אֲהֵבַתֶךְ, יְלָדַתּוּ, אֲשֶׁר-הִיא טוֹבָה לָךְ, מִשִּׁבְעָה בָּנִים. 15 And he shall be unto thee a restorer of life, and a nourisher of thine old age; for thy daughter-in-law, who loveth thee, who is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him.'
טז וַתִּקַּח נָעֳמִי אֶת-הַיֶּלֶד וַתְּשִׁתֵהוּ בְחֵיקָהּ, וַתְּהִי-לוֹ לְאֹמֶנֶת. 16 And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.
יז וַתִּקְרֶאנָה לוֹ הַשְּׁכֵנוֹת שֵׁם לֵאמֹר, יֻלַּד-בֵּן לְנָעֳמִי; וַתִּקְרֶאנָה שְׁמוֹ עוֹבֵד, הוּא אֲבִי-יִשַׁי אֲבִי דָוִד. {פ} 17 And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying: 'There is a son born to Naomi'; and they called his name Obed; he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Midrash Rabba Ruth
"These were the potters, and those that dwelt among plants and hedges: there they dwelt with the king for his work." (I Chronicles 4:23)
’These were the potters’ refers to Ruth and Boaz.
’And those that dwelt among plantations’ refers to Solomon who was like a plant in his kingship.
’And hedges’: these are the Sanhedrin who with him made a hedge round the words of the Torah.
'There they dwelt, with the king for his work.’ On the strength of this verse they said that Ruth the Moabite did not die until she saw her descendant King Solomon sitting and judging the case of the harlots. That is the meaning of the verse, "And caused a throne to be set for the king's mother", i.e. Bath Sheba, "And she sat at his right hand" (I Kings II, 19), referring to Ruth the Moabite.
I think that this Midrash is suggesting a double "tikun" (correction) :
(1) Solomon's wise judgement is seen as a correction for the situation portrayed at the start of the book of Ruth: "Vayehi bimei shefot HaShoftim" which is understood as meaning "Alas, it was in the days when the Judges themselves were judged".
(2) Naomi "takes" Ruth's baby in place of her own dead sons.
In one way he was a surrogate son for Naomi (a bit like the matriarchs' hand-maids bear sons for them). Perhaps Ruth consented and was happy to share her baby - we don't know, Ruth's view is not recorded in the Bible.
But in another reading of it, there was an injustice done when Ruth's son was born and the neighbours said "Naomi has born a son" (and Naomi breast fed him).
That was not lost on the Rabbis. In this Midrash, Ruth lived until she was able to see her descendant, King Solomon, do justice between the two women who both claimed the same baby. One took the baby of the other and claimed it as her own, in place of her own baby who had died. Solomon restores the baby to his real mother. There is an implication here that this was a sort of "righting" of that terrible wrong done to Ruth.
Ruth Chapter 4 verses 13-16 (Naomi gets a son)
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יג וַיִּקַּח בֹּעַז אֶת-רוּת וַתְּהִי-לוֹ לְאִשָּׁה, וַיָּבֹא אֵלֶיהָ; וַיִּתֵּן יְהוָה לָהּ הֵרָיוֹן, וַתֵּלֶד בֵּן. 13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife; and he went in unto her, and the LORD gave her conception, and she bore a son.
יד וַתֹּאמַרְנָה הַנָּשִׁים, אֶל-נָעֳמִי, בָּרוּךְ יְהוָה, אֲשֶׁר לֹא הִשְׁבִּית לָךְ גֹּאֵל הַיּוֹם; וְיִקָּרֵא שְׁמוֹ, בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל. 14 And the women said unto Naomi: 'Blessed be the LORD, who hath not left thee this day without a near kinsman, and let his name be famous in Israel.
טו וְהָיָה לָךְ לְמֵשִׁיב נֶפֶשׁ, וּלְכַלְכֵּל אֶת-שֵׂיבָתֵךְ: כִּי כַלָּתֵךְ אֲשֶׁר-אֲהֵבַתֶךְ, יְלָדַתּוּ, אֲשֶׁר-הִיא טוֹבָה לָךְ, מִשִּׁבְעָה בָּנִים. 15 And he shall be unto thee a restorer of life, and a nourisher of thine old age; for thy daughter-in-law, who loveth thee, who is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him.'
טז וַתִּקַּח נָעֳמִי אֶת-הַיֶּלֶד וַתְּשִׁתֵהוּ בְחֵיקָהּ, וַתְּהִי-לוֹ לְאֹמֶנֶת. 16 And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.
יז וַתִּקְרֶאנָה לוֹ הַשְּׁכֵנוֹת שֵׁם לֵאמֹר, יֻלַּד-בֵּן לְנָעֳמִי; וַתִּקְרֶאנָה שְׁמוֹ עוֹבֵד, הוּא אֲבִי-יִשַׁי אֲבִי דָוִד. {פ} 17 And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying: 'There is a son born to Naomi'; and they called his name Obed; he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Midrash Rabba Ruth
"These were the potters, and those that dwelt among plants and hedges: there they dwelt with the king for his work." (I Chronicles 4:23)
’These were the potters’ refers to Ruth and Boaz.
’And those that dwelt among plantations’ refers to Solomon who was like a plant in his kingship.
’And hedges’: these are the Sanhedrin who with him made a hedge round the words of the Torah.
'There they dwelt, with the king for his work.’ On the strength of this verse they said that Ruth the Moabite did not die until she saw her descendant King Solomon sitting and judging the case of the harlots. That is the meaning of the verse, "And caused a throne to be set for the king's mother", i.e. Bath Sheba, "And she sat at his right hand" (I Kings II, 19), referring to Ruth the Moabite.
I think that this Midrash is suggesting a double "tikun" (correction) :
(1) Solomon's wise judgement is seen as a correction for the situation portrayed at the start of the book of Ruth: "Vayehi bimei shefot HaShoftim" which is understood as meaning "Alas, it was in the days when the Judges themselves were judged".
(2) Naomi "takes" Ruth's baby in place of her own dead sons.
In one way he was a surrogate son for Naomi (a bit like the matriarchs' hand-maids bear sons for them). Perhaps Ruth consented and was happy to share her baby - we don't know, Ruth's view is not recorded in the Bible.
But in another reading of it, there was an injustice done when Ruth's son was born and the neighbours said "Naomi has born a son" (and Naomi breast fed him).
That was not lost on the Rabbis. In this Midrash, Ruth lived until she was able to see her descendant, King Solomon, do justice between the two women who both claimed the same baby. One took the baby of the other and claimed it as her own, in place of her own baby who had died. Solomon restores the baby to his real mother. There is an implication here that this was a sort of "righting" of that terrible wrong done to Ruth.
