Important Genealogy in Book of Ruth



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Zvi Ron received semikha from the Israeli Rabbanut and his Ph.D. in Jewish Theology from Sper-

tus University. He is an educator living in Neve Daniel, Israel and the author of Sefer Katan ve-

Gadol (Rossi Publications: 2006) about the large and small letters in Tanakh. He is the Deputy

Editor of Jewish Bible Quarterly.

THE GENEALOGICAL LIST IN THE BOOK OF RUTH:

A SYMBOLIC APPROACH

ZVI RON

The Book of Ruth concludes with a genealogical list tracing the ancestry of

King David all the way from Perez son of Judah.

Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez begot Hezron; and He-

zron begot Ram, and Ram begot Amminadab; and Amminadab begot

Nahshon, and Nahshon begot Salma; and Salmon begot Boaz, and

Boaz begot Obed; and Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David.

(Ruth 4:18-22).

This genealogical list is constructed in a way that indicates a particular

symbolism. In this article, we will note the symbols found in the list and de-

termine at what point the list shifts from a historic record to a symbolic one.

Additionally, we will see that the symbolic approach to this list solves a ma-

jor chronological difficulty.

There are ten people listed in this genealogy, paralleling other such lists in

Genesis. In Genesis 5, we have a genealogical list of the ten generations from

Adam to Noah. Genesis 11:10-26 contains another genealogical list of ten

generations, from Shem to Abraham. The first major era is from the Creation

to the Flood. The next list is found after the description of the nations des-

cended from Noah (Gen. 10) and the Tower of Babel narrative (11:1-9),

when the world is divided into many languages. These two sections indicate

that the world is now divided into many different groups. The genealogical

list in Genesis 11 covers the period from the Flood until the birth of Abra-

ham, patriarch of the Israelite people, the group on which the Bible will focus

from this chapter onward. A list of ten generations is used to indicate a transi-

tion from one major era to another. These ten-generation epochs were unders-

tood to be significant by the rabbis as well.

1

Note also that if we follow the genealogy from Adam through his descen-

dants, Noah is the tenth in line, Abraham the twentieth, and Boaz the thir-

tieth.

2

The list of ancestors in Ruth was written as a ten-generation list to

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evoke these earlier lists, and also to indicate that here a new epoch was be-

ginning; the epoch of the Davidic monarchy. Just as Noah began the post-

Flood world and Abraham began the Israelite people in a new world divided

into nations, David began the dynasty that will ultimately lead to messianic

times under the Messiah son of David.

The fact that David occupies the tenth position in this list is noted in rab-

binic literature as being significant. For example, Hayyim Yosef David Azu-

lai (the Hida) explains that the reason King David's name is written with an

extra letter "yud" in Books of I and II Chronicles [דיוד] is to indicate that he is

tenth in the genealogical list found in Ruth.

3

Others ascribe mystical impor-

tance to the fact that David is the tenth from Perez.

4

In this list the seventh person is Boaz, the hero of the Book of Ruth. In Ge-

nesis 5, the seventh person in the list is the saintly Enoch, who walked with

God (Gen. 5:24). Seven is always a significant number in the Bible; the se-

venth person on the list would draw special attention. The figures who occu-

py the seventh position and its multiples from Adam onward and on all have

either biblical or rabbinic significance; Enoch is the seventh, Eber the four-

teenth,

5

Isaac the twenty-first, and Nahshon the twenty-eighth.

6

Even if the

Bible itself did not always indicate that the seventh descendants were special,

the Rabbis did feel this way and noted in the Midrash what was so significant

about them. Note also that in I Chronicles 2:15 David himself is listed as the

seventh son of Jesse.

7,8

Even the term used to introduce this genealogical list, "generations [תודלות

–toldot]," is only found in the Torah, and nowhere else in the Prophets or

Writings. In the Torah, this term is found eleven times in Genesis and once in

Numbers.

9

Using this particular word in Ruth hints that the list should be

viewed as part of the Genesis family of genealogical lists. Furthermore, the

word toldot itself is only written using the letter "vav" at the end (תודלות as

opposed to being written

)

תדלות in two places in Tanakh, here in Ruth 4:18

and in Genesis 2:4, the prelude to the sin of Adam. The Midrash comments

that this is to hint that the six curses that came to the world as a result of the

sin of Adam will be undone with the coming of the Messiah.

10

A similar

theme is found in Exodus Rabbah, 30:3, which connects Ruth to Genesis 2:4

by explaining that the curse of mortality stemming from the sin of Adam will

be undone with the coming of the Messiah. The Rabbis understood that the

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GENEALOGICAL LIST IN THE BOOK OF RUTH

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87

Ruth list was written in a way that indicates that it represents the culmination

of the cosmic saga of Genesis, the coming of the Messiah.

Considering that one of the major reasons given for the writing of the Book

of Ruth is to trace the lineage of King David,

11

it makes sense that the genea-

logical list was written using symbols that would indicate that Boaz and Da-

vid are figures of great significance.

THE CHRONOLOGICAL PROBLEM

If we understand that this genealogical list was intended as a symbolic re-

presentation, the chronological problem in this passage can be resolved. This

well- known problem is spelled out by Abraham Ibn Ezra in his commentary

to Ruth 4:17. He begins by explaining that we know Nahshon was the leader

of the tribe of Judah at the time of the Exodus from Egypt (Num. 1:7), and

since that entire generation died in the wilderness, only his son Salma would

have been the first in the lineage to enter Israel. Even though only those over

the age of twenty at the time of the report of the spies died in the wilderness,

it is reasonable to assume that Nahshon was in fact over twenty at that time,

since he was already the leader of the tribe of Judah. In any event we are not

told that he entered Israel. This concurs with Seder Olam Chapter 12: "Nah-

shon son of Amminadab died in the second year after the Exodus. Salmon

was of those who entered the Land."

Ibn Ezra continues the calculation by stating that in I Kings 6:1 we are told:

In the four hundred and eightieth year after the Children of Israel's exodus

from the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in

the month of Ziv which is the second month, he built the Temple to God.

Since the Israelites wandered for 40 years before entering the Land of Israel,

we are left with 440 years from entering Israel until the Temple. If we then

subtract the 70 years of King David's life and the four years of King Solo-

mon's reign before the Temple was built, we are left with 366 years from

entering Israel to the birth of David. This period of 366 years is covered by

only four ancestors of David: Salma, Boaz, Obed, and Jesse.

Based on this calculation, even if Salma was an infant when he entered

Israel, each one of these Davidic ancestors would have had to father the next

in line at a very advanced age (an average age of 91!) in order to encompass

more than three-and-a-half centuries. Ibn Ezra further states that even if you

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say that Nahshon was less than twenty years old in the wilderness and did in

fact enter Israel (in contradiction to Seder Olam), this still leaves us with an

average age in the eighties for each member of the lineage to father the next

in line.

The Midrash deals with this difficulty by explaining that certain of the an-

cestors of David lived extremely long lives. Based on different midrashic

texts,

12

either Obed

13

or Jesse

14

lived to be over 400 years old, or alternative-

ly, Boaz, Obed and Jesse together lived for a period of over 400 years.

15

Ibn Ezra himself accepts that David's ancestors in fact fathered sons when

in their eighties. Boaz indicated that he was an old man when he told Ruth,

'You have made your latest act of kindness greater than the first, in that you

have not gone after younger men' (Ruth 3:10). Ruth Rabbah 6:2 states that

Boaz was eighty years old at the time the story in the Book of Ruth took

place. Since we know that David was the eighth son of Jesse (I Sam. 16:10-

11) it is reasonable to assume that Jesse was an old man when he begot him.

Ibn Ezra concludes that the four immediate patriarchal ancestors of King Da-

vid must have all fathered the next in line when they were at least in their

eighties.

Ramban, in his commentary to Genesis 46:15, also mentions that the ances-

tors of King David all fathered sons at a very advanced age. He notes that

even though by that time in history people did not live as long as in the time

of Abraham, miraculously these four men fathered children close to the time

of their death, at very advanced ages. Thus, the traditional rabbinic answer to

the puzzle of the genealogical list in Ruth is to explain that in fact Salma,

Boaz, Obed, and Jesse all fathered children while in their eighties or nineties.

It seems strange that these four ancestors all begot children at such an old

age.

16

Even more so when we compare the last four ancestors to the earlier

ancestors of King David: Judah, Perez, Hezron, Ram, Amminadab and Nah-

shon. Here we have six individuals covering the entire period of the sojourn

in Egypt. The Talmud calculates that the time in Egypt was 210 years,

17

mak-

ing the time from one generation to another about 35 years. This means that

according to the approach of Ibn Ezra and Ramban, before the Exodus the

next in line was born when his father was in his thirties and after the Exodus

this age more than doubled.

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A SYMBOLIC APPROACH

The difficulty raised by this section in Ruth disappears when we understand

that the list is a symbolic one, and not meant to be understood as an actual

historical record. There were in fact more ancestors between Perez and Da-

vid, but they were excluded from the genealogical list in order to maintain the

special seven-ten symbolism.

18

Where in this list is the ellipsis, where would the missing ancestors of King

David fit in? The lineage from Ruth is also found in I Chronicles 2:5-15.

There are additional details there regarding brothers and sisters, but the Da-

vidic lineage is the same.

The sons of Perez: Hezron and Hamul . . . . The sons of Hezron

who were born to him: Jerahmeel, Ram, and Chelubai; and Ram

begot Amminadab; and Amminadab begot Nahshon, the leader of

the sons of Judah; and Nahshon begot Salma; and Salma begot

Boaz, and Boaz begot Obed; and Obed begot Jesse; and Jesse

begot his firstborn Eliab, and Abinadab the second, and Shimea

the third, Nethanel the fourth, Raddai the fifth, Ozem the the

sixth, and David the seventh (I Chron. 2:5-15).

We see that the lineage through Hezron and Ram includes additional in-

formation, the brothers of the Davidic ancestors. The siblings of David are

listed as well. From Amminadab to Jesse we have a simple list of fathers and

sons. This is the formulaic part of the list that can shift from the historical to

the symbolic. The chronological problem only begins after the Exodus, so we

can understand the genealogy until that point (Nahshon) to be a complete

historical record. Since the birth of Obed is an integral part of the Ruth narra-

tive, and David being the son of Jesse is integral to the narrative in Samuel I,

these connections should also be viewed as literal and historical.

This leaves us with only a few points on the list where we can veer from

the historical to the symbolic, Nahshon to Salma, Salma to Boaz, and Obed to

Jesse.

19

It is interesting to note that other than in the genealogical lists in Ruth

and I Chronicles, Boaz and Jesse are never referred to as "Boaz son of Sal-

ma" or "Jesse son of Obed." It seems that the best candidate for the actual

ellipsis point on the genealogical list is Salma, the figure who outside of these

two genealogical lists is not found linked to either his father or son.

20

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The story of Ruth takes place in the days when the judges judged (Ruth

1:1). We do not know when exactly during the period of the Judges the story

took place, and there are many approaches found in rabbinic literature.

21

The

opinion of Rav is that Boaz is to be identified with the judge Ibzan from

Bethlehem (Jud. 12:8).

22

Even if we do not accept that Boaz was literally the

same person as Ibzan, this timeline puts Boaz living 105 years before the end

of the time of the Judges, which works out well historically in terms of hav-

ing David the fourth generation from Boaz.

23

The one person in the genealo-

gy who covers all the years from entering the Land of Israel through Joshua

and over 200 years of judges until the time of Ibzan is Salma. If we under-

stand that there were in fact many unrecorded generations leading up to and

descending from Salma, the non-historical element of the genealogical list is

minimized to just one link in the lineage. All of the ancestors before and after

him can be viewed as historic and literally fathering the next in line, and at a

reasonable age.

Salma's role as a representative of many unmentioned generations can also

be seen in his position in the lineage. The Nahshon-Salma transition is found

in the exact middle, covering the shift between the first five ancestors and the

last five. It also covers the transition from wandering in the wilderness to

entering the Land of Israel, from Mosaic to post-Mosaic times.

24

While it may seem unusual to view Salma as a representative of many un-

listed generations, this understanding resolves the chronological problem that

the genealogy raises and fits in with the idea that the lineage itself is written

in a symbolic style. In fact, there are other places where we find shortcuts in

genealogical lists. Radak notes that for the sake of brevity, in I Chronicles

1:17, four of the grandsons of Shem; Uz, Hul, Gether, and Meshech, are

listed as if they were his sons. Similarly, Radak explains that in I Chronicles

1:36, Timna is listed as if she was the child of Eliphaz, while in actuality she

was his concubine, again for the sake of brevity. Radak further explains that

it is common practice to refer to grandchildren simply as children, as in I

Chronicles 3:15 where Shallum is listed as the son of Josiah even though,

according to Radak, he was actually the son of Jehoakim and grandson of

Josiah. While Radak explains that generations were sometimes skipped for

the sake of brevity, here in the Davidic lineage they were skipped in order to

create a symbolically and numerically significant list of ancestors.

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The Midrash also understood Salma to be a transitional figure. In Ruth

Rabbah, 8:1, the Midrash asks why Salma is called Salma when he is men-

tioned as the son of Nahshon, but his name is changed to Salmon when he is

listed as the father of Boaz. The answer given is that the name Salmon is

meant to evoke the word sulam [ladder], to indicate that "up until this point it

is a ladder for princes, from this point in the lineage onward it is a ladder for

kings." We can view Salma as a representative of many missing generations

in the lineage, called in the Midrash the "ladder for princes" before the transi-

tional mid-point, and the "ladder for kings" after.

25

NOTES

1. Avot 5:2.

2. From Abraham to Boaz: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah, Perez, Hezron, Ram, Amminadab,

Nahshon, Salma, Boaz.

3. Torat Hida HaShalem – Ruth (Jerusalem: Ahavat Shalom, 1997) p. 104. The numerical value

of the letter "yud" is ten.

4. See for example the commentary Melo HaOmer to Ruth 2:17 and Lehem Lefi Ha-Taf, dalet, 7.

5. According to rabbinic tradition, Eber was the teacher of Jacob (Megillah 16b, 17a). He was

also a great prophet (Genesis Rabbah 37:7) and moral authority (Genesis Rabbah 52:11).

6. According to rabbinic tradition, in addition to being the head of the tribe of Judah, Nahshon

was the first Israelite to jump into the Red Sea (Sotah 36a, see also Numbers Rabbah 13:7).

7. This is in contradiction to I Samuel 16:10-11 where he is the eighth, see Radak on I Chroni-

cles 2:15 who offers multiple resolutions to this conflict.

8. On the prominence of the seventh and tenth position in genealogical lists in general and in

Ruth in particular, see Jack M. Sasson, Ruth: A New Translation with a Philological Commen-

tary and a Formalist-Folklorist Interpretation, 2nd Edition (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic

Press, 1989) pp. 183-184. See also the remarks of the Ben Ish Hai in his work Aderet Eliyahu,

Parshat Va-Yehi, where he takes this idea even further, noting that Judah was the seventh Jew in

the world (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Reuben, Shimon, Levi, Judah).

9. Da'at Mikra – Hamesh Megillot (Jerusalem: Mossad Harav Kook, 1990) p. 4, note 2.

10. Genesis Rabbah 12:6. The numerical value of the letter "vav" is six.

11. See Torah Shelemah – Megillat Ruth (Jerusalem: American Biblical Encyclopedia Society,

1999) pp. 113-116, and Da'at Mikra – Hamesh Megillot (Jerusalem: Mossad Harav Kook, 1990)

p. 4.

12. See Midrash Lekah Tov, Genesis 47, note 22, for a discussion of the textual variants.

13. Midrash Tanhuma, Va-Yehi, 2.

14. See the commentary Anaf Yosef to Midrash Tanhuma, Va-Yehi, 2.

15. Genesis Rabbah, 96:4. See there the commentary of Rabbi David Luria. This Midrash also

appears in Yalkut Shimoni, Genesis, 156. See also Rashi on I Chronicles 2:11, where he states

that Boaz was over 300 years old when he fathered Obed.

16. For a traditional/literalist approach to these and other figures who lived extremely long lives,

see David Havlin, Lehatzdik Kodesh (Israel, 1991) pp. 171-173.

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17. See Rashi, Exodus 12:40.

18. Other approaches have been suggested to resolve this chronological difficulty. See for exam-

ple, Philip Biberfield, Universal Jewish History vol. 1 (New York: Spero Foundation, 1948) pp.

29-33.

19. See also Robert L. Hubbard, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament – the

Book of Ruth (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1988) p. 284.

20. See also Entziklopediyah Olam Ha-Tanakh – Megillot vol.1 (Jerusalem: Revivim, 1987) pp.

104-105, for additional evidence that the ellipsis occurs with Salma.

21. Da'at Mikra – Hamesh Megillot (Jerusalem: Mossad Harav Kook, 1990) p. 16.

22. Bava Batra 91a.

23. Da'at Mikra, p. 16.

24. Hubbard, p.280. The significance of the Nahshon-Salma transition is found in traditional

rabbinic literature as well, see for example the commentary of the Vilna Gaon to the Song of

Songs, 2:8, where he writes that the Israelites were originally only supposed to leave Egypt

during the time of Salma, but due to God's mercy the Exodus took place during the time of his

father Nahshon.

25. Thanks to my dear friend and student Jonathan Engel for pointing out this interpretation of

the Midrash.

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