Bible Strands
Ruth 3:18
“Wait, my daughter,” said Naomi, “until you find out how things go, for he will not rest unless he has resolved the matter today.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Naomi speaks to Ruth immediately after Ruth returns from the threshing floor with six measures of barley. Naomi instructs Ruth to remain where she is and observe how Boaz handles the redemption matter that same day.
The words — Naomi commands with שְבִי (shevi, "sit down") and frames the wait with עַד אֵיךְ יִפֹּל (ad eikh yippol, "until how it will fall out"). The verb יִפֹּל literally denotes the unfolding of events, not a cessation of action.
The thread — This directive to wait for a settled outcome aligns with the call to trust and cultivate faithfulness in Psalms 37:3 and the warning against futile stillness in Isaiah 30:7. The motif of waiting for a matter to be resolved also echoes the sure foundation laid in Isaiah 28:16.
Why it lands — The text demands patient observation rather than anxious intervention while a matter remains unresolved. It frames waiting as a concrete posture of trust until the outcome is clearly established.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day.
Cross-references
- Psalms 37:3 Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
- Isaiah 28:16 So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.
- Isaiah 30:7 Egypt’s help is futile and empty; therefore I have called her Rahab Who Sits Still.