SEV Biblia, Chapter 2:14
Y Booz le dijo a la hora de comer: Allégate aquí, y come del pan, y moja tu bocado en el vinagre. Y se sentó ella junto a los segadores, y él le dio del potaje, y comió hasta que se sació y le sobró.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Ruth 2:14
Verse 14. Dip thy morsel in the vinegar.] The Åmj chomets, which we here translate vinegar, seems to have been some refreshing kind of acid sauce used by the reapers to dip their bread in, which both cooled and refreshed them. Vinegar, rob of fruits, &c., are used for this purpose in the East to the present day; and the custom of the Arabs, according to Dr. Shaw, is to dip the bread and hand together into these cooling and refreshing articles. Parched corn] This was a frequent repast among the ancients in almost all countries; see the notes on Lev. ii. 1-14.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 14. And Boaz said, at mealtime come thou hither , etc.] This looks as if she was now in the booth, or house in the field, where the reapers used to retire to eat their food, or rest themselves, or take shelter from the heat of the sun. This meal was very likely dinner, the time of which was not yet come, but would soon, and to which Boaz invited Ruth: and eat of the bread ; his servants did, that is, partake of the provisions they should have; bread being put for all. So Homer speaks of a large ox slain for such a meal for the reapers, besides the “polenta” afterwards mentioned, which the women prepared, and who uses the same word for it the Septuagint does here: “to dip thy morsel in the vinegar”; which was used because of the heat of the season, as Jarchi and Aben Ezra remark, for cooling and refreshment; and such virtues Pliny ascribes to vinegar, as being refreshing to the spirits, binding and bracing the nerves, and very corroborating and strengthening; and it is at this day used in Italy, it is said, in harvest time, when it is hot; where they also use wine mixed with vinegar and water, as Lavater says f41 ; and who from a learned physician f42 observes, that reapers, instead of wine, use vinegar mixed with a great deal of water, which they call household wine, allayed with water; to which if oil and bread be put, it makes a cooling meal, good for workmen and travellers in the heat of the sun; and the Targum calls it pottage boiled in vinegar. The Romans had an “embamma”, or sauce, made of vinegar, in which they dipped their food f43 ; and Theocritus makes mention of vinegar as used by reapers: in the Syriac version it is bread dipped in milk; and in the Arabic version milk poured upon it. The Midrash gives an allegorical sense of these words, and applies them to the Messiah and his kingdom, and interprets the bread of the bread of the kingdom, and the vinegar of the chastisements and afflictions of the Messiah, as it is said, “he was wounded for our transgressions”, etc. ( Isaiah 53:5) which, by the way, is a concession that the prophecy in that chapter relates to him: and she sat beside the reapers ; the women reapers; she did not sit along with them, or in thee midst of them, in the row with them, as ranking with them, but on one side of them, which was an instance of her great modesty: and he reached her parched corn ; either Boaz himself, or he that was set over the reapers. This parched corn seems to be the new barley they were reaping, which they fried in a pan and ate. Galen says f46 , the parched corn which is best is made of new barley moderately dried and parched; and that it was the custom of some to drink the same with new sweet wine, or wine mixed with honey, in the summertime, before they went into the bath, who say they feel themselves by this drink freed from thirst. But this seems to be a kind of food, what is sometimes called “polenta”, which is barley flour dried at the fire, and fried after it hath been soaking in water one night; so Lavater says, they dry the barley, having been soaked one night in water, the next day they dry it, and then grind it in mills; some dress new barley beaten out of green ears, and make it while moist into balls, and being cleansed, grind it; and thus dressed with twenty pound of barley, they put three pound of linseed, half a pound of coriander seed, and of salt, all being dried before, are mingled in a mill; and if to be kept, are put into new earthen vessels with the meal and bran: but a later writer takes this “Kali”, rendered parched corn, not to be anyone certain species, but something made of corn and pulse, as lentiles, beans, etc. and especially fried or parched vetches, of all which together was this kali or pulse; and he refutes the notion of some, who take it to be “coffee”, since that has only been in use since the beginning of the sixteenth century, and at first in Arabia; and is not of the kind of pulse, but is the fruit of a certain tree, of which a liquor is made, something to drink; whereas this was food, and was ate, as follows, (see 2 Samuel 17:28) and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left ; she had such a plentiful share given her, that she had more than she could eat, and was obliged to leave some, and which it seems she carried home to her mother-in-law, ( Ruth 2:18).
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 4-16 - The pious and kind language between Boaz and his reapers shows tha there were godly persons in Israel. Such language as this is seldo heard in our field; too often, on the contrary, what is immoral an corrupt. A stranger would form a very different opinion of our land from that which Ruth would form of Israel from the converse and conduc of Boaz and his reapers. But true religion will teach a man to behav aright in all states and conditions; it will form kind masters an faithful servants, and cause harmony in families. True religion wil cause mutual love and kindness among persons of different ranks. It ha these effects on Boaz and his men. When he came to them he prayed for them. They did not, as soon as he was out of hearing curse him, as some ill-natured servants that hate their master's eye, but they returne his courtesy. Things are likely to go on well where there is suc good-will as this between masters and servants. They expressed their kindness to each other by praying one for another. Boaz inquire concerning the stranger he saw, and ordered her to be well treated Masters must take care, not only that they do no hurt themselves, but that they suffer not their servants and those under them to do wrong Ruth humbly owned herself unworthy of favours, seeing she was born an brought up a heathen. It well becomes us all to think humbly of ourselves, esteeming others better than ourselves. And let us, in the kindness of Boaz to Ruth, note the kindness of the Lord Jesus Christ to poor sinners.
Original Hebrew
ויאמר 559 לה בעז 1162 לעת 6256 האכל 400 גשׁי 5066 הלם 1988 ואכלת 398 מן 4480 הלחם 3899 וטבלת 2881 פתך 6595 בחמץ 2558 ותשׁב 3427 מצד 6654 הקוצרים 7114 ויצבט 6642 לה קלי 7039 ותאכל 398 ותשׂבע 7646 ותתר׃ 3498
