Elimelech is a significant figure in the Old Testament, primarily known from the Book of Ruth. His account is set during the time of the judges, a period characterized by social and religious upheaval in Israel. Elimelech's life and decisions play a crucial role in the narrative that leads to the lineage of King David and, ultimately, to Jesus Christ.

Name and Meaning

The name Elimelech means "My God is King" in Hebrew, reflecting a theophoric element that acknowledges the sovereignty of God. This name is particularly poignant given the context of the account, where the sovereignty and providence of God are central themes.

Family and Background

Elimelech was an Ephrathite from Bethlehem in Judah, a region known for its fertile land and significant biblical history. He was married to Naomi, and they had two sons, Mahlon and Chilion. The family is described in Ruth 1:1-2: "In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a man of Bethlehem in Judah went to dwell in the land of Moab with his wife and two sons. The man’s name was Elimelech, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. And they entered the land of Moab and settled there."

Migration to Moab

Due to a severe famine in Bethlehem, Elimelech made the decision to relocate his family to Moab, a neighboring nation often at odds with Israel. This move, while pragmatic in seeking sustenance, placed his family in a foreign land with different customs and religious practices. The decision to leave the Promised Land is seen by some as a lack of faith in God's provision, though it also sets the stage for the unfolding of God's redemptive plan.

Death and Legacy

Elimelech's time in Moab was marked by tragedy. He died shortly after arriving in Moab, leaving Naomi a widow. His sons, Mahlon and Chilion, married Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth, but they too died after about ten years, leaving Naomi bereft of her immediate family. Ruth 1:3-5 recounts these events: "Then Naomi’s husband Elimelech died, and she was left with her two sons, who took Moabite women as their wives, one named Orpah and the other named Ruth. And after they had lived in Moab about ten years, both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and without her husband."

Significance in the Biblical Narrative

Elimelech's account is pivotal in the Book of Ruth, as it sets the stage for Naomi's return to Bethlehem with her daughter-in-law Ruth. This return leads to Ruth's marriage to Boaz, a kinsman-redeemer, and the birth of Obed, the grandfather of King David. Thus, Elimelech's family line becomes integral to the genealogy of Jesus Christ, as noted in the Gospel of Matthew.

Elimelech's life and decisions, though marked by hardship and loss, ultimately contribute to the unfolding of God's providential plan. His account is a testament to the themes of faith, redemption, and divine sovereignty that permeate the biblical narrative.Elimelech

my God is king

Elimelech

(my God is king), a man of the tribe of Judah and of the family of the Hezronites, who dwelt in Bethlehem-Ephratah in the days of the Judges. (B.C. 1312.) In consequence of a great death in the land he went with his wife, Naomi, and his two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, to dwell in Moab, where he and his sons died without posterity. (Ruth 1:2,3) etc.

Elimelech

A Bethlehemite, husband of Naomi, Ruth 1:2.

God his king, a man of the tribe of Judah, of the family of the Hezronites, and kinsman of Boaz, who dwelt in Bethlehem in the days of the judges. In consequence of a great dearth he, with his wife Naomi and his two sons, went to dwell in the land of Moab. There he and his sons died (Ruth 1:2, 3; 2:1, 3; 4:3, 9). Naomi afterwards returned to Palestine with her daughter Ruth. ELIMELECH

e-lim'-e-lek ('elimelekh, "my God is king"; Abeimelech, Alimelek):

Elimelech was a member of the tribe of Judah, a native of Bethlehem Judah, a man of wealth and probably head of a family or clan (Ruth 1:2, 3; Ruth 2:1, 3). He lived during the period of the Judges, had a hereditary possession near Bethlehem, and is chiefly known as the husband of Naomi, the mother-in-law of Ruth and ancestress of David the king. Because of a severe famine in Judea, he emigrated to the land of Moab with his wife and his sons, Mahlon and Chilion. Not long afterward he died, and his two sons married Moabite women, Ruth and Orpah. Ten years in all were spent in Moab, when the two sons died, and the three widows were left. Soon afterward Naomi decided to return to Judah, and the sequel is told in the Book of Ruth.

See RUTH; NAOMI.

J. J. Reeve

458. Elimelek -- "God is king," the husband of Naomi
... Elimelek. 459 . "God is king," the husband of Naomi. Transliteration: Elimelek
Phonetic Spelling: (el-ee-meh'-lek) Short Definition: Elimelech. ... Elimelech. ...
/hebrew/458.htm - 6k

The Story of Ruth, the Gleaner
... In the time of the Judges in Israel, a man named Elimelech was living in the town
of Bethlehem, in the tribe of Judah, about six miles south of Jerusalem. ...
/.../marshall/the wonder book of bible stories/the story of ruth the.htm

How under Eli's Government of the Israelites Booz Married Ruth ...
... Under him, when the country was afflicted with a famine, Elimelech of Bethlehem,
which is a city of the tribe of Judah, being not able to support his family ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 9 how under elis.htm

The Devotion of Ruth
... His name was Elimelech and his wife's Naomi, and his two sons were Mahlon
and Chilion. After they had been living in Moab for some ...
//christianbookshelf.org/sherman/the childrens bible/the devotion of ruth.htm

Scriptural Poems; Being Several Portions of Scripture Digested ...
... His name Elimelech, his eldest son Was called Mahlon, t'other Chilion, His wife
was Naomi, Ephrathites they were: They went to Moab and continued there: Where ...
/.../scriptural poems being several portions.htm

Ruth and Naomi.
... A long time ago, in the days of the judges of Israel, there was a famine in the
land of Canaan, and a man named Elimelech, whose home was in Bethlehem, went ...
//christianbookshelf.org/anonymous/wee ones bible stories/ruth and naomi.htm

Boaz and Ruth.
... from her mother-in-law to go gleaning, and went to glean in the field of a rich
man named Boaz, who happened to be a kinsman, or relative of Elimelech. ...
/.../anonymous/mother stories from the old testament/boaz and ruth.htm

Ruth and Naomi.
... Naomi was the wife of a Jew named Elimelech, who left his own city of Bethlehem
to go into the land of Moab, because there was a famine in Canaan. ...
/.../anonymous/mother stories from the old testament/ruth and naomi.htm

Ruth
... Then Boaz calls all the town to witness that day, that he has bought all
that was Elimelech's, and Ruth the Moabitess to be his wife. ...
/.../kingsley/the water of life and other sermons/sermon x ruth.htm

A Gentle Heroine, a Gentile Convert
... The household of Elimelech emigrated to Moab in a famine, and, whether that were
right or wrong, they were there among heathens as Jehovah worshippers. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture f/a gentle heroine a gentile.htm

Appendices
... The cities of the king my lord are lost which Elimelech is destroying, even all
the country of the king; so let the king my lord send help to his country. ...
/.../sayce/early israel and the surrounding nations/appendices.htm

Elimelech (6 Occurrences)
... Ruth. Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. ELIMELECH. e ... Ruth. See RUTH; NAOMI. JJ
Reeve. Multi-Version Concordance Elimelech (6 Occurrences). Ruth ...
/e/elimelech.htm - 10k

Elimelech's (2 Occurrences)
... Multi-Version Concordance Elimelech's (2 Occurrences). Ruth 4:3 He said
to the near kinsman, "Naomi, who has come back out of the ...
/e/elimelech's.htm - 7k

Elim'elech (6 Occurrences)
Elim'elech. Elimelech, Elim'elech. Elimelech's . ... (See RSV). Ruth 1:3 And Elimelech
Naomi's husband died; and she was left, and her two sons. (See RSV). ...
/e/elim'elech.htm - 8k

Ruth (19 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary A friend, a Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, whose
father, Elimelech, had settled in the land of Moab. On ...
/r/ruth.htm - 26k

Na'omi (21 Occurrences)
... Ruth 1:2 The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and
the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem Judah. ...
/n/na'omi.htm - 11k

Chilion (3 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary The pining one, the younger son of Elimelech and Naomi,
and husband of Orpah, Ruth's sister (Ruth 1:2; 4:9). Int. ...
/c/chilion.htm - 8k

Naomi (25 Occurrences)
... The lovable; my delight, the wife of Elimelech, and mother of Mahlon and Chilion,
and mother-in-law of Ruth (1:2, 20, 21; 2:1). Elimelech and his wife left the ...
/n/naomi.htm - 17k

Mahlon (4 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary Sickly, the elder of Elimelech the Bethlehemite's
two sons by Naomi. He married Ruth and died childless ...
/m/mahlon.htm - 8k

Bo'az (24 Occurrences)
... Ruth 2:1 Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a mighty man of wealth, of
the family of Elimelech, and his name was Boaz. (See RSV). ...
/b/bo'az.htm - 12k

Boaz (25 Occurrences)
... az (bo`az; Booz; "quickness" (?) Ruth 2-4 1 Chronicles 2:11, 12; Matthew 1:5 Luke
3:32): (1) A resident of Bethlehem and kinsman of Elimelech, Naomi's husband. ...
/b/boaz.htm - 19k

Who was Elimelech in the Bible? | GotQuestions.org

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