Spread Your Skirt Over Me

And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman. And he said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich.
Ruth 3:9‭-‬10 KJV

In the Jewish tradition, the man is expected to actually ” cast the skirt of his “talith”, or outward garment, over the head of his spouse, and cover it..” What is questionable is whether the practice was as early as this. It does appear that they both understood themselves, so the argument does not arise here. This is how the verse is rendered in the Message Bible: ” He said, “And who are you?” She said, “I am Ruth, your maiden; take me under your protecting wing. You’re my close relative, you know, in the circle of covenant redeemers—you do have the right to marry me.” Why do I feel like Boaz smiled? His next words betrayed that smile. Read the script. That must have been quite difficult for her to deal with. What was important was that she obeyed the mother in law. Naomi’s conclusion was that the man will not rest until the natter is accomplished. You don’t talk like that except you’ve spent time to pray. Someone is praying for your case. Someone will spread that skirt over you. The covering will stop the shame. Keep holding on.