Commentaria in Ruth
You will say: This son ought rather to have been called Mahalon, because seed was being raised up to him. Abulensis answers, Question LXXXV: “The son who was born first of the later marriage ought to have been given the name of the dead man, if he who married the dead man’s wife was his true and proper brother, but not if he was brother improperly, that is, only a kinsman.”
Allegorically, Booz represents Christ; Ruth, the Church called together from the Gentiles. Read the Author of the Imperfect Work, hom. 4 on Matthew.
Morally see Hugh, Dionysius, Fevardentius, Serarius, and especially Ludovicus de Puente in the first part of his Spiritual Guide, where from the sayings and deeds of Ruth he draws fine and singular lessons of conduct.
21. SALMON BEGOT BOOZ, AND BOOZ BEGOT OBED.—Arias, in the Apparatus of the Royal Bible, tract On Hebrew Names, thinks Salmon is the same as Salomon, but he is mistaken: for Salmon is written with sin; Salomon with schin. Again Salomon is written Selomoh, and has as its last letter He; but Salmon has as its last letter Nun. Finally Salmon in Hebrew is the same as clothed or clothing; Salomon the same as peaceful. So Serarius.
22. OBED BEGOT ISAI (who is Jesse), ISAI BEGOT DAVID.—Jesse in Hebrew is the same as gift, or existing or debtor.
Note: Salmon was the husband of Rahab, who betrayed Jericho to the Hebrews, Josue ii; and from Rahab and Salmon, that is, from the entrance of the Hebrews into Chanaan to the fourth year of Solomon, 440 years passed, as is gathered from 3 Kings vi, 9; for from the 80 years that are reckoned there, 40 must be taken away, which passed from the entrance of the Hebrews in the journey through the desert until the entrance into Chanaan. In these 440 years therefore there were only five generations. For Salmon begot Booz, Booz begot Obed, Obed begot Jesse, Jesse begot David, David begot Solomon. Hence some think that each of the first four, namely Salmon, Booz, Obed and Jesse, begot in the hundredth year of his age, to make up the 440 years just mentioned. So Abulensis, Serarius, Dionysius, Cajetan, Salmeron here, Barradius and Maldonatus on Matth. 1. But this seems forced, and invented from necessity. More plainly Lyranus, R. Salomon, Genebrardus, Catharinus, Jansenius and Salianus put three Booz, all contained under this one name Booz; as in Matth. 1 under the name Jechonias are contained both Joakim the father and Joachim the son, of which more shortly. Salianus therefore distributes these series of generations thus, tome II, in the year of Debbora and Barac 94. Salmon, at the entrance into the land of Chanaan, when he took Rahab to wife, was about thirty-four years old; she herself nearly 25. After other children born of her, he begot in his sixtieth year the first of this name, Booz; from the sum therefore of 440 years, which are reckoned from the entrance into Chanaan to the laying of the foundations of the temple, 26 years are to be taken away. But the first and second Booz begot in the 65th year of age, the third in the seventieth, Obed, and likewise Isai 70; to which add the 70 years of David’s life; and four of the reign of Solomon, you will make up in all 440. From these you see it probably gathered that the first Booz was born in the tenth year of Othoniel; the second, in the 33rd of Aod; the third, in the 20th of Barac, and that he married Ruth, and begot Obed, in the seventh year of Thola; and that Isai was born in the first year of Samson, and begot David at the beginning of the eleventh year of Samuel.
If anyone however prefers to say that Salmon, Booz, Obed and Jesse begot in the hundredth year, rather than dare to join two Booz to the one sacred Scripture, let him say that similar examples exist of that age, indeed of a later age. For St. Servatius, bishop and patron of Maastricht, lived 373 years, as Sigebert testifies in his Chronicle. In the Histories there is celebrated John of the Times, who lived 300 years. Maffei, book XI of his History of the Indies, assigns three hundred years likewise to a certain Indian. But these are portents and as it were miracles, which happened in one man only; here, however, it must be asserted that this longevity befell four men succeeding one another in continuous generation, which is unheard of; especially since David, their son, bounded the life of a man of his time at 70 years: “The days of our years in them are threescore and ten years,” Psalm lxxxix. Moreover often in Scripture the generations and names of some of the begetters are passed over in silence, as Matth. chapter 1, 8, where it is said: “And Joram begot Ozias.” For Joram begot Ochozias: Ochozias begot Joas, Joas begot Amasias, Amasias begot Ozias. In the same place verse 11: “And Josias begot Jechonias,” where Jechonias is put for two, namely for Joakim or Jeconias, and Joachim or Jechonias; that is, Josias begot Jeconias, and Jeconias begot Jechonias. There is also this reason: for in these 440 years which passed from Salmon to Solomon, in the other tribes there were not five generations, but far more.
Take one clear example out of many, 1 Paralip. vi, 33. From Heman, who was singer in the time of David, going up to Core, who lived in the time of Moses, and was swallowed up by the earth for rebelling against him, Numbers xvi, eighteen generations are reckoned. For thus it says: “Heman the singer, the son of Johel, son of Samuel, son of Elcana, son of Jeroham, son of Eliel, son of Thohu, son of Suph, son of Elcana, son of Mahath, son of Amasai, son of Elcana, son of Johel, son of Azarias, son of Sophonias, son of Thahat, son of Asir, son of Abiasaph; son of Core.” Count the word “son” repeated eighteen times, and you will see that eighteen generations are here recorded.
Wherefore it is likely that here too some are passed over, and some intermediate sons, as being more obscure, are omitted, and only the more illustrious named, such as Naasson, because he was prince of the tribe of Juda at the entrance into the holy land, and took Rahab to wife; Booz, because he was the husband of Ruth, whose history is here woven; Obed, because of them was born Isai, who was the father of King David.
Finally the Rabbis in Juchasin, page 10, hold that Ruth, when she married Booz, was 406 years old, and afterwards lived a very long time: “For she was,” they say, “still in the time of Solomon, and sat at his side together with Bethsabee on the royal throne.” So also they say that her son Obed lived 400 years, but these things are incredible, and therefore seem invented.
Tropologically St. Chrysostom, hom. 1 on Matthew: “Such a man as Booz, by such a wife as Ruth, what son did he beget? Obed, which is interpreted subject. But now those who choose riches and not character, beauty and not faith; and what is wont to be sought in harlots, this they desire in wives, therefore do not beget sons subject either to themselves, or to God, but stubborn both against themselves and against God, so that their sons are not the fruit of their just union, but the fitting punishment of their irreligion. But this Obed, who was called subject, what did he beget? Jesse, that is, refreshment; for Jesse in the Latin tongue is called refreshment. For truly whoever is subject to God and to his parents begets, by God’s gift, such sons by whom he is refreshed, since he who honours his father shall be honoured by his children; but those who are stubborn either toward God or toward their parents, in begetting beget not refreshments for themselves but sorrows, that they may receive from their sons what they did to their parents.”
Chrysostom adds that perhaps Obed was so named because at his birth the Hebrews were subject to the Philistines, from whom they were freed by Samuel, under whom lived Jesse the son of Obed; and therefore he was called Jesse, that is, refreshment.