“Naomi Or Mara?” - 1/9/25

At the end of Ruth chapter 1, Naomi and Ruth are now in Bethlehem. The people are surprised at seeing Naomi once more (v. 19). Was it her appearance in age? Her demeanor? Something caused the people to ask if it was her. At the sound of her name, she tells the people to call her Mara now (v. 20). These two names are significant. Naomi means “the pleasantness of Jehovah,” while Mara means “bitter.”

Mara (Marah) is only found here and in the books of Exodus and Numbers when referring to a specific place with undrinkable water. These passages (Ex. - Ruth) describe “Mara” (Marah) as being bitter. In one case, it describes undrinkable waters; in another, it describes a person's demeanor. In no case is this word used in a positive way. I find it interesting that after Naomi says, “Call me Mara” (Ruth 1:20), neither God nor the people ever do it! She was consistently called “Naomi” (20 times in the book).

This reminds me of the incident in the book of Daniel, where Nebuchadnezzar named Daniel “Belteshazzar” (Dan. 1:7). Yet neither his friends nor God ever called him by that name in the book! In those days, greater emphasis was placed on the meaning of names than it is today, and because of this, God was not going to burden people like Naomi and Daniel with names that did not suit them.

Naomi (“pleasantness of Jehovah”) was a name that suited this lady, and despite her hardships, she was displaying God’s pleasantness. Like Job, she had to suffer for a while in this life, but it served the greater good by her example to others, beginning with Ruth. Even amid hardship, we can remember that God is with us and we are not alone (Ps. 23:3-4)! Her life was about to change for the better, even if she couldn’t see it yet.

Knowing what you know, what will you display to the world (“Naomi” or “Mara”)? Remember, we must reflect God’s truth to the world (Matt. 5:14-16). What are you showing people? What will the day bring for you (Prov. 27:1)? No one knows the answer, but we know Who it is who has the answers!

- Jarrod M. Jacobs