Elimelech אֱלִימֶ֫לֶךְ
Naomi's husband from Bethlehem.
Biography
Elimelech was a man from Bethlehem in Judah, the husband of Naomi and the father of Mahlon and Chilion (Rut.1.2). During a time of famine, Elimelech and his family moved to the country of Moab (Rut.1.1-2). While in Moab, Elimelech died, leaving Naomi a widow (Rut.1.3). Naomi's sons, Mahlon and Chilion, married Moabite women named Ruth and Orpah, but they also died after about ten years (Rut.1.4-5). After the death of her husband and sons, Naomi decided to return to Bethlehem, and her daughter-in-law Ruth accompanied her (Rut.1.6-22). Elimelech's family had owned land in Bethlehem, which was later acquired by Boaz, a relative who married Ruth (Rut.4.3,9). Through this marriage, Elimelech's lineage was preserved, and his family's property remained within the clan.
Family
In Scripture
1 biblical bookRuth 5 verses
- Ruth 1:2
"The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi. The names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem Judah. They came into the country of Moab and lived there."
- Ruth 1:3
"Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons."
- Ruth 2:1
"Naomi had a relative of her husband’s, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech, and his name was Boaz."
- Ruth 2:3
"She went, and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers; and she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech."
- Ruth 4:3
"He said to the near kinsman, “Naomi, who has come back out of the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech’s."
Names & Aliases
| Form | Language | Script | Strong's |
|---|---|---|---|
| Named | Hebrew | אֱלִימֶ֫לֶךְ | H0458 |
Elimelech
="Bible:Ruth.1.2">Ru 1:2,3; 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 Ru 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, Ru 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
e-li-o-e'-na-i.
See ELIEHOENAI.
el-i-o'-nas (Elionas, Elionais): The name of two men who had married foreign wives (<ref osisRef=