Navigating Spicy Texts in the Bible

Be Advised, I talk about sexually suggestive connations in scriture within this article.

I am entering this week preparing for the continued journey through the book of Ruth we are navigating this month. I initially decided to enter this journey based on a recomendation from the Narrative Lectionary platform 'Working Preaching' from Luther Seminary. It is quite fun to be able to focus in on a book for a short time and really cover some of the themes from this short text.

A little bit about Ruth if some of you are feeling Ruth-less (bad pun, I know, expect a repeat on Sunday). Ruth is a shorter story in the Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament) that tells the Journey of Ruth, a moabite woman, and Naomi, her Jewish Mother in Law, as they navigate life after the death of their husbands. This is one of the few texts where God is not an active character in the story and the book is focused on women vs men. Now, arguably there are stories of women in other parts of the Bible, but in a patriarcal society, it is interesting that this story has perservered, especially as Ruth is the example for us and Naomi generally represents humanity as we truly are. But that is diving deeper than my current intent.

So, my title mentions spicy texts, what's up with that. Well, there is an arugment amongst scholars that there are several code words for people having sex in the Hebrew Bible, one such code that is debated is the uncovering of feet. A lot of Christian Biblical sholars will argue that when we encounter this phrase in the Hebrew Bible, it is referring to sexual actions occuring.

So why am I bringing this up? Well, this coming Sunday we are looking at Ruth 3, and there is some uncovering of feet that occurs in the text. Now, there are defintly people who will argue that the uncovering of feet is a work of submission when people lay at uncovered feet, but I would like to invite you to think about the different tensions you get from the text depending on how you read this phrase.

IF Ruth is just showing submission to Boaz in Ch 3, then the text is showing perhaps a cultural ritual to which Boaz looks favorably. However, if there is something more happening, the story is building a stronger connection between the two, both becuase of intimancy and because of societal pressures. Either way chosen though has Ruth spending the night alone with a man who is not her husband, which is a social faux pas.

There is also the issue that outside of the uncovering of feet standing for sexual practices, connotaitons of 'to Know' and ' to lie down with' also carry the connotation. But here is the thing, the author is intentionally using words and phrases that can be innocent or sexually suggestive as part of a narrative ploy. This situation, when we consider the sexually suggestive as the way to read it, invites us to consider other circumstances in scripture outside of this text.

This also causes us to think about some deeper understanding of what is happening in this chapter. Is Ruth working to encourage a shy Boaz to accept his feelings? Is this a plan devised by Naomi to entrap Boaz? Was Boaz shamed into taking action? Perhaps he did not see a way to help Ruth and Naomi beyond what he had already done till it was pointed out. Perhaps this encounter allowed Boaz to 'justify' his attraction to a moabite woman? (Remember, we may not agree with the culture of the time, but we must understand what the culture was, because it gives more depth to the story).

I am not going to reveal my understanding right now, but I would like to invite you all to consider the idea that we should not shy away for seeing or reading sexual connotations in our texts, because sometimes they speak to sitatuations that are beyond the story line and give us the opportunity for greater understanding.

What are some texts that we might find this in our Bible outside of Ruth?

References

Robertson Farmer, Kathleen A. 'The Book of Ruth' in The New Interpreters Bible vol II. Abingdon Press, Nashvile, TN. 1998.