Toto

Jason Gastrich has a presumed rebuttal to the Skeptics Annotated Bible. You can download a sample here, which consists of rebuttals to the books of Ruth and Jude.

I reprint a sample. Jason's comments on the SAB are in red, the SAB is in black.

My question: what are the sources for the claims that these euphemisms are euphemisms and not to be interpreted literally?

Chapter 3

3:3-4 - Naomi (Ruth's mother-in-law) advises Ruth as to how to best seduce Boaz. He tells her to wait until he is a bit drunk and has fallen asleep. Then "go in and uncover his feet [a biblical euphemism for male genitals], and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what to do."

* This Hebrew word for "drink" does not infer alcohol or drunkenness.

* "Go in and uncover his feet" is not a biblical euphemism for male genitals. There are other words for male genitals, but this Hebrew word literally means "feet."

3:6-9 - Ruth does as Naomi says, and then at midnight Boaz wakes up and finds Ruth "at his feet." He asks who she is, and she says, "I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore your skirt over thine handmaid."

* This is correct. Boaz' alleged drunkenness is never mentioned or implied.

* Ruth correctly states that Boaz is her kinsman. This gives him the right and responsibility to take her as wife (since she had been widowed).

3:11-14 - Boaz seems agreeable to the suggestion and says, "I will do thee all that thou requirest." Next he asks her to "Tarry this night ... lie down until the morning." so Naomi "lay at his feet until morning."

* This is correct. Incidentally, there are no implications of sexual intercourse.

Steven Carr

The word in Ruth 3 is 'shakab'.

See Genesis 19:32 , Genesis 34:2
Or Exodus 22:19
Whosoever lieth 'shakab' with a beast shall surely be put to death .

I'm sure Jason will explain that 'shakab' is not a euphemism for intercourse, and it merely means that shephers who slept while supposedly guarding their sheep were killed for neglect of duty

Amlodhi

Hello Steven Carr,

I won't argue that the implication isn't there, but I think you are slightly off base in regard to "shakab".

There are three similar terms that are used for "lie" or "lieth":

Shakab - This can mean lying down in every sense of the word; for sleep, for sex, or in death.

Shekabah - This term is always used with the sexual connotation.

Shekobeth - This term is also always used with the sexual connotation.

Thus, the three citations you gave: Gen. 19:32, Gen. 34:2 and Ex. 22:19, do all use the term "shakab" and they are all used in a sexual connotation.

However, other examples such as:

Eze. 4:9 ". . . that thou shalt lie (shakab) upon thy side . . ."

Ps. 88:5 ". . . the slain that lie (shakab) in the grave. . ."

etc., use "shakab" in a non-sexual connotation.

In addition, the term:

Regel - meaning "a foot" (as used for walking) is sometimes taken to be euphemistic for the pudenda or genitals.

However, the term used for "feet" in Ruth is not regel but:

Mar'gelah - meaning more like "at the foot of" and implies the collective of both feet as a "footpiece".

Unlike, the term "regel", I have not seen "mar'gelah" used as a euphemism for genitalia.

Thus, though the implication in the book of Ruth may exist, it cannot be said that "shakab" must here refer to a sexual act.

Namaste'

Amlodhi