In verse 1, we were given a general description of the main characters, with their significant origins. In the next verse, their names are mentioned. In Hebrew, names have meanings. Thus, these names tell us a story.
Ruth 1
2 The man’s name was Elimelech, and his wife’s name was Naomi. The names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They came to the country of Moab and lived there.
Elimelech
Elimelech means: My God is King. A special name, because Israel expects a Messiah who will establish His Kingdom through Israel throughout the world. Because Israel rejected Jesus as the Messiah, the nation was set aside, and salvation went to the nations. Israel was judged as a nation and expelled from the land.
In the next verse, we see that Elimelech dies. The kingdom was taken from Israel (Matt. 21:43), and as a nation they are dead (Hos. 6:1-2; Rom. 11:15). A period would pass during which Israel would be scattered among the nations, after which the kingdom would be established worldwide through a faithful Israel (Acts 15:16; 3:21).
Naomi
Naomi means: lovely, pleasant. Naomi, along with Elimelech, represents Israel. God loves Israel (Jer. 1:3) and the Jewish people are God’s special possession (Ps. 135:4). Israel is presented as a woman praised by God for her beauty (Ezek. 16:13-14).
Mahlon and Chilion
That names have meaning in the Bible is evident from the names Elimelech and Naomi gave their children. The names reflect their condition. Mahlon means: weakness, illness, affliction, and Chilion means: wasting away. They had these two sons during a difficult time and gave them names that reflect this. This describes the situation of this Jewish family.
Only to Israel
Their position contrasts sharply with what the place names from which they originate suggest. Ephrathah means: fertility, and Bethlehem means: house of bread. God had entrusted His words to Israel alone (Ps. 147:19-20), so that the people would be fruitful and live in abundance and blessing, but they did not believe it.
Moab
The family ends up abroad, in Moab. Moab means “of my father.” He was the son of Lot, who was born through incest (Gen. 19:16-17). The Moabites were therefore a brother nation of the Israelites, both of whom had Terah as their ancestor.
Moab was often hostile to Israel. They offered no help to Israel in the wilderness (Deut. 23:3-4), tried to curse Israel through Balaam (Num. 22-24), and led the people into sexual immorality and idolatry (Num. 25:1-2).
Yet, in this story, Ruth is from Moab, who turns away from her people and their gods and goes with Naomi to her people and serves her God. Ruth is ultimately included in the lineage of Jesus Christ (Matt. 1:5). She is an example of grace and how believers from the Gentiles have always been able to turn to the God of Israel.