Bible Dictionary
Elimelech
Elimelech was Naomi’s husband and a man of Judah from Bethlehem. During a famine he moved with Naomi and their sons to Moab, where he and his sons died.
Definition
Elimelech, meaning “my God is king,” was a man of Judah from Bethlehem and a member of the family of the Hezronites. He was Naomi’s husband and the father of Mahlon and Chilion. During a famine he moved with his family to Moab, where he died.
Biblical Usage
Elimelech’s death in Moab left Naomi and her sons’ widows without husbands. His story forms part of the circumstances leading to Naomi’s return to Judah with Ruth.
Historical Background
He lived during the period of the Judges and possessed an hereditary holding near Bethlehem. His family spent about ten years in Moab before Naomi returned to Judah.
Scripture References
Related Figures
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
God his king, a man of the tribe of Judah, of the family of the Hezronites, and kinsman of Boaz, who dwelt in Bethlehem in the days of the judges. In consequence of a great dearth he, with his wife Naomi and his two sons, went to dwell in the land of Moab. There he and his sons died (Ruth 1:2, 3; 2:1, 3; 4:3, 9). Naomi afterwards returned to Palestine with her daughter Ruth.
Smith's Bible Dictionary
(my God is king), a man of the tribe of Judah and of the family of the Hezronites, who dwelt in Bethlehem-Ephratah in the days of the Judges. (B.C. 1312.) In consequence of a great death in the land he went with his wife, Naomi, and his two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, to dwell in Moab, where he and his sons died without posterity. (Ruth 1:2,3) etc.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>e-lim'-e-lek ('elimelekh, "my God is king"; Abeimelech, Alimelek):</p><p>Elimelech was a member of the tribe of Judah, a native of Bethlehem Judah, a man of wealth and probably head of a family or clan (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.</p><p>See RUTH; NAOMI.</p><p>J. J. Reeve</p>