Bible Person
Meaning: the neck or skull · Female · 2 cross references
Orpah is the Moabite widow of Chilion who begins the journey with Naomi but returns to her own people when urged to do so. She stands beside Ruth in the opening crisis of the book that bears Ruth's name. First appears in Ruth 1:4.1
Name meaning
the neck or skull
Identity
female
First appears
Ruth 1:4
AI summary: Orpah matters because her cross references sharpen the contrast that defines Ruth's later path. Her decision to return is not villainous but understandable, which makes Ruth's costly commitment all the more striking. Taken together, the material presents Orpah as the realistic, sorrowful alternative in the book's opening scene of loyalty, loss, and divergent futures.1
Central Figure
Orpah
Meaning: the neck or skull
Forelock or fawn, a Moabitess, the wife of Chilion (Ruth 1:4; 4:10).
Name meaning
the neck or skull
Identity
female
Birth place
Moab
Forelock or fawn, a Moabitess, the wife of Chilion (Ruth 1:4; 4:10). On the death of her husband she accompanied Naomi, her mother-in-law, part of the way to Bethlehem, and then returned to Moab. 3
Source note: this 1893 dictionary language reflects its period and may be culturally insensitive or outdated. It is presented as historical source material, not as ai-BIBLE’s language, interpretation, or endorsement.
AI-assisted summary prepared for ai-BIBLE and stored as page content, based on dictionary material, person metadata, and linked Bible cross references.
Alistair de Blacquiere-Clarkson, “ai-BIBLE Bible Names JSON Factsheet Aggregating Material from Smith’s Bible Dictionary & Hitcocks’s New and Complete Analysis of the Bible.” ai-BIBLE electronic edition, version 1.0.
M.G.Easton, Illustrated Bible Dictionary, ai-BIBLE electronic edition, version 1.0.
Robert Rouse, “Theographic Bible Information,” Theographic-Bible-Metadata, 2020, https://github.com/robertrouse/theographic-bible-metadata.