Chilion

Biblical Account

Chilion is mentioned three times in the Book of Ruth. In the days when the judges ruled (the period of the judges), a famine came upon the land of Judah (Ruth 1:1). Elimelech, an Ephrathite of Bethlehem, then took his wife Naomi and his two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, and went to sojourn in the country of Moab (Ruth 1:2).

After Elimelech died, the two sons married Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, both Mahlon and Chilion died, and Naomi alone was left (Ruth 1:3–5). The text does not say what caused their deaths.

Ruth 1:4 does not specify which daughter-in-law was married to which son. However, because Ruth 4:10 calls Ruth "the wife of Mahlon," Orpah is generally taken to have been Chilion's wife. Orpah heeded Naomi's urging and returned to her own people (Ruth 1:14–15).

Near the end of the story, Boaz calls on the elders and the people at the city gate as witnesses and declares that he has bought "all that was Elimelech's, and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's, of the hand of Naomi" (Ruth 4:9).

Significance Within Scripture

Chilion never speaks or acts on his own in the narrative. He is a background figure whose death contributes to the circumstances in which Naomi loses both her husband and her two sons and is left empty (Ruth 1:21).

His name reappears in the redemption scene of Ruth 4, which shows that Boaz, as kinsman-redeemer, redeems the inheritance of Elimelech's entire household. A kinsman-redeemer was a close relative who bought back a kinsman's land and assumed responsibility for it so that the family's property or name would not be cut off.

The New Testament does not mention Chilion. Although Boaz and Ruth appear in the genealogy in Matthew 1:5, Chilion does not.

Interpretations and Issues

• Meaning of the name: Chilion's name is commonly interpreted as "wasting" or "consumption (coming to an end)," and Mahlon's as "sickliness." For this reason, some interpreters read the names as foreshadowing the brothers' early deaths. Scholars differ, however, on the etymologies.
• Migration to Moab and death: Some Jewish traditions, including rabbinic literature, have interpreted their deaths as a consequence of leaving the Promised Land and marrying foreign women. Similar moralizing interpretations often appear in Protestant preaching as well. Other scholars, however, regard this as an interpretation brought in from outside the text, noting that the text itself does not directly evaluate either the migration or the marriages.
• Connection with 1 Chronicles: Jewish tradition reportedly includes an interpretation identifying Mahlon and Chilion with Joash and Saraph, who appear in 1 Chronicles 4:22. The biblical text, however, does not directly support this identification.

In the Korean Church

Chilion is rarely the sole subject of a sermon. He is mentioned mainly as a background figure in expository preaching on Ruth, in sermons on the story of Ruth and Naomi, and in Sunday school lessons. Both the Korean Revised Version and the New Korean Revised Version render his name as "Giryon."