1:17a

Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried: Ruth meant that she intended to stay in Israel with Naomi’s people all her life, even after Naomi’s own death. Here are some other ways to translate this verse part:

Wherever you die, I will die, and I will be buried there with you. (God’s Word)
-or-
I will die where you die and be buried beside you. (Contemporary English Version)

1:17b

May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely: The Hebrew words are more literally “Thus may Yahweh do to me, and thus may he add.” This was a way of making an oath or a solemn promise. The word “thus” refers to the punishment that Yahweh would give the person who did not keep the oath. Many languages have a specific way to indicate that someone is taking an oath.

Here are some other ways to translate this oath:

May the Lord punish me, and do so severely, (CSB)
-or-
May the Lord ’s worst punishment come upon me (Good News Translation)
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May the Lord punish me severely if I do not keep my promise! (NET Bible)

if anything but death separates you and me: There are two ways to interpret this Hebrew sentence:

(1) It means that they will separate from each other only when one of them dies. For example:

May the Lord punish me severely if I do not keep my promise! Only death will be able to separate me from you! (NET Bible)

(2) It means that they will not be separated from each other even when they die, because they will be buried in the same place. For example:

May the Lord do so to me and more also if even death parts me from you. (Revised Standard Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). This is followed by many English versions and most commentaries.

Here are some other ways to translate this verse part:

I will stay beside you until death makes us separate. If I ever leave you, the Lord should punish me. (Easy English Bible)
-or-
May Yahweh punish me severely if I separate from you. I will be separated from you only when one of us dies. (Translation for Translators)

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