RUTH

1

1 And it came to pass when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land: and a man went from Bethleem Juda to sojourn in the land of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. 2 And the man’s name was Elimelech, and his wife’s name Noemin, and the names of his two sons Maalon and Chelaion, Ephrathites of Bethleem of Juda: and they came to the land of Moab, and remained there. 3 And Elimelech the husband of Noemin died; and she was left, and her two sons. 4 And they took to themselves wives, women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpha, and the name of the second Ruth; and they lived there about ten years. 5 And both Maalon and Chelaion died also; and the woman was left of her husband and her two sons. 6 And she rose up and her two daughters-in-law, and they returned out of the country of Moab, for she heard in the country of Moab that the Lord had visited his people to give them bread. 7 And she went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her: and they went by the way to return to the land of Juda. 8 And Noemin said to her daughter-in-law, Go now, return each to the house of her mother: the Lord deal mercifully with you, as you⌃ have dealt with the dead, and with me. 9 The Lord grant you that you⌃ may find rest each of you in the house of her husband: and she kissed them; and they lifted up their voice, and wept. 10 And they said to her, We will return with you to your people. 11 And Noemin said, Return now, my daughters; and why do you⌃ go with me? have I yet sons in my womb to be your husbands? 12 Turn now, my daughters, for I am too old to be married: for I said, Suppose I were married, and should bear sons; 13 would you⌃ wait for them till they should be grown? or would you⌃ refrain from being married for their sakes? Not so, my daughters; for I am grieved for you, that the hand of the Lord has gone forth against me. 14 And they lifted up their voice, and wept again; and Orpha kissed her mother-in-law and returned to her people; but Ruth followed her. 15 And Noemin said to Ruth, Behold, your sister-in-law has returned to her people and to her gods; turn now you also after your sister-in-law. 16 And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave you, or to return from following you; for wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God. 17 And wherever you die, I will die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if I leave you , for death only shall divide between me and you. 18 And Noemin seeing that she was determined to go with her, ceased to speak to her any more. 19 And they went both of them until they came to Bethleem: and it came to pass, when they arrived at Bethleem, that all the city rang with them, and they said, Is this Noemin? 20 And she said to them, Nay, do not call me Noemin; call me ’Bitter,’ for the Mighty One has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went out full, and the Lord has brought me back empty: and why call you⌃ me Noemin, whereas the Lord has humbled me and the Mighty One has afflicted me? 22 So Noemin and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, returned from the country of Moab; and they came to Bethleem in the beginning of barley harvest.

2

1 And Noemin had a friend an acquaintance of her husband, and the man was a mighty man of the kindred of Elimelech, and his name was Booz. 2 And Ruth the Moabitess said to Noemin, Let me go now to the field, and I will glean among the ears behind the man with whoever I shall find favor: and she said to her, Go, daughter. 3 And she went; and came and gleaned in the field behind the reapers; and she happened by chance to come on a portion of the land of Booz, of the kindred of Elimelech. 4 And, behold, Booz came from Bethleem, and said to the reapers, The Lord be with you: and they said to him, The Lord bless you. 5 And Booz said to his servant who was set over the reapers, Whose is this damsel? 6 And his servant who was set over the reapers answered and said, It is the Moabitish damsel who returned with Noemin out of the land of Moab. 7 And she said, I pray you, let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers: and she came and stood from morning till evening, and rested not even a little in the field. 8 And Booz said to Ruth, Hast you not heard, my daughter? go not to glean in another field; and depart not you hence, join yourself here with my damsels. 9 Let your eyes be on the field where my men shall reap, and you shall go after them: behold, I have charged the young men not to touch you: and when you shall thirst, then you shall go to the vessels, and drink of that which the young men shall have drawn. 10 And she fell upon her face, and did reverence to the ground, and said to him, How is it that I have found grace in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, whereas I am a stranger? 11 And Booz answered and said to her, It has fully been told me how you have dealt with your mother-in-law after the death of your husband; and how you did leave your father and your mother, and the land of your birth, and came to a people whom you knew not before. 12 The Lord recompense your work; may a full reward be given you of the Lord God of Israel, to whom you have come to trust under his wings. 13 And she said, Let me find grace in your sight, my lord, because you have comforted me, and because you have spoken kindly to your handmaid, and behold, I shall be as one of your servants. 14 And Booz said to her, Now it is time to eat; come here, and you shall eat of the bread, and you shall dip your morsel in the vinegar: and Ruth sat by the side of the reapers: and Booz handed her meal, and she ate, and was satisfied, and left. 15 And she rose up to glean; and Booz charged his young men, saying, Let her even glean among the sheaves, and reproach her not. 16 And do you⌃ by all means carry it for her, and you⌃ shall surely let fall for her some of that which is heaped up; and let her eat, and glean, and rebuke her not. 17 So she gleaned in the field till evening, and beat out that she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barely. 18 And she took it up, and went into the city: and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned, and Ruth brought forth and gave to her the food which she had left from what she had been satisfied with. 19 And her mother-in-law said to her, Where have you gleaned today, and where have you wrought? blessed be he that took notice of you. And Ruth told her mother-in-law where she had wrought, and said, The name of the man with whom I wrought today is Booz. 20 And Noemin said to her daughter-in-law, Blessed is he of the Lord, because he has not failed in his mercy with the living and with the dead: and Noemin said to her, The man is near akin to us, he is one of our relations. 21 And Ruth said to her mother-in-law, Yes, he said also to me, Keep close to my damsels, until the men shall have finished all my reaping. 22 And Noemin said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, It is well, daughter, that you went out with his damsels; thus they shall not meet you in another field. 23 And Ruth joined herself to the damsels of Booz to glean until they had finished the barley harvest and the wheat harvest.

3

1 And she lodged with her mother-in-law: and Noemin her mother-in-law said to her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for you, that it may be well with you? 2 And now is not Booz our kinsman, with whose damsels you were? behold, he winnows barley this night in the floor. 3 But do you wash, and anoint yourself, and put your raiment upon you, and go up to the threshing floor: do not discover yourself to the man until he has done eating and drinking. 4 And it shall come to pass when he lies down, that you shall mark the place where he lies down, and shall come and lift up the covering of his feet, and shall lie down; and he shall tell you what you shall do. 5 And Ruth said to her, All that you shall say, I will do. 6 And she went down to the threshing floor, and did according to all that her mother-in-law enjoined her. 7 And Booz ate and drank, and his heart was glad, and he came to lie down by the side of the heap of corn; and she came secretly, and lifted up the covering of his feet. 8 And it came to pass at midnight that the man was amazed, and troubled, and behold, a woman lay at his feet. 9 And he said, Who are you? and she said, I am your handmaid Ruth; spread therefore your skirt over your handmaid, for you are a near relation. 10 And Booz said, Blessed be you of the Lord God, my daughter, for you have made your latter kindness greater than the former, in that you follow not after young men, whether any be poor or rich. 11 And now fear not, my daughter, whatever you shall say I will do to you; for all the tribe of my people knows that you are a virtuous woman. 12 And now I am truly akin to you; nevertheless there is a kinsman nearer than I. 13 Lodge here for the night, and it shall be in the morning, if he will do the part of a kinsman to you, well—let him do it: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to you, I will do the kinsman’s part to you, as the Lord lives; lie down till the morning. 14 And she lay at his feet until the morning; and she rose up before a man could know his neighbor; and Booz said, Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor. 15 And he said to her, Bring the apron that is upon you: and she held it, and he measured six measures of barley, and put them upon her, and she went into the city. 16 And Ruth went in to her mother-in-law, and she said to her, My daughter! and Ruth told her all that the man had done to her. 17 And she said to her, He gave me these six measures of barley, for he said to me, Go not empty to your mother-in-law. 18 And she said, Sit still, my daughter, until you shall know how the matter will fall out; for the man will not rest until the matter be accomplished this day.

4

1 And Booz went up to the gate, and sat there; and behold, the relative passed by, of whom Booz spoke: and Booz said to him, Turn aside, sit down here, such a one: and he turned aside and sat down. 2 And Booz took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, Sit you⌃ here; and they sat down. 3 And Booz said to the relative, The matter regards the portion of the field which was our brother Elimelech’s which was given to Noemin, now returning out of the land of Moab; 4 and I said, I will inform you, saying, Buy it before those that sit, and before the elders of my people: if you will redeem it, redeem it, but if you will not redeem it, tell me, and I shall know; for there is no one beside you to do the office of a kinsman, and I am after you: and he said, I am here , I will redeem it. 5 And Booz said, In the day of your buying the field of the hand of Noemin and of Ruth the Moabitess the wife of the deceased, you must also buy her, so as to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance. 6 And the kinsman said, I shall not be able to redeem it for myself, lest I mar my own inheritance; do you redeem my right for yourself, for I shall not be able to redeem it . 7 And this was in former time the ordinance in Israel for redemption, and for a bargain, to confirm every word: A man loosed his shoe, and gave it to his neighbor that redeemed his right; and this was a testimony in Israel. 8 And the kinsman said to Booz, Buy my right for yourself: and he took off his shoe and gave it to him. 9 And Booz said to the elders and to all the people, You⌃ are this day witnesses, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that belonged to Chelaion and Maalon, of the hand of Noemin. 10 Moreover I have bought for myself for a wife Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Maalon, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance; so the name of the dead shall not be destroyed from among his brethren, and from the tribe of his people: you⌃ are this day witnesses. 11 And all the people who were in the gate said, We are witnesses: and the elders said, The Lord make your wife who goes into your house, as Rachel and as Lia, who both together built the house of Israel, and wrought mightily in Ephratha, and there shall be a name to you in Bethleem. 12 And let your house be as the house of Phares, whom Thamar bore to Juda, of the seed which the Lord shall give you of this handmaid. 13 And Booz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her; and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. 14 And the woman said to Noemin, Blessed is the Lord, who has not suffered a redeemer to fail you this day, even to make your name famous in Israel. 15 And he shall be to you a restorer of your soul, and one to cherish your old age; for your daughter-in-law which has loved you, who is better to you than seven sons, has born him. 16 And Noemin took the child and laid it in her bosom, and became a nurse to it. 17 And the neighbors gave it a name, saying, A son has been born to Noemin; and they called his name Obed; this is the father of Jessae the father of David. 18 And these are the generations of Phares: Phares begot Esrom: 19 Esrom begot Aram; and Aram begot Aminadab. 20 And Aminadab begot Naasson; and Naasson begot Salmon. 21 And Salmon begot Booz; and Booz begot Obed. 22 And Obed begot Jessae; and Jessae begot David.