Mar 25, 2018
Ruth 2:2, 4-6, 8, 10-13, 19-20; 3:1-5, 8-12; 4:1, 3-4, 6-8
Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the field and glean
among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I
shall find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” And
behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to
the reapers, “The Lord be with you!” And they answered, “The Lord
bless you.” Then Boaz said to his young man
who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?” And
the servant who was in charge of the reapers
answered, “She is the young Moabite woman, who came back with Naomi
from the country of Moab.
Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to
glean in another field or leave this one, but keep
close to my young women. Then she fell on her face, bowing to the
ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor
in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a
foreigner?” But Boaz answered her, “All that you have
done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has
been fully told to me, and how you left your father
and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did
not know before. The Lord repay you for what
you have done, and a full reward be given you by the Lord, the God
of Israel, under whose wings you have come to
take refuge!” Then she said, “I have found favor in your eyes, my
lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly
to your servant, though I am not one of your servants.”
And Naomi said to her, “Where did you glean today? And where have
you worked? Blessed be the man who took
notice of you.” So she told her with whom she had worked and said,
“The man's name with whom I worked today is
Boaz.” And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by
the Lord, whose kindness has not
forsaken the living or the dead!” Naomi also said to her, “The man
is a close relative of ours, one of our redeemers.”
Then Naomi said to her, “My daughter, should I not seek rest for
you, that it may be well with you? Is not Boaz our
relative, with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing
barley tonight at the threshing floor. Wash
therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak and go down to
the threshing floor, but do not make yourself
known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. But
when he lies down, observe the place where he lies.
Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you
what to do.” And she replied, “All that you say I will
do.”
At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a
woman lay at his feet! He said, “Who are you?”
And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over
your servant, for you are a redeemer.” And he
said, “May you be blessed by the Lord, my daughter. You have made
this last kindness greater than the first in that
you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. And now,
my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all
that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy
woman. And now it is true that I am a redeemer.
Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I.Now Boaz had gone up to the
gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had
spoken, came
by. So Boaz said, “Turn aside, friend; sit down here.” And he
turned aside and sat down. Then he said to the
redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, is
selling the parcel of land that belonged to our
relative Elimelech. So I thought I would tell you of it and say,
‘Buy it in the presence of those sitting here and in the
presence of the elders of my people.’ If you will redeem it, redeem
it. But if you will not, tell me, that I may know, for
there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after you.”
Then the redeemer said, “I cannot redeem it for
myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of
redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it.” Now this
was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and
exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one
drew off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was the
manner of attesting in Israel. So when the redeemer said
to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” he drew off his sandal.