^3 (A)“No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the Lord. Even to the tenth generation, none of them may enter the assembly of the Lord forever,

Nehemiah's Final Reforms

13 On that day ^(A)they read from the Book of Moses in the hearing of the people. And in it was found written ^(B)that no Ammonite or Moabite should ever enter the assembly of God, ² for they did not meet the people of Israel with bread and water, but hired Balaam against them to curse them—yet our God turned the curse into a blessing.

²³ In those days also I saw the Jews ^(A)who had married women ^(B)of Ashdod, ^(C)Ammon, and ^(D)Moab.

^6 (A)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.”

^7 [a] But when ^(A)Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs and the Ammonites and the Ashdodites heard that the repairing of the walls of Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed, they were very angry.

^3 (A)Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building—^(B)if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!”

¹⁰ Also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, ^(A)to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his native place. You are witnesses this day.” ¹¹ Then all the people who were ^(B)at the gate and the elders said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, ^(C)who together ^(D)built up the house of Israel. May you act worthily in ^(E)Ephrathah and ^(F)be renowned in Bethlehem, ¹² and may your house be like the house of Perez, ^(G)whom Tamar bore to Judah, because ^(H)of the offspring that the Lord will give you by this young woman.”

Ruth and Boaz Marry

¹³ So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, ^(I)and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. ^14 (J)Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without ^(K)a redeemer, and may his name ^(L)be renowned in Israel! ¹⁵ He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, ^(M)who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.” ¹⁶ Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. ^17 (N)And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.

The Genealogy of David

¹⁸ Now these are the generations of Perez: ^(O)Perez fathered Hezron, ¹⁹ Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, ^20 (P)Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, ²¹ Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed, ²² Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.