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Ruth 2
Tree of Life Version
Ruth 2
Tree of Life Version
Gleaning in Boaz’s Field
2 Now, Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side—from Elimelech’s family—a prominent man of substance whose name was Boaz.
2 Ruth the Moabitess, said to Naomi, “Please let me go out to the field and glean grain behind anyone in whose eyes I may find favor.”
Naomi said to her, “Go ahead, my daughter.” 3 So Ruth went out and gleaned in the field behind the reapers. She just so happened to be in the field of Boaz, who was from Elimelech’s family.
4 Soon after Boaz arrived from Bethlehem, he said to the harvesters, “Adonai be with you.”
They replied, “May Adonai bless you.”
5 Then Boaz asked the foreman of his harvesters, “Whose young woman is this?”
6 “She is a Moabite woman who came back with Naomi from the region of Moab,” the foreman replied. 7 “She asked ‘Please allow me to glean and gather among the barley sheaves behind the harvesters.’ So she came and has been working in the field since morning until now, except for a little while in the shelter.”
8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen to me, my daughter. Do not go to glean in another field or even pass on from here, but stay close to my female workers. 9 Keep your eyes on the field that they are harvesting, and follow after them. I strongly ordered the young men not to touch you. When you are thirsty, you can go to the jars and drink from the water the young men have drawn.”
10 Then she fell upon her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your eyes that you have noticed me, even though I am a foreigner?”
11 Boaz replied and said to her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law since your husband’s death has been fully reported to me—how you left your father and mother and the land of your birth, and came to a people you did not know before. 12 May Adonai repay you for what you have done, and may you be fully rewarded by Adonai, God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”
13 She said, “May I continue to find favor in your eyes, my lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your maidservant, even though I am not one of your maidservants.”
14 At mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come over here and eat some bread and dip your piece into the wine vinegar.” So she sat beside the harvesters and he held out to her roasted grain. She ate until she was full, and some was still left. 15 When she got up to glean, Boaz gave orders to his workers saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, do not humiliate her. 16 Also be sure to pull out some grain for her from the sheaves and leave them for her to pick up, and do not rebuke her.”
17 So she gleaned in the field until evening. When she thrashed what she had gathered, there was about an ephah of barley. 18 She carried it back to town, where her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. Ruth took some out and gave her what was left over after eating her fill.
19 Her mother-in-law asked her, “Where did you glean today? Where did you work? May the one who noticed you be blessed!”
She told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked and she said, “The name of the man for whom I worked is Boaz.”
20 So Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by Adonai who has not stopped his kindness to the living or to the dead.” Then Naomi said to her, “This man is closely related to us, one of our kinsmen-redeemers.”[a]
21 Then Ruth the Moabitess said, “He even said to me, ‘Stay close to my workers until they have finished the entire harvest.’”
22 Naomi answered her daughter-in-law Ruth, “It is good, my daughter-in-law, that you go out with his female workers, so that you will not be harmed in another field.”
23 So she stayed close to Boaz’s female workers, gleaning until both the barley harvest and the wheat harvest were completed. Meanwhile she lived with her mother-in-law.
Footnotes
- Ruth 2:20 Heb. Goel; Matt. 22:24.
Ruth 2
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Ruth 2
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 2
The Meeting. 1 [a]Naomi had a powerful relative named Boaz,(A) through the clan of her husband Elimelech. 2 [b]Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “I would like to go and glean grain in the field of anyone who will allow me.” Naomi said to her, “Go ahead, my daughter.” 3 So she went. The field she entered to glean after the harvesters happened to be the section belonging to Boaz, of the clan of Elimelech. 4 [c]Soon, along came Boaz from Bethlehem and said to the harvesters, “The Lord be with you,” and they replied, “The Lord bless you.” 5 Boaz asked the young man overseeing his harvesters, “Whose young woman is this?” 6 The young man overseeing the harvesters answered, “She is the young Moabite who came back with Naomi from the plateau of Moab.(B) 7 [d]She said, ‘I would like to gather the gleanings into sheaves after the harvesters.’ Ever since she came this morning she has remained here until now, with scarcely a moment’s rest.”
8 Boaz then spoke to Ruth, “Listen, my daughter. Do not go to glean in anyone else’s field; you are not to leave here. Stay here with my young women. 9 Watch to see which field is to be harvested, and follow them. Have I not commanded the young men to do you no harm? When you are thirsty, go and drink from the vessels the young people have filled.” 10 Casting herself prostrate upon the ground, she said to him, “Why should I, a foreigner, be favored with your attention?” 11 (C)Boaz answered her: “I have had a complete account of what you have done for your mother-in-law after your husband’s death; you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom previously you did not know. 12 (D)May the Lord reward what you have done! May you receive a full reward from the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge.” 13 She said, “May I prove worthy of your favor, my lord. You have comforted me. You have spoken to the heart of your servant[e]—and I am not even one of your servants!” 14 At mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here and have something to eat; dip your bread in the sauce.” Then as she sat near the harvesters, he handed her some roasted grain and she ate her fill and had some left over. 15 As she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young people: “Let her glean among the sheaves themselves without scolding her, 16 and even drop some handfuls and leave them for her to glean; do not rebuke her.”
17 She gleaned in the field until evening, and when she beat out what she had gleaned it came to about an ephah[f] of barley, 18 which she took into the town and showed to her mother-in-law. Next she brought out what she had left over from the meal and gave it to her. 19 So her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today? Where did you go to work? May the one who took notice of you be blessed!” Then she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked. “The man at whose place I worked today is named Boaz,” she said. 20 (E)“May he be blessed by the Lord, who never fails to show kindness to the living and to the dead,” Naomi exclaimed to her daughter-in-law. She continued, “This man is a near relative of ours, one of our redeemers.”[g] 21 “He even told me,” added Ruth the Moabite, “Stay with my young people until they complete my entire harvest.” 22 “You would do well, my daughter,” Naomi rejoined, “to work with his young women; in someone else’s field you might be insulted.” 23 So she stayed gleaning with Boaz’s young women until the end of the barley and wheat harvests.
Footnotes
- 2:1 Kinship ties and responsibilities now become very important. Boaz is introduced as one of a group surrounding Naomi through her husband’s kin who are expected to extend care. The particular term used here (moda‘, “relative”) is picked up in 3:2; otherwise, most of the terminology about this responsibility to care will use the vocabulary of redeeming (go’el, “redeemer”).
- 2:2 Israelite custom made provision for the poor, the widow, the stranger and the orphan to gather what was left behind by the harvesters, and instructed farmers not to cut to the edges of their fields, for the sake of these marginalized; Lv 19:9–10; 23:22; Dt 24:19–22.
- 2:4 The story brings Boaz upon the scene quickly, but he moves among his workers with the grace of a man of prominence, greeting them and being received with courtesy. The Hebrew blessing formulas used are frequent in Jewish and Christian liturgies.
- 2:7 The verse is somewhat garbled, but the points are clear that Ruth has been appropriately deferential in seeking permission to glean, and has worked steadily since arriving. Or perhaps she has waited patiently until Boaz arrives to gain permission.
- 2:13 Servant: only here is the language of servanthood used. Ruth has spoken with very deferential words to Boaz, but then seems to think that she has assumed too much.
- 2:17 Ephah: see note on Is 5:10.
- 2:20 For the first time, the story uses the Hebrew word go’el, “redeemer,” for the responsibilities of the circle of kinship surrounding Naomi and Ruth and their deceased relatives. Involved are the recovery or retention of family land (Lv 25:25; 27:9–33; Jer 32:6–25), release of a relative from voluntary servitude to pay debts (Lv 25:47–55), and “redeeming blood” or vengeance, attested in passages which regulate such vengeance. No explicit connection is made elsewhere in the Bible between marriage responsibilities and redeeming.
Ruth 2
New International Version
Ruth 2
New International Version
Ruth Meets Boaz in the Grain Field
2 Now Naomi had a relative(A) on her husband’s side, a man of standing(B) from the clan of Elimelek,(C) whose name was Boaz.(D)
2 And Ruth the Moabite(E) said to Naomi, “Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain(F) behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor.(G)”
Naomi said to her, “Go ahead, my daughter.” 3 So she went out, entered a field and began to glean behind the harvesters.(H) As it turned out, she was working in a field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelek.(I)
4 Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters, “The Lord be with you!(J)”
“The Lord bless you!(K)” they answered.
5 Boaz asked the overseer of his harvesters, “Who does that young woman belong to?”
6 The overseer replied, “She is the Moabite(L) who came back from Moab with Naomi. 7 She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves(M) behind the harvesters.’ She came into the field and has remained here from morning till now, except for a short rest(N) in the shelter.”
8 So Boaz said to Ruth, “My daughter, listen to me. Don’t go and glean in another field and don’t go away from here. Stay here with the women who work for me. 9 Watch the field where the men are harvesting, and follow along after the women. I have told the men not to lay a hand on you. And whenever you are thirsty, go and get a drink from the water jars the men have filled.”
10 At this, she bowed down with her face to the ground.(O) She asked him, “Why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me(P)—a foreigner?(Q)”
11 Boaz replied, “I’ve been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law(R) since the death of your husband(S)—how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know(T) before.(U) 12 May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord,(V) the God of Israel,(W) under whose wings(X) you have come to take refuge.(Y)”
13 “May I continue to find favor in your eyes,(Z) my lord,” she said. “You have put me at ease by speaking kindly to your servant—though I do not have the standing of one of your servants.”
14 At mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come over here. Have some bread(AA) and dip it in the wine vinegar.”
When she sat down with the harvesters,(AB) he offered her some roasted grain.(AC) She ate all she wanted and had some left over.(AD) 15 As she got up to glean, Boaz gave orders to his men, “Let her gather among the sheaves(AE) and don’t reprimand her. 16 Even pull out some stalks for her from the bundles and leave them for her to pick up, and don’t rebuke(AF) her.”
17 So Ruth gleaned in the field until evening. Then she threshed(AG) the barley she had gathered, and it amounted to about an ephah.[a](AH) 18 She carried it back to town, and her mother-in-law saw how much she had gathered. Ruth also brought out and gave her what she had left over(AI) after she had eaten enough.
19 Her mother-in-law asked her, “Where did you glean today? Where did you work? Blessed be the man who took notice of you!(AJ)”
Then Ruth told her mother-in-law about the one at whose place she had been working. “The name of the man I worked with today is Boaz,” she said.
20 “The Lord bless him!(AK)” Naomi said to her daughter-in-law.(AL) “He has not stopped showing his kindness(AM) to the living and the dead.” She added, “That man is our close relative;(AN) he is one of our guardian-redeemers.[b](AO)”
21 Then Ruth the Moabite(AP) said, “He even said to me, ‘Stay with my workers until they finish harvesting all my grain.’”
22 Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, “It will be good for you, my daughter, to go with the women who work for him, because in someone else’s field you might be harmed.”
23 So Ruth stayed close to the women of Boaz to glean until the barley(AQ) and wheat harvests(AR) were finished. And she lived with her mother-in-law.
Ruth 2
New King James Version
Ruth 2
New King James Version
Ruth Meets Boaz
2 There was a (A)relative of Naomi’s husband, a man of great wealth, of the family of (B)Elimelech. His name was (C)Boaz. 2 So Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the (D)field, and glean heads of grain after him in whose sight I may find favor.”
And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.”
3 Then she left, and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.
4 Now behold, Boaz came from (E)Bethlehem, and said to the reapers, (F)“The Lord be with you!”
And they answered him, “The Lord bless you!”
5 Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?”
6 So the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered and said, “It is the young Moabite woman (G)who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. 7 And she said, ‘Please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ So she came and has continued from morning until now, though she rested a little in the house.”
8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, “You will listen, my daughter, will you not? Do not go to glean in another field, nor go from here, but stay close by my young women. 9 Let your eyes be on the field which they reap, and go after them. Have I not commanded the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink from what the young men have drawn.”
10 So she (H)fell on her face, bowed down to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found (I)favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?”
11 And Boaz answered and said to her, “It has been fully reported to me, (J)all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know before. 12 (K)The Lord repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, (L)under whose wings you have come for refuge.”
13 Then she said, (M)“Let me find favor in your sight, my lord; for you have comforted me, and have spoken [a]kindly to your maidservant, (N)though I am not like one of your maidservants.”
14 Now Boaz said to her at mealtime, “Come here, and eat of the bread, and dip your piece of bread in the vinegar.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed parched grain to her; and she ate and (O)was satisfied, and kept some back. 15 And when she rose up to [b]glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not [c]reproach her. 16 Also let grain from the bundles fall purposely for her; leave it that she may glean, and do not rebuke her.”
17 So she gleaned in the field until evening, and beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of (P)barley. 18 Then she took it up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. So she brought out and gave to her (Q)what she had kept back after she had been satisfied.
19 And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where have you gleaned today? And where did you work? Blessed be the one who (R)took notice of you.”
So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.”
20 Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, (S)“Blessed be he of the Lord, who (T)has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!” And Naomi said to her, “This man is a relation of ours, (U)one of [d]our close relatives.”
21 Ruth the Moabitess said, “He also said to me, ‘You shall stay close by my young men until they have finished all my harvest.’ ”
22 And Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, “It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, and that people do not [e]meet you in any other field.” 23 So she stayed close by the young women of Boaz, to glean until the end of barley harvest and wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law.
Tree of Life Version (TLV)
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.