Ruth and Boaz at the Threshing Floor

3 Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, should I not seek ^(A)rest for you, that it may be well with you? ² Is not Boaz ^(B)our relative, ^(C)with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. ^3 (D)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. ⁴ 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.” ⁵ And she replied, “All that you say I will do.”

⁶ So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had commanded her. ⁷ And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and ^(E)his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came softly and uncovered his feet and lay down. ⁸ At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet! ⁹ He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. ^(F)Spread your wings^[a] over your servant, for you are ^(G)a redeemer.” ¹⁰ And he said, ^(H)“May you be blessed by the Lord, my daughter. You have made this last kindness greater than ^(I)the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. ¹¹ 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 ^(J)a worthy woman. ¹² And now it is true that I am ^(K)a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I. ¹³ Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will ^(L)redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, ^(M)as the Lord lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning.”

¹⁴ So she lay at his feet until the morning, but arose before one could recognize another. And he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” ¹⁵ And he said, “Bring the garment you are wearing and hold it out.” So she held it, and he measured out six measures of barley and put it on her. Then she went into the city. ¹⁶ And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did you fare, my daughter?” Then she told her all that the man had done for her, ¹⁷ saying, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said to me, ‘You must not go back empty-handed to your mother-in-law.’” ¹⁸ She replied, “Wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out, for the man will not rest but will settle the matter today.”

Boaz Redeems Ruth

4 Now Boaz had gone up to ^(N)the gate and sat down there. And behold, ^(O)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. ² And he took ten men ^(P)of the elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down. ³ 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. ⁴ So I thought I would tell you of it and say, ^(Q)‘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^[b] will not, tell me, that I may know, for there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after you.” And he said, “I will redeem it.” ⁵ Then Boaz said, “The day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth^[c] the Moabite, the widow of the dead, in order ^(R)to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance.” ^6 (S)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 (T)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. ⁸ So when the redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” he drew off his sandal. ⁹ Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses this day that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to ^(U)Chilion and to Mahlon. ¹⁰ Also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, ^(V)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 ^(W)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, ^(X)who together ^(Y)built up the house of Israel. May you act worthily in ^(Z)Ephrathah and ^(AA)be renowned in Bethlehem, ¹² and may your house be like the house of Perez, ^(AB)whom Tamar bore to Judah, because ^(AC)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, ^(AD)and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. ^14 (AE)Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without ^(AF)a redeemer, and may his name ^(AG)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, ^(AH)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 (AI)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: ^(AJ)Perez fathered Hezron, ¹⁹ Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, ^20 (AK)Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, ²¹ Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed, ²² Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.

I Am the True Vine

15 “I am the ^(A)true vine, and my Father is ^(B)the vinedresser. ^2 (C)Every branch in me that does not bear fruit ^(D)he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, ^(E)that it may bear more fruit. ³ Already ^(F)you are clean ^(G)because of the word that I have spoken to you. ^4 (H)Abide ^(I)in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. ⁵ I am the vine; ^(J)you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that ^(K)bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ If anyone does not abide in me, ^(L)he is thrown away like a branch and withers; ^(M)and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. ⁷ If ^(N)you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ^(O)ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ^8 (P)By this my Father is glorified, that you ^(Q)bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. ^9 (R)As the Father has loved me, ^(S)so have I loved you. Abide in my love. ^10 (T)If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as ^(U)I have kept ^(V)my Father's commandments and abide in his love. ¹¹ These things I have spoken to you, ^(W)that my joy may be in you, and that ^(X)your joy may be full.

^12 (Y)“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ^13 (Z)Greater love has no one than this, ^(AA)that someone lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴ You are ^(AB)my friends ^(AC)if you do what I command you. ^15 (AD)No longer do I call you servants,^[a] for the servant ^(AE)does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for ^(AF)all that I have heard from my Father ^(AG)I have made known to you. ¹⁶ You did not choose me, but ^(AH)I chose you and appointed you that you should go and ^(AI)bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that ^(AJ)whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. ¹⁷ These things I command you, ^(AK)so that you will love one another.

The Hatred of the World

^18 (AL)“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. ^19 (AM)If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because ^(AN)you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. ²⁰ Remember the word that I said to you: ^(AO)‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, ^(AP)they will also persecute you. ^(AQ)If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. ²¹ But ^(AR)all these things they will do to you ^(AS)on account of my name, ^(AT)because they do not know him who sent me. ²² If I had not come and spoken to them, ^(AU)they would not have been guilty of sin,^[b] but now they have no excuse for their sin. ^23 (AV)Whoever hates me hates my Father also. ^24 (AW)If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, ^(AX)they would not be guilty of sin, but now they have ^(AY)seen and hated both me and my Father. ²⁵ But ^(AZ)the word that is written in their Law must be fulfilled: ^(BA)‘They hated me without a cause.’

²⁶ “But ^(BB)when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, ^(BC)he will bear witness about me. ²⁷ And ^(BD)you also will bear witness, ^(BE)because you have been with me ^(BF)from the beginning.