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.

Warnings on the Journey to Jerusalem

21 Now it came to pass, that when we had departed from them and set sail, running a straight course we came to Cos, the following day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara. ² And finding a ship sailing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. ³ When we had sighted Cyprus, we passed it on the left, sailed to Syria, and landed at Tyre; for there the ship was to unload her cargo. ⁴ And finding ^[a]disciples, we stayed there seven days. ^(A)They told Paul through the Spirit not to go up to Jerusalem. ⁵ When we had come to the end of those days, we departed and went on our way; and they all accompanied us, with wives and children, till we were out of the city. And ^(B)we knelt down on the shore and prayed. ⁶ When we had taken our leave of one another, we boarded the ship, and they returned ^(C)home.

⁷ And when we had finished our voyage from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, greeted the brethren, and stayed with them one day. ⁸ On the next day we ^[b]who were Paul’s companions departed and came to ^(D)Caesarea, and entered the house of Philip ^(E)the evangelist, ^(F)who was one of the seven, and stayed with him. ⁹ Now this man had four virgin daughters ^(G)who prophesied. ¹⁰ And as we stayed many days, a certain prophet named ^(H)Agabus came down from Judea. ¹¹ When he had come to us, he took Paul’s belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ^(I)‘So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt, and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ”

¹² Now when we heard these things, both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem. ¹³ Then Paul answered, ^(J)“What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”

¹⁴ So when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, ^(K)“The will of the Lord be done.”

Paul Urged to Make Peace

¹⁵ And after those days we ^[c]packed and went up to Jerusalem. ¹⁶ Also some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us and brought with them a certain Mnason of Cyprus, an early disciple, with whom we were to lodge.

^17 (L)And when we had come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. ¹⁸ On the following day Paul went in with us to ^(M)James, and all the elders were present. ¹⁹ When he had greeted them, ^(N)he told in detail those things which God had done among the Gentiles ^(O)through his ministry. ²⁰ And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord. And they said to him, “You see, brother, how many myriads of Jews there are who have believed, and they are all ^(P)zealous for the law; ²¹ but they have been informed about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs. ^22 [d]What then? The assembly must certainly meet, for they will hear that you have come. ²³ Therefore do what we tell you: We have four men who have taken a vow. ²⁴ Take them and be purified with them, and pay their expenses so that they may ^(Q)shave their heads, and that all may know that those things of which they were informed concerning you are nothing, but that you yourself also walk orderly and keep the law. ²⁵ But concerning the Gentiles who believe, ^(R)we have written and decided ^[e]that they should observe no such thing, except that they should keep themselves from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from ^[f]sexual immorality.”

Arrested in the Temple

²⁶ Then Paul took the men, and the next day, having been purified with them, ^(S)entered the temple ^(T)to announce the ^[g]expiration of the days of purification, at which time an offering should be made for each one of them.