Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Psalm 94

¹⁴ So she lay at his feet until morning. Then she got up before one person could recognize another, for he had said, “No one should know that the woman came to the threshing floor.” ¹⁵ He said, “Bring the cloak that you have on and hold it out.” She held it out, and he measured out six measures of barley and placed it upon her. Then she^[a] went into town.

¹⁶ She came to her mother-in-law, who said, “How are you, my daughter?”

So Ruth told her everything the man had done for her. ¹⁷ She said, “He gave me these six measures of barley, for he said to me, ‘Don’t go away empty-handed to your mother-in-law.’”

¹⁸ “Sit tight, my daughter,” Naomi replied, “until you know how it turns out. The man won’t rest until he resolves the matter today.”

A new family brings fulfillment

4 Meanwhile, Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there. Just then, the redeemer about whom Boaz had spoken was passing by. He said, “Sir, come over here and sit down.” So he turned aside and sat down. ² Then he took ten men from the town’s elders and said, “Sit down here.” And they sat down.

³ Boaz said to the redeemer, “Naomi, who has returned from the field of Moab, is selling the portion of the field that belonged to our brother Elimelech. ⁴ I thought that I should let you know 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^[b] won’t redeem it, tell me so that I may know. There isn’t anyone to redeem it except you, and I’m next in line after you.”

He replied, “I will redeem it.”

⁵ Then Boaz said, “On the day when you buy the field from Naomi, you also buy^[c] Ruth the Moabite, the wife of the dead man, in order to preserve the dead man’s name for his inheritance.”

⁶ But the redeemer replied, “Then I can’t redeem it for myself, without risking damage to my own inheritance. Redeem it for yourself. You can have my right of redemption, because I’m unable to act as redeemer.”

⁹ Put a widow on the list who is older than 60 years old and who was faithful to her husband. ¹⁰ She should have a reputation for doing good: raising children, providing hospitality to strangers, washing the feet of the saints, helping those in distress, and dedicating herself to every kind of good thing. ¹¹ But don’t accept younger widows for the list. When their physical desires distract them from Christ, they will want to get married. ¹² Then they will be judged for setting aside their earlier commitment. ¹³ Also, they learn to be lazy by going from house to house. They are not only lazy, but they also become gossips and busybodies, talking about things they shouldn’t. ¹⁴ So I want younger widows to marry, have children, and manage their homes so that they won’t give the enemy any reason to slander us. (¹⁵ Some have already turned away to follow Satan.) ¹⁶ If any woman who is a believer has widows in her family, she should take care of them and not burden the church, so that it can help other widows who are truly needy.