Read the Bible

¹ Now, Naomi, had an acquaintance of her husband's, a man of great integrity, of the family of Elimelech, - whose name, was Boaz.² And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi - Let me go, I pray thee, to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose eyes I may find favour. And she said to her - Go, my daughter.³ So she went her way, and came, and gleaned in the field, after the reapers, - and it happened to her, to light upon the portion of field-land belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.

⁴ And lo! Boaz coming from Bethlehem, and he said to the reapers, Yahweh, be with you! and they said to him, Yahweh bless thee!⁵ Then said Boaz to his young man, that was set over the reapers, - Whose is this maiden?⁶ And the young man that was set over the reapers answered and said, - The Moabitish maiden, is she who came back with Naomi, out of the country of Moab;⁷ and she said - Let me glean, I pray thee, and gather among the sheaves, after the reapers; so she came in, and hath continued from that time, all the morning until just now, and hath not rested in the house, for a little.⁸ And Boaz said unto Ruth - Hearest thou not, my daughter? Do not go to glean in any other field, neither indeed shalt thou pass on, from hence, - but, here, shalt thou keep fast by my maidens:⁹ thine eyes, be on the field which they shall reap, and go thou after them, Have I not commanded the young men, that they touch thee not? And, when thou art athirst, then go unto the vessels, and drink of what the young men shall draw.¹⁰ Then she fell upon her face, and bowed herself to the ground, - and said unto him - Wherefore have I found favour in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take notice of me, seeing that, I, am, a stranger?¹¹ And Boaz answered, and said to her, It hath been, told, me - all that thou hast done unto thy mother-in-law, since the death of thy husband, - and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and come unto a people whom thou knewest not, aforetime.¹² Yahweh recompense thy deed, - and let thy reward be full from Yahweh, the God of Israel, unto whom thou hast come to take refuge under his wings.¹³ And she said - Let me find favour in thine eyes, my lord, for that thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken unto the heart of thy handmaid, - though, I, be not as, one of thine own handmaidens.¹⁴ And Boaz said to her at mealtime - Draw nigh hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. So she sat beside the reapers, and there was reached to her parched corn, and she did eat and was satisfied, and left thereof remaining.¹⁵ And, when she rose up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying - Even between the sheaves, let her glean, and reproach her not;¹⁶ yea moreover, draw out, for her, from the bundles, - and leave behind that she may glean it, and rebuke her not.

¹⁷ So she gleaned in the field, until the evening, - and beat out that which she had gleaned, and there was about an ephah of barley.¹⁸ And she took it up, and came into the city, and, when her mother-in-law had seen what she had gleaned, she brought forth and gave her what had been left remaining, after that she was satisfied.¹⁹ And her mother-in-law said to her - In what place hast thou gleaned, today? and where hast thou wrought? May he that took notice of thee, be blessed! So she told her mother-in-law, with whom she had wrought, and said - The name of the man with whom I wrought today, is Boaz.²⁰ Then said Naomi, to her daughter-in-law - Blessed, be he of Yahweh, who hath not left off his lovingkindness to the living, and to the dead. And Naomi said to her - Near to us, is the man, of our own kinsmen, is he! ²¹ And Ruth the Moabitess said, - Yea for he said unto me - By my young men, shalt thou keep fast, until they have ended all my harvest.²² And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter-in-law, - Good, is it, my daughter, that thou go forth with his maidens, and that they meet thee not, in any other field.²³ So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz, to glean, until the end of the barley harvest, and the wheat harvest, - and dwelt with her mother-in-law.