Ruth 2

1 Now Naomi [a woman of faith] had a relative [kinsman, family member] on her husband’s side, a prominent [mighty, influential] man of noble [strong, virtuous] character from the clan [family, tribe] of Elimelech [my God is king], whose name [identity, reputation] was Boaz [strength, support]. word study 2 And Ruth [the Moabite woman, from a foreign land] the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please [I pray, if it pleases you] let me go into the fields [to gather, to harvest] and glean [to gather leftover crops, to collect] heads of grain [shibboleth, ears of corn] after someone [a landowner, a master] in whose sight [in whose eyes, with whom I may find favor] I may find [discover, attain] favor [graciousness, kindness].” “Go ahead [go, walk], my daughter [child, beloved one],” Naomi replied. word study 3 So Ruth departed [went out, left] and went out into the field [a flat area of land used for cultivation] and gleaned [gathered, picked up] after the harvesters [reapers, those who cut down grain]. And she happened [came by chance, met with] to come to the part [portion, share] of the field belonging to Boaz [a relative of Elimelech, a pillar of strength], who was from the clan [family, tribe] of Elimelech [my God is king]. word study 4 Just then [behold, look] Boaz arrived from [the house of bread] Bethlehem and said to the harvesters [reapers, those gathering grain], “The LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] be with you [together, in fellowship].” “The LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God] bless you [to praise, honor, or bestow good upon],” they replied. word study 5 And Boaz [the ancestor of King David] asked the foreman [overseer, one in charge] of his harvesters [reapers, those who cut down grain], “Whose [to whom does she belong, whose daughter is she] young woman [maiden, a young unmarried woman] is this [the one standing before us]?” word study 6 The foreman [servant in charge, overseer] answered, “She is the Moabitess [a young Moabite woman, from the land of Moab] who returned [came back, turned back] with Naomi [an Israelite woman, her mother-in-law] from the land [country, territory] of Moab [a region descended from Lot]. word study 7 She has said, ‘Please [I pray you, kindly] let me glean [gather, collect] and gather [pick up, harvest] among the sheaves [bundles of grain] after the harvesters [reapers, those who cut the grain].’ So she came out and has continued [remained, persisted] from morning [the break of day, dawn] until now, except that she rested [sat, dwelled] a short time [a little while, briefly] in the shelter [house, dwelling place].” word study 8 Then Boaz [the ancestor of King David] said to Ruth, “Listen [hear and obey, give ear to me], my daughter [a female child, a woman under my care]. Do not [absolutely not, under no circumstances] go and glean [to gather, to pick up leftover crops] in another [different, next] field, and do not [by no means] go away from this [specific] place, but stay [remain, abide] here [in this location, at this time] close to my servant girls [my maidens, young women under my care]. word study 9 Let your eyes [the windows of your soul, sources of perception] be on the field [the land, a place of cultivation] they are harvesting [reaping, gathering in], and follow along after these girls [the servant girls, female workers]. Indeed, I have ordered [commanded, given charge to] the young men [the youths, male servants] not to touch [harm, molest] you. And when you are thirsty [in need of spiritual or physical refreshment], go and drink from the jars [vessels, containers] the young men [the servants, workers] have filled [drawn water into, provided].” word study 10 At this, she fell [prostrate] on her face, bowing [in reverence, worshipfully] low to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found [discovered, attained] such favor [grace, kindness] in your eyes [sight, gaze] that you should take notice [recognize, acknowledge] of me, even though I am a [foreign, alien] foreigner [stranger, non-native]?” word study 11 Boaz replied, “I have been made fully aware [thoroughly informed, completely told] of all you have done [shown kindness, demonstrated loyalty] for your mother-in-law [the wife of your late husband’s father] since the death [passing away, departure] of your husband, how you left [abandoned, forsook] your father and mother [your family, relatives] and the land of your birth [native country, place of origin], and how you came [traveled, migrated] to a people [nation, community] you did not know [were unfamiliar with, had no prior relationship with] before [previously, in the past]. word study 12 May the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] repay your work [labor, deeds], and may you receive a rich [full, complete] reward from the LORD, the God [Elohim, the supreme God] of Israel [the descendants of Jacob], under whose wings you have taken refuge [sought safety, trusted].” word study 13 “My lord [master, sovereign],” she said, “may I continue to find [discover, attain] favor [graciousness, kindness] in your eyes [sight, gaze], for you have comforted [consoled, reassured] and spoken kindly [with gentle words, friendly] to your maidservant [female servant, handmaid], though I am not like [not comparable to] one of your servant girls [maids, handmaidens].” word study 14 At mealtime [when it was time to eat] Boaz said to her, “Come over here [hither, to this place]; have some bread [food, a meal] and dip it into the vinegar sauce [vinegar, a sour liquid].” So she sat down [to dwell, to remain] beside the harvesters [reapers, those gathering grain], and he offered her roasted grain [parched corn, a tasty snack], and she ate [to eat, devour] and was satisfied [to fill, to have enough] and had some left over [to remain, to have more than enough]. word study 15 When Ruth got up [rose to her feet, stood up to glean] to glean [gather leftover crops], Boaz ordered [commanded, gave instructions to] his young men [servants, workers], “Even if she gathers [picks up, collects] among the sheaves [bundles of grain, cut grain], do not insult her [reproach, humiliate, or shame her]. word study 16 Rather, pull out [from the bundles, some stalks] for her some stalks [heads of grain] from the bundles [handfuls of purpose] and leave them [and let it lie] for her to gather [glean, pick up]. Do not [in no way] rebuke her [scold, reprove].” word study 17 So Ruth gathered [collected, picked up] grain in the field [a flat area of land used for cultivation] until [as far as, up to the point of] evening [sunset, the end of the day]. And when she beat [threshed, knocked out] out what she had gleaned [picked up, collected], it was about [approximately, nearly] an ephah [a unit of measurement, about 9 gallons] of barley [a type of grain, a staple food]. word study 18 She picked up [gathered, collected] the grain and went into the town [city, settlement], where her mother-in-law [husband’s mother, family relative] saw what she had gleaned [picked up, gathered]. And she brought out [took out, gave from] what she had saved [reserved, left over] from her meal [food, provision] and gave it to Naomi [her mother-in-law, the one she was caring for]. word study 19 Then her mother-in-law [the husband’s mother, a family relationship] asked her, “Where [in what place or location] did you glean [gather leftover crops] today [this day, a 24-hour period], and where [in what place] did you work [labor or toil]? Blessed [praised or honored] be the man [a male person, individual] who noticed [recognized or acknowledged] you [as a person, with attention].” So she told her mother-in-law [the husband’s mother] where she had worked [labored or toiled]. “The name [a person’s identity, honor, and character] of the man [a male person, individual] I worked [labored or toiled] with today [this day] is Boaz [an ancestor of King David],” she said. word study 20 Then Naomi [the mother-in-law, an Israelite woman] said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed [praised, honored] by the LORD [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God], who has not withdrawn [ceased, abandoned] His kindness [loving actions, mercy] from the living [those with physical life] or the dead [those who have passed away].” Naomi continued, “The man [a male person, individual] is a close relative [near of kin, a family member]. He is one of our kinsman-redeemers [those who buy back, restore, or redeem]. ” word study 21 Then Ruth [the Moabite woman, a foreigner] the Moabitess said, “He also [even, too] told me, ‘Stay [keep close, cleave] with my young men [servants, workers] until they have finished [completed, ended] gathering [harvesting, reaping] all my harvest [crop, grain].’” word study 22 And Naomi [her mother-in-law, the wise guide] said to her daughter-in-law Ruth, “My daughter [beloved, cherished one], it is good [beneficial, pleasant] for you to work [labor, serve] with his young women [maidens, servant-girls], so that nothing [no harm, no danger] will happen to you in another [different, foreign] field [land, territory].” word study 23 So Ruth stayed close [to cling to, to pursue closely] to the servant girls [maidens, young women] of Boaz [the ancestor of King David] to glean [to gather, to pick up] grain until the barley [a type of grain, a staple food] and wheat [a plant or grain] harvests [the time of reaping, the crop itself] were finished [to end, to complete]. And she lived [to dwell, to remain] with her mother-in-law [the husband’s mother, a family relationship]. word study