Ruth 3
Naomi Instructs Ruth
3:1 At that time,1 Naomi, her mother-in-law, said to her, “My daughter, I must find a home for you so you will be secure.2 3:2 Now Boaz, with whose female servants you worked, is our close relative.3 Look, tonight he is winnowing barley at the threshing floor.4 3:3 So bathe yourself,5 rub on some perfumed oil,6 and get dressed up.7 Then go down8 to the threshing floor. But don’t let the man know you’re there until he finishes his meal.9 3:4 When he gets ready to go to sleep,10 take careful notice of the place where he lies down. Then go, uncover his legs,11 and lie down12 beside him.13 He will tell14 you what you should do.” 3:5 Ruth replied to Naomi,15 “I will do everything you have told16 me17 to do.”18
Ruth Visits Boaz
3:6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did everything her mother-in-law had instructed her to do.19
3:7 When Boaz had finished his meal and was feeling satisfied, he lay down to sleep at the far end of the grain heap.20 Then Ruth21 crept up quietly,22 uncovered his legs,23 and lay down beside him.24
3:8 In the middle of the night he was startled25 and turned over.26 Now27 he saw a woman28 lying beside him!29
3:9 He said, “Who are you?”30 She replied, “I am Ruth, your servant.31 Marry your servant,32 for you are a guardian of the family interests.”33
3:10 He said, “May you be rewarded34 by the
Ruth Returns to Naomi
When Ruth returned to her mother-in-law, Naomi59 asked,60 “How did things turn out for you,61 my daughter?” Ruth62 told her about all the man had done for her.63 3:17 She said, “He gave me these sixty pounds of barley, for he said to me,64 ‘Do not go to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’”65 3:18 Then Naomi66 said, “Stay put,67 my daughter, until you know how the matter turns out. For the man will not rest until he has taken care of the matter today.”