Ruth 3

1 Then said Na'omi her mother-in-law unto her, My daughter, behold I will seek for thee a resting-place, where it may be well with thee.

Naomi, her mother-in-law, said to her, “My daughter, should I not seek a place for you to rest, so that things may go well for you?

2 And now, behold, Bo'az is our kinsman, he with whose maidens thou hast been. Lo, he is winnowing the barley to-night in the threshing-floor.

Now Boaz, the man whose young female workers you have been with, is he not our kinsman? Look, he will be winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.

3 Therefore bathe, and anoint thyself, and put thy garments upon thee, and go down to the threshing-floor; [but] make thyself not known unto the man, until he shall have finished eating and drinking.

Therefore, wash yourself, anoint yourself, put on your best clothes, and go down to the threshing floor. But do not make yourself known to the man until he finishes eating and drinking.

4 And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt note the place where he will lie, and thou shalt then go in, and lift up the covering that is on his feet, and lay thyself down: and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.

But when he lies down, take notice of the place where he lies down so that later you can go to him, uncover his feet, and lie down there. Then he will tell you what to do.”

5 And she said unto her, All that thou sayest unto me will I do.

Ruth said to Naomi, “I will do everything you say.”

6 And she went down unto the threshing-floor, and did in accordance with all that her mother-in-law had commanded her.

So she went down to the threshing floor, and she followed the instructions her mother-in-law had given her.

7 And Bo'az ate and drank, and his heart became merry; and he then went in to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came in softly, and lifted up the covering that was on his feet, and laid herself down.

When Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the pile of grain. Then she came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down.

8 And it came to pass at midnight, that the man became terrified, and bent himself forward; and, behold, a woman was lying at his feet.

It came about at midnight that the man was startled. He turned over, and right there a woman was lying at his feet!

9 And he said, Who art thou? And she said, I am Ruth thy handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.

He said, “Who are you?” She answered, “I am Ruth, your female servant. Spread your cloak over your female servant, for you are a near kinsman.”

10 And he said, Blessed be thou unto the Lord, my daughter; for thou hast shown more kindness in the last instance than the first, by not going after the young men, whether they be poor or rich.

Boaz said, “My daughter, may you be blessed by Yahweh. You have showed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, because you have not gone after any of the young men, whether poor or rich.

11 And now, my daughter, fear not: all that thou mayest say will I do for thee; for all [the men in] the gate of my people know that thou art a virtuous woman.

Now, my daughter, do not be afraid! I will do for you all that you say, because all the city of my people knows that you are a worthy woman.

12 And now, it is indeed true that I am thy near kinsman; nevertheless, there is a kinsman nearer than I.

It is true that I am a kinsman, but there is a kinsman nearer than I.

13 Remain here this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will redeem thee, well, let him redeem; but if he be not willing to redeem thee, then will I redeem thee, as the Lord liveth: lie still until the morning.

Stay here tonight, and in the morning, if he will perform for you the duty of a kinsman, good, let him do the kinsman's duty. But if he will not do the duty of a kinsman for you, then I will do it, by the life of Yahweh. Lie down until the morning.”

14 And she lay at his feet until the morning; and she rose up before one could know another. And he said, It must not be known that this woman came into the threshing-floor.

So she lay at his feet until the morning. But she rose up before anyone could recognize another person. For Boaz had said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”

15 Also he said, Bring hither the cloak that thou hast upon thee, and lay hold of it. And she laid hold of it, and he measured six [measures] of barley, and laid it on her, and went into the city.

Then Boaz said, “Bring your shawl and hold it out.” When she did so, he measured six large measures of barley into it and put the load on her. Then he went into the city.

16 And she came to her mother-in-law, and she said, How is it with thee, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her.

When Ruth came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did you do, my daughter?” Then Ruth told her all that the man had done for her.

17 And she said, These six measures of barley gave he unto me; for he said to me, Thou shalt not come empty to thy mother-in-law.

She said, “These six measures of barley are what he gave me, for he said, 'Do not go empty to your mother-in-law.'”

18 Then said she, Remain still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall out; for the man will not rest, until he have finished the matter this day.

Then Naomi said, “Stay here, my daughter, until you know how the matter will turn out, for the man will not rest until he has finished this thing today.”