NAOMI FINDS A HUSBAND FOR RUTH

1 Then Naomi her mother in law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?

2 And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night in the threshingfloor.

3 Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking.

4 And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.

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

6 And she went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother in law bade her.

7 And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down.

8 And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet.

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

10 And he said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich.

11 And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou requirest: for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman.

12 And now it is true that I am thy near kinsman: howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I.

13 Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman's part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth: 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, Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor.

15 Also he said, Bring the vail that thou hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and she went into the city.

16 And when she came to her mother in law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her.

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

18 Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day

1 Then Naomi her mother in law said vnto her, My daughter, shal I not seeke rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?

2 And now is not Boaz of our kinred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night in the threshing floore.

3 Wash thy selfe therefore, and annoint thee, and put thy raiment vpon thee, and get thee downe to the floore: but make not thy selfe knowen vnto the man, vntill hee shall haue done eating and drinking.

4 And it shall be when hee lieth downe, that thou shalt marke the place where hee shall lie, and thou shalt goe in, and vncouer his feete, and lay thee downe, and he will tell thee what thou shalt doe.

5 And shee said vnto her, All that thou sayest vnto me, I will doe.

6 And she went downe vnto the floore, and did according to all that her mother in law bade her.

7 And when Boaz had eaten and drunke, and his heart was merrie, hee went to lie downe at the ende of the heape of corne: and she came softly, and vncouered his feet, and laid her downe.

8 And it came to passe at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himselfe: and behold, a woman lay at his feete.

9 And hee said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt ouer thine handmaid, for thou art a neare kinseman.

10 And hee said, Blessed be thou of the Lord, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindnesse in the latter ende, then at the beginning, in as much as thou followedst not yong men, whether poore, or rich.

11 And now my daughter, feare not, I will doe to thee all that thou requirest: for all the citie of my people doeth know, that thou art a vertuous woman.

12 And now it is true, that I am thy neare kinseman: howbeit there is a kinseman nearer then I.

13 Tary this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if hee will performe vnto thee the part of a kinseman, well, let him doe the kinsemans part; but if hee will not doe the part of a kinseman to thee, then will I doe the part of a kinseman to thee, as the Lord liueth: lie downe vntill the morning.

14 And shee lay at his feete vntill the morning: and she rose vp before one could know another. And he said, Let it not be knowen, that a woman came into the floore.

15 Also he said, Bring the vaile that thou hast vpon thee, and holde it. And when she helde it, he measured sixe measures of barley, and laide it on her: and he went into the citie.

16 And when shee came to her mother in law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter? and she tolde her all that the man had done to her.

17 And she said, These sixe measures of barley gaue he me, for he said to me, Go not emptie vnto thy mother in law.

18 Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, vntill thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, vntil he haue finished the thing this day.

I == Ruth 1:9 ; 1st Cor 7:36 ; 1st Tim 5:8

II == Ruth 2:8

III == 2nd Sam 14:2

VII == Judg 19:6, 9 , 22 ; 2nd Sam 13:28 ; Esth 1:10

IX == Ruth 2:20 ; 3:12 ; Ezek 16:8

X == Ruth 1:8 ; 2:20

XI == Prov 12:4

XII == Ruth 3:6 ; 4:1

XIII == Deut 25:5 ; Judg 8:19 ; Ruth 4:5 ; Jer 4:2 ; Matt 22:24

XIV == Rom 12:17 ; 14 ;16 ; 1st Cor 10:32 ; 2nd Cor 8:21 ; 1st Thess 5:22

1 When she was back with her mother-in-law, Naomi said to her, "My daughter, I must seek a home for you that will please you.

2 Now is not Boaz, with whose servants you were, a relative of ours? This evening he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor.

3 So bathe and anoint yourself; then put on your best attire and go down to the threshing floor. Do not make yourself known to the man before he has finished eating and drinking.

4 But when he lies down, take note of the place where he does so. Then go, uncover a place at his feet, and lie down. He will tell you what to do."

5 "I will do whatever you advise," Ruth replied.

6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had instructed her.

7 Boaz ate and drank to his heart's content. Then when he went and lay down at the edge of the sheaves, she stole up, uncovered a place at his feet, and lay down.

8 In the middle of the night, however, the man gave a start and turned around to find a woman lying at his feet.

9 He asked, "Who are you?" And she replied, "I am your servant Ruth. Spread the corner of your cloak over me, for you are my next of kin."

10 He said, "May the LORD bless you, my daughter! You have been even more loyal now than before in not going after the young men, whether poor or rich.

11 So be assured, daughter, I will do for you whatever you say; all my townspeople know you for a worthy woman.

12 Now, though indeed I am closely related to you, you have another relative still closer.

13 Stay as you are for tonight, and tomorrow, if he wishes to claim you, good! let him do so. But if he does not wish to claim you, as the LORD lives, I will claim you myself. Lie there until morning."

14 So she lay at his feet until morning, but rose before men could recognize one another. Boaz said, "Let it not be known that this woman came to the threshing floor."

15 Then he said to her, "Take off your cloak and hold it out." When she did so, he poured out six measures of barley, helped her lift the bundle, and left for the city.

16 Ruth went home to her mother-in-law, who asked, "How have you fared, my daughter?" So she told her all the man had done for her,

17 and concluded, "He gave me these six measures of barley because he did not wish me to come back to my mother-in-law emptyhanded!"

18 Naomi then said, "Wait here, my daughter, until you learn what happens, for the man will not rest, but will settle the matter today."

COMMATARY

Naomi”s Stratagem

v 1-5. Now that harvest is over Naomi does some match making and has Ruth approach Boaz regarding being a kinsman redeemer according to Hebrew custom. Elimilech had allowed the land to lie fallow or had sold it, and a Jubilee had occurred reverting it back to Naomi. Also according to Levirite marriage laws, a brother or the nearest of kin was to marry a widow so that the first born child could perpetuate the name of the dead man. Naomi is well aware that the men of Bethlehem took turns winnowing on the threshing floor, then sleeping there at night to guard their grain. (The grain is beaten out of the stalks or tramped out by oxen, sometimes pulling a sledge. Then at the threshing floor or on a hill where there is a breeze, they separated the chaff.) Naomi instructs Ruth to make herself very presentable, under cover of darkness watch the post harvest celebrating, observe where Boaz lies down, then after a while lift the edge of his cover and lay by his feet until he awoke and told her what to do. Ruth readily agreed.
v 6,7. Ruth did exactly as Naomi had said. This would be morally taboo today, but in their culture, and knowing the moral quality of Boaz, this was absolutely proper.
v 8,9. Boaz awoke at midnight, startled that a woman was at his feet, and asked her identity. In Ruth’s reply, the word “skirt” is the same as the word wings in 2:12. The custom simply means “spread your protection over me.” In doing this she was informing the kinsman of his right, and moreover her request, that he take the legal steps to perform his responsibility.
v 10-13. We don’t know the age of Boaz, but he was pleased that she was content to follow the custom of Hebrew marriage, rather than take up with some of the younger men. He blesses her for her faithful love. He also relieves her of any moral concern by citing her reputation for being a virtuous woman. She is the only one in the Bible specifically called a virtuous woman. He cites a problem. There is a kinsman closer than he. That might be Elimelech’s brother, whereas Boaz might be a nephew or cousin. He promised her that in the morning he would contact the other kinsman, and if he refused, Boaz would accept.
v 14,15. It would have been unsafe for her to have walked home in the night, so they both arose while it was pre dawn when no one could recognize her. He cautioned her not to let it be known she was there, because of gossip. It is important that though we do nothing wrong, we must avoid even the appearance of evil, 1 Thess. 5:22. He poured about a bushel of barley into her cloak and probably placed it on her head for her to take to Naomi. This was an assurance to Naomi that she would be cared for.
v 16-18. Naomi’s words, “Who art thou?” can be understood, “How did you fare, my daughter, are you a bride elect or not?” Naomi lovingly called Ruth her daughter, and advised her to sit and wait, because Boaz would not be at rest till the matter was resolved. This is understandable if we simply put ourselves in his place with that kind of proposal. It is important, but may be difficult, to “sit still” while we wait on the Lord.