Chapter 8 "The Book of Ruth"

"The Book of Ruth" virtuous ruth When the judges were in power, Canaan encountered a severe famine one year. A man from Bethlehem, where the Jews lived, fled to Moab with his wife and two sons.The name of this man was Elimelech; the name of his wife was Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion.Later, Elimelech died, leaving Naomi, an orphan and widow, to live a difficult life.The two sons grew up and married Moabite women. One of the two foreign daughters-in-law was named Orpah and the other Ruth.The family of five struggled to make a living, and their lives were bleak. In the tenth year, Marlon and Kilian also died one after another, leaving three widows. The family was too poor to make ends meet.

Naomi heard rumors that the situation in her hometown of Canaan had improved in the past few years, so she planned to leave Moab and go back.She took her two daughters-in-law for a while, and then changed her mind. She felt that she should not take the two daughters-in-law to a foreign land, because if they were in Moab, they could find a suitable person among the people they knew and remarry. .Naomi said to the two daughters-in-law, "Go back to your mother's house, each. May the LORD be merciful to you, and he will give you new support, and give you peace in your new husband's house."

Naomi kissed them good-bye, and they burst into tears and said, "No, we're not going back. We will return to Canaan with you. " Naomi persuaded them patiently, "Go back, my daughters. Why do you come with me? Can I still have a child to be your husband? Even if my husband is still alive, he gave birth today. Children, can you wait for him to grow up and marry him?" When the elder daughter-in-law Orpah heard this, she kissed her mother-in-law goodbye and returned to Moab.But the youngest daughter-in-law, Ruth, was still reluctant to leave Naomi. She said to her mother-in-law, "We are all gone, who will take care of you? You are old and weak now, and we cannot leave you alone."

Naomi persuaded Ruth again: "Don't trouble you because of my old woman. You are still young, so you should find another way out. I am an old bone. I will live for as long as I want. I will bury it wherever I die. Where. If I implicate you, God will punish me." No matter how much she tried to persuade her, Ruth refused to listen, and her mother-in-law Naomi had no choice but to let her go with her. When they returned to Bethlehem, the whole city was amazed. They said to each other, "Naomi has returned, her husband and son are gone, but she has brought back a daughter-in-law."

Naomi said to the people, "Don't call me Naomi anymore, because Naomi means sweet; you should call me Mara, because Mara means bitter. The LORD has brought disaster on me, The Almighty makes me suffer." It was the time of the barley harvest.In order to get three meals a day, Ruth went to the fields to glean ears of wheat.One day, she came to the field of her father-in-law Boaz, who belonged to the family of Elimelech, and followed the harvesters to glean the ears of wheat.Boaz, a rich man in the city of Bethlehem, happened to be inspecting the fields that day.When Boaz saw Ruth gleaning behind the hirelings in his field, he asked, "Who is that woman gleaning?"

His hired worker told him: "She is Ruth, the daughter-in-law brought back by Naomi. She asked us if we could let her glean in the field. We agreed. It's not easy, she relies on gleaning Sui takes care of her mother-in-law, who comes here before dawn and leaves after dark, and doesn't see her resting for a while." Boaz was very moved when he heard these words, and he said to the farm workers in the field: "This woman is very virtuous, you should take more wheat ears in the field and let her pick them up to support your mother-in-law." Boaz went to Ruth, who was gleaning, and said, "Daughter, listen to me, from today onwards, don't go to other people's fields to glean ears of wheat, but come to mine. If you're thirsty, go and drink from the pitcher over there."

After hearing this, Ruth fell down on the ground, bowed down to Boaz, and said to him, "My lord, I am a foreigner. How can I be so sympathetic to you by your grace?" Boaz replied, "You What you have done to your mother-in-law is well known among the people of Israel. May the LORD reward you for what you have done. You have come to take refuge under the wings of the LORD, the God of Israel, and may you be fully rewarded by him." While eating lunch, Boaz called Ruth to come and eat with them.When Ruth was full, Boaz told her to take more bread and put it in the basket, and bring it back to her mother-in-law in the evening.

Ruth had a particularly big harvest that day. She picked up an ephah of barley and brought back two cakes for her mother-in-law.Mother-in-law Naomi asked her, "Where did you glean the ears of wheat today? Why is the harvest so big?" Ruth said: "Today I was gleaning wheat in the field of a man named Boaz. He asked the farm workers to take care of me specially, so the harvest was very big." Naomi said: "He is a very good man, he is also a member of our family, and he is a close relative." After saying this, Naomi did not speak for a long time.What is she thinking about.

Before going to bed, Naomi said to Ruth, "Daughter, from now on, go to Boaz's field every day to glean ears of wheat, and don't go to other people's fields." So Ruth gleaned in Boaz's field every day until the barley and wheat harvests were finished.One day, Naomi said to Ruth, "Daughter, I think it's time for me to find you a place to live so that you can enjoy the rest of your life. I think Boaz is a good man, and we It’s been more than two years since his wife passed away, so you are more suitable for him. Tonight he will be winnowing the barley with the farm workers in the field. You have to bathe, change clothes and anoint yourself, and go to the field without being seen by others.After all his workers have fallen asleep and he has fallen asleep, you can find the place where he sleeps, lift the quilt from his feet, lie down at his feet, and sleep with him.He will tell you what to do. "

Ruth did as her mother-in-law instructed.In the middle of the night, Boaz woke up and smelled a dark fragrance. When he turned over, he was startled—it turned out that there was a woman lying under his feet to warm his feet.He asked, "Who are you?" Only a sweet voice answered softly, "It's your maid Ruth. Please cover me with your skirt, because you are my closest relative." Only then did Boaz understand what was going on. In fact, he had already secretly loved Ruth, but he was not the closest relative of Ruth's family, and he was much older than her so he didn't mention it.Unexpectedly, Ruth would be so brave and take the initiative to bring up this matter. He was surprised and delighted and said, "Your virtuousness has long been known among the Israelites. You have not followed young men, rich or poor, because they are not your close relatives." Although I am your close relative, there is another person who is closer than me. I will ask tomorrow if he is willing to perform the duty of a relative for you, let him be. If he is not willing, it is the grace of God me."

Ruth lay at his feet until dawn and the passers-by could not see each other clearly before leaving Boaz.Before leaving, Boaz put a dustpan of barley in a sack made of her cloak, helped her carry it on her shoulders, sent her back, and told her, "Don't let outsiders know that you have been here. " The next day, Boaz arrived at the gate of the city and sat there waiting for the closest relative of Duke Ruth to pass by.When the relative came, Boaz stopped him and said that he had something important to discuss; he invited 10 elders from the city.Boaz said to the relative, "Naomi, who came back from Moab, is now going to sell the field that belongs to our brother Elimelech. I think the first person who is qualified to buy this land is you, and then I .You can tell the elders here whether you are willing to buy this land." The relative replied: "I would like to buy it." Boaz said, "When you buy this land from Naomi, you must also marry Ruth, who is widowed for her son, so that the dead man may claim his title in his estate." The relative said, "If that's the case, I can't buy it. You can buy the land I should buy." So the relative took off the shoe and gave it to Boaz.In the past, when the Israelites made a decision, such as the conclusion of a major sale, the transferor would take off his shoes to the receiver as evidence. Boaz said to the elders again, "Gentlemen, testify that I have bought from Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech, Chilion, and Mahlon; Ruth as a wife, that his name may be preserved in the inheritance of the dead, so that his name may not perish in his own country." All the citizens and elders present said: "We testify, may the LORD make this woman who enters your house the same as Rachel and Leah who established the nation of Israel. Prosper and become famous in Bethlehem. May the LORD give you offspring from this young woman, and make your house like the house of Perez, the son of Tamar out of Judah." In this way, Boaz married Ruth and became an official husband and wife.The couple took Naomi into their own home to take care of them.Boaz and Ruth loved each other and lived happily ever after.Not long after, Ruth conceived and gave birth to a son, whom she named Obed.The grandson of Obed is David, the king of Israel and the greatest hero of the people of Israel. (1 to 4)