meta: {"file": "/data/tomer/Sefaria-Export/txt/Tanakh/Writings/Ruth/English/The Koren Jerusalem Bible.txt"}
text: Ruth
  רות
  The Koren Jerusalem Bible
  
  
  Ruth
  
  
  
  
  
  Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bet-leĥem in Yehuda went to sojourn in the country of Mo᾽av, he, and his wife, and his two sons.
  And the name of the man was Elimelekh, and the name of his wife No῾omi, and the name of his two sons, Maĥlon and Kilyon, Efratites from Bet-leĥem in Yehuda. And they came into the country of Mo᾽av, and remained there.
  And Elimelekh, No῾omi’s husband died; and she was left, and her two sons.
  And they took wives for themselves of the women of Mo᾽av; the name of the one was ῾Orpa, and the name of the other Rut: and they dwelled there about ten years.
  And Maĥlon and Kilyon died, both of them; so that the woman was bereft of her two sons and her husband.
  Then she arose with her daughters in law, that she might return from the country of Mo᾽av: for she had heard in the country of Mo᾽av that the Lord had visited his people in giving them bread.
  So she went out of the place where she was, and her two daughters in law with her; and they took the road to return to the land of Yehuda.
  And No῾omi said to her two daughters in law, Go, return each of you to her mother’s house: the Lord deal loyally with you, as you have dealt with the dead, and with me.
  The Lord grant you that you may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Then she kissed them; and they lifted up their voice, and wept.
  And they said to her, No, we will return with thee to thy people.
  And No῾omi said, Turn back, my daughters: why will you go with me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?
  turn back, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say, I have hope, even if I should have a husband tonight, and should bear sons;
  would you tarry for them till they were grown? would you, for them, refrain from having husbands? no, my daughters; for it grieves me much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord is gone out against me.
  And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and ῾Orpa kissed her mother in law; but Rut held fast to her.
  And she said, Behold, thy sister in law has gone back to her people, and to her gods: go back after thy sister in law.
  And Rut said, Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for wherever thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:
  where thou diest, I will die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me.
  When she saw that she was steadfastly minded to go with her, then she left off speaking to her.
  So the two of them went on until they came to Bet-leĥem. And it came to pass, when they were come to Bet-leĥem, that all the city was astir at their arrival, and they said, Is this No῾omi?
  And she said to them, Call me not No῾omi, call me Mara: for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.
  I went out full, and the Lord has brought me back empty: why then do you call me No῾omi, seeing the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?
  So No῾omi returned, and Rut the Mo᾽avite woman, her daughter in law, with her, who returned out of the country of Mo᾽av: and they came to Bet-leĥem at the beginning of the barley harvest.
  
  
  
  Now No῾omi had a kinsman of her husband’s, a man of wealth, of the family of Elimelekh; and his name was Bo῾az.
  And Rut the Mo᾽avite said to No῾omi, Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find favour. And she said to her, Go, my daughter.
  And she went, and came, and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and she happened to come to a part of the field belonging to Bo῾az, who was of the kindred of Elimelekh.
  And, behold, Bo῾az came from Bet-leĥem, and said to the reapers, The Lord be with you. And they answered him, The Lord, bless thee.
  Then Bo῾az said to his servant that was set over the reapers, Whose maiden is this?
  And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, It is the Mo᾽avite girl who came back with No῾omi out of the country of Mo᾽av:
  and she said, I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves: so she came, and has continued from the morning until now, scarcely spending any time in the hut.
  Then said Bo῾az to Rut, Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, nor go away from here, but keep close here to my maidens:
  let thy eyes be on the field that they reap, and go after them: have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee? and when thou art thirsty, go to the vessels, and drink of that which the young men have drawn.
  Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said to him, Why have I found favour in thy eyes, that thou shouldst take notice of me, seeing I am a stranger?
  And Bo῾az answered and said to her, It has been fully related to me, all that thou hast done to thy mother in law since the death of thy husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy birth, and art come to a people whom thou knewest not before.
  The Lord recompense thy deed, and may a full reward be given thee by the Lord God of Yisra᾽el, under whose wings thou art come to take refuge.
  Then she said, Let me find favour in thy sight, my lord; for thou hast comforted me, and thou hast spoken gently to thy handmaid, though I am not even like one of thy handmaidens.
  And Bo῾az said to her at the mealtime, Come here, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers: and he reached her parched corn, and she did eat, and was replete, and left.
  And when she was risen up to glean, Bo῾az commanded his young men, saying, Let her even glean among the sheaves, and do not reproach her:
  and let fall also some of the handfuls on purpose for her, and leave them, that she may glean them, and do not rebuke her.
  So she gleaned in the field until evening, and beat out what she had gleaned: and it was about an efa of barley.
  And she took it up, and went into the city: and her mother in law saw what she had gleaned: and she brought it out, and gave to her what she had left over after she had eaten her fill.
  And her mother in law said to her, Where hast thou gleaned today? and where hast thou worked? blessed is he who took notice of thee. And she related to her mother in law where she had worked, and said, The man’s name where I worked today is Bo῾az.
  And No῾omi said to her daughter in law, Blessed is he of the Lord, who has not left off his steadfast love to the living and to the dead. And No῾omi said to her, The man is near of kin to us, one of our nearest kinsmen.
  And Rut the Mo᾽avite said, He said to me also, Thou shalt keep close by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.
  And No῾omi said to Rut her daughter in law, It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, and that they meet thee not in any other field.
  So she kept close to the maidens of Bo῾az to glean to the end of the barley harvest and of the wheat harvest; and dwelt with her mother in law.
  
  
  
  Then No῾omi her mother in law said to her, My daughter, shall I not seek a home for thee, that it may be well with thee?
  And now is not Bo῾az of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wert? Behold, he winnows barley tonight in the threshingfloor.
  Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thyself, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the threshingfloor: but do not make thyself known to the man, until he has finished eating and drinking.
  And it shall be, when he lies 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.
  And she said to her, All that thou sayest to me I will do.
  And she went down to the threshingfloor, and did according to all that her mother in law bade her.
  And when Bo῾az 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 herself down.
  And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was startled, and turned over: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet.
  And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Rut thy handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.
  And he said, Blessed be thou of the Lord, my daughter: for thou hast shown more loyalty in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou didst not follow the young men, whether poor or rich.
  And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou requirest: for all the city of my people knows that thou art a virtuous woman.
  And now it is true, that I am thy near kinsman: yet there is a kinsman nearer than I.
  Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform to 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 lives: lie down until the morning.
  And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could recognize another person. And he said, Let it not be known that a woman came into the threshingfloor.
  Also he said, Bring the veil 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 he went into the city.
  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.
  And she said, These six measures of barley he gave me; for he said to me, Do not go empty to thy mother in law.
  Then she said, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not rest quiet until he finishes the matter to day.
  
  
  
  Then Bo῾az went up to the gate, and sat down there: and, behold, the kinsman of whom Bo῾az spoke came by; unto whom he said, Ho there, such and such a one! turn aside, sit down here. And he turned aside, and sat down.
  And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, Sit down here. And they sat down.
  And he said to the kinsman, No῾omi, who is come back out of the country of Mo᾽av, is selling a parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelekh’s:
  and I thought to advise thee of it, saying, Buy it in the presence of the inhabitants, and in the presence of the elders of my people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it: but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know: for there is none to redeem it besides thee; and I am after thee. And he said, I will redeem it.
  Then said Bo῾az, On the day thou buyest the field from the hand of No῾omi, thou must buy also from Rut the Mo᾽avite, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance.
  And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I harm my own inheritance: take my right of redemption for thyself; for I cannot redeem it.
  Now this was the custom in former time in Yisra᾽el concerning redeeming and concerning exchanging, to confirm all manner of transactions; a man pulled off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbour: and this was the manner of attesting in Yisra᾽el.
  Therefore the kinsman said to Bo῾az, Buy it for thyself. And he drew off his shoe.
  And Bo῾az said to the elders, and to all the people, you are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelekh’s, and all that was Kilyon’s and Maĥlon’s, from the hand of No῾omi.
  Moreover Rut the Mo᾽avite, the wife of Maĥlon, have I acquired as my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: you are witnesses this day.
  And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, We are witnesses. The Lord make the woman that is come into thy house like Raĥel and like Le᾽a, which two did build the house of Yisra᾽el; and be prosperous in Efrata, and be famous in Bet-leĥem:
  and let thy house be like the house of Pereż, whom Tamar bore to Yehuda, of the seed which the Lord shall give thee of this young woman.
  So Bo῾az took Rut, and she was his wife: and he went in to her, and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son.
  And the women said to No῾omi, Blessed is the Lord, who has not left thee this day without a redeemer, that his name may be famous in Yisra᾽el.
  And he shall be to thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thy old age: for thy daughter in law, who loves thee, who is better to thee than seven sons, she has born him.
  And No῾omi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse to it.
  And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to No῾omi; and they called his name ῾Oved: he is the father of Yishay, the father of David.
  Now these are the generations of Pereż: Pereż begot Ĥeżron,
  and Ĥeżron begot Ram, and Ram begot ῾Amminadav,
  and ῾Amminadav begot Naĥshon, and Naĥshon begot Salma,
  and Salmon begot Bo῾az, and Bo῾az begot ῾Oved,
  and ῾Oved begot Yishay, and Yishay begot David.