RUTH
PERSONS OF THE STORY.
| Naomi, Elimelch, | Hebrews who went to live in Moab. |
| Mahlon, Chilion, | Sons of Naomi and Elimelech. |
| Ruth, Orpah, | Daughters-in-law of Naomi and Elimelech. |
| Boaz,, | A wealthy farmer of Beth-lehem and kinsman of Naomi.. |
| Reapers. Gleaners. A second kinsman of Naomi., |
PLACE OF THE STORY.
Moab.
Beth-lehem of Judah.
RUTH.
(One of the sweetest stories of the Bible is that of Ruth the Moabitess. Many of the pages of the Old Testament are filled with the noise and tumult of battle, but this tale breathes only of peace and calm, of sunny harvest days when fair Ruth gleaned in, the fields around the old town of Beth-lehem.)
And it came to pass in the days when the judges judged, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Beth-lehem-judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. And the name [{36}] of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, men of Beth-lehem-judah. And they came into the country of Moab, and continued there.
And Elimelech Naomi's husband died; and she was left, and her two sons. And they took them wives of the women of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they dwelled there about ten years.
And Mahlon and Chilion died both of them; and the woman was bereft of her two children and of her husband. Then she arose with her daughters-in-law, that she might return from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the country of Moab that the Lord had visited his people in giving them bread. And she went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return unto the land of Judah.
And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go, return each of you to her mother's house: the Lord deal kindly with you, as ye have dealt with the dead, and with me. The Lord grant you that ye 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, "Nay, but we will return with thee to thy people."
And Naomi said, "Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go with me? Turn again, my daughters, go your way."
THE FAMILY OF ELIMELECH GOING TO MOAB
By Bida
"And a certain man of Beth-lehem-judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons."
And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law; but Ruth clave unto her.
And she said, "Behold, thy sister-in-law is gone back to her people, and to her god: return thou after thy sister-in-law."
And Ruth said, "Intreat me not to leave thee, and to return from following after thee: for whither 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, will I die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me."
And when she saw that she was steadfastly minded to go with her, she left off speaking to her. So they two went on to Beth-lehem.
And it came to pass, when they were come to Beth-lehem, that all the city was moved about them, and the women said, "Is this Naomi?"
And she said unto them, "Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord hath brought me home again empty: why call ye me Naomi, seeing the Lord hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?"
So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, with her, who returned out of the country of Moab: and they came to Beth-lehem in the beginning of barley harvest.
And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a man of great wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, "Let [{40}] me now go to the field, and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor."
And she said to her, "Go, my daughter."
And she went, and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and she chanced to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.
And, behold, Boaz came from Beth-lehem, and said to the reapers, "The Lord be with you."
And they answered him, "The Lord bless thee."
Then said Boaz to his servant that was set over the reapers, "What young woman is this?"
And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, "It is the Moabitish maiden that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab: and she said, 'Let me glean, I pray you, and gather after the reapers among the sheaves': so she came, and hath continued even from the morning until now, save that she tarried a little in the house."
Then said Boaz to Ruth, "Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither pass from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens. Let thine eyes be on the field that they reap, and go thou after them: have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee? and when thou art athirst, 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 favor in thy sight that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger?"
And Boaz answered and said to her, "It hath fully been showed me, all that thou hast done to thy mother-in-law since the death of thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come to a people which thou knewest not heretofore. The Lord recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to take refuge."
Then she said, "Let me find favor in thy sight, my lord; because thou hast comforted me, and because thou hast spoken kindly unto thine handmaid, though I am a stranger."
And at mealtime Boaz said unto her, "Come hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the cup."
And she sat beside the reapers: and they passed her parched grain, and she ate and was satisfied.
And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, "Let her glean even among the sheaves, and reproach her not. And also pull out some for her from, the bundles, and leave it, and let her glean, and rebuke her not."
So she gleaned in the field until even; and she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. And she took it up, and went into the city: and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned.
And she said unto her, "Where hast thou gleaned today? and where hast thou worked? blessed be he that helped thee."
And she showed her mother-in-law with whom she had [{42}] worked, and said, "The man's name with whom I worked to-day is Boaz."
And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, "Blessed be he of the Lord, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. The man is nigh of kin unto us, one of our near kinsmen."
And Ruth the Moabitess said, "Yea, he said unto me, 'Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.'"
And Naomi said to Ruth, 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 fast by the maidens of Boaz to glean until the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law.
And Naomi her mother-in-law said unto her, "My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? And now is there not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor. Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and go down to the threshing-floor: but make not thyself known to the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. 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."
And she said to her, "All that thou sayest I will do."
RUTH IN THE HARVEST FIELDS OF BOAZ
By Brück-Lajos. Born at Papa, Hungary, November 3, 1846-
| "And she came and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and she chanced to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz." "Perhaps the selfsame song that found a path Through the sad heart of Ruth, when, sick for home, She stood in tears amid the alien corn." |
| --Keats--"Ode to a Nightingale". |
And she went down unto the threshing-floor, and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her.
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.
And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said, "Who art thou?"
And she answered, "I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy robe over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman."
And he said, "Blessed be thou of the Lord, my daughter: thou hast showed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou sayest: for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a worthy woman. And now it is true that I am a near kinsman: howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I. 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."
And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could discern another.
For he said, "Let it not be known that a woman came to the threshing-floor."
And he said, "Bring the mantle that is upon thee, and hold it."
And she held it: and he measured six measures of barley, and gave it to her: and he went into the city.
And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, "How hast thou fared, my daughter?"
And she told her all that the man had done to her. And she said, "These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said, 'Go not empty unto thy mother-in-law.'"
Then said she, "Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not rest, until he has finished the thing this day."
Now Boaz went up to the gate, and sat down there: and, behold, the near kinsman of whom Boaz spoke came by; to whom he said, "Ho, kinsman! 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 ye down here."
And they sat down.
And he said to the near kinsman, "Naomi, who has come again out of the country of Moab, selleth the piece of land, which was our brother Elimelech's: and I thought to inform thee, saying, 'Buy it before them that sit here, and before 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 beside thee; and I am after thee.'"
And he said, "I will redeem it."
Then said Boaz, "The day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance."
And the near kinsman said, "I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: take thou my right of redemption on thee; for I cannot redeem it."
(Now this was the custom in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning exchanging, to confirm all things; a man drew off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbor: and this was the manner of attestation in Israel.)
So the near kinsman said unto Boaz, "Buy it for thyself." And he drew off his shoe.
And Boaz said to the elders, and unto all the people, "Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech's, and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's, of the hand of Naomi. Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be 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: ye 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 thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephrathah, and be famous in Beth-lehem."
So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife.
And a son was born to them.
And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. And the women her neighbors gave it a name, saying, "There is a son born to Naomi"; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
| RUTH |
She stood breast high amid the corn, Clasped by the golden light of morn, Like the sweetheart of the sun, Who many a glowing kiss had won. On her cheek an autumn flush Deeply ripened;--such a blush In the midst of brown was born, Like red poppies grown with corn. Round her eyes her tresses fell,-- Which were blackest none could tell; But long lashes veiled a light That had else been all too bright. And her hat, with shady brim, Made her tressy forehead dim;-- Thus she stood amid the stooks, Praising God with sweetest looks. Sure, I said, Heaven did not mean Where I reap thou shouldst but glean; Lay thy sheaf adown and come, Share my harvest and my home. |
| --Thomas Hood. |