unfoldingWord® Translation Questions
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| ULT | UST |
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| Now it happened in the days of the ruling of the judges that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man from Bethlehem of Judah went to live in the fields of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. | During the time that judges ruled {Israel}, there was a famine in that country. A man from the town of Bethlehem in the region of Judah {in the country of Israel} left there and went to live for a while in the country of Moab. His wife and his two sons went with him. |
It occurred in the days when the judges ruled.
He moved because there was a famine in the land of Judah.
| ULT | UST |
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| And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion, Ephrathites from Bethlehem of Judah. So they traveled to the fields of Moab and lived there. | The man’s name was Elimelech and his wife’s name was Naomi. The names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. All of them were part of the clan of Ephrathah, from Bethlehem in Judah. They came to the land of Moab and stayed there. |
| ULT | UST |
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| Then Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died. And she was left, she and her two sons. | Then Naomi’s husband, Elimelech, died, and Naomi had only her two sons with her. |
He died, leaving Naomi a widow.
| ULT | UST |
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| And they took wives for themselves from the women of Moab; the name of the first woman was Orpah, and the name of the second woman was Ruth. And they lived there for about ten years. | {Eventually,} the sons married women from Moab. The name of one woman was Orpah, and the name of the other woman was Ruth. But after Naomi and her sons had lived in Moab for about ten years, |
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| And the two of them, Mahlon and Kilion, also died, and the woman was left without her two children or her husband. | Mahlon and Kilion also died. So then Naomi was alone without her husband or her two sons. |
They died, leaving behind two daughters-in-law for Naomi.
| ULT | UST |
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| Then she arose, she and her daughters-in-law, and she returned from the fields of Moab, for she had heard in a field of Moab that Yahweh had visited his people, giving them bread. | {One day} while Naomi was in Moab, she heard someone say that Yahweh had helped his people {in Israel} and that now they had plenty of food. So she got ready to return {to Bethlehem} with her daughters-in-law. |
She heard that Yahweh had given the people of Judah food.
| ULT | UST |
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| So she went out from the place where she had been {living} there, and her two daughters-in-law {were} with her. And they traveled on the road to return to the land of Judah. | She and her two daughters-in-law left the place where she had been living and they started to walk along the road back to Judah. |
| ULT | UST |
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| Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return, each woman to the house of her mother. May Yahweh act with you in covenant faithfulness as you have acted with the dead and with me. | Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Each of you should turn around and go back to live with your mother. I am asking Yahweh to be as faithful to you as you have been to your dead husbands and to me. |
She wanted them to return to their mothers’ houses.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| May Yahweh grant to you that you shall find rest, each woman in the house of her husband.” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and cried. | I am asking Yahweh to allow each of you to have another husband with whom you will have a secure home.” Then she kissed each of them, and they cried aloud. |
She wanted them to find other husbands.
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| But they said to her, “Rather, we will return with you to your people.” | They each said, “No! We will return with you to your relatives.” |
| ULT | UST |
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| But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters! Why would you go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb, that they may become husbands for you? | But Naomi said, “No, my daughters. Return home. It will not do any good for you to come with me! It is not possible for me to have more sons who could become your husbands. |
| ULT | UST |
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| Turn back, my daughters, go! For I am too old to belong to a husband. If I said I have hope, and if I belonged to a husband even tonight, and even if I would give birth to sons, | You should go back, my daughters. It is too late for me to have another husband. Even if I thought that I could have another husband, and was married even tonight and had more sons, |
| ULT | UST |
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| would you therefore wait until the time when they are grown? Would you for this reason keep yourselves from belonging to a husband? No, my daughters! For it is exceedingly bitter for me, more than for you, that the hand of Yahweh has gone out against me.” | you would not wait until they grew up! You could not remain unmarried until then! No, my daughters, Yahweh has done very bad things to me, causing me to grieve very much. But your lives do not need to be as bad as mine.” |
She believed that Yahweh was against her.
| ULT | UST |
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| Then they lifted up their voices and cried again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her. | Then Ruth and Orpah cried loudly again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law {goodbye and left}, but Ruth stayed with Naomi. |
| ULT | UST |
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| Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has turned back to her people and to her god. Go back after your sister-in-law.” | Naomi said to her, “Look! Your sister-in-law is going back to her relatives and to the god that she worshiped {previously}! Go back with her!” |
| ULT | UST |
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| But Ruth said, “Do not press me to forsake you, to turn back from behind you. For to where you go, I will go, and in where you stay, I will stay. Your people {are} my people, and your God {is} my God. | But Ruth replied, “No! Please do not insist that I abandon you and stop taking care of you! Wherever you travel, I will travel too. Wherever you live, I will live too. Your relatives will be my relatives, and I will worship the God whom you worship. |
She said, “For I will go to the place where you go, and I will stay in the place where you stay. Your people are my people, and your God is my God.”
| ULT | UST |
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| In the place where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May Yahweh do thus to me, and thus may he add, if death separates between me and between you.” | Wherever you die, there I will die, and they will bury me there. May Yahweh punish me severely if I leave you even after we die.” |
She said she would remain with Naomi until they died. She said, “In the place where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May Yahweh do thus to me, and thus may he add, if death separates between me and between you.”
| ULT | UST |
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| Then she saw that she was determined to go with her, and she refrained from speaking to her. | When Naomi realized that Ruth had firmly resolved to go with her, Naomi stopped urging Ruth to return home. |
| ULT | UST |
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| So the two of them traveled until they came to Bethlehem. And it happened, as they were entering Bethlehem, the entire town was agitated on account of them. And the women said, “Is this Naomi?” | So the two women continued walking until they came to the town of Bethlehem. When they arrived in Bethlehem, many people in the town began talking loudly about them. Many women of the town exclaimed, “It is hard to believe that this is Naomi!” |
She returned to Bethlehem.
| ULT | UST |
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| But she said to them, “Do not call me Naomi. Call me Mara, for the Almighty has acted exceedingly bitterly to me. | Naomi said to them, “You should not call me Naomi anymore, since it means ‘pleasant.’ Instead, call me Mara, because it means ‘bitter.’ God Almighty has made my life very bitter. |
She asked to be called “Mara” (which means “bitter”), because she believed that Yahweh had dealt bitterly with her.
| ULT | UST |
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| As for me, I went out full, but Yahweh has brought me back empty. Why would you call me Naomi? But as for Yahweh, he has testified against me, and the Almighty has done evil to me.” | When I left, I had everything I could want, but Yahweh has brought me back with nothing. Do not call me Naomi. Yahweh has opposed me. Almighty God has treated me badly.” |
| ULT | UST |
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| So Naomi returned, with Ruth the Moabite woman her daughter-in-law, with her, the woman who returned from the fields of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem at the beginning of the harvest of barley. | So that is how Naomi returned home along with her daughter-in-law Ruth, the woman from Moab. When they arrived in Bethlehem, it was the season for people there to begin harvesting their crops of barley. |
They arrived at the beginning of the barley harvest.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Now Naomi had a relative of her husband, a man of great worth from the clan of Elimelech. And his name {was} Boaz. | There was a man {there} who was a relative of Naomi’s {dead} husband, Elimelech. He was rich and important, and a member of the same clan to which Elimelech belonged. The man’s name was Boaz. |
Boaz was a relative of Naomi’s husband.
| ULT | UST |
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| And Ruth, the Moabite woman, said to Naomi, “Please, I want to go to the field and glean heads of grain after the one in whose eyes I find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” | Ruth (the woman from Moab) said to Naomi, “Let me go to the fields and pick up the grain that the harvesters leave behind. I will go behind any harvester who allows me to do so.” Naomi replied, “Go ahead, my daughter.” |
She would follow anyone in whose eyes she found favor.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| So she left and went to glean in the field after the reapers. And her chance chanced upon the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelek. | So Ruth went. When she got to the fields, she followed the harvesters and picked up grain. The part of the field that she was working in just happened to belong to Boaz, Elimelek’s relative. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then behold, Boaz coming from Bethlehem! And he said to the reapers, “Yahweh be with you.” And they said to him, “May Yahweh bless you.” | Just then, Boaz arrived from Bethlehem! He greeted the harvesters, “May Yahweh be with you!” They replied, “May Yahweh bless you!” |
He said, “Yahweh be with you.”
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then Boaz said to his servant who was set over the reapers, “Who does this young woman belong to?” | Then Boaz {saw Ruth, and} asked his foreman, “Who is that young woman related to?” |
He wanted to know to whom she belonged.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then the servant who was set over the reapers answered and said, “She is a young Moabite woman, the woman who came back with Naomi from the land of Moab. | The foreman replied, “She is the young woman from Moab who accompanied Naomi when she returned from there. |
| ULT | UST |
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| And she said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the bundles of grain after the reapers.’ And she came and has continued from then, in the morning, until now. This is her resting in the house a little.” | The woman said to me, ‘Please let me pick up the grain that the men who are harvesting leave behind.’ {I allowed her to do so.} She has worked since early this morning until recently, when she rested for a short time under the shelter.” |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Will you not listen, my daughter? Do not go to glean in another field, and do not even go away from here, but thusly stick closely to my young female workers. | Then Boaz {walked over to where Ruth was and} said to Ruth, “Young lady, please listen to me. You do not need to go to any other field or anywhere else to gather grain. You should stay right here with my servant girls. |
He told Ruth not to leave his field, but to stay and work in his field with his female workers.
| ULT | UST |
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| Keep your eyes on the field where they are reaping and follow behind them. Have I not instructed the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the waterpots and drink from what the young men draw.” | Watch where the men are harvesting and follow along behind my servant girls. I have told the men {who are harvesting} not to molest you. Whenever you are thirsty, go and get some water to drink from the jars that the men have filled.” |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then she fell on her face and bowed down to the ground and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your eyes that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” | Then she knelt before him {in respect} with her forehead touching the ground. She exclaimed, “Why are you being so kind to me? I did not think that you would pay any attention to me, since I am a foreigner!” |
She asked Boaz why she had found favor in his sight.
| ULT | UST |
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| Then Boaz answered and said to her, “It has been fully reported to me everything that you have done with your mother-in-law after the death of your husband. You left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and you came to a people whom you did not know the day before yesterday. | Boaz replied, “People have told me everything that you have done for your mother-in-law since your husband died. They told me that you left your parents and your homeland, and that you came here to live among people whom you did not know previously. |
He had heard that Ruth had left her home to follow Naomi.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| May Yahweh reward your work, and may your full wages come from Yahweh, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge.” | I pray that Yahweh will fully repay you for what you have done. Yes, may Yahweh, the God of Israel, the one whom you are trusting to protect you, reward you in full.” |
He said that Ruth had found refuge under Yahweh’s wings.
| ULT | UST |
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| Then she said, “May I find favor in your eyes, my lord, since you have comforted me, and since you have spoken to the heart of your female servant. But as for me, I am not even like one of your female servants.” | She replied, “Sir, I hope I will continue to please you. You have comforted me by speaking so kindly to me, your servant, and yet I am not even {worthy to be} one of your servant girls!” |
| ULT | UST |
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| Then, at the time of the meal, Boaz said to her, “Come here and eat from the bread, and dip your piece in the vinegar.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he offered to her some roasted grain. And she ate and she was satisfied, and she had some left over. | When it was time to eat, Boaz said to Ruth, “Come over here {and get some food}. Take some of this bread and dip it in the vinegar and eat it.” So she {came and} sat down with the harvesters. Then he gave her some roasted grain. She ate all {the food} that she wanted and had some left over. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then she got up to glean. Then Boaz commanded his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the bundles, and do not shame her. | After she stood up to go back to work, Boaz ordered his workers, “Even if she gathers some grain near the bundles of grain {that you have cut}, do not tell her to stop doing that. |
He allowed Ruth to glean among the bundles.
| ULT | UST |
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| Even be sure to pull some out from the bundles for her and leave it for her to glean, and do not rebuke her!” | Even more than that, I want you to pull out some stalks of grain from the bundles and leave them {on the ground} for her to pick up—and do not scold her.” |
He commanded the reapers to pull out grain for Ruth from the bundles.
| ULT | UST |
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| So she gleaned in the field until the evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. | So Ruth gathered grain in the field until evening. Then she threshed the barley that she had gathered{, to separate the kernels from the stalks}. The barley kernels were enough to fill a large basket. |
| ULT | UST |
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| And she lifted it up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. Then she took out and gave to her what she had left over after she was satisfied. | She carried it back to town and showed her mother-in-law how much she had gathered. Ruth also gave her mother-in-law the roasted grain that she had left over after she had eaten all that she had wanted {at lunchtime}. |
| ULT | UST |
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| Then her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today and where did you work? May the one who noticed you be blessed.” Then she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked. And she said, “The name of the man with whom I worked today {is} Boaz.” | Her mother-in-law asked her, “Where did you gather all this grain today? In whose field did you work? I pray that God will bless the man who was so kind to you.” Then Ruth told her about the person with whom she had worked. She said, “The name of the man who owns the field where I worked today is Boaz.” |
She asked where Ruth had gleaned that day.
| ULT | UST |
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| Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by Yahweh, who has not forsaken his covenant faithfulness with the living and with the dead.” Naomi also said to her, “That man is close to us. He is one of our kinsman-redeemers.” | Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May Yahweh bless him! Yahweh has continued to act faithfully toward {us} who are still living, and to {our husbands} who have died.” Then Naomi said, “That man is a close relative {of Elimelek}. In fact, he is one of those responsible for taking care of our family.” |
She said, “May he be blessed by Yahweh.”
| ULT | UST |
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| Then Ruth the Moabite woman said, “In addition, he said to me, ‘You should keep close by the servants who belong to me until the time when they have finished all of the harvest that belongs to me.’” | Then Ruth, the woman from Moab, said, “He also told me to stay with his workers until they are done bringing in all his grain from the field.” |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, “It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young female workers, so that they do not harm you in any other field.” | Naomi replied to her daughter-in-law Ruth, “My daughter, it will be good for you to go {to his field} with his servant girls, because if you go to someone else’s field, someone might assault you.” |
By doing that, Ruth would not come to harm in any other field.
| ULT | UST |
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| So she stayed close by the young female workers of Boaz to glean until the harvest of barley and the harvest of wheat were finished. And she lived with her mother-in-law. | So Ruth worked alongside of Boaz’s servant girls. She gathered heads of grain until the workers had finished harvesting both the barley and the wheat. {During that time,} she continued to live with Naomi. |
She gleaned with Boaz’s workers and lived with her mother-in-law.
| ULT | UST |
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| Then Naomi, her mother-in-law, said to her, “My daughter, shall I not seek a resting place for you, that will be good for you? | One day, Naomi said to Ruth, “My daughter, I want to arrange for you to have a secure home with a good husband. |
She desired that Ruth have a place of rest, meaning to have a person who would treat her well.
| ULT | UST |
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| So now, is not Boaz our relative, the one with whose young female workers you have been working? Behold, he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor tonight. | Now, you have been working with Boaz’s servant girls. As you know, he is a close relative of ours. So listen carefully. Tonight he will be at the place where they thresh the barley. He will be separating the grain from the chaff. |
| ULT | UST |
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| Now wash yourself and anoint yourself and put on your cloak, and go down to the threshing floor. Do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. | Bathe yourself and put on some perfume. Put on your full outer cloak. Then go down to the place where they thresh the grain. But do not let him know that you are there until he has finished his {evening} meal. |
She told her to wash and anoint herself and to put on her cloak.
| ULT | UST |
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| And let it be, when he lies down, know the exact place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. Then he, himself, will tell you what you should do.” | When he lies down {to sleep}, pay attention to where he lies down. Then go {over to him}, uncover his feet, and lie down {there}. {When he wakes up,} he will be the one to tell you what to do {next}.” |
She was to uncover his feet and to lie down there.
| ULT | UST |
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| And she said to her, “Everything that you say, I will do.” | Ruth replied, “I will do everything that you have told me to do.” |
She said she would do everything Naomi told her to do.
| ULT | UST |
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| So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to everything that her mother-in-law had instructed her. | So she went down to the place where people thresh the grain. There she did everything that her mother-in-law had told her to do. |
| ULT | UST |
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| And Boaz ate and drank, and his heart was good, and he went to lie down at the end of the pile of grain. Then she came secretly and uncovered his feet and lay down. | {This is what happened:} When Boaz finished eating and drinking, he was feeling good. He went over to the far end of the grain pile, lay down there{, and went to sleep}. Then Ruth stealthily approached him. She took the covering off his feet and lay down {there}. |
| ULT | UST |
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| Then it happened in the middle of the night that the man was startled and turned over. And behold, a woman was lying at his feet! | In the middle of the night, he woke up suddenly. He sat up and was amazed to find a woman lying at his feet! |
He was startled to find that a woman lay at his feet!
| ULT | UST |
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| And he said, “Who are you?” Then she said, “I am Ruth, your female servant. So spread the edge of your cloak over your female servant, for you are a kinsman-redeemer.” | He asked her, “Who are you?” She replied, “I am your servant, Ruth. Since you are the one responsible for my dead husband’s family, please make me secure by marrying me.” |
She asked Boaz to spread his cloak over her, for he was a kinsman-redeemer.
| ULT | UST |
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| Then he said, “Blessed be you by Yahweh, my daughter! You have made your covenant faithfulness better at the end than at the beginning by not going after the young men, either poor or rich. | Boaz replied, “May Yahweh bless you, my dear! Previously, you were very faithful to your mother-in-law, but you are acting even more faithfully now by not chasing after a young man to marry, whether rich or poor. |
Boaz blessed Ruth because she had come to Boaz, her kinsman-redeemer, rather than pursuing younger men.
| ULT | UST |
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| So now, my daughter, do not be afraid! Everything that you say, I will do for you; for the whole gate of my people knows that you are a woman of worth. | Now, my dear, I will do everything that you asked. Do not be afraid, because everyone in this town knows that you are an honorable woman. |
He said that he would do all that she asked.
| ULT | UST |
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| And now, it is indeed true that I am a kinsman-redeemer, but there is also a kinsman-redeemer nearer than I. | However, while it is true that I am one of Elimelek’s close relatives and, therefore, could be responsible {for you and Naomi}, there is another man who is a closer relative than I am. {He is the one who is actually responsible for you.} |
There was another kinsman-redeemer nearer in relationship than Boaz.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Stay here tonight. And when it is morning, if he will redeem you, good, let him redeem. But if he does not want to redeem you, then I will redeem you myself, as Yahweh lives. Lie down until morning.” | You stay here for the rest of the night. Tomorrow morning I will tell this man about you. If he says that he will take care of you, fine, he can marry you. But if he is unwilling to take care of you, I solemnly promise that, as surely as Yahweh lives, I will marry you and take care of you myself. So stay here until it is morning.” |
If the nearest kinsman-redeemer was willing to redeem Ruth, then Boaz would let him do that. But if he was not willing, then Boaz would be the kinsman-redeemer.
| ULT | UST |
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| So she lay at his feet until the morning, but she got up before a man could recognize his friend. And he said, “Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” | Then Boaz added, “It would be best if no one knew that a woman came here.” So she lay at his feet until early morning and got up {to leave} before {it was light enough that} people would be able to recognize her. |
Boaz did not want people to know that she had been with him overnight at the threshing floor.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then he said, “Bring the cloak that is on you and hold it.” So she held it. And he measured six of barley and put it on her. Then he went into the city. | Then Boaz said to her, “Bring your shawl over here and hold it out.” When she did that, he poured a generous amount of barley into it and put it on her back. Then he went into town. |
He gave her six large measures of barley.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then she came to her mother-in-law, and she said, “Who are you, my daughter?” Then she told her everything that the man had done for her. | When Ruth arrived home, her mother-in-law asked her, “How did things turn out for you, my daughter?” Then Ruth told her all that Boaz had said and done for her. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| And she said, “He gave to me these six of barley, for he said, ‘You must not go empty to your mother-in-law.’” | She also said to Naomi, “He gave me all this barley, saying, ‘I do not want you to return to your mother-in-law with nothing.’” |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then she said, “Sit, my daughter, until the time when you know how the matter falls. For the man will not rest unless he has finished this matter today.” | Then Naomi said, “My daughter, just wait here until we see what happens. That man will work hard on this matter until he has resolved it today.” |
He would resolve it by the end of that same day.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the kinsman-redeemer was passing by, the same man about whom Boaz had spoken earlier. And he said, “Turn aside and sit down here, a certain person.” So he turned aside and sat down. | Meanwhile, Boaz went up to {the place inside} the town gate {where people conducted their official business}. He sat down there. Just as he had hoped, the man responsible for Naomi’s family came along, the man whom Boaz had mentioned earlier. Boaz called out to him by name and said, “Come over here and sit down.” So the man came over and sat down. |
He went to the gate of the city.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then he took ten men from the elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down. | Boaz then gathered ten of the older, well-respected men from the town and said {to them}, “Please sit here {so you can witness our business}.” So they sat down. |
He asked ten men who were from the elders of the city.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then he said to the kinsman-redeemer, “Naomi, the woman who has returned from the fields of Moab, is selling the portion of the field that belonged to our brother Elimelek. | Then Boaz said to the man responsible for Naomi’s family, “The part of the field that belonged to our relative Elimelek is for sale. Naomi, who recently returned from Moab, is selling it. |
He told him that Naomi was selling the piece of land that had been owned by Elimelek.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Now as for me, I said that I should uncover your ear, saying, ‘Buy!’ in the presence of those who are sitting here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you will redeem {it}, redeem {it}. But if you will not redeem {it}, then tell me so that I may know, for there is no one to redeem {it} besides you, and I am after you.” Then he said, “I will redeem {it} myself.” | I thought that I should tell you {about it} and suggest that you buy {the field} while the people who are sitting here are listening, including these leaders of our people. If you want to buy it back into the family, then do so. But if you do not want to buy it back, then let me know, because you are the closest relative to Elimelek, and I am next after you.” The man replied, “No, I will buy it!” |
Boaz suggested that the other kinsman could redeem it.
He said he would redeem it.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then Boaz said, “On the day of your buying the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabite woman, the wife of the dead, in order to raise up the name of the dead over his inheritance.” | Then Boaz told him, “When you buy the land from Naomi, you will also need to marry Ruth, our deceased relative’s widow from Moab, in order that she may have a son who will inherit the property and who will continue Elimelek’s family line.” |
He told him that he would also have to marry Ruth in order to raise up the name of the dead man over his inheritance.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then the kinsman-redeemer said, “I am not able to redeem it for myself lest I damage my own inheritance. You redeem for yourself my right of redemption, for I am not able to redeem it.” | Then the nearer relative said, “Then I cannot buy it back myself. If I did that, I would ruin my own son’s inheritance. You may be responsible for the land and the woman instead of me. I cannot do it.” |
He said he could not redeem the land.
He said that it would damage his own inheritance.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Now this, formerly in Israel, concerning redemption and concerning exchange, to confirm any matter: a man took off his sandal and gave {it} to his friend. So this {was} the form of legal agreement in Israel. | (At that time in Israel, people had a different way of redeeming {land} or exchanging {goods between them}. In order to make these matters legally binding, one man would take off one of his sandals and give it to the other man. That was the way people in Israel made final what they had agreed to do.) |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| So the kinsman-redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” and he took off his sandal. | So after the relative said to Boaz, “You buy the field yourself,” he took off one of his sandals {and gave it to Boaz}. |
He took off his sandal and gave it to him in front of witnesses.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then Boaz said to the elders and to all the people, “You are witnesses today that I am buying from the hand of Naomi everything that belonged to Elimelek and everything that belonged to Kilion and Mahlon. | Then Boaz said to the respected men and to all the other people who were there, “Today you have all seen that I have bought from Naomi all the property that belonged to Elimelek, Kilion, and Mahlon. |
They witnessed that Boaz bought all the land that had belonged to Elimelek.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| And also Ruth, the Moabite woman, the widow of Mahlon, I am acquiring as my wife, in order to raise up the name of the dead over his inheritance, so that the name of the dead will not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his place. Today you are witnesses!” | I am also taking Ruth, Mahlon’s widow from Moab, to be my wife. This is in order that she may give birth to a son. Everyone will consider this son to be a descendant of Elimelek. This son will inherit the property and carry on Elimelek’s family name among his relatives and here in his hometown. Today you have seen and heard these things and can speak of them to anyone who asks about them.” |
They had witnessed that Boaz acquired Ruth as his wife.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| And all the people who were in the gate and the elders said, “{We are} witnesses! May Yahweh make this woman who is coming into your house like Rachel and Leah, the two who built up the house of Israel. Prosper in Ephrathah and be renowned in Bethlehem! | All the respected men, and the others who were sitting at the town gate, agreed, and they said, “Yes, we have seen and heard. We pray that Yahweh will allow this woman, who will be coming into your home, to be like Rachel and Leah, the two who bore our ancestors and started our people, Israel. May you become great in the clan of Ephrathah and famous here in Bethlehem! |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| And may your house become like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, from the seed that Yahweh gives you from this young woman.” | We pray that your family will be like the family of your ancestor Perez, son of Judah and Tamar, because of the many descendants that Yahweh will give to you and this young woman.” |
They desired that Yahweh would give him offspring through Ruth, just as Tamar bore a son to Judah.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. Then Yahweh gave her conception, and she bore a son. | So Boaz married Ruth and had sexual relations with her. Yahweh enabled her to become pregnant, and she gave birth to a son. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be Yahweh, who has not left you today without a kinsman-redeemer. May his name be renowned in Israel! | The women of Bethlehem said to Naomi, “Praise Yahweh for giving you a man to preserve your family today. We pray to Yahweh that people throughout Israel will greatly respect him. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Now he will be for you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age. For your daughter-in-law, who loves you, has borne him—she who is better to you than seven sons.” | Your daughter-in-law, who loves you and who has been better to you than if you had seven sons, has given birth to him. Therefore, he will make you feel young again, and he will take care of you when you become old.” |
They said this because of Ruth’s love for Naomi, and because Ruth had given birth to a grandson for Naomi.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| And Naomi took the child and put him on her lap, and she became his nurse. | Then Naomi picked up the baby and held him closely and became a second mother to him. |
Naomi became his nurse or caregiver.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| So the neighbor women called out a name for him, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” And they called his name Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David. | The women who were living nearby said, “It is as though Naomi now has a son!” They named him Obed. Later, Obed became the father of Jesse, who became the father of {King} David. |
His name was Obed.
Obed was the father of Jesse and the grandfather of David.
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron; | Here is a list of the descendants of Perez: Perez’s son was Hezron. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| and Hezron fathered Ram; and Ram fathered Amminadab; | Hezron’s son was Ram. Ram’s son was Amminadab. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| and Amminadab fathered Nahshon; and Nahshon fathered Salmon; | Amminadab’s son was Nahshon. Nahshon’s son was Salmon. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| and Salmon fathered Boaz; and Boaz fathered Obed; | Salmon’s son was Boaz. Boaz’s son was Obed. |
| ULT | UST |
|---|---|
| and Obed fathered Jesse; and Jesse fathered David. | Obed’s son was Jesse. Jesse’s son was {King} David. |