Sometime later<n id="1" /> Naomi&#8217;s husband Elimelech died, so she and her two sons were left alone.

<t /><p class="bodytext">Now Naomi<n id="1" /> had a relative<n id="2" /> on her husband&#8217;s side of the family named Boaz. He was a wealthy, prominent man from the clan of Elimelech.<n id="3" />

<t /><p class="bodytext">At that time,<n id="1" /> Naomi, her mother-in-law, said to her, &#8220;My daughter, I must find a home for you so you will be secure.<n id="2" />

Then Boaz said to the guardian,<n id="1" /> &#8220;Naomi, who has returned from the region of Moab, is selling<n id="2" /> the portion of land that belongs to our relative Elimelech.

Naomi took the child and placed him on her lap;<n id="1" /> she became his caregiver.<n id="2" />

Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, &#8220;May he be rewarded by the <sc>Lordsc> because he<n id="1" /> has shown loyalty to the living on behalf of the dead!&#8221;<n id="2" /> Then Naomi said to her, &#8220;This man is a close relative of ours; he is our guardian.&#8221;<n id="3" />

Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, &#8220;Listen to me! Each of you should return to your mother&#8217;s home!<n id="1" /> May the <sc>Lordsc> show<n id="2" /> you<n id="3" /> the same kind of devotion that you have shown to your deceased husbands<n id="4" /> and to me!<n id="5" />

<p class="bodytext">But Naomi replied, &#8220;Go back home, my daughters! There is no reason for you to return to Judah with me!<n id="1" /> I am no longer capable of giving birth to sons who might become your husbands!<n id="2" />

So the two of them<n id="1" /> journeyed together until they arrived in Bethlehem.<n id="2" />p><t /><p class="bodytext">When they entered<n id="3" /> Bethlehem,<n id="4" /> the whole village was excited about their arrival.<n id="5" /> The women of the village said,<n id="6" /> &#8220;Can this be Naomi?&#8221;<n id="7" />

But she replied<n id="1" /> to them,<n id="2" /> &#8220;Don&#8217;t call me &#8216;Naomi&#8217;!<n id="3" /> Call me &#8216;Mara&#8217;<n id="4" /> because the Sovereign One<n id="5" /> has treated me very harshly.<n id="6" />

I left here full,<n id="1" /> but the <sc>Lordsc> has caused me to return empty-handed.<n id="2" /> Why do you call me &#8216;Naomi,&#8217; seeing that<n id="3" /> the <sc>Lordsc> has opposed me,<n id="4" /> and the Sovereign One<n id="5" /> has caused me to suffer?&#8221;<n id="6" />

So Naomi returned, accompanied by her Moabite daughter-in-law Ruth, who came back with her from the region of Moab.<n id="1" /> (Now they<n id="2" /> arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.)<n id="3" />p>

The servant in charge of the harvesters replied, &#8220;She&#8217;s the young Moabite woman who came back with Naomi from the region of Moab.

Naomi then said to her daughter-in-law Ruth, &#8220;It is good, my daughter, that you should go out to work with his female servants.<n id="1" /> That way you will not be harmed, which could happen in another field.&#8221;<n id="2" />

Then Boaz said, &#8220;When<n id="1" /> you acquire the field<n id="2" /> from Naomi,<n id="3" /> you must also<n id="4" /> acquire Ruth the Moabite,<n id="5" /> the wife of our deceased relative,<n id="6" /> in order to preserve his family name by raising up a descendant who will inherit his property.&#8221;<n id="7" />

The village women said to Naomi, &#8220;May the <sc>Lordsc> be praised because he has not left you without a guardian<n id="1" /> today! May he<n id="2" /> become famous in Israel!<n id="3" />

The neighbor women named him, saying, &#8220;A son has been born to Naomi.&#8221; They named him Obed.<n id="1" /> Now he became the father of Jesse &#8211; David&#8217;s father!p>

(Now the man&#8217;s name was Elimelech,<n id="1" /> his wife was Naomi,<n id="2" /> and his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion.<n id="3" /> They were of the clan of Ephrath<n id="4" /> from Bethlehem in Judah.) They entered the region of Moab and settled there.<n id="5" />

One day Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, &#8220;Let me go<n id="1" /> to the fields so I can gather<n id="2" /> grain behind whoever permits me to do so.&#8221;<n id="3" /> Naomi<n id="4" /> replied, &#8220;You may go, my daughter.&#8221;

Then Boaz said to the leaders and all the people, &#8220;You are witnesses today that I have acquired from Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech, Kilion, and Mahlon.