When he gets ready to go to sleep, ¹  take careful notice of the place where he lies down. Then go, uncover his legs, ²  and lie down ³  beside him. ⁴  He will tell ⁵  you what you should do.”

She said, “He gave me these sixty pounds of barley, for he said to me, ¹  ‘Do not go to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” ² 

In the middle of the night he was startled ¹  and turned over. ²  Now ³  he saw a woman ⁴  lying beside him! ⁵ 

So the guardian said to Boaz, “You may acquire it,” and he removed his sandal. ¹ 

Then he said, “Hold out the shawl ¹  you are wearing ²  and grip it tightly.” As she held it tightly, he measured out about sixty pounds ³  of barley into the shawl and put it on her shoulders. Then he ⁴  went into town,

The village women said to Naomi, “May the Lord be praised because he has not left you without a guardian ¹  today! May he ²  become famous in Israel! ³ 

Now Boaz, with whose female servants you worked, is our close relative. ¹  Look, tonight he is winnowing barley at the threshing floor. ² 

Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be rewarded by the Lord because he ¹  has shown loyalty to the living on behalf of the dead!” ²  Then Naomi said to her, “This man is a close relative of ours; he is our guardian.” ³ 

He said, “Who are you?” ¹  She replied, “I am Ruth, your servant. ²  Marry your servant, ³  for you are a guardian of the family interests.” ⁴ 

The neighbor women named him, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. ¹  Now he became the father of Jesse – David’s father!

Ruth the Moabite replied, “He even ¹  told me, ‘You may go along beside my servants ²  until they have finished gathering all my harvest!’” ³ 

Remain here tonight. Then in the morning, if he agrees to marry you, ¹  fine, ²  let him do so. ³  But if he does not want to do so, I promise, as surely as the Lord lives, to marry you. ⁴  Sleep here until morning.” ⁵ 

Now Boaz went up ¹  to the village gate and sat there. Then along came the guardian ²  whom Boaz had mentioned to Ruth! ³  Boaz said, “Come ⁴  here and sit down, ‘John Doe’!” ⁵  So he came ⁶  and sat down.

When Boaz had finished his meal and was feeling satisfied, he lay down to sleep at the far end of the grain heap. ¹  Then Ruth ²  crept up quietly, ³  uncovered his legs, ⁴  and lay down beside him. ⁵ 

Then Naomi ¹  said, “Stay put, ²  my daughter, until you know how the matter turns out. For the man will not rest until he has taken care of the matter today.”

So bathe yourself, ¹  rub on some perfumed oil, ²  and get dressed up. ³  Then go down ⁴  to the threshing floor. But don’t let the man know you’re there until he finishes his meal. ⁵ 

He will encourage you and provide for you when you are old, ¹  for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, has given him birth. She ²  is better to you than seven sons!”

He said, “May you be rewarded ¹  by the Lord, my dear! ²  This act of devotion ³  is greater than what you did before. ⁴  For you have not sought to marry ⁵  one of the young men, whether rich or poor. ⁶ 

Now Naomi ¹  had a relative ²  on her husband’s side of the family named Boaz. He was a wealthy, prominent man from the clan of Elimelech. ³ 

Later during the mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here and have ¹  some food! Dip your bread ²  in the vinegar!” So she sat down beside the harvesters. Then he handed ³  her some roasted grain. She ate until she was full and saved the rest. ⁴