Ruth Meets Boaz

¹ Now Naomi had a kinsman on her husband’s side, a prominent rich man, of the family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. ² And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain, behind someone in whose sight I may find favor.” She said to her, “Go, my daughter.” ³ So she went. She came and gleaned in the field behind the reapers. As it happened, she came to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech. ⁴ Just then Boaz came from Bethlehem. He said to the reapers, “The LORD be with you.” They answered, “The LORD bless you.” ⁵ Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, “To whom does this young woman belong?” ⁶ The servant who was in charge of the reapers answered, “She is the Moabite who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. ⁷ She said, ‘Please, let me glean and gather among the sheaves behind the reapers.’ So she came, and she has been on her feet from early this morning until now, without resting even for a moment.”
⁸ Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Now listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. ⁹ Keep your eyes on the field that is being reaped, and follow behind them. I have ordered the young men not to bother you. If you get thirsty, go to the vessels and drink from what the young men have drawn.” ¹⁰ Then she fell prostrate, with her face to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your sight, that you should take notice of me, when I am a foreigner?” ¹¹ But Boaz answered her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told me, and how you left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did not know before. ¹² May the LORD reward you for your deeds, and may you have a full reward from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge!” ¹³ Then she said, “May I continue to find favor in your sight, my lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your servant, even though I am not one of your servants.”
¹⁴ At mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here, and eat some of this bread, and dip your morsel in the sour wine.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he heaped up for her some parched grain. She ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over. ¹⁵ When she got up to glean, Boaz instructed his young men, “Let her glean even among the standing sheaves, and do not reproach her. ¹⁶ You must also pull out some handfuls for her from the bundles, and leave them for her to glean, and do not rebuke her.”
¹⁷ So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. ¹⁸ She picked it up and came into the town, and her mother-in-law saw how much she had gleaned. Then she took out and gave her what was left over after she herself had been satisfied. ¹⁹ Her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today? And where have you worked? Blessed be the man who took notice of you.” So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, “The name of the man with whom I worked today is Boaz.” ²⁰ Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “Blessed be he by the LORD, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead!” Naomi also said to her, “The man is a relative of ours, one of our nearest kin.” ²¹ Then Ruth the Moabite said, “He even said to me, ‘Stay close by my servants, until they have finished all my harvest.’” ²² Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, “It is better, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, otherwise you might be bothered in another field.” ²³ So she stayed close to the young women of Boaz, gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvests; and she lived with her mother-in-law.

Ruth 2:1-23 (NRSV)

2:1: This introduces Boaz. He was related to Naomi.

2:2: She was picking up the scraps left after the harvest. This was allowed in Deuteronomy 24:19 for the poor to pick up the forgotten pieces of grain. Even though this was allowed by the old law, it was not guaranteed that they would let her.

2:3: She happens to go into the fields belonging to Boaz. This shows that God orders events, even those that appear left up to chance. These events can occur as luck but are controlled by God.

2:4: These people were expressing their reverence towards God even while doing the most mundane tasks. Wesley pointed out that society now is ashamed of their religious beliefs and expressing their reverence.

2:7: The term pray in this context means to ask a favor of someone respectfully. This how’s that when she asked to gather grains she asked respectfully. She worked diligently not taking a break. Some translations suggest there is a shelter or house that she spent some time in and others suggest she worked without a break. Where she was it was common to take breaks out of the heat. RSV suggests no breaks most others suggest short breaks.

2:8: Boaz then tells her to keep close to the other ladies. This is to avoid the occasion/opportunity of sin and avoid a scandal. Boaz also shows his pity and prudence. He saw a problem and took action to avoid a potential risk.

2:9: He did not want any of them to touch, harm her, or say otherwise inappropriate comments.

2:10: Falling on her face was a way of showing him respect. In other context, it would show religious respect for God. She asked why was he showing any respect to her.

2:12: Wings in this context are protection and care. This alludes to either one of two situations. The first is a hen which uses her wings to protect and cherish her children. The second is the wings of the Cherubim, between which God dwelt.

2:13: Ruth was surprised that he treated her well considering she was not an Israelite.

2:14: She sat beside the reapers, but still away from them, as to be inferior to them. She was showing the other reapers respect.

2:15: Boaz asks the men to be respectful to her.

2:16: Boaz then asks his servants to leave some barley for her to pick up. Usually, they just leave what fell on the ground, this time he wants them to purposefully leave some there for her to pick up.

2:17: This is a little over a bushel of barley. This would last her about 10 days by herself. Sharing with Naomi, this could be 5 days.

2:18: She brought home some barley that she had gathered. This shows that she cared for her mother even though she had little. This mirrors what we should do when our parents cannot sustain themselves.

2:20: Naomi had never previously told Ruth that Boaz was related to them, nor did she mention their riches.

2:21: She participated in both a barley harvest and a wheat harvest. In being humble she represented the praise of Boaz. She also did not share the praises Boaz had of her. In being humble it is important to not only not praise about one’s self, but also praise others for what they have done.

2:22: Naomi is pleased that Boaz brought her in as his maidens and that she is not out with other men who might want to do bad things to her.