Ruth 2
Ruth collects grain in Boaz’s field
Naomi’s husband (Elimelech) had a wealthy relative named Boaz. One day Ruth asked Naomi,
“Please, would it be alright if I went to the field and collected some leftover grain? That way I might catch someone’s eye.”
Naomi said,
“Go ahead, my daughter.”
So Ruth went and collected scraps behind the harvesters. It just so happened that she ended up in the part of the farmland that was Boaz’s field.
Boaz notices Ruth
Boaz had just gotten back from Bethlehem and told his harvesters,
“May the Existing One be with you.”
And they replied,
“And may the Existing One bless you!”
Then Boaz asked his harvest manager,
“Whose young woman is that?”
The harvest manager answered,
“She’s the young woman Naomi brought back with her from Moab. She asked us if she could pick up the scraps behind our harvesters, so that’s what she’s been doing ever since this morning. She only sat in the house for a short break.”
Boaz helps Ruth
So Boaz approached her and said,
“Excuse me miss, you don’t have to go collecting scraps from any other field. Yeah, you don’t have to leave this field—you can just stay here with my other maids. Notice which field they harvest and follow them. I told my employees not to bother you. When you get thirsty just help yourself to the water my employees draw from the well.”
Then Ruth fell to the ground, bowing her face and said,
“Why are you showing me favoritism? I didn’t think you’d even notice me because I’m an immigrant.”
Boaz replied,
“I heard about everything you did for your mother-in-law after your husband passed away. You left your parents and your home-country and moved to a foreign country. I hope the Existing One rewards you for your actions and maximizes your income. He’s Israel’s God, and you can find refuge under his wings.”
Ruth said,
“You really do seem to favor me, sir! You tell me such heartfelt and comforting things even though I’m not one of your maids.”
When it was time for dinner Boaz said,
“You’re welcome to stay here and eat with us. We have vinegar to dip our food in.”
So Ruth sat next to the harvesters and Boaz provided roasted grain for the meal. She ate til she was full and even had leftovers. When she got up to continue collecting scraps, Boaz told his employees,
“Let her collect whatever she wants—even from the stalks—and don’t make fun of her. Also purposely leave some grain out for her to collect. Don’t give her a hard time.”
Ruth returns to Naomi & learns Boaz’s relation
So she stayed there collecting grain until sunset. She beat out the grain from the stalks and ended up with a whole bushel. She picked it up and brought it back into town and showed her mother-in-law how much she had collected. Ruth kept as much as she wanted and let Naomi have the rest. Naomi asked,
“Where did you go today to collect from? May God bless whoever it was that accommodated you.”
So Ruth described the field she worked in and said,
“The man’s name was Boaz.”
Naomi said,
“May the Existing One bless him for showing kindness to you and I who live as well as our deceased husbands. Boaz was closely related to your husband.”
Ruth said,
“Boaz also invited me to stick with his employees until harvest season is over.”
Naomi said,
“My daughter, I think it’d be great if you stayed in his field with his maids so that other men don’t try to approach you.”
So Ruth stayed close to Boaz’s maids and collected with them until the harvesting season for barley and wheat was over. She continued living with her mother-in-law during that period.
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