The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Ruth 01
1 In the days when the judges judged,
there was a famine in the land. A certain
manofBethlehem Judah wentto live inthe
country of Moab with his wife and his two
sons.
2 The name of the man was Elimelech,
and the name of his wife Naomi. The
names of his two sons were Mahlon and
Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem Judah.
They came into the country of Moab and
lived there.
3 Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and
she was left with her two sons.
4 They took for themselves wives of the
women of Moab. The name of the one
was Orpah, and the name of the other was
Ruth. They lived there about ten years.
5 Mahlon and Chilion both died, and the
woman was bereaved of her two children
and of her husband.
6 Then she arose with her daughters-inlaw, that she might return from the country of Moab;
for she had heard in the country of Moab how Yahweh† had visited his
people in giving them bread.
7 She went out of the place where she
was, and her two daughters-in-law with
her. They went on the way to return to the
land of Judah.
8 Naomi said to her two daughtersin-law, “Go, return each of you to her
mother’s house. May Yahweh deal kindly
with you, as you have dealt with the dead
and with me.
9 May Yahweh grant you that you may
find rest, each of you in the house of her
husband.” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up
their voices, and wept.
10 They said to her, “No, but we will
return with you to your people.”
11 Naomi said, “Go back, my daughters.
Why do you want to go with me? Do I still
have sons in my womb, that they may be
your husbands?
12 Go back, my daughters, go your way;
for I am too old to have a husband. If I
should say, ‘I have hope,’ if I should even
have a husband tonight, and should also
bear sons,
13 would you then wait until they were
grown? Would you then refrain from having husbands? No, my daughters, for it
grieves me seriously for your sakes, for
Yahweh’s hand has gone out against me.”
14 They lifted up their voices and wept
again; then Orpah kissed her mother-inlaw, but Ruth stayed with her.
15 She said, “Behold,‡ your sister-in-law
has gone back to her people and to her god.
Follow your sister-in-law.”
16 Ruth said, “Don’t urge me to leave
you, and to return from following you, for
where you go, I will go; and where you
stay, I will stay. Your people will be my
people, and your God§ my God.
17 Where you die, I will die, and there I
will be buried. May Yahweh do so to me,
and more also, if anything but death parts
you and me.”
18 When Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her,
she stopped urging her.
19 So they both went until they came
to Bethlehem. When they had come to
Bethlehem, all the city was excited about
them, and they asked, “Is this Naomi?”
20 She said to them, “Don’t call me
Naomi.† Call me Mara,‡ for the Almighty
has dealt very bitterly with me.
21 I went out full, and Yahweh has
brought me home again empty. Why do
you call me Naomi, since Yahweh has testified against me, and the Almighty has
afflicted me?”
22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the
Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, with her,
who returned out of the country of Moab.
They came to Bethlehem in the beginning
of barley harvest.