1 Noêmi tinha um parente, por parte de seu marido, homem poderoso e rico da família de Elimelec, chamado Booz.2 Rute, a moabita, disse a Noêmi: Peço-te que me deixes ir respigar nos campos de quem me quiser acolher favoravelmente. Vai, minha filha, respondeu-lhe ela.3 Rute partiu, pois, e entrou num campo, atrás dos segadores. Ora, aconteceu que aquele era justamente o campo de Booz, parente de Elimelec.4 Booz acabava de voltar de Belém, e disse aos segadores: O Senhor esteja convosco! Deus te abençoe, responderam eles.5 Booz dirigiu-se ao servo que tomava conta dos segadores: De quem é esta moça?6 Esta é uma jovem moabita, respondeu ele, que veio com Noêmi da terra de Moab.7 Pediu-nos que a deixássemos respigar entre os feixes de trigo e apanhar as espigas atrás dos segadores. Está, aí, sempre de pé, desde a manhã até agora. Neste momento ela descansa um pouco sob a tenda.8 Booz disse a Rute: Ouve, minha filha: não vás respigar em outro campo; não te afastes daqui, mas junta-te com minhas servas.9 Olha em que campo vão ceifar, e segue-as. Proibi aos meus servos que te molestassem. Se tiveres sede, vai à bilha e bebe da água que eles tiverem buscado.10 Rute, caindo aos seus pés, prostrou-se por terra: De onde me vem a dita, disse ela, de que te interesses por mim, uma estrangeira?11 Contaram-me, replicou Booz, tudo o que fizeste por tua sogra depois que morreu o teu marido, como deixaste teu pai, tua mãe e a tua pátria, e vieste para um povo que antes não conhecias.12 O Senhor te remunere pelo bem que fizeste, e recebas uma plena recompensa do Senhor, Deus de Israel, sob cujas asas te acolheste!13 Ela respondeu: Encontre eu graça diante dos teus olhos, meu senhor, pois me consolaste e encorajaste a tua serva, ainda que eu não seja como uma de tuas escravas.14 À hora de comer, Booz disse-lhe: Vem, come tua parte do pão, e molha o teu bocado no vinagre. Ela assentou-se ao lado dos segadores, e Booz ofereceu-lhe grão torrado; ela comeu até ficar satisfeita e guardou o resto. Levantou-se em seguida e recomeçou a respigar.15 Booz disse aos seus servos: Deixai-a respigar mesmo entre os feixes e não a molesteis.16 Deixai cair de vossos feixes, como por descuido, algumas espigas, e deixai-as para que ela as apanhe; sobretudo, não a censurais de forma alguma.17 Rute esteve, pois, respigando no campo até a tarde; tendo depois batido as espigas que tinha colhido, encontrou quase um efá de cevada.18 Carregando a cevada, entrou na cidade, e sua sogra viu o que ela tinha colhido. Rute tirou então o que lhe sobrou de seu almoço e deu-lho.19 Onde respigaste hoje?, perguntou-lhe Noêmi; onde trabalhaste? Bendito seja quem te acolheu! Ela contou à sua sogra em que propriedade tinha trabalhado. O homem, disse ela, em cuja terra trabalhei hoje, chama-se Booz.20 Bendito seja ele do Senhor, respondeu Noêmi, porque mostrou-se misericordioso tanto para com os vivos como para com os mortos. E acrescentou: Esse homem é nosso próximo parente, um dos que têm direito de resgate sobre nós.21 Ele disse-me também, continuou Rute, a moabita, que ficasse com os seus servos até que se acabasse toda a ceifa.22 Noêmi respondeu-lhe: É melhor, minha filha que sigas as suas servas, e que não te encontrem noutro campo.23 Ela ficou, pois, com as servas de Booz, respigando até ao fim da ceifa da cevada e do trigo. E morava com a sua sogra.

1 And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a mighty man of strength, of the family of Elimelech, and his name [was] Boaz.2 And Ruth, the Moabitess, said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field and glean [ears of grain] after [him] in whose sight I shall find grace. And she said unto her, Go, my daughter.3 And she went and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers, and it came to pass that her lot was to light on a part of the field [belonging] unto Boaz, who [was] of the kindred of Elimelech.4 And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem and said unto the reapers, The LORD [be] with you. And they answered him, The LORD bless thee.5 Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers, Whose damsel [is] this?6 And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, It [is] the damsel of Moab that came back with Naomi out of the fields of Moab;7 and she has said, I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves; so she came and has continued from the morning until now except a short while that [she] was in the house.8 Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hear, my daughter, do not glean in another field, nor leave here; thou shalt cleave to my maidens.9 Look carefully upon the field that they reap and go after them, for I have charged the young men not to touch thee. And when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels and drink of [that] which the young men have drawn.10 Then she fell on her face and bowed herself to the ground and said unto him, Why have I found grace in thine eyes that thou should acknowledge me, seeing I [am] a stranger?11 And Boaz answered and said unto her, It has fully been showed me all that thou hast done unto thy mother-in-law since the death of thy husband and [how] thou hast left thy father and thy mother and the land of thy nativity and art come three days ago unto a people whom thou didst not know not before.12 Let the LORD recompense thy work and a full reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to cover thyself.13 Then she said, Let me find grace in thy sight, my lord, for thou hast comforted me and hast spoken unto the heart of thy handmaid though I am not like unto one of thy handmaidens.14 And Boaz said unto her at mealtime, Come here and eat of the bread and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers, and he gave her of the pottage, and she ate and was satisfied, and [some was] left over.15 And when she had risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, Let her glean even among the sheaves and do not reproach her16 and let fall also [some] of the handfuls on purpose for her and leave [them] that she may glean [them] and do not reprehend her.17 So she gleaned in the field until evening and beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley.18 And she took [it] up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She also brought forth that which had been left over after she had been satisfied and gave it to her.19 And her mother-in-law said unto her, Where hast thou gleaned today? Where hast thou worked? Blessed be he that acknowledged thee. And she declared unto her mother-in-law all that had happened to her with him and said, The man's name with whom I worked today [is] Boaz.20 And Naomi said unto her daughter-in-law, Let him be blessed of the LORD, who has not left off his mercy unto the living nor unto the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man [is] near of kin unto us, and of whom one has the right to redeem us.21 And Ruth, the Moabitess, said, He also said unto me, Thou shalt cleave to my servants until they have finished all my harvest.22 And Naomi replied unto Ruth her daughter-in-law, [It is] good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens that they not meet thee in any other field.23 So she kept close by the maidens of Boaz to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest and dwelt with her mother-in-law.: