1 And Naomi had an acquaintance i to her man, a man of strong wealth, from family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. ii 2 And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field and let me glean iii in the heads of grain after whom I may find favor in his eyes.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.”
3 And she went and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And her chance happened iv to be on the portion of the field belonging to Boaz who was from Elimelech's family. 4 And behold, Boaz came from House of Bread and said to the reapers, “Yehvah be with you.” And they said to him, “Yehvah bless you.” 5 And Boaz said to his young man who was standing over the reapers, “To whom is this young woman?” 6 And the young man standing over the reapers answered and said, “She is a Moabitess young woman who came back with Naomi from field of Moab. 7 And she said, 'Please let me glean and I will gather among sheaves after
the reapers.' And she came and remained from that time of the morning and until now. Though, she sat in the house a little.”
8 And Boaz said to Ruth, “Will you not listen, my daughter. Do not go to glean in another field. And also, do not pass on from this. And so, cling with my young women. 9 Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping and go after them. Have I not commanded the young men to not touch you? And you are thirsty, so go to the vessels and drink from what the young men have drawn.”
10 And she fell on her face and bowed to earth and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your eyes to notice me, and I am a foreigner?” 11 And Boaz answered and said to her, “Telling, it has been told to me all that you have done with your mother-in-law after your man died. And you left your father and your mother and land of your birth, and you went to a people that you did not know in time past. 12 May Yehvah reward your work and may your wages be complete from Yehvah, Gods of Israel, whom you have come to seek refuge under his wings.” v 13 And she said, “May I find favor in your eyes, my lord, for you have comforted me, and because you have spoken upon your maidservant's heart; and I am not like one of your maidservants.”
14 And Boaz said to her at time of the food, “Draw near here and eat from the bread and dip your morsel in the vinegar.” So, she sat beside the reapers and he passed to her roasted grain. And she ate and was satisfied and she had some left. 15 And she arose to glean, and Boaz commanded his young men saying, “Let her also glean between the sheaves and do not dishonor her. 16 And also, pulling out, you shall pull out for her from the bundles of grain and leave and let her glean, and do not rebuke her.”
17 And she gleaned in the field until the evening. And she beat out what she gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. 18 And she carried and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she gleaned. And she brought out and gave to her what was left after she was satisfied.
19 And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today, and where did you work? Blessed be he who took notice of you.” And she told her mother-in-law with whom she worked. And she said, “The man's name who I worked with today is Boaz.” [20] And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “Blessed is he of Yehvah, who has not forsaken his lovingkingness with the living and with the dead!” And Naomi said to her, “The man is near to us. He is from our redeemer.” vi
21 And Ruth the Moabitess said, “For he also said to me, 'Cling with the young men vii who are mine until when all of the harvest that is mine is finished.'” 22 And Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, “Good, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, and they not come against viii you in another field.” 23 So, she clung with Boaz' young women to glean until the finishing of the barley harvest and the wheat harvest. And she dwelt with her mother-in-law.
Translated by Darwin Fish. See original pdf.
- ע ידדע מי) meyuddâ`) written “acquaintance” YLT; read ע מודע) moda`) “relative” NKJV; “kinsmen” NAS, KJV. ^
- ז בעעע) bo`az) “Boaz” - found also in Ruth 2:3-5, 8, 11, 14-15, 19, 23; 3:2, 7; 4:1, 5, 8-9, 13, 21; 1 Kings 7:21; 1 Chronicles 2:11-12; 2 Chronicles 3:17. See Matthew 1:5 footnote for Boaz' mother possibly being Rachab. Mt. 1:5 - racab (hrachab) - “Rachab” - This could be Rachab the harlot, but in the Greek (LXX and NT) Rachab the harlot is always elsewhere spelled Ῥααβ [hraab]. See Joshua 2:1, 3; 6:17, 23, 25; Hebrews 11:31; James 2:25. But, in the LXX c (ch) can be used for ח) ch) e.g. 1 Chronicles 1:26 “Nahor” ר נעחו) nâchor)/Ναχωρ (nachôr). Salmon (Boaz' father) was Nahshon’s son, and Nahshon was alive during Moses’ time. So, Salmon could have been contemporaneous with Rachab the harlot. See footnote for Joshua 2:1. Josh 2:1 - רעחעב) râchâv) “Rachab”; CJB, OJB “Rachav”; NKJV, etc. “Rahab” - LXX Ῥααβ (Hraab) - found also in Joshua 2:3; 6:17, 23, 25. In the NT “Rachab” the harlot is Ῥαὰβ (hraab) in Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25. Matthew 1:5 has Ῥαχάβ (hrachab), see footnote for Mt 1:5. In Hebrew רעחעב) râchâv) is an adjective meaning “wide” or “broad” (e.g. Genesis 34:21; Exodus 3:8; Job 30:14; etc.), but her name given here is likely from her native Canaanite language. Also, this “Rachab” is NOT the “Rahab” רעהעב) rahav) of Job 9:13; 26:12 (NAS); Psalm 87:4; 89:10(H11); Isaiah 30:7; 51:9. ^
- This was a law in Israel, to allow the poor to glean the fields. See Leviticus 19:9-10; 23:22. ^
- הע רה קי מק ר יקקה) yiqer miqrehâ) “her chance happened” Green; “her chance happeneth” YLT; “her hap was to light” KJV; “she happened” NKJV, NAS. ^
- ו) kenâphâyn) “his wings” - “wing” in Ruth 3:9 is clearly used as a figure of speech for Boaz. See also Isaiah 8:7-8 for the “wings” of the king of Assyria. Furthermore, there is nothing in Scripture demanding God does not have wings. Believers in the future will have wings (Isaiah 40:31), and it says, “when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:2). See also Matthew 3:16; Mark 1:10; Luke 3:22; John 1:32. For further mention of God's wings, see Psalm 17:8; 36:7; 57:1; 61:4; 63:7; 91:4 (“His feathers” and “wings”); Malachi 4:2. For mention of God flying, see 2 Samuel 22:11; Psalm 18:10; Jeremiah 49:22. See also Zechariah 5:9 for two women with wings. ^
- ו לנ געאל מק) miggo'alênu) “from our redeemer” (singular “redeemer”) - the idea is he is of those relatives who can “redeem” as in Leviticus 25:25 (Naomi had become poor and sold her land, Ruth 4:3). See footnote at Leviticus 25:25. Lev 25:25 - /la}gO (go'alo) – "his redeemer" – as in Isaiah 44:6, /la}gO (go'alo) "his redeemer." Likewise, Job 19:2 (ylia}GO [go'aliy], "my redeemer"). ^
- ים רק ניעע) ne`âriym) “young men” - the masculine plural can include the young women as well. ^
- ך גיעו־בע יקפי) yiphgge`u-bâkh) “come against you” - YLT “come . . . against thee”; Green “attack you”; NKJV “meet you”; NAS “fall upon you” - basic idea of the construction here (with the preposition בי] be]) is to “meet” in a hostile way (e.g. Numbers 35:19, 21), thus here “come against” or “attack.” See likewise e.g. in Judges 8:21. ^
So why do you believe the Old Testament to be true if 2 Esdras 14:21 says that the law was burned, and the man who reconstructed the Torah was basing it off oral tradition, which most certainly changed between 1400 and 500 BC?
2 Esdras is not part of the Bible. I don't know that it is true. Even if this story were true, God can preserve His Word in this way.
You say that 2 Esdras is a history, which, evidently, means that you believe that the text within it is true.
I retract my past statements, 2 Esdras itself says that Esdras was told what to write by God.
When we call something "extra-biblical history" it is to point out that it should be taken with a grain of salt, meaning it might not be true. Since 2 Esdras is not part of the Bible, the things it says might not be true, like the claim that God told Esdras to write it.
And the name of the man was Elimelech... “Elimelech” = “my God is king” - found also in Ruth 1:3; 2:1, 3; 4:3, 9.
and his woman's name was Naomi... “Naomi” - found also in Ruth 1:3, 8, 11, 19-22, 2:1-2, 6, 20, 22; 3:1; 4:3, 5, 9, 14, 16-17.
and name of his two sons, Mahlon... “Mahlon” - found also in Ruth 1:5; 4:9-10.
and Chilion... “Chilion” - found also in Ruth 1:5; 4:9.
And they took for themselves Moabite women, the name of the one, Orpah, and the name of the second, Ruth. “Ruth” - found also in Ruth 1:14, 16, 22; 2:2, 8, 21-22; 3:9; 4:5,10, 13.
And he said to them, “What have I done now like you? Is not the gleaning of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer? -- “gleaning” = “going over a second time” BDB – e.g. Leviticus 19:10; Deuteronomy 24:21; Ruth 2:2.
And he said to Sacrifice and Zalmunna, “Where are the men who you killed at Tabor?” And they said, “As you, as they, each one as the form of the king's sons.” -- “Where” ESV, RSV, LXX (ποῦ [pou]); “How” YLT; “What kind of” NKJV, NAS; “What manner of” KJV – this is a peculiar use. Elsewhere, always “where” (Genesis 37:16; Ruth 2:19; 1 Samuel 19:22; 2 Samuel 9:4; Job 4:7; 38:4; Isaiah 49:21; Jeremiah 3:2; 36:19; ).