During the time of the judges there was a famine in the land of Judah. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah went to live as a resident foreigner in the region of Moab, along with his wife and two sons.

(Now the man's name was Elimelech, his wife was Naomi, and his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were of the clan of Ephrath from Bethlehem in Judah.) They entered the region of Moab and settled there.

So her sons married Moabite women. (One was named Orpah and the other Ruth.) And they continued to live there about ten years.

Then Naomi's two sons, Mahlon and Kilion, also died. So the woman was left all alone -- bereaved of her two children as well as her husband!

So she decided to return home from the region of Moab, accompanied by her daughters-in-law, because while she was living in Moab she had heard that the Lord had shown concern for his people, reversing the famine by providing abundant crops.

Go back home, my daughters! For I am too old to get married again. Even if I thought that there was hope that I could get married tonight and conceive sons,

When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped trying to dissuade her.

So the two of themWhen they entered Bethlehem, the whole village was excited about their arrival. The women of the village said, "Can this be Naomi?"

Now Naomi had a relative on her husband's side of the family named Boaz. He was a wealthy, prominent man from the clan of Elimelech.

So Ruth went and gathered grain in the fields behind the harvesters. Now she just happened to end up in the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelech.

Later during the mealtime Boaz said to her, "Come here and have some food! Dip your bread in the vinegar!" So she sat down beside the harvesters. Then he handed her some roasted grain. She ate until she was full and saved the rest.

When Boaz had finished his meal and was feeling satisfied, he lay down to sleep at the far end of the grain heap. Then Ruth crept up quietly, uncovered his legs, and lay down beside him.

In the middle of the night he was startled and turned over. Now he saw a woman lying beside him!

So she slept beside him until morning. She woke up while it was still dark. Boaz thought, "No one must know that a woman visited the threshing floor."

(Now this used to be the customary way to finalize a transaction involving redemption in Israel: A man would remove his sandal and give it to the other party. This was a legally binding act in Israel.)

These are the descendants of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron,

Hezron was the father of Ram, Ram was the father of Amminadab,

Amminadab was the father of Nachshon, Nachshon was the father of Salmah,

Salmon was the father of Boaz, Boaz was the father of Obed,

Obed was the father of Jesse, and Jesse was the father of David.