So she lay down at his feet until morning, but she got up before anyone else could recognize her. Then Boaz said, “Do not let it be known that a woman came to the threshing floor.”
Parallel translations
- WEB She lay at his feet until the morning, then she rose up before one could discern another. For he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”
- KJV And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another. And he said, Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor.
- NKJV So she lay at his feet until morning, and she arose before one could recognize another. Then he said, “Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”
- NASB So she lay at his feet until morning, and got up before one person could recognize another; and he said, “Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”
- NLT So Ruth lay at Boaz’s feet until the morning, but she got up before it was light enough for people to recognize each other. For Boaz had said, “No one must know that a woman was here at the threshing floor.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Ruth stays until early morning, leaving before she can be recognized, to protect both their reputations. Boaz guards her honor and his own.
Overview
Boaz ensures Ruth departs unseen so that no scandal could arise from the night's events—further proof of the integrity governing the whole scene. His concern to avoid even the appearance of evil safeguards Ruth's dignity. The narrative thus underscores that this redemption is pursued in righteousness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 7
- 2 Cor 8:21For we are taking great care to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord, but also in the eyes of men.
- Rom 14:16Do not allow what you consider good, then, to be spoken of as evil.
- 1 Pet 2:12Conduct yourselves with such honor among the Gentiles that, though they slander you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us.
- Rom 12:17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Carefully consider what is right in the eyes of everybody.
- 1 Cor 10:32Do not become a stumbling block, whether to Jews or Greeks or the church of God—
- 1 Th 5:22Abstain from every form of evil.
- Eccl 7:1A good name is better than fine perfume, and one’s day of death is better than his day of birth.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Boaz the kinsman-redeemer who buys back the destitute and takes a bride foreshadows Christ, our Redeemer who pays the price to make a people his own; and from Ruth's line comes David, and David's greater Son.
How Ruth 3:14 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.