« | Ruth 2 | » |
1 Naomi had a prominent kinsman named Boaz, of the clan of her husband Elimelech.
2 Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, "Let me go and glean ears of grain in the field of anyone who will allow me that favor." Naomi said to her, "Go, my daughter,"
3 and she went. The field she entered to glean after the harvesters happened to be the section belonging to Boaz of the clan of Elimelech.
4 Boaz himself came from Bethlehem and said to the harvesters, "The LORD be with you!" and they replied, "The LORD bless you!"
5 Boaz asked the overseer of his harvesters, "Whose girl is this?"
6 The overseer of the harvesters answered, "She is the Moabite girl who returned from the plateau of Moab with Naomi.
7 She asked leave to gather the gleanings into sheaves after the harvesters; and ever since she came this morning she has remained here until now, with scarcely a moment's rest."
8 Boaz said to Ruth, "Listen, my daughter! Do not go to glean in anyone else's field; you are not to leave here. Stay here with my women servants.
9 Watch to see which field is to be harvested, and follow them; I have commanded the young men to do you no harm. When you are thirsty, you may go and drink from the vessels the young men have filled."
10 Casting herself prostrate upon the ground, she said to him, "Why should I, a foreigner, be favored with your notice?"
11 Boaz answered her: "I have had a complete account of what you have done for your mother-in-law after your husband's death; you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know previously.
12 May the LORD reward what you have done! May you receive a full reward from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge."
13 She said, "May I prove worthy of your kindness, my lord: you have comforted me, your servant, with your consoling words; would indeed that I were a servant of yours!"
14 At mealtime Boaz said to her, "Come here and have some food; dip your bread in the sauce." Then as she sat near the reapers, he handed her some roasted grain and she ate her fill and had some left over.
15 She rose to glean, and Boaz instructed his servants to let her glean among the sheaves themselves without scolding her,
16 and even to let drop some handfuls and leave them for her to glean without being rebuked.
17 She gleaned in the field until evening, and when she beat out what she had gleaned it came to about an ephah of barley,
18 which she took into the city and showed to her mother-in-law. Next she brought out and gave her what she had left over from lunch.
19 So her mother-in-law said to her, "Where did you glean today? Where did you go to work? May he who took notice of you be blessed!" Then she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked. "The man at whose place I worked today is named Boaz," she said.
20 "May he be blessed by the LORD, who is ever merciful to the living and to the dead," Naomi exclaimed to her daughter-in-law; and she continued, "He is a relative of ours, one of our next of kin."
21 "He even told me," added Ruth the Moabite, "that I should stay with his servants until they complete his entire harvest."
22 "You would do well, my dear," Naomi rejoined, "to go out with his servants; for in someone else's field you might be insulted."
23 So she stayed gleaning with the servants of Boaz until the end of the barley and wheat harvests.
The New American Standard Updated Version (NASU)
The New American Standard Updated Version (NASU) is a highly respected English translation of the Bible known for its rigorous adherence to the original languages of Scripture. First published in 1995 by the Lockman Foundation, the NASU is an update of the New American Standard Bible (NASB), which was originally completed in 1971. The NASU seeks to improve upon the NASB by enhancing readability and modernizing the language while maintaining the translation’s reputation for being one of the most literal translations available. This makes the NASU a preferred choice for serious Bible study, preaching, and teaching.
A key feature of the NASU is its commitment to formal equivalence, or a word-for-word translation philosophy. The translators aimed to produce a text that is as close as possible to the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek manuscripts. This approach ensures that the NASU captures the precise meaning and structure of the original texts, providing readers with a highly accurate and reliable representation of the Scriptures. The use of formal equivalence makes the NASU particularly valuable for those who desire a deep and detailed understanding of the Bible, including scholars, theologians, and students of the Word.
In updating the NASB, the NASU made several important changes to improve clarity and readability. While maintaining the accuracy and literalness of the translation, the NASU incorporates modern English expressions and smoother sentence structures. This makes the text more accessible to contemporary readers without compromising the precision that the NASB is known for. The NASU also includes updated cross-references and footnotes, which provide additional context and insights, further aiding in the study and understanding of the biblical text.
Despite its many strengths, the NASU has faced some criticism. Some readers and scholars argue that the translation’s emphasis on literalness can sometimes result in a text that feels stiff or less fluid than more dynamic translations. Additionally, while the NASU’s updated language makes it more accessible, some feel that it could go further in adapting to contemporary usage without losing its accuracy. Nevertheless, the New American Standard Updated Version remains a highly esteemed translation, valued for its fidelity to the original texts and its usefulness for in-depth study and precise interpretation of the Bible.