August 20 Reading

3:1 Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, should I not seek rest for you, that it may be well with you? Is not Boaz our relative, with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak and go down to the threshing floor, but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. But when he lies down, observe the place where he lies. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you what to do.” And she replied, “All that you say I will do.”

So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had commanded her. And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came softly and uncovered his feet and lay down. At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet! He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer.” And he said, “May you be blessed by the LORD, my daughter. You have made this last kindness greater than the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman. And now it is true that I am a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I. Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the LORD lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning.”

So she lay at his feet until the morning, but arose before one could recognize another. And he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” And he said, “Bring the garment you are wearing and hold it out.” So she held it, and he measured out six measures of barley and put it on her. Then she went into the city. And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did you fare, my daughter?” Then she told her all that the man had done for her, saying, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said to me, ‘You must not go back empty-handed to your mother-in-law.’” She replied, “Wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out, for the man will not rest but will settle the matter today.”

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of the Sons of Korah.

49:1   Hear this, all peoples!
    Give ear, all inhabitants of the world,
  both low and high,
    rich and poor together!
  My mouth shall speak wisdom;
    the meditation of my heart shall be understanding.
  I will incline my ear to a proverb;
    I will solve my riddle to the music of the lyre.
  Why should I fear in times of trouble,
    when the iniquity of those who cheat me surrounds me,
  those who trust in their wealth
    and boast of the abundance of their riches?
  Truly no man can ransom another,
    or give to God the price of his life,
  for the ransom of their life is costly
    and can never suffice,
  that he should live on forever
    and never see the pit.
  For he sees that even the wise die;
    the fool and the stupid alike must perish
    and leave their wealth to others.
  Their graves are their homes forever,
    their dwelling places to all generations,
    though they called lands by their own names.
  Man in his pomp will not remain;
    he is like the beasts that perish.
  This is the path of those who have foolish confidence;
    yet after them people approve of their boasts. Selah
  Like sheep they are appointed for Sheol;
    death shall be their shepherd,
  and the upright shall rule over them in the morning.
    Their form shall be consumed in Sheol, with no place to dwell.
  But God will ransom my soul from the power of Sheol,
    for he will receive me. Selah
  Be not afraid when a man becomes rich,
    when the glory of his house increases.
  For when he dies he will carry nothing away;
    his glory will not go down after him.
  For though, while he lives, he counts himself blessed—
    and though you get praise when you do well for yourself—
  his soul will go to the generation of his fathers,
    who will never again see light.
  Man in his pomp yet without understanding is like the beasts that perish.