Ruth 3
1 Forsothe aftir that Ruth turnede ayen to hir modir in lawe, Ruth herde of hir, My douytir, Y schal seke reste to thee, and Y schal purueye that it be wel to thee.
Naomi, her mother-in-law, said to her, “My daughter, should I not seek a place for you to rest, so that things may go well for you?
2 This Booz, to whose damesels thou were ioyned in the feeld, is oure kynesman, and in this niyt he wyndewith the corn floor of barli.
Now Boaz, the man whose young female workers you have been with, is he not our kinsman? Look, he will be winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.
3 Therfor be thou waischun, and anoyntid, and be thou clothid with onestere clothis, and go doun in to the corn floor; the man, `that is, Booz, se not thee, til he haue endid the mete and drynke.
Therefore, wash yourself, anoint yourself, put on your best clothes, and go down to the threshing floor. But do not make yourself known to the man until he finishes eating and drinking.
4 Forsothe whanne he goth to slepe, marke thou the place `in which he slepith; and thou schalt come and vnhile the cloth, `with which he is hilid, fro the part of the feet, and thou schalt caste thee doun, and thou schalt ly there. Forsothe he schal seie to thee, what thou `owist to do.
But when he lies down, take notice of the place where he lies down so that later you can go to him, uncover his feet, and lie down there. Then he will tell you what to do.”
5 Which answeride, What euer thing thou comaundist, Y schal do.
Ruth said to Naomi, “I will do everything you say.”
6 And sche yede doun in to the corn floor, and dide alle thingis whiche hir modir in lawe comaundide to hir.
So she went down to the threshing floor, and she followed the instructions her mother-in-law had given her.
7 And whanne Booz hadde ete and drunke, and was maad gladere, and hadde go to slepe bisidis the `heep of handfuls, sche cam, and hidde hir silf; and whanne the cloth was vnhilid fro `hise feet, sche castide doun hir silf.
When Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the pile of grain. Then she came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down.
8 And lo! now at mydnyyt `the man dredde, and was troblid; and he siy a womman lyggynge at hise feet;
It came about at midnight that the man was startled. He turned over, and right there a woman was lying at his feet!
9 and he seide to hir, Who art thou? Sche answeride, Y am Ruth, thin handmayde; stretche forth thi cloth on thi seruauntesse, for thou art nyy of kyn.
He said, “Who are you?” She answered, “I am Ruth, your female servant. Spread your cloak over your female servant, for you are a near kinsman.”
10 And he seide, Douytir, thou art blessid of the Lord, and thou hast ouercome the formere mercy with the lattere; for thou `suedist not yonge men, pore ethir riche.
Boaz said, “My daughter, may you be blessed by Yahweh. You have showed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, because you have not gone after any of the young men, whether poor or rich.
11 Therfor `nyle thou drede, but what euer thing thou schalt seie to me, Y schal do to thee; for al the puple that dwellith with ynne the yatis of my cytee woot, that thou art a womman of vertu.
Now, my daughter, do not be afraid! I will do for you all that you say, because all the city of my people knows that you are a worthy woman.
12 And Y forsake not, that Y am of nyy kyn, but another man is neer than Y;
It is true that I am a kinsman, but there is a kinsman nearer than I.
13 reste thou in this nyyt, and whanne the morewtid is maad, if he wole holde thee bi riyt of nyy kyn, the thing is wel doon; forsothe if he nyle, Y schal take thee with outen ony doute, the Lord lyueth, `that is, bi the Lord lyuynge; slepe thou til the morewtid.
Stay here tonight, and in the morning, if he will perform for you the duty of a kinsman, good, let him do the kinsman's duty. But if he will not do the duty of a kinsman for you, then I will do it, by the life of Yahweh. Lie down until the morning.”
14 Therfore sche slepte at `hise feet til to the goyng awey of nyyt, and so sche roos bifor that men knewen `hem silf togidere. And Booz seide to hir, Be thou war lest ony man knowe, that thou camest hidir.
So she lay at his feet until the morning. But she rose up before anyone could recognize another person. For Boaz had said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”
15 And eft he seide, Stretche forth thi mentil `with which thou `art hilid, and holde thou with euer either hond. And while sche stretchide forth and helde, he mete sixe buyschels of barly, and `puttide on hir; and sche bar, and entride in to the citee,
Then Boaz said, “Bring your shawl and hold it out.” When she did so, he measured six large measures of barley into it and put the load on her. Then he went into the city.
16 and cam to hir modir in lawe. Which seide to Ruth, What hast thou do, douyter? And Ruth telde to hir alle thingis, whyche `the man hadde do to hir.
When Ruth came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did you do, my daughter?” Then Ruth told her all that the man had done for her.
17 And Ruth seide, Lo! he yaf to me sixe buyschels of barly; and he seide, Y nyle that thou turne ayen voide to thi modir in lawe.
She said, “These six measures of barley are what he gave me, for he said, 'Do not go empty to your mother-in-law.'”
18 And Noemy seide, Abide, douytir, til we sien what issu the thing schal haue; for the man schal not ceesse, no but he fille tho thingis whiche he spak.
Then Naomi said, “Stay here, my daughter, until you know how the matter will turn out, for the man will not rest until he has finished this thing today.”
