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Tonight he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nlt/ruth/3.htm">New Living Translation</a></span><br />Boaz is a close relative of ours, and he’s been very kind by letting you gather grain with his young women. Tonight he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/esv/ruth/3.htm">English Standard Version</a></span><br />Is not Boaz our relative, with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/bsb/ruth/3.htm">Berean Standard Bible</a></span><br />Now is not Boaz, with whose servant girls you have been working, a relative of ours? In fact, tonight he is winnowing barley on the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/kjv/ruth/3.htm">King James Bible</a></span><br />And now <i>is</i> not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night in the threshingfloor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nkjv/ruth/3.htm">New King James Version</a></span><br />Now Boaz, whose young women you were with, <i>is he</i> not our relative? In fact, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb_/ruth/3.htm">New American Standard Bible</a></span><br />Now then, is Boaz not our relative, with whose young women you were? Behold, he is winnowing barley at the threshing floor tonight.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb/ruth/3.htm">NASB 1995</a></span><br />&#8220Now is not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maids you were? Behold, he winnows barley at the threshing floor tonight.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb77/ruth/3.htm">NASB 1977 </a></span><br />“And now is not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maids you were? Behold, he winnows barley at the threshing floor tonight.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsb/ruth/3.htm">Legacy Standard Bible </a></span><br />And now, is not Boaz our kinsman, with whose young women you were? Behold, he is winnowing barley at the threshing floor tonight.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/amp/ruth/3.htm">Amplified Bible</a></span><br />Now Boaz, with whose maids you were [working], is he not our relative? See now, he is winnowing barley at the threshing floor tonight.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/csb/ruth/3.htm">Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />Now isn’t Boaz our relative? Haven’t you been working with his female servants? This evening he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hcsb/ruth/3.htm">Holman Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />Now isn&#8217t Boaz our relative? Haven&#8217t you been working with his female servants? This evening he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/asv/ruth/3.htm">American Standard Version</a></span><br />And now is not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cev/ruth/3.htm">Contemporary English Version</a></span><br />You have been picking up grain alongside the women who work for Boaz, and you know he is a relative of ours. Tonight he will be threshing the grain. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/erv/ruth/3.htm">English Revised Version</a></span><br />And now is there not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gwt/ruth/3.htm">GOD'S WORD® Translation</a></span><br />Isn't Boaz, whose young women you've been working with, our relative? He will be separating the barley from its husks on the threshing floor tonight. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gnt/ruth/3.htm">Good News Translation</a></span><br />Remember that this man Boaz, whose women you have been working with, is our relative. Now listen. This evening he will be threshing the barley. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/isv/ruth/3.htm">International Standard Version</a></span><br />Isn't Boaz one of our close relatives? You've been associating with his women servants lately. Look, he'll be winnowing barley at the threshing floor tonight. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/msb/ruth/3.htm">Majority Standard Bible</a></span><br />Now is not Boaz, with whose servant girls you have been working, a relative of ours? In fact, tonight he is winnowing barley on the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/net/ruth/3.htm">NET Bible</a></span><br />Now Boaz, with whose female servants you worked, is our close relative. Look, tonight he is winnowing barley at the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nheb/ruth/3.htm">New Heart English Bible</a></span><br />Now isn't Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens you were? Look, he winnows barley tonight at the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/wbt/ruth/3.htm">Webster's Bible Translation</a></span><br />And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/web/ruth/3.htm">World English Bible</a></span><br />Now isn’t Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens you were? Behold, he will be winnowing barley tonight on the threshing floor. <div class="vheading2"><b>Literal Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsv/ruth/3.htm">Literal Standard Version</a></span><br />And now, is not Boaz of our acquaintance, with whose young women you have been? Behold, he is winnowing the threshing-floor of barley tonight,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/ylt/ruth/3.htm">Young's Literal Translation</a></span><br /> and now, is not Boaz of our acquaintance, with whose young women thou hast been? lo, he is winnowing the threshing-floor of barley to-night,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/slt/ruth/3.htm">Smith's Literal Translation</a></span><br />And now is not Boaz from our acquaintance of whom thou wert with his maidens? Behold him winnowing the threshing-floor of barley this night.<div class="vheading2"><b>Catholic Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/drb/ruth/3.htm">Douay-Rheims Bible</a></span><br />This Booz, with whose maids thou wast joined in the field, is our near kinsman, and behold this night he winnoweth barley in the threshingfloor. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cpdv/ruth/3.htm">Catholic Public Domain Version</a></span><br />This Boaz, whose young women you joined in the field, is our near relative, and this night he will winnow the threshing floor of barley.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nabre/ruth/3.htm">New American Bible</a></span><br />Now! Is not Boaz, whose young women you were working with, a relative of ours? This very night he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nrsvce/ruth/3.htm">New Revised Standard Version</a></span><br />Now here is our kinsman Boaz, with whose young women you have been working. See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.<div class="vheading2"><b>Translations from Aramaic</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lamsa/ruth/3.htm">Lamsa Bible</a></span><br />And, behold, Boaz is our kinsman, with whose maidens you were; and behold, he is going to winnow barley tonight in the threshing floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hpbt/ruth/3.htm">Peshitta Holy Bible Translated</a></span><br />And behold Baaz our Kinsman is he with whose Maidens you are, and behold, on this night he heaps up the granary of barley<div class="vheading2"><b>OT Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/jps/ruth/3.htm">JPS Tanakh 1917</a></span><br />And now is there not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/sep/ruth/3.htm">Brenton Septuagint Translation</a></span><br />And now <i>is</i> not Booz our kinsman, with whose damsels thou wast? behold, he winnows barley this night in the floor.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/parallel/ruth/3-2.htm">Additional Translations ...</a></span></div></div></div><div id="centbox"><div class="padcent"><a name="audio" id="audio"></a><div class="vheadingv"><b>Audio Bible</b></div><iframe width="100%" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LT1nlCXT1mU?start=508" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><div class="vheadingv"><b>Context</b></div><span class="hdg"><a href="/bsb/ruth/3.htm">Naomi Instructs Ruth</a></span><br><span class="reftext">1</span>One day Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi said to her, “My daughter, should I not seek a resting place for you, that it may be well with you? <span class="reftext">2</span><span class="highl"><a href="/hebrew/6258.htm" title="6258: wə·‘at·tāh (Conj-w:: Adv) -- Now. From eth; at this time, whether adverb, conjunction or expletive.">Now</a> <a href="/hebrew/3808.htm" title="3808: hă·lō (Adv-NegPrt) -- Not. Or lowi; or loh; a primitive particle; not; by implication, no; often used with other particles.">is not</a> <a href="/hebrew/1162.htm" title="1162: ḇō·‘az (N-proper-ms) -- From an unused root of uncertain meaning; Boaz, the ancestor of David; also the name of a pillar in front of the temple.">Boaz,</a> <a href="/hebrew/854.htm" title="854: ’eṯ- (Prep) -- With (denoting proximity). Probably from 'anah; properly, nearness, near; hence, generally, with, by, at, among, etc.">with</a> <a href="/hebrew/834.htm" title="834: ’ă·šer (Pro-r) -- Who, which, that. A primitive relative pronoun; who, which, what, that; also when, where, how, because, in order that, etc.">whose</a> <a href="/hebrew/5291.htm" title="5291: na·‘ă·rō·w·ṯāw (N-fpc:: 3ms) -- A girl, maiden. Feminine of na'ar; a girl.">servant girls</a> <a href="/hebrew/1961.htm" title="1961: hā·yîṯ (V-Qal-Perf-2fs) -- To fall out, come to pass, become, be. A primitive root; to exist, i.e. Be or become, come to pass.">you have been working,</a> <a href="/hebrew/4130.htm" title="4130: mō·ḏa‘·tā·nū (N-fsc:: 1cp) -- Kindred, kinship. From yada'; acquaintance.">a relative of ours?</a> <a href="/hebrew/2009.htm" title="2009: hin·nêh- (Interjection) -- Lo! behold! Prolongation for hen; lo!">In fact,</a> <a href="/hebrew/3915.htm" title="3915: hal·lā·yə·lāh (Art:: N-ms) -- Night. Or leyl; also laylah; from the same as luwl; properly, a twist, i.e. Night; figuratively, adversity.">tonight</a> <a href="/hebrew/1931.htm" title="1931: hū (Pro-3ms) -- He, she, it. ">he</a> <a href="/hebrew/2219.htm" title="2219: zō·reh (V-Qal-Prtcpl-ms) -- To scatter, fan, winnow. A primitive root; to toss about; by implication, to diffuse, winnow.">is winnowing</a> <a href="/hebrew/853.htm" title="853: ’eṯ- (DirObjM) -- Apparent contracted from 'owth in the demonstrative sense of entity; properly, self."></a> <a href="/hebrew/8184.htm" title="8184: haś·śə·‘ō·rîm (Art:: N-fp) -- Barley. Or snowrah; and; also s or; or s-owr; from sa'ar in the sense of roughness; barley.">barley</a> <a href="/hebrew/1637.htm" title="1637: gō·ren (N-fsc) -- Threshing floor. From an unused root meaning to smooth; a threshing- floor; by analogy, any open area.">on the threshing floor.</a> </span><span class="reftext">3</span>Therefore wash yourself, put on perfume, and wear your best clothes. Go down to the threshing floor, but do not let the man know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking.…<div class="cred"><a href="//berean.bible">Berean Standard Bible</a> · <a href="//berean.bible/downloads.htm">Download</a></div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="crossref" id="crossref"></a><div class="vheading">Cross References</div><div id="crf"><span class="crossverse"><a href="/leviticus/25-25.htm">Leviticus 25:25</a></span><br />If your brother becomes impoverished and sells some of his property, his nearest of kin may come and redeem what his brother has sold.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/deuteronomy/25-5.htm">Deuteronomy 25:5-10</a></span><br />When brothers dwell together and one of them dies without a son, the widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband’s brother is to take her as his wife and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law for her. / The first son she bears will carry on the name of the dead brother, so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel. / But if the man does not want to marry his brother’s widow, she is to go to the elders at the city gate and say, “My husband’s brother refuses to preserve his brother’s name in Israel. He is not willing to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for me.” ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/ruth/2-1.htm">Ruth 2:1</a></span><br />Now Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side, a prominent man of noble character from the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/ruth/4-1.htm">Ruth 4:1-10</a></span><br />Meanwhile, Boaz went to the gate and sat down there. Soon the kinsman-redeemer of whom he had spoken came along, and Boaz said, “Come over here, my friend, and sit down.” So he went over and sat down. / Then Boaz took ten of the elders of the city and said, “Sit here,” and they did so. / And he said to the kinsman-redeemer, “Naomi, who has returned from the land of Moab, is selling the piece of land that belonged to our brother Elimelech. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/38-8.htm">Genesis 38:8</a></span><br />Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife. Perform your duty as her brother-in-law and raise up offspring for your brother.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/matthew/22-24.htm">Matthew 22:24</a></span><br />“Teacher,” they said, “Moses declared that if a man dies without having children, his brother is to marry the widow and raise up offspring for him.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/mark/12-19.htm">Mark 12:19</a></span><br />“Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man is to marry his brother’s widow and raise up offspring for him.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/luke/20-28.htm">Luke 20:28</a></span><br />“Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man is to marry his brother’s widow and raise up offspring for him.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/1_corinthians/7-39.htm">1 Corinthians 7:39</a></span><br />A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, as long as he belongs to the Lord.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/1_timothy/5-14.htm">1 Timothy 5:14</a></span><br />So I advise the younger widows to marry, have children, and manage their households, denying the adversary occasion for slander.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/24-27.htm">Genesis 24:27</a></span><br />saying, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not withheld His kindness and faithfulness from my master. As for me, the LORD has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/genesis/29-20.htm">Genesis 29:20</a></span><br />So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, yet it seemed but a few days because of his love for her.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/exodus/3-8.htm">Exodus 3:8</a></span><br />I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/deuteronomy/7-13.htm">Deuteronomy 7:13</a></span><br />He will love you and bless you and multiply you. He will bless the fruit of your womb and the produce of your land—your grain, new wine, and oil, the young of your herds and the lambs of your flocks—in the land that He swore to your fathers to give you.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/psalms/37-3.htm">Psalm 37:3</a></span><br />Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.</div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="tsk" id="tsk"><div class="vheading">Treasury of Scripture</div><p class="tsk2">And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens you were? Behold, he winnows barley to night in the threshing floor.</p><p class="hdg">is not Boaz</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/ruth/2-20.htm">Ruth 2:20-23</a></b></br> And Naomi said unto her daughter in law, Blessed <i>be</i> he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man <i>is</i> near of kin unto us, one of our next kinsmen… </p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/deuteronomy/25-5.htm">Deuteronomy 25:5,6</a></b></br> If brethren dwell together, and one of them die, and have no child, the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her husband's brother shall go in unto her, and take her to him to wife, and perform the duty of an husband's brother unto her… </p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/hebrews/2-11.htm">Hebrews 2:11-14</a></b></br> For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified <i>are</i> all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, … </p><p class="hdg">with whose</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/ruth/2-8.htm">Ruth 2:8,23</a></b></br> Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens: … </p><div class="vheading">Jump to Previous</div><a href="/ruth/2-1.htm">Acquaintance</a> <a href="/ruth/2-23.htm">Barley</a> <a href="/ruth/2-23.htm">Boaz</a> <a href="/ruth/2-3.htm">Kindred</a> <a href="/ruth/2-1.htm">Kinsman</a> <a href="/ruth/2-23.htm">Maidens</a> <a href="/ruth/2-23.htm">Maids</a> <a href="/ruth/1-12.htm">Night</a> <a href="/ruth/2-1.htm">Relation</a> <a href="/judges/9-43.htm">Separating</a> <a href="/ruth/2-23.htm">Servant</a> <a href="/judges/8-16.htm">Threshing</a> <a href="/numbers/18-30.htm">Threshingfloor</a> <a href="/deuteronomy/16-13.htm">Threshing-Floor</a> <a href="/ruth/1-12.htm">Tonight</a> <a href="/ruth/1-12.htm">To-Night</a> <a href="/deuteronomy/32-18.htm">Wast</a> <a href="/proverbs/20-26.htm">Winnoweth</a> <a href="/proverbs/20-26.htm">Winnows</a><div class="vheading2">Jump to Next</div><a href="/2_kings/12-5.htm">Acquaintance</a> <a href="/ruth/3-15.htm">Barley</a> <a href="/ruth/3-7.htm">Boaz</a> <a href="/1_chronicles/12-29.htm">Kindred</a> <a href="/ruth/3-9.htm">Kinsman</a> <a href="/1_samuel/9-11.htm">Maidens</a> <a href="/2_samuel/6-22.htm">Maids</a> <a href="/ruth/3-8.htm">Night</a> <a href="/ruth/3-9.htm">Relation</a> <a href="/2_kings/2-11.htm">Separating</a> <a href="/ruth/3-9.htm">Servant</a> <a href="/ruth/3-3.htm">Threshing</a> <a href="/2_samuel/6-6.htm">Threshingfloor</a> <a href="/ruth/3-3.htm">Threshing-Floor</a> <a href="/1_samuel/19-11.htm">Tonight</a> <a href="/1_samuel/15-16.htm">To-Night</a> <a href="/1_samuel/15-17.htm">Wast</a> <a href="/proverbs/20-26.htm">Winnoweth</a> <a href="/proverbs/20-8.htm">Winnows</a><div class="vheading2">Ruth 3</div><span class="reftext">1. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/ruth/3-1.htm">By Naomi's instruction</a></span><br><span class="reftext">5. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/ruth/3-5.htm">Ruth lies at Boaz's feet</a></span><br><span class="reftext">8. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/ruth/3-8.htm">Boaz acknowledges the right of a kinsman</a></span><br><span class="reftext">14. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/ruth/3-14.htm">He sends her away with six measures of barley</a></span><br></div></div><div id="mdd"><div align="center"><div class="bot2"><table align="center" width="100%"><tr><td><div align="center"> <script id="3d27ed63fc4348d5b062c4527ae09445"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=51ce25d5-1a8c-424a-8695-4bd48c750f35&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script> <script id="b817b7107f1d4a7997da1b3c33457e03"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=cb0edd8b-b416-47eb-8c6d-3cc96561f7e8&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-2'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-0' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-3'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-1' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div align="center" id='div-gpt-ad-1531425649696-0'> </div><br /><br /> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:inline-block;width:200px;height:200px" data-ad-client="ca-pub-3753401421161123" data-ad-slot="3592799687"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); </script> <br /><br /> </div> </td></tr></table></div></div></div><div id="combox"><div class="padcom"><a name="study" id="study"></a><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top"><a href="/study/ruth/3.htm">Study Bible</a></td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/study/ruth/" title="Book Summary and Study">Book ◦</a> <a href="/study/chapters/ruth/3.htm" title="Chapter summary and Study">Chapter </a></tr></table></div><b>Now is not Boaz, with whose servant girls you have been working, a relative of ours?</b><br>Boaz is introduced as a significant figure in the narrative, a man of wealth and standing in Bethlehem. The mention of Boaz as a "relative" is crucial, as it sets the stage for the concept of the kinsman-redeemer, a key theme in the Book of Ruth. According to Levitical law (<a href="/leviticus/25-25.htm">Leviticus 25:25</a>), a kinsman-redeemer had the responsibility to redeem a relative in serious difficulty, which could include marrying a widow to preserve the family line (<a href="/deuteronomy/25-5.htm">Deuteronomy 25:5-10</a>). Ruth's connection to Boaz through Naomi highlights the providential care of God in providing for Ruth and Naomi's future. The reference to Ruth working with Boaz's servant girls underscores her diligence and the favor she has found in Boaz's eyes, which is a testament to her character and God's provision.<p><b>In fact, tonight he is winnowing barley on the threshing floor.</b><br>The threshing floor was a significant location in ancient agricultural society, often situated on elevated ground to take advantage of the wind for separating grain from chaff. The process of winnowing involved tossing the harvested grain into the air so that the wind would blow away the lighter chaff, leaving the heavier grain to fall back to the ground. This activity typically took place in the evening when the breezes were more predictable. The mention of Boaz winnowing barley indicates the time of the barley harvest, which is in the spring, around the time of the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost). This setting not only provides a backdrop for the unfolding events but also symbolizes a time of provision and blessing. The threshing floor is also a place of transformation and revelation, as seen in other biblical narratives (e.g., <a href="/2_samuel/24-18.htm">2 Samuel 24:18-25</a>), and it foreshadows the pivotal encounter between Ruth and Boaz that will lead to their eventual marriage.<div class="vheading2">Persons / Places / Events</div>1. <b><a href="/topical/r/ruth.htm">Ruth</a></b><br>A Moabite widow who has shown loyalty to her mother-in-law, Naomi, and has come to Bethlehem to seek refuge and provision.<br><br>2. <b><a href="/topical/n/naomi.htm">Naomi</a></b><br>Ruth's mother-in-law, who has returned to Bethlehem after the death of her husband and sons. She is guiding Ruth in seeking security and provision.<br><br>3. <b><a href="/topical/b/boaz.htm">Boaz</a></b><br>A wealthy and influential relative of Naomi's late husband, Elimelech. He is a potential kinsman-redeemer for Ruth, which is a key concept in this account.<br><br>4. <b><a href="/topical/t/threshing_floor.htm">Threshing Floor</a></b><br>A place where grain is separated from chaff. It is significant as a setting for the unfolding of God's providential plan for Ruth and Boaz.<br><br>5. <b><a href="/topical/b/bethlehem.htm">Bethlehem</a></b><br>The town where Naomi and Ruth have returned, and where Boaz resides. It is also the future birthplace of Jesus, connecting this account to the larger biblical account.<div class="vheading2">Teaching Points</div><b><a href="/topical/g/god's_providence.htm">God's Providence</a></b><br>The account of Ruth and Boaz illustrates God's providential care and guidance. Even in difficult circumstances, God is at work to bring about His purposes.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/r/role_of_the_kinsman-redeemer.htm">Role of the Kinsman-Redeemer</a></b><br>Boaz as a kinsman-redeemer is a foreshadowing of Christ, our ultimate Redeemer. Understanding this role helps us appreciate the depth of Christ's redemptive work.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/f/faith_and_initiative.htm">Faith and Initiative</a></b><br>Ruth's willingness to follow Naomi's guidance and take initiative at the threshing floor demonstrates faith in action. Believers are encouraged to trust God and take steps of faith in their own lives.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/c/community_and_support.htm">Community and Support</a></b><br>The relationship between Ruth, Naomi, and Boaz highlights the importance of community and mutual support within the body of Christ.<div class="vheading2">Lists and Questions</div><a href="/top10/lessons_from_ruth_3.htm">Top 10 Lessons from Ruth 3</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/what's_the_book_of_ruth_about.htm">What is the story and significance of the Book of Ruth?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/does_boaz's_wealth_fit_ancient_israel.htm">Ruth 2:1 – Does the description of Boaz as a “man of great wealth” align with what we know of the economic conditions in ancient Israel? </a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/why_did_naomi_tell_ruth_to_meet_boaz_secretly.htm">In Ruth 3:3-4, why would Naomi instruct Ruth to approach Boaz at night in secret instead of openly, raising questions about her motives or social conventions?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/what_defines_a_threshing_floor.htm">What defines a threshing floor?</a><a name="commentary" id="commentary"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/pulpit/ruth/3.htm">Pulpit Commentary</a></div><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 2.</span> - <span class="cmt_word">And now is not Boaz, with whose young women thou wast, our relatives.</span> Naomi opens her case. She had been studying Boaz all through the harvest season. She had been studying Ruth too. She saw unmistakable evidence of mutual responsiveness and attachment. And now she had a matured scheme in her head. Hence she brings up Boaz's name at once, and says, "Is he not our relative?" <span class="hebrew">מודַעַת</span>, an abstract term used concretely, meaning literally" acquaintance," but here "relative," or "kinsman" (see <a href="/ruth/2-1.htm">Ruth 2:1</a>). <span class="cmt_word">Lo, he is</span> <span class="cmt_word">winnowing barley on the threshing-floor tonight.</span> Literally, "<span class="accented">Lo</span>, he is winnowing the threshing-floor of barley." The Hebrews could idiomatically speak of "the threshing-floor of barley," meaning "the threshing-floor-full of barley." The barley lay heaped up in Boaz's threshing-floor, and he was changed in winnowing it. He threw up against the wind the mingled mass that was on his floor, after the stalks had been carefully trodden or beaten. "Not far," says Dr. Horatio Hackett, "from the site of ancient Corinth, I passed a heap of grain, which some laborers were employed in winnowing. They used for throwing up the mingled wheat and chaff a three-pronged wooden fork, having a handle three or four feet long" ('Illustrations,' p. 106). "The winnowing," says Dr. Kitto, "<span class="accented">was</span> performed by throwing up the grain with a fork against the wind, by which the chaff and broken straw were dispersed, and the grain fell to the ground. The grain was afterwards passed through a sieve to separate the morsels of earth and other impurities, and it then underwent a final purification by being tossed up with wooden scoops, or shorthanded shovels, such as we see sculptured on the monuments of Egypt" ('Illustrations,' <span class="accented">in loc</span>., p. 40). In some of the Egyptian sculptures the winnowers are represented as having scoops in both hands. <span class="hebrew">הַלַּיְלָה</span>, <span class="accented">tonight</span> (Scottice, "the nicht"). The agriculturist in Palestine and the surrounding districts would often carry on his winnowing operations after sunset, taking advantage of the evening breeze that then blows. The Chaldee Targumist makes express reference to this breeze, explaining the word <span class="accented">tonight</span> as meaning <span class="accented">in the wind which blows by night</span>. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/commentaries/ruth/3-2.htm">Parallel Commentaries ...</a></span><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><a name="lexicon" id="lexicon"></a><div class="vheading">Hebrew</div><span class="word">Now</span><br /><span class="heb">וְעַתָּ֗ה</span> <span class="translit">(wə·‘at·tāh)</span><br /><span class="parse">Conjunctive waw | Adverb<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_6258.htm">Strong's 6258: </a> </span><span class="str2">At this time</span><br /><br /><span class="word">is not</span><br /><span class="heb">הֲלֹ֥א</span> <span class="translit">(hă·lō)</span><br /><span class="parse">Adverb - Negative particle<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_3808.htm">Strong's 3808: </a> </span><span class="str2">Not, no</span><br /><br /><span class="word">Boaz,</span><br /><span class="heb">בֹ֙עַז֙</span> <span class="translit">(ḇō·‘az)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - proper - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1162.htm">Strong's 1162: </a> </span><span class="str2">Boaz -- 'quickness', an ancestor of David, also a pillar before the temple</span><br /><br /><span class="word">with whose</span><br /><span class="heb">אֲשֶׁ֥ר</span> <span class="translit">(’ă·šer)</span><br /><span class="parse">Pronoun - relative<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_834.htm">Strong's 834: </a> </span><span class="str2">Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that</span><br /><br /><span class="word">servant girls</span><br /><span class="heb">נַעֲרוֹתָ֑יו</span> <span class="translit">(na·‘ă·rō·w·ṯāw)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - feminine plural construct | third person masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_5291.htm">Strong's 5291: </a> </span><span class="str2">A girl, maiden</span><br /><br /><span class="word">you have been [working],</span><br /><span class="heb">הָיִ֖ית</span> <span class="translit">(hā·yîṯ)</span><br /><span class="parse">Verb - Qal - Perfect - second person feminine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1961.htm">Strong's 1961: </a> </span><span class="str2">To fall out, come to pass, become, be</span><br /><br /><span class="word">a relative of ours?</span><br /><span class="heb">מֹֽדַעְתָּ֔נוּ</span> <span class="translit">(mō·ḏa‘·tā·nū)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - feminine singular construct | first person common plural<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_4130.htm">Strong's 4130: </a> </span><span class="str2">Kindred, kinship</span><br /><br /><span class="word">In fact,</span><br /><span class="heb">הִנֵּה־</span> <span class="translit">(hin·nêh-)</span><br /><span class="parse">Interjection<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_2009.htm">Strong's 2009: </a> </span><span class="str2">Lo! behold!</span><br /><br /><span class="word">tonight</span><br /><span class="heb">הַלָּֽיְלָה׃</span> <span class="translit">(hal·lā·yə·lāh)</span><br /><span class="parse">Article | Noun - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_3915.htm">Strong's 3915: </a> </span><span class="str2">A twist, night, adversity</span><br /><br /><span class="word">he</span><br /><span class="heb">ה֗וּא</span> <span class="translit">(hū)</span><br /><span class="parse">Pronoun - third person masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1931.htm">Strong's 1931: </a> </span><span class="str2">He, self, the same, this, that, as, are</span><br /><br /><span class="word">is winnowing</span><br /><span class="heb">זֹרֶ֛ה</span> <span class="translit">(zō·reh)</span><br /><span class="parse">Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_2219.htm">Strong's 2219: </a> </span><span class="str2">To toss about, to diffuse, winnow</span><br /><br /><span class="word">barley</span><br /><span class="heb">הַשְּׂעֹרִ֖ים</span> <span class="translit">(haś·śə·‘ō·rîm)</span><br /><span class="parse">Article | Noun - feminine plural<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_8184.htm">Strong's 8184: </a> </span><span class="str2">Barley</span><br /><br /><span class="word">on the threshing floor.</span><br /><span class="heb">גֹּ֥רֶן</span> <span class="translit">(gō·ren)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - feminine singular construct<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1637.htm">Strong's 1637: </a> </span><span class="str2">A threshing-floor, open area</span><br /><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><div class="vheading">Links</div><a href="/niv/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 NIV</a><br /><a href="/nlt/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 NLT</a><br /><a href="/esv/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 ESV</a><br /><a href="/nasb/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 NASB</a><br /><a href="/kjv/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 KJV</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="//bibleapps.com/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 BibleApps.com</a><br /><a href="//bibliaparalela.com/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 Biblia Paralela</a><br /><a href="//holybible.com.cn/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 Chinese Bible</a><br /><a href="//saintebible.com/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 French Bible</a><br /><a href="/catholic/ruth/3-2.htm">Ruth 3:2 Catholic Bible</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/ruth/3-2.htm">OT History: Ruth 3:2 Now isn't Boaz our kinsman with whose (Ru Rut.)</a></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="/ruth/3-1.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="Ruth 3:1"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="Ruth 3:1" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="/ruth/3-3.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="Ruth 3:3"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="Ruth 3:3" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhnew2.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>