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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"><title>Ruth 1 CEV</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/ruth/1.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmcc/ruth/1-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="//biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="../">CEV</a> > Ruth 1</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../judges/21.htm" title="Judges 21">◄</a> Ruth 1 <a href="../ruth/2.htm" title="Ruth 2">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading">Contemporary English Version</div><div class="chap"><h3 class="s1">Ruth Is Loyal to Naomi</h3><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_1"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.1-Ruth.1.2" class="v8_1_1">1-2</span>Before Israel was ruled by kings, Elimelech from the clan of Ephrath lived in the town of Bethlehem. His wife was named Naomi, and their two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. But when their crops failed in Israel, they moved to the country of Moab.<a href="#fn" id="link_Ruth.1.1-Ruth.1.2!f.1" class="notelink f-link"><span>+</span></a> And while they were there, </span><span class="v8_1_3"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.3" class="v8_1_3">3</span>Elimelech died, leaving Naomi with only her two sons.</span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_4"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.4" class="v8_1_4">4</span>Later, Naomi's sons married Moabite women. One was named Orpah and the other Ruth. About ten years later, </span><span class="v8_1_5"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.5" class="v8_1_5">5</span>Mahlon and Chilion also died. Now Naomi had no husband or sons.</span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_6"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.6-Ruth.1.7" class="v8_1_6">6-7</span>When Naomi heard that the <span class="nd">Lord</span> had given his people a good harvest, she and her two daughters-in-law got ready to leave Moab and go to Judah. As they were on their way there, </span><span class="v8_1_8"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.8" class="v8_1_8">8</span>Naomi said to them, “Don't you want to go back home to your own mothers? You were kind to my husband and sons, and you've always been kind to me. I pray that the <span class="nd">Lord</span> will be just as kind to you. </span><span class="v8_1_9"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.9" class="v8_1_9">9</span>May he give each of you another husband and a home of your own.”</span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_9">Naomi kissed them. They cried </span><span class="v8_1_10"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.10" class="v8_1_10">10</span>and said, “We want to go with you and live among your people.”</span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_11"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.11" class="v8_1_11">11</span>But she replied, “My daughters, why don't you return home? What good will it do you to go with me? Do you think I could have more sons for you to marry?<a href="#fn" id="link_Ruth.1.11!f.1" class="notelink f-link"><span>+</span></a> </span><span class="v8_1_12"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.12" class="v8_1_12">12</span>You must go back home, because I am too old to marry again. Even if I got married tonight and later had more sons, </span><span class="v8_1_13"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.13" class="v8_1_13">13</span>would you wait for them to become old enough to marry? No, my daughters! Life is harder for me than it is for you, because the <span class="nd">Lord</span> has turned against me.”<a href="#fn" id="link_Ruth.1.13!f.1" class="notelink f-link"><span>+</span></a> </span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_14"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.14" class="v8_1_14">14</span>They cried again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth held on to her. </span><span class="v8_1_15"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.15" class="v8_1_15">15</span>Naomi then said to Ruth, “Look, your sister-in-law is going back to her people and to her gods! Why don't you go with her?”</span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_16"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.16" class="v8_1_16">16</span>Ruth answered,</span></p><p class="b"></p><p class="q1"><span class="v8_1_16">“Please don't tell me</span></p><p class="q1"><span class="v8_1_16">to leave you</span></p><p class="q2"><span class="v8_1_16">and return home!</span></p><p class="q1"><span class="v8_1_16">I will go where you go,</span></p><p class="q2"><span class="v8_1_16">I will live where you live;</span></p><p class="q1"><span class="v8_1_16">your people will be my people,</span></p><p class="q2"><span class="v8_1_16">your God will be my God.</span></p><p class="q1"><span class="v8_1_17"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.17" class="v8_1_17">17</span>I will die where you die</span></p><p class="q2"><span class="v8_1_17">and be buried beside you.</span></p><p class="q1"><span class="v8_1_17">May the <span class="nd">Lord</span> punish me</span></p><p class="q1"><span class="v8_1_17">if we are ever separated,</span></p><p class="q2"><span class="v8_1_17">even by death!”<a href="#fn" id="link_Ruth.1.17!f.1" class="notelink f-link"><span>+</span></a> </span></p><p class="b"></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_18"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.18" class="v8_1_18">18</span>When Naomi saw that Ruth had made up her mind to go with her, she stopped urging her to go back.</span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_19"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.19" class="v8_1_19">19</span>They reached Bethlehem, and the whole town was excited to see them. The women who lived there asked, “Can this really be Naomi?”</span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_20"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.20" class="v8_1_20">20</span>Then she told them, “Don't call me Naomi any longer! Call me Mara,<a href="#fn" id="link_Ruth.1.20!f.1" class="notelink f-link"><span>+</span></a> because God has made my life bitter. </span><span class="v8_1_21"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.21" class="v8_1_21">21</span>I had everything when I left, but the <span class="nd">Lord</span> has brought me back with nothing. How can you still call me Naomi, when God has turned against me and made my life so hard?”</span></p><p class="par"><span class="v8_1_22"><span class="reftext" id="Ruth.1.22" class="v8_1_22">22</span>The barley harvest was just beginning when Naomi and Ruth, her Moabite daughter-in-law, arrived in Bethlehem.</span></p> <a name="fn"></a><br /><br /><br /><b>Footnotes:<br /><br /><note caller="+" style="f"><char style="fr" closed="false">1.1,2 </char><char style="fq" closed="false">Moab: </char><char style="ft" closed="false">The people of Moab worshiped idols and were usually enemies of the people of Israel.</char></note><br /><note caller="+" style="f"><char style="fr" closed="false">1.11 </char><char style="fq" closed="false">for you to marry: </char><char style="ft" closed="false">When a married man died and left no children, it was the custom for one of his brothers to marry his widow. Any children they had would then be thought of as those of the dead man, so that his family name would live on.</char></note><br /><note caller="+" style="f"><char style="fr" closed="false">1.13 </char><char style="fq" closed="false">Life … me: </char><char style="ft" closed="false">Or “I'm sorry that the <char style="nd">Lord</char> has turned against me and made life so hard for you.”</char></note><br /><note caller="+" style="f"><char style="fr" closed="false">1.17 </char><char style="fq" closed="false">even by death: </char><char style="ft" closed="false">Or “by anything but death.”</char></note><br /><note caller="+" style="f"><char style="fr" closed="false">1.20 </char><char style="fq" closed="false">Mara: </char><char style="ft" closed="false">In Hebrew “Naomi” means “pleasant,” and “Mara” means “bitter.”</char></note></div></div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><div align="center"><p><span style="font-size:11pt;">Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)</span></p> <p><span style="font-size:11pt;">© 2006 American Bible Society. 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