How we cite our quotes: (Chapter:Verse)
Quote #7
"I have also acquired Ruth the Moabite, the wife of Mahlon, to be my wife." (NRSV 4:10)
Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife. (KJV 4:10)
This one kind of makes us modern folks squirm a little. The story doesn't record any kind of marriage ceremony. Instead, Boaz just "acquires" or "purchases" Ruth along with some land. Our plucky heroine is reduced to nothing more than property. Thank goodness our wedding ceremonies have evolved a bit to accommodate love and trust and all those ooey gooey things.
Quote #8
"May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your house like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you produce children in Ephrathah and bestow a name in Bethlehem; and, through the children that the Lord will give you by this young woman, may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah." (NRSV 4:11-12)
The Lord make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem: And let thy house be like the house of Pharez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed which the Lord shall give thee of this young woman. (KJV 4:11-12)
The elders in town offer Ruth all kinds of blessings and call on her to be like famous biblical women of the past. There's even a winking nod to Tamar, who tricked her father-in-law into sleeping with her so that she could bear a child in her dead husband's name. Do some of these guys know what went down on the threshing floor after all?
Quote #9
Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When they came together, the Lord made her conceive, and she bore a son. (NRSV 4:13)
Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bare a son. (KJV 4:13)
The story begins with the loss of sons and ends with a new one. While we've enjoyed our time with the female leads, it's clear that this is the real story. A new man has entered the world and that's all that matters.