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Ruth asks Boaz for marriage in the name of the law of cohabitation. Ruth.3:1. And Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, shouldn’t you seek refuge, so that you may be well?” Naomi begins to worry about arranging the fate of Ruth, about bringing her that “peace” (Heb. manoach) that she had long desired for both daughters-in-law (Ruth. 1:9, menuchah) - marriage and life under the protection of her husband. Ruth.3:2. Behold, Boaz, with whose maids you were, is our relative; behold, this night he winnows barley on the threshing floor; Ruth.3:3. wash, anoint yourself, put on your [elegant] clothes and go to the threshing floor, but do not show yourself to him until you have finished eating and drinking; Ruth.3:4. when he goes to bed, find out the place where he will lie down; then you will come and open at his feet and lie down; he will tell you what to do. Naomi intends to arrange the marriage of Ruth with Boaz on the basis of the law of kinship, or cohabitation (cf. Num. 27:1-11, 36:1-9), - the so-called levirate marriage (cf. Deut. 25:5-10), which, in her opinion, Boaz should not have refused (legally) and could not do this (morally) in view of the well-known treatment of Ruth (chap. II). The measure for rapprochement with Boaz, indicated by her to Ruth, fully corresponds to the legal and moral concepts of the Hebrew way of life, sanctioned by law, and in no way can be assessed from the point of view of European Christian concepts. (Cf. Blessed Theodoret, Question 2 on the book of Ruth: “Some blame both Naomi and Ruth, the former for what she suggested, and the latter for obeying and fulfilling, i.e., sleeping at the feet of Boaz”). Although the letter of the law (Deut. 25:5-10) does not directly speak about the obligation of other relatives - not brothers - to restore the seed of a childless deceased through a levirate marriage, but the spirit of the law, without a doubt, imposed this obligation on them, although the later literalism of the rabbis did not extend this obligation even to a brother born after the death of his brother who died childless (Mishna, Yevamot II, 1-2). The winnowing of grain in Palestine (v. 2) in ancient times and now occurs before evening, since at about 4 o’clock in the afternoon a favorable wind usually blows from the Mediterranean Sea (W. Nowack, Hebraische ArshaoIogie, Bd, I, leipzig. 1894, S. 233–234). Washing, anointing the body and putting on ceremonial clothes (instead of, probably, “widowhood clothes” (cf. Gen. 38:14); according to Midrash, S. 44, Ruth put on Sabbath or holiday clothes) - these actions of Ruth, on the advice of Naomi, are similar to the preparations of the bride for marriage (cf. Ezek. 16:9-13) and in this case were calculated to produce the most beneficial impression on Boaz. According to Naomi, the same purpose was served by Ruth’s meeting with Boaz after the latter’s meal, when “his heart will be glad” (v. 7), i.e. in his good spirits. Ruth.3:5. [Ruth] said to her: I will do everything that you told me. Ruth.3:6. And she went to the threshing floor and did everything as her mother-in-law ordered her. Ruth, feeling motherly love and life experience in Naomi's advice, fulfills the latter exactly. Ruth.3:7. Boaz ate and drank, and made his heart merry, and went and lay down to sleep beside the stack. And she came quietly, opened it at his feet and lay down. Given the patriarchal simplicity of life, Boaz’s wealth and eminence did not prevent him from directly participating in field and other economic work, as well as at night guarding the grain in sheaves and grain on the threshing floor. The source of Boaz's joy is indicated by the Midrash (S. 45) in the prayer of thanksgiving that he performed after eating. When he fell asleep, Ruth, according to Naomi’s instructions (v. 4), lay down at his feet, as if completely surrendering herself to the will and protection of Boaz. Ruth.3:8. At midnight he shuddered, rose up, and behold, a woman lay at his feet. Ruth.3:9. And Boaz said [to her], Who are you? She said: I am Ruth, your servant, spread your wing over your servant, for you are a relative. When at midnight Boaz, who woke up, noticed the presence of a woman near him and asked her name, Ruth, identifying herself, calls herself Boaz’s servant - in the sense of needing Boaz’s mercy and protection and then asks him: “Stretch out your wing over your servant, because you are a relative” (Heb.: goel, LXX: ἀγχιστεύς ἀγχσιευτής ). “Extending a wing” over a woman (cf. Ezek. 16:8) is a well-known symbol not only among the ancient Jews, but also among the Arabs (Iacob. Studien en arab. Dichtern III, 58) not just for protection in general (as in Ruth. 2:12), but directly for matrimony, marriage; the request for the latter motivates Ruth: for you are a relative - goel - a person who, by virtue of family closeness, has not only the right, but also the obligation to provide all material, moral and similar assistance to the related family that has suffered in one way or another (Lev. 25:25–26; 1 Kings 16:11, etc.); in relation to a childless widow of a relative - the obligation to take her as a wife (cf. Art. 13). In contrast to levirate marriage itself in the original, ancient sense of this institution, according to which the family, name or house of the deceased was restored in this country (Gen. 38:7-11; Deut. 25:6, 9), in the words of Ruth (v. 9) and in the entire subsequent narrative of the book of Ruth (see Ruth. 4:3–5), a modified form of levirate is meant in combination with the law of preserving inheritances within each tribe (Num. 27:1–11, 36:1–9), with the requirement of “restoring the seed of the dead” (Gen. 38:7–11, Deut. 25:5–6) retreated back: Boaz, having married Ruth, built his own house, and did not rebuild the house of Mahlon (Ruth. 4:11-13), so that Obed, born to him from Ruth, was called the son of the first (Ruth. 4:21), and not the last. Ruth.3:10. [Boaz] said: Blessed are you of the Lord [God], my daughter! You did this last good deed of yours even better than the previous one, that you did not go looking for young people, neither poor nor rich; Ruth.3:11. So, my daughter, don’t be afraid, I will do to you everything that you said; for in all the gates of my people they know that you are a virtuous woman; Boaz responds with all sincerity to the trusting movement of the poor woman’s soul; like a father, he blesses and praises Ruth, finding that this determination of her to seek protection from the elderly Boaz (according to the Midrash, s. 47. Boaz was 80 years old at that time), bypassing young people, is such a “good deed” (Heb. chesed more accurately than in the Russian translation, in Slavic: “mercy”, Vulg. “misericordia”), which according to superior in dignity to the “former” good deed, i.e. the selfless abandonment of her home and homeland for the sake of love for Naomi (Ruth. 1:16, 2:17) is superior, since in the latter respect she acted in accordance with the natural inclinations of her heart, while in relation to Boaz she was guided by a sense of duty and the inspiration of piety, contrary to the inclinations and sympathies of a woman’s heart for the young chosen ones 5 . Calming Ruth, who was trembling with fear, Boaz promises to fulfill any of her requests regarding what is rightfully hers - of course, no longer as a Moabite, but as a member of the Israeli community into which Ruth entered (Ruth. 1:16, 2:12) and according to the laws of which she acts. This last and generally high dignity of Ruth, as a “virtuous wife” (“escheth-chail”, cf. (Prov. 31:10); LXX: γυνὴ δυνάμεως, Vulg. mulier virtutis, slav.: “wife of strength” - an increasingly accurate Hebrew translation compared with the Russian translation), testifies, according to Boaz, to the general opinion about her compatriots, the inhabitants of Bethlehem; (“all the gates”, Hebrew kol-schaar - the whole city, since the gates in the city were the assembly point of its population for public affairs, litigation, judicial (Deut. 25:7; Isa. 29:20-21; Proverbs 22:22, etc.); LXX: Πασ῀α φυλὴ μου, glor.). Such a judgment by Boaz about the moral worth of Ruth is very important for preventing and eliminating erroneous judgments about the same subject, alien to a given era and environment. Ruth.3:12. although it is true that I am a relative, there is also a relative closer to me; Ruth.3:13. spend the night this night; tomorrow, if he accepts you, then good, let him accept you; and if he does not want to accept you, then I will; The Lord lives! Sleep until morning. Ruth.3:14. And she slept at his feet until the morning and got up before they could recognize each other. And Boaz said, Let them not know that a woman came to the threshing floor. Disposed towards Ruth and ready to marry her, knowing, in the same way, that she also wants marriage with him, Boaz, however, insists that this undoubted right of Ruth must be exercised in a legal, formal way, that it is necessary to publicly (Ruth. 4:2) offer the taking of Ruth to a closer relative of her than Boaz. The Midrash (s. 47) and the rabbis (Rashi et al.), standing on the letter of the law and believing that levirate marriage was obligatory only for the brother of the deceased, calls this supposed brother of Mahlon Tov (understanding the word tob (v. 13) in the sense of a proper name), but the latter must be attributed to simple rabbinic ingenuity: in Ruf. 4:1 Ruth's relative is not named (as Aben Ezra already noted). Ruth had to sleep on Boaz's threshing floor until the morning, precisely before the onset of full dawn (vv. 13-14): Boaz did not send her away immediately at night, on the one hand, so as not to arouse suspicion in her of Boaz's unwillingness to fulfill Ruth's request, and on the other hand, to prevent possible danger for Ruth when returning at night, from the night watchmen (cf. Song. 5:7); early, before dawn, Ruth had to leave Boaz’s threshing floor because “prudence demanded to beware of all kinds of gossip, which had absolutely no basis” (Josephus “Antiquities of the Jews” V, 9, 3). Ruth.3:15. And he said to her: Give me the outer garment that you are wearing, hold it. She held it, and he measured [her] six measures of barley, and laid it on her, and went into the city. Perhaps it was this prudent concern for the good reputation of himself and Ruth, and not just the disposition and concern for the food of Ruth and Naomi (v. 17), that was caused by Boaz’s gift to Ruth - 6 measures (of undetermined size) of barley, which he poured into Ruth’s linen and placed on his shoulders. By giving Ruth this burden, with which people were already accustomed to seeing Ruth, Boaz eliminated the suspicion that could have appeared among all those who knew Ruth, returning from Boaz at an early hour; it was all the more necessary to eliminate these suspicions because, according to Jewish traditional law, if these suspicions were present, he could not even marry Ruth: “if anyone is suspected of having relations with a non-Jewish woman, then, even if she converted to Jewry, he should not marry her” (Mishna, Yevamot, II, 8, cf. Tosef. 4, 6). The Midrash understands the 6 measures of barley given by Boaz to Ruth allegorically: about the six or eight descendants of Ruth endowed with the 6 highest qualities: David, Hezekiah, Josiah, Hananiah, Azariah, Mishael, Daniel and the Messiah (S. 52). – Boaz may have gone to the city with Ruth (but Vulg. sees in the final words of v. 15 we are talking only about Ruth: ingressa est civitatem; However, many codes of Jewish texts by Kenicott Rossi have the feminine gender tabo instead of the accepted masculine gender iabo, for example, Nos. 1, 47, 76, 93, 100, etc.). According to the Midrash (S. 52), Boaz walked with Ruth, protecting her from the attacks of young men. Ruth.3:16. And [Ruth] came to her mother-in-law. She said to [her]: what, my daughter? She told her everything that that man had done to her. Ruth.3:17. And she said to [her], “He gave me these six measures of barley and said to me: Do not go to your mother-in-law empty-handed.” Ruth.3:18. She said: wait, my daughter, until you find out how the matter ends; for that man will not remain in peace until he finishes his work today. The meaning of Naomi's question to the returned Ruth is conveyed by the Midrash (S. 52); “Are you still free or do you already belong to your husband?”, to which Ruth replied: “I am free.” The supply of barley brought by Ruth - a gift from Boaz - further confirms Naomi’s trust in his disposition towards Ruth, and she advises her to stay at home (as Boaz’s betrothed) in the firm hope of a quick, same day, and exact decision on Ruth’s fate by Boaz, who will not rest until the end of the matter: “with the pious, “yes” is always “yes” and “no” is “no,” notes the Midrash (S. 58). “By your action,” Blessed Theodoret explains the words of Boaz to Ruth (v. 10), “you showed that you did not enslave yourself to lust; otherwise you would have gone to the youth, talking not about wealth, not about poverty, but only about the satisfaction of voluptuousness. On the contrary, you came to a man who, judging by his years, could be your father. For this means the word “dchi” (Answer to 2 questions in the book of Ruth, pp. 316–317) You might be interested in: