Passage

Ruth 3.15

Book: Ruth · NASB95

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

13. Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman's part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as Jehovah liveth: lie down until the morning. 14. And she lay at his feet until the morning. And she rose up before one could discern another. For he said, Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing-floor.

15. And he said, Bring the mantle that is upon thee, and hold it; and she held it; and he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and he went into the city.

And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her. 17. And she said, These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said, Go not empty unto thy mother-in-law. (Ruth 3:13-17, ASV)

WEB

13. Stay this night, and in the morning, if he will perform for you the part 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 the duty of a kinsman for you, as Yahweh lives. Lie down until the morning.” 14. She lay at his feet until the morning, then she rose up before one could discern another. For he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”

15. He said, “Bring the mantle that is on you, and hold it.” She held it; and he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her; then he went into the city.

When she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did it go, my daughter?” She told her all that the man had done for her. 17. She said, “He gave me these six measures of barley; for he said, ‘Don’t go empty to your mother-in-law.’” (Ruth 3:13-17, WEB)

KJV

13. Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman's part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth: lie down until the morning. 14. And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another. And he said, Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor.

15. Also he said, Bring the vail that thou hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and she went into the city. ^{vail: or, sheet, or, apron}

And when she came to her mother in law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her. 17. And she said, These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother in law. (Ruth 3:13-17, KJV)

YLT

13. Lodge to night, and it hath been in the morning, if he doth redeem thee, well: he redeemeth; and if he delight not to redeem thee, then I have redeemed thee, I; Jehovah liveth! lie down till the morning.' 14. And she lieth down at his feet till the morning, and riseth before one doth discern another; and he saith, 'Let it not be known that the woman hath come into the floor.'

15. And he saith, 'Give the covering which [is] on thee, and keep hold on it;' and she keepeth hold on it, and he measureth six [measures] of barley, and layeth [it] on her; and he goeth into the city.

And she cometh in unto her mother-in-law, and she saith, 'Who [art] thou, my daughter?' and she declareth to her all that the man hath done to her. 17. And she saith, 'These six [measures] of barley he hath given to me, for he said, Thou dost not go in empty unto thy mother-in-law.' (Ruth 3:13-17, YLT)

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Setting

Speaker: Boaz, with the narrator reporting the action
Audience: Ruth, at the threshing floor at dawn
Location: Boaz's threshing floor outside Bethlehem (3:2-3), and afterwards Naomi's home in the town
Time period: "in the days when the judges judged" (Ruth 1:1), at harvest time, with Boaz winnowing barley (3:2; compare 2:23). The book was written no earlier than David's time, since its genealogy ends with him (4:22).

Theological reading

"And he said, Bring the mantle that is upon thee, and hold it; and she held it; and he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and he went into the city." Boaz sends Ruth home before it is light (3:14), and not with empty hands.

The mantle. The word is mitpachat (Strong's H4304), rare in the Old Testament. Its only other use is in the list of women's finery in Isaiah 3:22 (KJV "wimples"). The KJV in Ruth gives "vail," with the margin "sheet, or, apron." It was a garment large enough to hold a substantial quantity of grain.

Six measures. The Hebrew says "six of barley" without naming the unit, which is why the translations supply "measures." The amount is not given more precisely, and the text does not explain the number. Its purpose is stated two verses later, when Ruth tells Naomi, "he said, Go not empty unto thy mother-in-law" (3:17), using the word "empty" (H7387) that Naomi had used of herself in 1:21.

"He went" or "she went." The ASV, WEB, and YLT read "he went into the city," following the standard Hebrew text, which has the masculine verb. The KJV reads "she went," following other ancient witnesses that read the feminine. On either reading both Boaz and Ruth go into the town: Ruth to Naomi (3:16), and Boaz to the gate, where he settles the matter that day (4:1).

A pledge and a message. The barley is provision, but it is also a sign to Naomi that Boaz has taken up the matter. Naomi reads it so: "the man will not rest, until he have finished the thing this day" (3:18).

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word.

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Notes

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Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.