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CHAPTER VIII.

THE HAPPY MARRIAGE.

RUTH iii. 1,-18; iv. 13-17. Then Naomi her mother-in-law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?

And now, is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor.

Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor; but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking.

And it shall be when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.

And she said unto her, All that thou sayest unto me, I will do.

And she went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her.

And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came softly and uncovered his feet, and laid her down.

And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself; and behold, a woman lay at his feet.

And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid; spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid, for thou art a near king

man.

And he said, Blessed be thou of the Lord, my daughter; for thou hast showed more kindness in the latter end, than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich.

And now, my daughter, fear not, 1 will do to thee all that thou requirest; for all the city of my people doth know, that thou art a virtuous woman.

And now it is true, that I am thy near kinsman; howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I.

Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kins

man, 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.

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 to the floor.

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.

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.

And she said, These six measures of barley gave he me: for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother-in-law.

Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day.

So 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.

And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the

Lord which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel.

And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age; for thy daughter-in-law which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him.

And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.

And the women her neighbours gave it name, saying, There is a son born unto Naomi, and they called his name Obed; he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

WE have seen that Ruth had now become acquainted with the fact, that her generous friend and protector was one of her nearest relatives-one of the few remaining kinsmen of her husband's family. This was an important discovery, on which her future welfare much depended for Boaz, being himself unmarried, and she being now a widow, he was in a manner bound, according

to the Jewish law, to take her for his wife.

Boaz, it would seem, was not yet aware of this relationship. As yet he only knew Ruth as the Moabitish stranger, whose touching story, and spotless character, had completely won his heart.

She goes on gleaning in his field till the end of the barley and wheat harvest. And then Naomi proposes to her, that she should take an opportunity when Boaz was alone, to acquaint him with her relationship, and to ask him to claim her as his wife. The directions, which Naomi gave her to obtain this interview, appear to us very extraordinary, and also the conduct of Ruth on the occasion. Her character however stands too high for us to doubt