« | Ruth 2 | » |
1 And Naomies husbad had a kinsman, a ma of power and wealth [which was] of the kinred of Elimelech, named Booz.
2 And Ruth the Moabitesse sayd vnto Naomi: Let me nowe go to the fielde, & gather eares of corne after any man in whose sight I finde grace. And she sayde vnto her: Go my daughter.
3 And she went, and came to the fielde, and gathered after the reapers: and so it was, that the same fielde parteyned vnto Booz, whiche was of the kinred of Elimelech.
4 And beholde, Booz came from Bethlehem, and sayde vnto the reapers: The Lorde be with you. And they aunswered him: The Lorde blesse thee.
5 Then sayde Booz vnto his young man that stode by the reapers? Whose damosel is this?
6 And the young man that stode by the reapers aunswered, and sayd: It is the Moabitishe damosel, that came with Naomi out of the countrey of Moab,
7 And she sayde vnto vs, I pray you let me gleane and gather after the reapers, amongst the sheaues: and so she came, and hath continued euen from the morning vnto nowe, saue that she taried a litle in the house.
8 Then sayd Booz vnto Ruth: Hearest thou my daughter? Go to no other fielde to gather, neither go from hence, but abyde here by my maydens.
9 Let thyne eyes be on the fielde that they do reape, & go thou after the [maydens:] Haue I not charged the young men, that they shall do thee no hurte? Moreouer, when thou art a thyrst, go vnto the vessels, & drinke of that which the laddes haue drawen.
10 Then she fell on her face, and bowed her selfe to the ground, and sayde vnto him: Howe is it that I haue founde grace in thyne eyes, & that thou shouldest knowe me, seing I am an aliaunt?
11 And Booz aunswered and sayde vnto her: Al is tolde & shewed me that thou hast done vnto thy mother in law sence the death of thyne husband: howe thou hast left thy father and thy mother and the land where thou wast borne, and art come vnto a people which thou knewest not in time passed.
12 The Lord quyte thy worke, and a full reward be geuen thee of the Lord God of Israel, vnder whose winges thou art come to trust.
13 Then she sayde: Let me finde fauour in thy sight my lord, thou that hast comforted me, and spoken comfortably vnto thy mayde, whiche yet am not lyke vnto one of thy maydens.
14 Booz sayde vnto her agayne: At the meale tyme come thou hyther, and eate of the bread, and dyp thy morsel in the vineger. And she sat besyde the reapers: and he reached her parched corne, & she dyd eate, and was suffised, & left part:
15 And when she was rysen vp to gather, Booz comaunded his young men, saying: Let her gather euen among the sheaues, and rebuke her not.
16 And leaue her some of the sheaues for the nonce, and let it lye, that she may gather it vp, and rebuke her not.
17 And so she gathered in the fielde vntil euen, and threshed that she had gathered, and it was in measure vpon an Epha of barlye.
18 And she toke it vp, and went into the citie: and when her mother in lawe had seene what she had gathered, she plucked out also, & gaue to her that she had reserued when she had eaten enough.
19 And her mother in lawe sayde vnto her: Where hast thou gathered to day? and where wroughtest thou? blessed be he that knewe thee. And she shewed her mother in lawe howe she had wrought with him, and sayde: The mans name with whom I wrought to day is Booz.
20 And Naomi said vnto her daughter inlawe: Blessed be he of the Lord, for he ceasseth not to do good to the lyuing & to the dead. And Naomi sayd agayne vnto her: The man is nye vnto vs, and of our affinitie.
21 And Ruth the Moabitesse sayd: he sayd vnto me also, Thou shalt be with my young men, vntil they haue ended al my haruest.
22 And Naomi aunswered vnto Ruth her daughter in lawe: It is best my daughter that thou go out with his maydens, that they come not against thee in any other fielde.
23 And so she kept her by the maydens of Booz, to gather, vnto the ende of barlye haruest and of wheate haruest also, & dwelt with her mother in lawe.
The Bishop’s Bible (BB)
The Bishop’s Bible (BB) is a significant English translation of the Bible that was first published in 1568 during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. It was commissioned by the Church of England as a revision of the Great Bible and as a response to the Geneva Bible, which was popular among the Puritans but contained marginal notes that were considered politically and theologically contentious by the Anglican establishment. The primary goal of the Bishop’ s Bible was to create a translation that would be more acceptable to the ecclesiastical authorities and suitable for use in Anglican churches.
One of the distinguishing features of the Bishop’s Bible is its effort to maintain a high level of accuracy and scholarly integrity while also ensuring that the language used was dignified and appropriate for public reading. The translation was undertaken by a team of bishops and other scholars, hence its name. The translators aimed to preserve the poetic and literary qualities of the original texts, drawing on previous translations such as the Tyndale Bible, the Coverdale Bible, and the Great Bible, while also incorporating their scholarly insights and linguistic refinements.
The Bishop’s Bible was notable for its large, folio format, which was designed to be read from the pulpit. It included extensive marginal notes, though these were more restrained and less controversial than those found in the Geneva Bible. The translation also featured elaborate illustrations and maps, as well as a comprehensive introduction and various prefaces that provided context and guidance for readers. Despite its grandeur and scholarly merit, the Bishop’s Bible did not achieve the widespread popularity of the Geneva Bible among the general populace.
Although the Bishop’s Bible played an essential role in the religious and cultural life of Elizabethan England, it was eventually overshadowed by the King James Version (KJV), which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611. The KJV drew heavily on the Bishop’ s Bible, as well as other earlier translations, but ultimately surpassed it in both scholarly rigor and literary quality. Nonetheless, the Bishop’s Bible remains an important milestone in the history of English Bible translations, reflecting the theological and political currents of its time and contributing to the development of subsequent translations.