But she answered: "Call me not Naomi, but call me Mara, for the Almighty
hath dealt very bitterly with me." She said this because Naomi means
"pleasant" and Mara means "bitter," and the sorrowing widow felt that
her life was a bitter rather than a pleasant one, since she had been
bereaved of her husband and sons.

There lived in Bethlehem a man named Boaz, who was a relative of Naomi's
husband, and who was also very wealthy. He had a large farm and many
people, both men and women, worked in his fields, and as it was about
the beginning of the barley harvest when the two women came to
Bethlehem, these fields presented a busy appearance.

Ruth wished to do something to help support herself and her
mother-in-law, so she begged Naomi to let her go into the fields and
glean after the reapers--that is, to gather up the barley that was left
after they had made up the sheaves--and Naomi told her that she might
go.

[Illustration: THE PRODIGAL SON.]

Ruth happened to choose the field of Boaz to work in, and when the
wealthy man came into the field and saw her, he said, "The Lord bless
thee!" but he did not know who she was.

As he went away he inquired of the head reaper about the young woman,
and afterward he said to Ruth: "Go not to glean in another field, but
keep here close to my maidens." He also spoke to his young men about
her, telling them to be kind and courteous to her, and he bade her go
and drink of the water which they drew whenever she was thirsty.