1Naomi had a relative of her husband’s, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech, and his name was Boaz. 2Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Let me now go to the field, and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I find favor.”

She said to her, “Go, my daughter.” 3She went, and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers; and she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.

4Behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said to the reapers, “May Yahweh be with you.”

They answered him, “May Yahweh bless you.”

5Then Boaz said to his servant who was set over the reapers, “Whose young lady is this?”

6The servant who was set over the reapers answered, “It is the Moabite lady who came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab. 7She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ So she came, and has continued even from the morning until now, except that she rested a little in the house.”

8Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen, my daughter. Don’t go to glean in another field, and don’t go from here, but stay here close to my maidens. 9Let your eyes be on the field that they reap, and go after them. Haven’t I commanded the young men not to touch you? When you are thirsty, go to the vessels, and drink from that which the young men have drawn.”

10Then she fell on her face and bowed herself to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your sight, that you should take knowledge of me, since I am a foreigner?”

11Boaz answered her, “I have been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father, your mother, and the land of your birth, and have come to a people that you didn’t know before. 12May Yahweh repay your work, and a full reward be given to you from Yahweh, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”

13Then she said, “Let me find favor in your sight, my lord, because you have comforted me, and because you have spoken kindly to your servant, though I am not as one of your servants.”

14At meal time Boaz said to her, “Come here, and eat some bread, and dip your morsel in the vinegar.”

She sat beside the reapers, and they passed her parched grain. She ate, was satisfied, and left some of it. 15When she had risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and don’t reproach her. 16Also pull out some for her from the bundles, and leave it. Let her glean, and don’t rebuke her.”

17So she gleaned in the field until evening; and she beat out that which she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. 18She took it up, and went into the city. Then her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned; and she brought out and gave to her that which she had left after she had enough.

19Her mother-in-law said to her, “Where have you gleaned today? Where have you worked? Blessed be he who noticed you.”

She told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.” 20Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by Yahweh, who has not abandoned his kindness to the living and to the dead.” Naomi said to her, “The man is a close relative to us, one of our near kinsmen.”

21Ruth the Moabitess said, “Yes, he said to me, ‘You shall stay close to my young men until they have finished all my harvest.’”

22Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, “It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his maidens, and that they not meet you in any other field.” 23So she stayed close to the maidens of Boaz, to glean to the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and she lived with her mother-in-law.

Person

James (Brother of Jesus)

Father Joseph (Mary's Husband)

Mother Mary (Mother of Jesus)

Siblings Jesus Christ Joses Jude Simon

Biography | Hershel Wayne House

There are several people mentioned in the New Testament named James. The name "Jacob" is a Latinized version of Yakob - or Jacob, a very common Jewish name. Here, the person in question is the brother of Jesus. In order to distinguish him from the other people named James in the NT, the early Church gave him the moniker "the Just." Although the Church later argued that James was the son of Joseph through a marriage previous to Mary or that "brother" actually means "cousin" (owing to the belief that Mary was a perpetual virgin), the Bible gives no indication that he was not the natural son of Joseph and Mary, and the actual brother of the Lord Jesus.

Almost nothing is known of James' early life. He grew up in Nazareth, and at first apparently did not believe (Mark 3:31-35; John 7:5). After the death and resurrection of Jesus, James became a leader of the church in Jerusalem. Paul is reported to have met with James just after his conversion (Gal 1:18-20), and later Paul mentions James among the "pillars" of the church who "recognized the grace" of his call (Gal 2:9-10). James was also present at the Council of Jerusalem that decided Gentiles did not need to become Jews in order to follow Jesus (Acts 15:1-30). Finally, before Paul's arrest in Jerusalem, he met with James and "all the elders" (Acts 21:17-25). According to both Josephus and other early Church historians, James was martyred around A.D. 62 by being thrown from the "pinnacle of the Temple" and then stoned to death. He was said to have been buried and "his monument" was still present "by the temple" in the 4th century A.D.

In 2002 it was announced that an ossuary (bone box) had been found bearing the inscription, written in Aramaic, "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus." Although its authenticity has been challenged by some skeptics, experts have demonstrated that it is almost certainly authentic. Although the names "James (Yakob), "Joseph (Yoseph)," and "Jesus (Yeshua)" were very common in first century Judea, the specific combination written on the ossuary is unique, making the probability that it is indeed James' very high.

Person & place data: Theographic Bible Metadata by Robert Rouse (Viz.Bible), CC BY-SA 4.0.