We should understand "kingdom" as meaning "rule" rather than "realm"; that is to say, the expression is dynamic: It points us to God as doing something, as actively ruling, rather than to an area or group of people over whom He is sovereign. The kingdom is something that happens rather than something that exists.
Leon Morris

The Book of Ruth

The Book of Ruth

{1:1} And it came to pass in the days when the judges judged, thatthere was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem-judahwent to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his twosons. {1:2} And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of hiswife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion,Ephrathites of Bethlehem-judah. And they came into the country of Moab,and continued there. {1:3} And Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; andshe was left, and her two sons. {1:4} And they took them wives of thewomen of Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the otherRuth: and they dwelt there about ten years. {1:5} And Mahlon andChilion died both of them; and the woman was left of her two childrenand of her husband.

{1:6} Then she arose with her daughters-in-law, that she mightreturn from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the country ofMoab how that Jehovah had visited his people in giving them bread.{1:7} And she went forth out of the place where she was, and her twodaughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return unto theland of Judah. {1:8} And Naomi said unto her two daughters-in-law, Go,return each of you to her mother’s house: Jehovah deal kindly with you,as ye have dealt with the dead, and with me. {1:9} Jehovah grant youthat ye may find rest, each of you in the house of her husband. Thenshe kissed them, and they lifted up their voice, and wept. {1:10} Andthey said unto her, Nay, but we will return with thee unto thy people.{1:11} And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go withme? have I yet sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? {1:12}Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have ahusband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should even have a husbandto-night, and should also bear sons; {1:13} would ye therefore tarrytill they were grown? would ye therefore stay from having husbands?nay, my daughters, for it grieveth me much for your sakes, for the handof Jehovah is gone forth against me. {1:14} And they lifted up theirvoice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruthclave unto her.

{1:15} And she said, Behold, thy sister-in-law is gone back unto herpeople, and unto her god: return thou after thy sister-in-law. {1:16}And Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee, and to return fromfollowing after thee, for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thoulodgest, I will lodge; thy people shall be my people, and thy God myGod; {1:17} where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried:Jehovah do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee andme. {1:18} And when she saw that she was stedfastly minded to go withher, she left off speaking unto her.

{1:19} So they two went until they came to Bethlehem. And it came topass, when they were come to Bethlehem, that all the city was movedabout them, and [the women] said, Is this Naomi? {1:20} And she saidunto them, Call me not Naomi, call me Mara; for the Almighty hath dealtvery bitterly with me. {1:21} I went out full, and Jehovah hath broughtme home again empty; why call ye me Naomi, seeing Jehovah hathtestified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me? {1:22} SoNaomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, with her,who returned out of the country of Moab: and they came to Bethlehem inthe beginning of barley harvest.

{2:1} And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband’s, a mighty man ofwealth, of the family of Elimelech, and his name was Boaz. {2:2} AndRuth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field, andglean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall findfavor. And she said unto her, Go, my daughter. {2:3} And she went, andcame and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and her hap was tolight on the portion of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of thefamily of Elimelech. {2:4} And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, andsaid unto the reapers, Jehovah be with you. And they answered him,Jehovah bless thee. {2:5} Then said Boaz unto his servant that was setover the reapers, Whose damsel is this? {2:6} And the servant that wasset over the reapers answered and said, It is the Moabitish damsel thatcame back with Naomi out of the country of Moab: {2:7} And she said,Let me glean, I pray you, and gather after the reapers among thesheaves. So she came, and hath continued even from the morning untilnow, save that she tarried a little in the house.

{2:8} Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not, my daughter? Gonot to glean in another field, neither pass from hence, but abide herefast by my maidens. {2:9} Let thine eyes be on the field that they doreap, and go thou after them: have I not charged the young men thatthey shall not touch thee? and when thou art athirst, go unto thevessels, and drink of that which the young men have drawn. {2:10} Thenshe fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said untohim, Why have I found favor in thy sight, that thou shouldest takeknowledge of me, seeing I am a foreigner? {2:11} And Boaz answered andsaid unto her, It hath fully been showed me, all that thou hast doneunto thy mother-in-law since the death of thy husband; and how thouhast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, andart come unto a people that thou knewest not heretofore. {2:12} Jehovahrecompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of Jehovah, theGod of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to take refuge. {2:13}Then she said, Let me find favor in thy sight, my lord, for that thouhast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken kindly unto thyhandmaid, though I be not as one of thy handmaidens.

{2:14} And at meal-time Boaz said unto her, Come hither, and eat ofthe bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside thereapers, and they reached her parched grain, and she did eat, and wassufficed, and left thereof. {2:15} And when she was risen up to glean,Boaz commanded his young men, saying, Let her glean even among thesheaves, and reproach her not. {2:16} And also pull out some for herfrom the bundles, and leave it, and let her glean, and rebuke her not.

{2:17} So she gleaned in the field until even; and she beat out thatwhich she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. {2:18} Andshe took it up, and went into the city; and her mother-in-law saw whatshe had gleaned: and she brought forth and gave to her that which shehad left after she was sufficed. {2:19} And her mother-in-law said untoher, Where hast thou gleaned to-day? and where hast thou wrought?blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee. And she showed hermother-in-law with whom she had wrought, and said, The man’s name withwhom I wrought to-day is Boaz. {2:20} And Naomi said unto herdaughter-in-law, Blessed be he of Jehovah, who hath not left off hiskindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, Theman is nigh of kin unto us, one of our near kinsmen. {2:21} And Ruththe Moabitess said, Yea, he said unto me, Thou shalt keep fast by myyoung men, until they have ended all my harvest. {2:22} And Naomi saidunto Ruth her daughter-in-law, It is good, my daughter, that thou goout with his maidens, and that they meet thee not in any other field.{2:23} So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz, to glean unto the endof barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and she dwelt with hermother-in-law.

{3:1} And Naomi her mother-in-law said unto her, My daughter, shallI not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? {3:2} And nowis not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, hewinnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor. {3:3} Wash thyselftherefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get theedown to the threshing-floor, but make not thyself known unto the man,until he shall have done eating and drinking. {3:4} 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 hewill tell thee what thou shalt do. {3:5} And she said unto her, Allthat thou sayest I will do.

{3:6} And she went down unto the threshing-floor, and did accordingto all that her mother-in-law bade her. {3:7} And when Boaz had eatenand drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end ofthe heap of grain: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, andlaid her down. {3:8} And it came to pass at midnight, that the man wasafraid, and turned himself; and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. {3:9}And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thy handmaid:spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid; for thou art a nearkinsman. {3:10} And he said, Blessed be thou of Jehovah, my daughter:thou hast showed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning,inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. {3:11}And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou sayest;for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a worthy woman.{3:12} And now it is true that I am a near kinsman; howbeit there is akinsman nearer than I. {3:13} Tarry this night, and it shall be in themorning, 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 akinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, asJehovah liveth: lie down until the morning.

{3:14} And she lay at his feet until the morning. And she rose upbefore one could discern another. For he said, Let it not be known thatthe woman came to the threshing-floor. {3:15} And he said, Bring themantle that is upon thee, and hold it; and she held it; and he measuredsix [measures] of barley, and laid it on her: and he went into thecity. {3:16} And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, Who artthou, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her.{3:17} And she said, These six [measures] of barley gave he me; for hesaid, Go not empty unto thy mother-in-law. {3:18} Then said she, Sitstill, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall; for theman will not rest, until he have finished the thing this day.

{4:1} Now Boaz went up to the gate, and sat him down there: and,behold, the near kinsman of whom Boaz spake came by; unto whom he said,Ho, such a one! turn aside, sit down here. And he turned aside, and satdown. {4:2} And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said,Sit ye down here. And they sat down. {4:3} And he said unto the nearkinsman, Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, selleththe parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech’s: {4:4} And Ithought to disclose it unto thee, saying, Buy it before them that sithere, and before the elders of my people. If thou wilt redeem it,redeem it: but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I mayknow; for there is none to redeem it besides thee; and I am after thee.And he said, I will redeem it. {4:5} Then said Boaz, What day thoubuyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruththe Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the deadupon his inheritance. {4:6} And the near kinsman said, I cannot redeemit for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: take thou my right ofredemption on thee; for I cannot redeem it.

{4:7} Now this was [the custom] in former time in Israel concerningredeeming and concerning exchanging, to confirm all things: a man drewoff his shoe, and gave it to his neighbor; and this was the [manner of]attestation in Israel. {4:8} So the near kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy itfor thyself. And he drew off his shoe. {4:9} And Boaz said unto theelders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I havebought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilion’s andMahlon’s, of the hand of Naomi. {4:10} Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, thewife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name ofthe dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut offfrom among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye arewitnesses this day. {4:11} And all the people that were in the gate,and the elders, said, We are witnesses. Jehovah make the woman that iscome into thy house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build thehouse of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephrathah, and be famous inBethlehem: {4:12} and let thy house be like the house of Perez, whomTamar bare unto Judah, of the seed which Jehovah shall give thee ofthis young woman.

{4:13} So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife; and he went inunto her, and Jehovah gave her conception, and she bare a son. {4:14}And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be Jehovah, who hath not leftthee this day without a near kinsman; and let his name be famous inIsrael. {4:15} And he shall be unto thee a restorer of life, and anourisher of thine old age, for thy daughter-in-law, who loveth thee,who is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him. {4:16} And Naomitook the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.{4:17} And the women her neighbors gave it a name, saying, There is ason born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father ofJesse, the father of David.

{4:18} Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez begat Hezron,{4:19} and Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab, {4:20} andAmminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon, {4:21} and Salmonbegat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed, {4:22} and Obed begat Jesse, and Jessebegat David.

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