So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had commanded 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 grain. Then she came softly and uncovered his feet and lay down. At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet! He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer.” And he said, “May you be blessed by the LORD, my daughter. You have made this last kindness greater than the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman. And now it is true that I am a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I. Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the LORD lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning.”
Comment: We will find out later that there is much more to it, but now it reads like a romantic mini-novel!
It reads as if Boaz may have been a bit tipsy (his heart was merry) when he lay down and slept. Ruth comes out from her hiding place and uncovers his feet and lies at the end of his mat. At midnight, startled maybe because of his cold feet, he awoke and this woman to whom he had been very kind to was there, obviously saying by her actions ‘I’m available if you choose me’. In the dark he didn’t recognize her but asked, and seemed delighted with the answer. She mentioned that he was a potential ‘Redeemer’ and asked her to cover him with his wings. that is the flaps of his robe. She hadn’t been a flirt with the younger workers and he admired that and said that he would look into buying back her land and her! Another man had the right before him to purchase the land and he would check into that the very next day! He seems very interested in the possibilities that lay ahead.
Prayer: Guide me as I daily have to make decisions, to choose aright, O Lord.
As I read it! 