BOAZ MARRIES RUTH

1Then went Boaz up to the gate, and sat him down there: and, behold, the 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 sat down.

2 And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, Sit ye down here. And they sat down.

3 And he said unto the kinsman, Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, selleth a parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech's:

4 And I thought to advertise thee, saying, Buy it before the inhabitants, 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 may know: for there is none to redeem it beside thee; and I am after thee. And he said, I will redeem it.

5 Then said Boaz, What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance.

6 And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I cannot redeem it.

7 Now this was the manner in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning changing, for to confirm all things; a man plucked off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbour: and this was a testimony in Israel.

8 Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it for thee. So he drew off his shoe.

9 And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech's, and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's, of the hand of Naomi.

10 Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day.

11 And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, We are witnesses. The LORD make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem:

12 And let thy house be like the house of Pharez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed which the LORD shall give thee of this young woman.

13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son.

14 And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel.

15 And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him.

16 And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.

17 And the women her neighbours gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

18 Now these are the generations of Pharez: Pharez begat Hezron,

19 And Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab,

20 And Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon,

21 And Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed,

22 And Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.

1 Then went Boaz vp to the gate, and sate him downe there: and beholde, the kinseman of whome Boaz spake, came by, vnto whom he said, Ho, such a one: turne aside, sit downe here. And hee turned aside, and sate downe.

2 And hee tooke ten men of the Elders of the citie, and said, Sit ye downe here. And they sate downe.

3 And he said vnto the kinseman: Naomi that is come againe out of the countrey of Moab, selleth a parcell of land, which was our brother Elimelechs.

4 And I thought to aduertise thee, saying, Buy it before the inhabitants, and before the Elders of my people. If thou wilt redeeme it, redeeme it, but if thou wilt not redeeme it, then tell mee, that I may know: for there is none to redeeme it, besides thee, and I am after thee. And he said, I will redeeme it.

5 Then said Boaz, What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitesse, the wife of the dead, to raise vp the name of the dead vpon his inheritance.

6 And the kinseman said, I cannot redeeme it for my selfe, lest I marre mine owne inheritance: redeeme thou my right to thy selfe, for I cannot redeeme it.

7 Now this was the maner in former time in Israel, concerning redeeming and concerning changing, for to confirme all things: a man plucked off his shooe, and gaue it to his neighbour: and this was a testimonie in Israel.

8 Therfore the kinseman said vnto Boaz, Buy it for thee: so he drew off his shooe.

9 And Boaz saide vnto the Elders, and vnto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I haue bought all that was Elimelechs, and all that was Chilions, and Mahlons, of the hande of Naomi.

10 Moreouer, Ruth the Moabitesse, the wife of Mahlon, haue I purchased to be my wife, to raise vp the name of the dead vpon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day.

11 And all the people that were in the gate, and the Elders said, Wee are witnesses: The Lord make the woman that is come into thine house, like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and bee famous in Bethlehem.

12 And let thy house be like the house of Pharez, ( whom Tamar bare vnto to Iudah) of the seed which the Lord shall giue thee of this yong woman.

13 So Boaz tooke Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in vnto her, the Lord gaue her conception, and she bare a sonne.

14 And the women said vnto Naomi, Blessed be the Lord which hath not left thee this day without a kinseman, that his name may bee famous in Israel:

15 And he shalbe vnto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law which loueth thee, which is better to thee then seuen sonnes, hath borne him.

16 And Naomi tooke the childe, and laid it in her bosome, and became nurse vnto it.

17 And the women her neighbours gaue it a name, saying, There is a sonne borne to Naomi, and they called his name Obed: hee is the father of Iesse the father of Dauid.

18 Now these are the generations of Pharez: Pharez begate Hezron,

19 And Hezron begate Ram, and Ram begate Amminadab,

20 And Amminadab begate Nahshon, and Nahshon begate Salmon,

21 And Salmon begate Boaz, and Boaz begate Obed,

22 And Obed begat Iesse, and Iesse begate Dauid.

I == Ruth 3:12

II == 1st Kings 21:8 ; Prov 31:23

IV == Gen 23:18 ; Lev 25:25 ; Jer 32:7-8

V == Gen 38:8 ; Deut 25:5-6 ; Ruth 3:3 ; Matt 22:24

VI == Ruth 3:12-13

VII == Deut 25:7 , 9

X == Deut 25:6

XI == Gen 35:16 , 19 ; Deut 25:9 ; Ps 127:3 ; 128:3

XII == Gen 38:29 ; 1st Sam 2:20 ; 1st Chr 2:4 ; Matt 1:3

XIII == Gen 29:31 ; 33:5 ; Ruth 3:11

XIV == Luke 1:58 ; Rom 12:15

XV == Gen 45:11 ; 1st Sam 1:8 ; Ps 55:22

XVII == Luke 1:58-59

XVIII == 1st Chr 2:4 ; Matt 1:4

XX == Num 1:7 ; Matt 1:4

XXII == 1st Chr 2:15 ; Matt 1:6

1 Boaz went and took a seat at the gate; and when he saw the closer relative of whom he had spoken come along, he called to him by name, "Come and sit beside me!" And he did so.

2 Then Boaz picked out ten of the elders of the city and asked them to sit nearby. When they had done this,

3 he said to the near relative: "Naomi, who has come back from the Moabite plateau, is putting up for sale the piece of land that belonged to our kinsman Elimelech.

4 So I thought I would inform you, bidding you before those here present, including the elders of my people, to put in your claim for it if you wish to acquire it as next of kin. But if you do not wish to claim it, tell me so, that I may be guided accordingly, for no one has a prior claim to yours, and mine is next." He answered, "I will put in my claim."

5 Boaz continued, "Once you acquire the field from Naomi, you must take also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of the late heir, and raise up a family for the departed on his estate."

6 The near relative replied, "I cannot exercise my claim lest I depreciate my own estate. Put in a claim yourself in my stead, for I cannot exercise my claim."

7 Now it used to be the custom in Israel that, to make binding a contract of redemption or exchange, one party would take off his sandal and give it to the other. This was the form of attestation in Israel.

8 So the near relative, in saying to Boaz, "Acquire it for yourself," drew off his sandal.

9 Boaz then said to the elders and to all the people, "You are witnesses today that I have acquired from Naomi all the holdings of Elimelech, Chilion and Mahlon.

10 I also take Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, as my wife, in order to raise up a family for her late husband on his estate, so that the name of the departed may not perish among his kinsmen and fellow citizens. Do you witness this today?"

11 All those at the gate, including the elders, said, "We do so. May the LORD make this wife come into your house like Rachel and Leah, who between them built up the house of Israel. May you do well in Ephrathah and win fame in Bethlehem.

12 With the offspring the LORD will give you from this girl, may your house become like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah."

13 Boaz took Ruth. When they came together as man and wife, the LORD enabled her to conceive and she bore a son.

14 Then the women said to Naomi, "Blessed is the LORD who has not failed to provide you today with an heir! May he become famous in Israel!

15 He will be your comfort and the support of your old age, for his mother is the daughter-in-law who loves you. She is worth more to you than seven sons!"

16 Naomi took the child, placed him on her lap, and became his nurse.

17 And the neighbor women gave him his name, at the news that a grandson had been born to Naomi. They called him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.

18 These are the descendants of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron,

19 Hezron was the father of Ram, Ram was the father of Amminadab,

20 Amminadab was the father of Nahshon, Nahshon was the father of Salmon,

21 Salmon was the father of Boaz, Boaz was the father of Obed,

22 Obed was the father of Jesse, and Jesse became the father of David.

COMMATARY

The Marriage of Ruth and Boaz, and the Re-establishment of Naomi

v 1-5. Boaz immediately contacted the closer kin and they met with ten elders of the city at the city gate, the customary place of doing legal business. This may be in keeping with the requirement that 10 men were required in order to have a Jewish synagogue in a town. Boaz first mentioned the real estate, and the man was willing to redeem it. Then Boaz added that he would also have to raise children by Ruth.
The literal meaning of “kinsman” is “one who has the right to redeem”. Therefore, it is sometimes translated “kinsman-redeemer”. Here is a picture of our own salvation. 1 The kinsman must be a relative. 2 He must be willing to redeem 3 He must have the price of redemption. Christ became a relative when He took on human flesh as a baby, an angel could not do that. He was willing to do what was necessary to redeem us. He paid the price in His own precious blood when He died for us, which no man could, because man could only die for his own sins. Naomi told Ruth to “sit still for Boaz will not rest until he has finished this thing”, 3:18. When we come to Christ we can say in our hearts, “Sit still for God has finished our redemption”.
v 6-8. When marriage to Ruth was mentioned in accordance to the Levirite law, Deut. 25:5-10, the man declined, with the excuse at least, that he didn’t want to mar his own inheritance. Some suggest he saw that Boaz really wanted Ruth, but more likely it was a selfish motive. When a man declined his duty, the woman could pluck off his shoe and spit in his face. Boaz was eager to accept the duty, so that insult was not done here. Josephus thinks Ruth did this, but he has no proof. The custom of removing a shoe by the one declining, and him only, had a figurative purpose. It was an indication that he had no more right to walk on that land. Only the one who redeemed it had the right to walk on it. Though he may tempt us, Satan has no more right, only Christ has the right to a believer.
v 9-12. The transaction was duly witnessed by the elders as well as all others who stood by at the gate. They added a blessing that it should be a fruitful marriage, even as the original mothers of all Israel were blessed. They took it a step further in Boaz’s own family line, by taking it clear back to Judah and Tamar. They had no idea how famous he would be in Bethlehem by the birth of Christ there.
v 13-17. After a son was born, the women also extended a blessing that his name would be famous, not knowing he would be the line from which Christ was born. They could all see the great relationship between Ruth and Naomi, and now Naomi had the joy of taking care of a grandson. We wouldn’t be too happy about neighbor women naming our child, but Obed, “serving”, was appropriate. At his birth he became a close kinsman-redeemer for Naomi, thus completely restoring her from the emptiness she had in Moab, and as he grew older he would have the responsibility of caring for her.
v 18-22. This is an abbreviated genealogy David, the ancestor of Christ, starting with Judah’s son Perez. It is interesting that Boaz’s mother was Rahab the harlot, Matt. 1:5. It has been said that every prayer in the book of Ruth is answered in the book of

Ruth. God worked quietly and providentially to change a nation and produce a Savior.

Naomi is a picture of Israel in dispersion and returning to the Lord by Millennium.

Ruth is a picture of Gentiles redeemed by Christ, the Church, the Bride of Christ

Boaz is a picture of Christ, a kinsman, willing to redeem, and paying the price.

Ruth Summary key points

Ruth Deciding, Serving, Restomg. Rewarded
What mistakes made in 1st six
v 16,17 proper if he is saved or?
Gleaning. Skirt wings protection
Redeemer is Kin, Willing, Price
Only Christ qualified to redeem
If agreed,, no need to spit in face
Unworthy removed own shoe.No longer had right to walk on land
Since Christ redeemed us Satan tempts, has no more right to us
Boaz - Christ
Naomi - Restored Israel
Ruth- Gentiles and Church