The Book of Ruth

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- Chapter 4 -

Then Boaz went up to the gate, and he sat there. And when he had seen the kinsman passing by, whom he had previously discussed, he spoke to him, calling him by his name, “Pause for a little while, and sit down here.” He turned aside and sat down.

But Boaz, calling aside ten men among the elders of the city, said to them, “Sit down here.”(a)

They settled down, and he spoke to the kinsman, “Naomi, who has returned from the region of the Moabites, is selling part of a field of our brother Elimelech.

I wanted you to hear this, and to tell you in front of everyone sitting here, including the eldest of my people. If you will take possession of it by the right of kinship, buy it and possess it. But if it displeases you, you should reveal this to me, so that I will know what I have to do. For there is no near kinsman besides you, who is before me, and I am after you.” But he answered, “I will buy the field.”

And Boaz said to him, “When buying the field, you are likewise obliged to accept the hand of the woman Ruth, the Moabite, who was the wife of the deceased, so that you may raise up the name of your near kinsman through his posterity.”

He answered, “I yield my right of kinship, for I am obliged not to cut off the posterity of my own family. You may make use of my privilege, which I freely declare I will forego.”

Yet it was the custom between kinsmen in this former time in Israel, that if at any time one yielded his right to another, so as to confirm his permission, the man took off his shoe and gave it to his neighbor. This was a testimony of concession in Israel.(b)

And so Boaz said to his kinsman, “Take off your shoe.” And immediately he released it from his foot.

And he said to the eldest and to all the people, “You are witnesses this day, that I have taken possession of all that belonged to Elimelech and Chilion and Mahlon, and was bequeathed to Naomi.

And Ruth, the Moabite, the wife of Mahlon, I have taken in marriage so as to raise up the name of the deceased in his posterity, so that his name will not be cut off from among his family and his brethren and his people. You, I say, are witnesses of this thing.”

All the people who were at the gate, along with the eldest, answered, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make this woman, who enters into your house, like Rachel, and Leah, who built up the house of Israel, so that she may be an example of virtue in Ephrathah, and so that her name may be honored in Bethlehem.(c)

And may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, of the offspring which the Lord will give to you from this young woman.”

Boaz Marries Ruth

And so Boaz took Ruth, and received her as his wife, and he went in to her, and the Lord granted to her to conceive and bear a son.

And the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not permitted your family to be without a successor, and may his name be called upon in Israel.(d)

And now you may have someone to comfort your soul and to care for you in old age, for he is born of your daughter-in-law, who loves you, and this is much better for you, than if you had seven sons.”

And taking up the boy, Naomi placed him on her bosom, and she took on the duties of carrying him and nursing him.(e)

And the women of the near future were congratulating her and saying, “There was a son born to Naomi. They called his name Obed. Here is the father of Jesse, the father of David.”(f)

The Line of David

(Matthew 1:1–17; Luke 3:23–38)

These are the generations of Perez: Perez conceived Hezron,

Hezron conceived Aram, Aram conceived Amminadab,

Amminadab conceived Nahshon, Nahshon conceived Salmon,

Salmon conceived Boaz, Boaz conceived Obed,

Obed conceived Jesse, Jesse conceived David.

Footnotes

(a)4:2 Boaz’s word carries weight with the people of this city, even the elders.(Conte)

(b)4:7 This last sentence of explanation is needed either to explain, to the Jews of one time period, a practice no longer used in Israel, or to explain to the non-Hebrew the custom of the Jews. This text may have been a later addition to the book.(Conte)

(d)4:14 These are the women contemporaneous with Ruth. They formerly treated her as an outsider, but now they accept her as one of their own.(Conte)

(e)4:16 Naomi was not very old, despite her protests in Ruth 1:12, for she was still able to nurse this child. The word nutricis has a meaning more like nursing a child, and less like nursing a patient.(Conte)

(f)4:17 The word vicinae means nearby and usually means nearby in place. However, in this context, the women nearby in place could not have known that Obed would grow up to be the father of Jesse, and he the father of David. Thus, the meaning is nearby in time, that is, the women of the near future.(Conte)

Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there. Behold, the near kinsman of whom Boaz spoke came by. Boaz said to him, “Come over here, friend, and sit down!” He came over, and sat down.

Boaz took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, “Sit down here,” and they sat down.

He said to the near kinsman, “Naomi, who has come back out of the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech’s.

I thought I should tell you, saying, ‘Buy it before those who sit here, and before the elders of my people.’ If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if you will not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know. For there is no one to redeem it besides you; and I am after you.” He said, “I will redeem it.”

Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must buy it also from Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead on his inheritance.”

The near kinsman said, “I can’t redeem it for myself, lest I endanger my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption for yourself; for I can’t redeem it.”

Now this was the custom in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning exchanging, to confirm all things: a man took off his sandal, and gave it to his neighbor; and this was the way of formalizing transactions in Israel.

So the near kinsman said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” then he took off his sandal.

Boaz said to the elders and to all the people, “You are witnesses today, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, from the hand of Naomi.

Moreover, Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, I have purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead on his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his place. You are witnesses today.”

All the people who were in the gate, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman who has come into your house like Rachel and like Leah, which both built the house of Israel; and treat you worthily in Ephrathah, and be famous in Bethlehem.

Let your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, of the offspring

(a)

which the LORD will give you by this young woman.”

Boaz Marries Ruth

So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife; and he went in to her, and the LORD enabled her to conceive, and she bore a son.

The women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the LORD, who has not left you today without a near kinsman. Let his name be famous in Israel.

He shall be to you a restorer of life and sustain you in your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

Naomi took the child, laid him in her bosom, and became nurse to him.

The women, her neighbors, gave him a name, saying, “A son is born to Naomi”. They named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

The Line of David

(Matthew 1:1–17; Luke 3:23–38)

Now this is the history of the generations of Perez: Perez became the father of Hezron,

and Hezron became the father of Ram, and Ram became the father of Amminadab,

and Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon became the father of Salmon,

and Salmon became the father of Boaz, and Boaz became the father of Obed,

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

Footnotes

(a)4:12 or, seed