Ruth 4:1

The Bible says in Ruth 4:1-8, “Then 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.” Boaz wasted no time. He found the other kinsman, and took him to the elders of the city so that everything would be done legally and publicly. Boaz told the other kinsman that if he wanted to do the duty of a kinsman redeemer for Naomi and Ruth, first there was a plot of land that had to be purchased. At the end of verse four the other kinsman said that yes, he would redeem the plot of land. And then in verse five Boaz said to the other kinsman that if he buys the plot of land, that Ruth comes with it. He will have to marry Ruth so that Ruth will have children in order to have descendants. That was very important to the Jewish people. But the other kinsman said that he could not marry Ruth and have children with her “lest I mar mine own inheritance.” In other words, he did not want to add more heirs to the ones that he already had because that would require him to spread out what the others would eventually inherit. Once again we see the hand of the Lord working everything out just the way that God wanted to work it out. Over the years God made the situation of the other kinsman such that he would not want to take Ruth as his wife, thus paving the way for Boaz. Notice that Boaz did things the right way. Boaz did not lie or deceive to get what he wanted. Boaz told the truth, and presented the facts as they were. Do the right thing, and matters will work out the way that they are supposed to.

The Bible says in Ruth 4:9-13, “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.” This was a great moment in the history of the human race because the lineage of the Christ was established here. Naomi’s plan and Boaz’ plan materialized because it was God’s plan. It was now official: Boaz and Ruth would be married. It is interesting to notice the blessing that was pronounced by the elders and the other people who were at the legal proceeding that took place at “the gate” of Bethlehem. First, they mention the Lord. They knew that for their hopes and blessings to take place, the Lord must do it. The blessing is mostly about Ruth and the child that she will have. They must have been in tune with the Spirit of the Lord because that is exactly how the Lord would be blessing. They compared Ruth to three great and important women in the history of Israel: Rachel and Leah, who were the mothers of the twelve children of Israel; and Tamar, who was the mother of Pharez from Judah. It is interesting that they chose Tamar as part of their blessing. That is because Tamar was part of the lineage of Judah, and since Bethlehem was in Judah, Tamar was well-known to all of these Judahites. In Genesis chapter 38 the story of Tamar losing her first two husbands and then bearing twins to Judah, her father in law, after she temporarily became a prostitute is a very sordid affair from our standards, but once again it showed the grace of God and the plan of God. God uses imperfect people to accomplish His perfect plan. God can turn a disaster into a blessing.

It is important to notice at the end of verse thirteen that after Boaz and Ruth got married it says, “the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son.” Conception is an act of God. It is the life-giving act of God. Once conception takes place, it is God’s will that nature takes its course. To end a pregnancy just for the convenience of the mother is a terrible thing. Abortion by the millions is a terrible thing. Oh, the plans that God had for Ruth’s son. Ruth’s grandson would be the father of King David. David would forever be known as “son of Jesse,” who was the grandson of Ruth. Ruth’s son would be in the lineage of Christ, and of course, that means that Ruth and Boaz were in the lineage of Christ too. It is a good thing that Ruth decided to leave Moab and to make Naomi’s God her God. That was a great decision with great consequences.

The Bible says in Ruth 4:14-22, “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.” The women of the city of Bethlehem also knew that the marriage of Boaz and Ruth was because of the Lord. Marriages are made in heaven, at least when both bride and groom know the Lord and follow Him.

In verse fifteen the women of Bethlehem told Naomi that they hoped the child would be “a restorer of thy life” for Naomi. Naomi lost her husband and both of her sons. It would be hard to imagine a worse disaster for an older woman in her situation that she lived in over three thousand years ago. But now Naomi gains not only a well-to-do son in law in Boaz, but also a grandson. Now she has a future. Now she has the joy and hope of a child and what that child can become. If the child grows up and becomes a decent and responsible young man, then Naomi’s oldest years will be provided for also because Ruth’s son would then be “a nourisher of thine old age.” They did not have Social Security or Medicare or any other government program: they had children and grandchildren.

In verse fifteen the women of Bethlehem also spoke of Ruth. They said, “for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee…” The book of Ruth is a love story. It is as much the love of Ruth for her mother in law as it is the love of Ruth and Boaz for each other. Perhaps Ruth loved Naomi so much because Ruth learned about the one true God from Naomi. Ruth loved Naomi so much that she could not separate from her, and Ruth moved with Naomi from Moab to Israel. Ruth was loyal to her mother in law. Ruth worked daily in the fields to feed both of them. Ruth respected her mother in law and listened carefully to her advice about how to get a good husband. And Ruth trusted her mother in law to help raise her son. It says in verse sixteen, “And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.”

The blessings that the women pronounced for Naomi came to pass. Ruth’s son, Obed, was an important person in the plan of God, as can be seen by verse twenty-two, “And Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.” Obed was the grandfather of King David, and thus Obed was also in the lineage of the Messiah. From Obed came kings, and the greatest King of all: the King of kings, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Boaz redeemed Ruth. Jesus is our redeemer. Through Jesus we are kings and priests.

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