Ruth 4:1-22
1 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 thoughta 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 leftb 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,c
21 And Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed,
22 And Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.
THE FAITHFULNESS AND GRACE OF BOAZ
(vv. 1-12)
The same morning Boaz went to the gate of the city, the place of judgment, sitting there until the close relative of whom he spoke came by(v. 1).At the invitation of Boaz, he also sat down.Besides this, he asked ten men of the city to be witnesses (v. 2).
This close relative pictures the covenant of law, which had a claim upon Israel from the time of their coming out of Egypt (Exodus 20:1).It was because of Israel's disobedience to law, however, that they had forfeited all title to the land and become poor and desolate, as seen in Naomi.Now, when Israel is eventually brought back to the land, will the law then give them title to it and rescue them from the poverty of their desolate condition? The law did have a claim on Israel, but could it carry out the claim by actually restoring the nation from its long centuries of disobedience?This hearing before the ten witnesses provides the answer.The ten witnesses in fact remind us of the ten commandments of the law, which are there to bear witness as to what the law cannot do.
Boaz then informed them that Naomi had sold the land that belonged to her and Elimelech (v. 3), and the law of Israel gave permission to a close relative to buy it back (or redeem it). Therefore, Boaz told this man he might redeem it if he wished, and if not that Boaz would do so.The man answered, "I will redeem it" (v.4).But there was a problem!
When the close relative of Elimelech told Boaz that he would redeem the property of Elimelech, Boaz then informed him that Ruth, the Moabitess was also involved in the matter, for she was the wife of Chilion the son of Elimelech, and the relative must take Ruth to perpetuate the name of Elimelech, by having at least a child by Ruth (v. 5). But this was too much for the relative, who said he could not do this lest he would ruin his own inheritance (v.6).He wanted the land, but not Ruth.
Thus, in picture, the law might legally require the return of the land of Israel after the Jews had been scattered among the nations, but the law was powerless to redeem people who had broken the law. In fact, the law declared that no Moabite could enter the congregation of Israel even to the tenth generation (Deuteronomy 23:3).The law could not ignore this or it would ruin its own character.But "what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin:He condemned sin in the flesh" (Romans 8:3).
Boaz pictures Christ who transcends the law and has accomplished on Calvary the great work of redemption by which people who trust Him are redeemed for eternity.Boaz did what the other relative could not do.In accordance with custom in Israel the relative took off his sandal and gave it to Boaz (vv.7-8).This may remind us of Moses being told by the Lord to take off his sandals at the site of the burning bush (Exodus 3:4) and of Joshua being told by the Commander of the Lord's army to take off his sandal (Joshua 5:13).Doing this indicates a confession of weakness in the presence of a superior, just as the law must acknowledge its own weakness in contrast to Christ (Romans 8:3).For if one's feet are not shod, he is not prepared for warfare or for walking in rough terrain.
Boaz then addressed the elders and all the people present, declaring them as witnesses that he had bought all that had previously belonged to Elimelech and his two sons (v. 9).But more than that, he had acquired Ruth the Moabitess as his wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead (Elimelech and his sons), since Ruth had had no children by her husband, Chilion (v. 10).In this way the law of Israel was perfectly kept, and Ruth, though a Moabitess, was welcomed into the commonwealth of Israel in spite of the law that forbade the acceptance of a Moabite to the tenth generation.For Israel's law had made provision for a related redeemer to accomplish such a reception.Just so, the ungodlyGentiles were excluded from Israel by law, but the law still bore witness of the coming of the Lord Jesus, whose great sacrifice has brought redemption for the ungodly, so that Gentile believers today are united to Christ in a bond that is pictured by marriage (2 Corinthians 11:2).
When Ruth came to the threshing floor, she had a totally private interview with Boaz, but the matter now is to be fully public, with everyone knowing that Ruth is redeemed as the wife of Boaz.When the Lord Jesus presents the Church to Himself, there will be a clear and universal announcement(Revelation 19:6).
Yet the marriage of Ruth to Boaz does not primarily picture the marriage of the Lord Jesus to His heavenly bride, the Church, but rather the union of Israel, God's earthly people, with the Lord Jesus at the end of the tribulation.Israel will be the earthly bride, but the church the heavenly bride, each being blessed in a different sphere.
The people who were present at the gate and the elders were fully agreeable to the words of Boaz, gladly taking the place of witnesses, and giving Boaz their unqualified blessing with the words of verses 11 & 12. There was no reserve on the part of the people because Ruth was a Moabitess, showing how God can resolve every national or racial problem by the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
MARRIAGE AND ITS RESULTS IN BLESSING (vv. 13-22)
Being married to Boaz, Ruth gave birth to a son (v. 13), certainly a great joy to both the parents, but it is interesting that the women congratulated Naomi, saying, Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel"(v. 14).Not only was Ruth's widowhood taken away, but Naomi's desolation was no more. Naomi picture that desolate state of Israel in being so deprived of blessing (now for centuries). What a change then for Naomi! -- and due entirely to Boaz, "a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age" (v. 15). The life of Boaz was continued in his son.Also, it was Ruth who had borne him -- a daughter- in - law who was better to Naomi than seven sons.So also, in a coming day, Israel's desolation will be changed to most abundant joy and blessing when the Lord Jesus, the great Redeemer, will be recognized as their true Messiah.Naomi became a nurse to the new born child, and the neighbors said the son was born to Naomi, reminding us of Isaiah 54:1, for the one Son is promise of more to come. Israel has lost much through disobedience, but will gain much more than she has lost through the grace of the great redeemer, the Lord Jesus.
How beautifully this Book of Ruth illustrates His glory and His grace