Ruth 4

OK, so two weeks ago, we dealt with the issues around Ruth and Boaz at the threshing floor, and we dealt with potential improprieties, which we decided were not accurate.

We also were reminded of Boaz’s position as redeemer to Ruth, and the fact that there is a redeemer closer than himself. He also paid a bride-price to Naomi, showing his intentions, and he promised to take care of the matter that very day.

So, ending on that cliff-hanger, we are going to get to the conclusion of the story today and see why all of that really matters.

Ruth 4 ESV

1 Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, “Turn aside, friend; 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 down here.” So they sat down. 3 Then he said to the redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land that belonged to our relative Elimelech. 4 So I thought I would tell you of it and say, ‘Buy it in the presence of those sitting here and in the presence of the elders of my people.’ If you will redeem it, redeem it. But if you will not, tell me, that I may know, for there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after you.” And he said, “I will redeem it.” 5 Then Boaz said, “The day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabite, the widow of the dead, in order to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance.” 6 Then the redeemer said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it.” 7 Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one drew off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was the manner of attesting in Israel. 8 So when the redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” he drew off his sandal. 9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses this day that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and to Mahlon. 10 Also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his native place. You are witnesses this day.” 11 Then all the people who were at the gate and the elders said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you act worthily in Ephrathah and be renowned in Bethlehem, 12 and may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring that the Lord will give you by this young woman.” 13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. 14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! 15 He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.” 16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. 17 And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David. 18 Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron, 19 Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, 20 Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, 21 Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed, 22 Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.

OK, so a few things we need to cover in this passage are: Levirate marriage, genealogies, heirship/inheritance.

We’ll start at the beginning of the chapter and work through.

Ruth 4:1–2 ESV

1 Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, “Turn aside, friend; 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 down here.” So they sat down.

At the end of Chapter 3, Boaz was determined to settle the matter that day. We see that at the start of chapter 4, he is already in motion to do just that.

During this time the city gate would have been the place where business was done. It was also where any legal matters were settled. The city elders would gather there to adjudicate any issues that needed to be resolved. So, Boaz goes to the gate and waits for the other relative.

The sense of the text here is that Boaz is familiar with the man and his customs, so it seems that he went to the gate knowing that he would meet the man there.

Boaz sees the other family member, and asks him to stop by and chat. He also gathers the elders as well, because legal matters were to be decided before the elders of the city.

Incidentally, he gathers 10 of the elders because of the nature of the transaction about to take place:

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible Chapter 4

he took ten men of the elders of the city—as witnesses. In ordinary circumstances, two or three were sufficient to attest a bargain; but in cases of importance, such as matrimony, divorce, conveyancing of property, it was the Jewish practice to have ten (1 Ki 21:8).

Ruth 4:3–4 ESV

3 Then he said to the redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land that belonged to our relative Elimelech. 4 So I thought I would tell you of it and say, ‘Buy it in the presence of those sitting here and in the presence of the elders of my people.’ If you will redeem it, redeem it. But if you will not, tell me, that I may know, for there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after you.” And he said, “I will redeem it.”

So, Boaz lays out the issue. Naomi, as the widow of Elimelech, is selling her land.

Now, because she is a widow, Levitical law allows her to do this:

Leviticus 25:25 ESV

25 “If your brother becomes poor and sells part of his property, then his nearest redeemer shall come and redeem what his brother has sold.

This may seem strange, but the point of all of this was to perpetuate the names and family lines of God’s people. In the Pentateuch, there is much discussion about how family land must not be sold off, and how the names of the families are to be perpetuated.

This is the whole purpose behind the idea of levirate marriage, and the perpetuation of Elimelech’s line through the redemption of Ruth, giving Naomi an heir (legally, Ruth’s child would be considered the child of Mahlon).

Notice Boaz doesn’t start with Ruth, though. He starts with a parcel of land. That is because the land would be the most enticing thing to the redeemer, and Boaz doesn’t want to seem underhanded at all.

He’s basically sweetening the pot. Because the relative here is the actual goel, or kinsman redeemer. Boaz cannot make a move until this guy decides. And Boaz wants to uphold the laws of God.

So, here’s Naomi’s land, and you are a redeemer.

And in presenting it this way, he also tells the guy: “Look, I found out about this, but you are the closest in line, so you have first right of refusal. If you don’t want it, I’ll take it. But I want to give you your shot.”

Boaz is dutifully being 100% above board.

Ruth would be, like it or not, a secondary concern in this instance. As I’ve said before, we cannot let our “modern sensibilities” color how we view Scripture in context. In this context, Ruth is tantamount to property.

We don’t have to like that fact to also accept it as true.

So, Boaz tells the guy about the land, and the guy says, “Sure, I’ll buy it.”

Ruth 4:5–6 ESV

5 Then Boaz said, “The day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabite, the widow of the dead, in order to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance.” 6 Then the redeemer said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it.”

Now, Boaz finishes the deal, as it were.

“One more thing…when you buy the land, you also gain Ruth as a wife.”

Now, perhaps the man was already married. Perhaps he was a widower, himself. We don’t really know.

What we do know is that the man was not willing to marry Ruth.

Let’s be very clear here: the man isn’t presented in a way that makes this behavior sinful. His actions may have been fully righteous, we don’t know. And there are multiple reasons why he might decline.

Like I said, maybe he was married. Maybe he was concerned that any son born between himself and Ruth would have to share inheritance for children he already had. Maybe he wasn’t willing to separate what he already had planned for his future children to give out to one who would technically not even be his own, but Mahlon’s.

Whatever the reason, the man decided that he could not redeem the land, or take Ruth as a wife. He tells Boaz that he is forfeiting his right to it as redeemer, and giving it to Boaz.

Ruth 4:7–10 ESV

7 Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one drew off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was the manner of attesting in Israel. 8 So when the redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” he drew off his sandal. 9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses this day that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and to Mahlon. 10 Also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his native place. You are witnesses this day.”

OK. So, to formally seal this deal, the relative takes off his shoe and gave it to Boaz.

Why?

Let’s look at Deuteronomy 25 to get an idea:

Deuteronomy 25:5–10 ESV

5 “If brothers dwell together, and one of them dies and has no son, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside the family to a stranger. Her husband’s brother shall go in to her and take her as his wife and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her. 6 And the first son whom she bears shall succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out of Israel. 7 And if the man does not wish to take his brother’s wife, then his brother’s wife shall go up to the gate to the elders and say, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to perpetuate his brother’s name in Israel; he will not perform the duty of a husband’s brother to me.’ 8 Then the elders of his city shall call him and speak to him, and if he persists, saying, ‘I do not wish to take her,’ 9 then his brother’s wife shall go up to him in the presence of the elders and pull his sandal off his foot and spit in his face. And she shall answer and say, ‘So shall it be done to the man who does not build up his brother’s house.’ 10 And the name of his house shall be called in Israel, ‘The house of him who had his sandal pulled off.’

Now, what we see here is a very similar picture, but in a negative context. Here, a man dies, leaving a childless widow. His brother refuses to marry his sister-in-law, and she takes him before the elders...

Where? The city gate. Where they question him.

If he still refuses, she takes off his sandal, spits in his face, and curses him.

This is the ceremony of Halizah (ka-LEET-za, phlegmy “ka”). The Hebrew word for levirate marriage is yibbum. If the person would not go through yibbum, they had to perform halizah.

Through the years, it became a more formal and less hostile. In Ruth, the man takes off his own shoe and gives it to Boaz as a symbol for surrendering his rights as redeemer.

Boaz calls the elders and the people who had gathered to watch as witnesses to this exchange, and to his legal right to serve as the redeemer for Naomi, and for his right to marry Ruth.

Now, while this may be a solemn ceremony, the people seem to see this as a good thing.

Ruth 4:11–12 ESV

11 Then all the people who were at the gate and the elders said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you act worthily in Ephrathah and be renowned in Bethlehem, 12 and may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring that the Lord will give you by this young woman.”

The people agree that they are witnesses, and they pronounce a blessing on Boaz.

And again, the writer here uses names that may seem arbitrary to us, but are very very important to both the lineage of Boaz and Ruth, but to the whole redemption story of Scripture.

So, first, we see that the the people want Ruth to be like Leah and Rachel, who built up the house of Israel. These are Jacob’s (who God renamed Israel) wives. Notice that there is a sense of barrenness too, as both Leah and Rachel were barren for a time.

Remember, we talked about how Mahlon and Ruth were married 10 years without kids. Ruth was barren until God’s timing was achieved. She was supposed to have a son with Boaz, not Mahlon.

Then, the people and elders bless Boaz and want him to act worthily, and that his house may be like the house of Perez, son of Tamar and Judah. What an odd ancestor to draw on, right?

Remember the story or Tamar?

Genesis 38. Now, to spare us some time and some gross detail, I will give us the Cliff’s Notes Version:

Judah (one of Jacob’s sons by Leah) had three sons: Er, Onan, and Shelah. Er married Tamar. But Er did evil in the sight of the Lord, and God put him to death.

Judah tells Onan: “You have a duty to your family, marry Tamar and produce a child for your brother.”

Onan did not like that his first-born wouldn’t be his, but his brother’s, so he made sure Tamar didn’t get pregnant, while still enjoying the benefits of Tamar as his wife.

If I sound disdaining toward him, I’m not the only one: God also put him to death for doing wickedness.

Judah, fearing that God would kill Shelah as well, tells Tamar to wear widow’s garments in her own father’s house until Shelah is old enough to have a wife.

Now, in time, Judah’s wife dies, and he went out to Timnah to shear his sheep, and maybe get a little comfort out there...

You understand where maybe the wickedness of the sons was learned?

Anyway, Tamar knew that Shelah was grown up, but Judah wasn’t giving him to her, and she knew Judah was going to Timnah, so she took off her widow’s garments, got all prettied up, and basically dressed as a cult prostitute and waited by the road going to Timnah.

Judah sees her, thinks she as prostitute, and tries to buy her services with a a young goat. That he doesn’t currently have with him. She plays him, taking his signet, cord, and staff (basically she is holding his wallet, his identifying documents). Judah gets his momentary satisfaction, and Tamar gets the baby she wanted.

Later, they see that Tamar is pregnant and they prepare to kill her for her immorality (pot meet kettle). She says, “Hey, I have the identifying documents for the man that got me pregnant.” Then she produces Judah’s signet, cord, and staff.

Judah realizes his folly, not just in his immorality with her, but also withholding his son from her.

Tamar has twins, Perez and Zerah. Zerah’s hand came out first, but Perez was born first. Perez became a prominent leader and father of the Perezite clan in Judah.

So we have barren women and spurned widows being singled out. It’s like God planned this...

OK, let’s wrap up really quickly:

Ruth 4:13–22 ESV

13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. 14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! 15 He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.” 16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. 17 And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David. 18 Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron, 19 Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab, 20 Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon, 21 Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed, 22 Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.

First, I want us to see the joy that is restored to Naomi. Look at the proud grandmother here! No longer wanting to be called bitter, she is taking care of her grandchild, Obed.

Look at the joy in these verses! Ruth became Boaz’s wife - that reads like a happily ever after statement to me. Then, the Lord gave her conception: again, God had kept her barren until the right time.

Naomi is blessed.

Then we see that Obed is the father of Jesse, who is the father of David.

And then we end with a genealogy of David, and I want to take a second here.

We have to understand that biblical genealogies are less about being a biblical Ancestry.com and more about giving you the highlights of important people in the family line.

You need to understand that sometimes when it says “X fathered Y” or “X, the father of Y,” it means, yeah, that’s dad. Sometimes that just means that the one is a direct descendent of the other.

That matters here because there are 10 named listed. But we can look at dates that we know and it seems unlikely that there are only 10 generations from Perez to David.

And just in the last half of this genealogy, we have Salmon who is from the time of Joshua (Salmon married Rahab). It seems unlikely, given this is near the end of the Judges period, that Salmon could have been the actual father of Boaz.

One commentary puts it this way:

The ESV Study Bible Chapter 4

4:18–22 Genealogy: Extended Blessing. Looking backward and forward, this genealogy (cf. 1 Chron. 2:5–15) shows how the Lord repaid and rewarded Ruth, as Boaz desired (Ruth 2:12): the Lord brought about a new family line which became, through David, the greatest in all Israel. The 10 names in Ruth’s new family more than fill her 10 years of childlessness (see notes on 1:4; 4:11). Noah’s and Abraham’s genealogies also have 10 names (Gen. 5:3–32; 11:10–26). (In a genealogy, the word “fathered” can mean fathered an ancestor; thus biblical genealogies, including this one, may skip generations when the number of names is more important than recording every single member.) The Lord made everlasting, universal covenants with Noah concerning all creation (Gen. 9:16–17), with Abraham regarding Israel and the nations (Gen. 12:2–3; 17:4, 7, 16), and with David concerning his dynasty (2 Sam. 7:16; Ps. 89:4). All three are examples of the blessing received by faith (Noah: Gen. 6:8; Heb. 11:7; Abraham: Gen. 15:6; Rom. 4:2–3, 9; Gal. 3:8–9; David: Ps. 32:1–2; Rom. 4:6). Christ is the “son” of Noah (Luke 3:36), Abraham, and David (Matt. 1:1). Jesus’ genealogy includes three foreign women—Tamar, Rahab, and Ruth—all related to this genealogy (Matt. 1:3, 5; see notes on Ruth 4:12; 4:21).

Think about that: What we just talked about with Tamar, the fact that Rahab was a prostitute in Jericho who decided to help the children of Israel, and Ruth, the Moabite. All in the family tree of Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

What a picture of redemption!

Let’s pray.