Verses 1-2
The gate of the city was typically the primary entrance that people would use to enter and exit the city. There was often a lot of activity in this part of the city. The gate was the place that the “esteemed men” and/or Elders of the city would sit and settle legal matters. It is where people would buy and sell things. If you were doing business, you would go to the gate of the city. And so this is where Boaz went. And to give us a sense of excitement about what is about to happen the writer of Ruth says in verse 1, “And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by.”
The great preacher Charles Spurgeon says that the word “behold” is a divine highlighter. When we see the word behold, we are about to see God at work.
The writer of Ruth is saying to us is look, watch and see what God is doing. Come and see what God is orchestrating. These are not events that are happening by chance. This is the hand of God at work even in what might seem like ordinary circumstances.
Boaz invites the unnamed close relative or redeemer to sit and he invites 10 elders to join them as witnesses because there is going to be a business transaction that is going to take place.
Verses 3-4
This is the first time we are hearing about land that Naomi owns. Naomi and Ruth return poor widows. It is not clear whether Naomi currently owns land that she is selling or had she previously sold the land because she had become so poor. The New King James Version chooses the latter that the property had already been sold and now Boaz is making an appeal to the close relative to buy back the land.
Leviticus 25:25 tells us, “If one of your fellow Israelites becomes poor and sells some of their property, their nearest relative is to come and redeem what they have sold.”
And so this close relative to Naomi would have the right to redeem this property for her. And after hearing about this opportunity, the close relative quickly says, ‘I’ll redeem it.” No questions were asked.
Redeeming property for an older widow means that this property most likely would not be redeemed and given to Naomi’s descendants. The close relative recognizes there is no chance Naomi gets married and has children. He realizes this is a great opportunity to gain land for himself and his own descendants. But Boaz knows there potentially could be descendants of Naomi through the young widow Ruth. And so he gives more details about this transaction.
Verses 5-6
This new information changes things. It also reveals the motive of the close relative. He wasn’t redeeming for Naomi and for the name of Elimelech. This wasn’t a sacrificial act of redeeming something for someone who was in need which was the role of the kinsman-redeemer. He was redeeming for his own gain. And once he realizes this was not going to benefit him and his descendants, he changes his mind.
In other words, the close relative realized this is a redemption that will cost him something. It will sacrificially require something of him that he wasn’t willing to sacrifice.
Verses 7-10
Once again Boaz makes it clear what this act of redemption is all about. It wasn’t about acquiring property. It wasn’t even about marrying Ruth. It was about making sure the name of Elimelech, the name of Mahlon, Ruth’s widow would not be cut off.
These were men that might not have earned the privilege to be honored in this way. They left Israel when it got hard. Boaz didn’t leave. They could have been seen as people who abandoned God, they abandoned the people of God and abandoned the promised land of God. They could be viewed as prodigals or rebels.
But Boaz wants everyone to know this redemption is so that their name is honored as brothers. He displayed the same love and faithfulness that the Lord continually displayed toward His people even when God’s people were disobedient and unfaithful.
He loved them and honored not because of who they were and what they did. He loved them and honored them because loving your neighbor reflects the command of God and the character of God.
Leviticus 19:18 says, “You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself…”
By marrying Ruth, Boaz recognized that his children will be viewed as legal heirs of Elimelech and Mahlon. He is sacrificially giving up his own name for the sake of someone else. If Boaz ever asked himself what was best for him in this situation he is probably not redeeming Ruth and her family line. He has his own inheritance and family to worry about. But if he asked the question, what is my place of obedience before God then he is going to do the thing that requires a sacrifice.
I have often wondered why we have this whole story line of the other close relative. On one level, it does add more intrigue to this story. It is a final twist. But I think God was doing more than just giving us an exciting ending. I think one of the reasons we have the other redeemer is that it reminds us that this was a sacrificial act. Once the other relative realizes that this act of redemption could hinder his own inheritance and his own family and his own name, he quickly says, “I can’t do that. That is asking too much of me.”
Isn’t it interesting that the close relatives name is never mentioned. He is so concerned about persevering his own name and yet he is never named. It takes us back to chapter 1 where Elimelech leaves Israel to save his own life only to lose his life. In every circumstance, in every situation the question isn’t what is best for me or what’s best for my family but what is my place of obedience before God?
And that can be a hard question to truly be honest about because our own desires, our own wants, our own goals can hinder our ability to chose the right thing because it may lead to us laying down our desires, wants and goal as we sacrificially give ourselves to God.
Verses 11-12
There is so much that we could spend time with in this blessing from these Elders and we are not going to look at this in details but essentially there are three parts to this blessing. They give a blessing for descendants, for wealth and for reputation.
The Elders recognized that Boaz is making a sacrifice both financially and with his own family inheritance and his own family name. And so the blessing is that Boaz would have wealth and that his name would be known.
Now obedience doesn’t necessarily lead to physically blessing. It doesn’t necessarily mean you are going to be blessed with children, or financial resources or even a good reputation. In fact, many people have walked in obedience to God and it led to suffering. In the same way that Jesus was obedient to the Father and it led to him laying down his life on a cross.
But the prayer for the Elders was that this physical sacrifice of Boaz would lead to a physical blessing. May your wife have children and may you prosper. May your name be held in high esteem in Bethlehem.
You wonder what the blessing from the Elders to the unnamed relative would have been if he had chosen to redeem both the land and Ruth. You wonder if he would have experienced far more by redeemer Ruth’s family than what he gained by protecting his own family. How many times do we say no to God because we do not want to give up what we can see, what we can hold when God may have something far more waiting if we were only willing to walk by faith?
Reminds me of the words of Jesus who said, “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”
Verses 13-15
The redeemer in this verse isn’t Boaz but rather the child who has been born. This son will continue on the name of Elimelech. And more importantly for Naomi a reminder that God has not forgotten her. Where she once saw God’s hand as against her, the women around her are saying, “See, God has given you a hope and a future.”
One of the things that I love about this moment is that these women are speaking into Naomi. They are saying to her, “God has not abandoned you. God has given you a redeemer. God has brought you life and nourishment. And God has brought you a daughter-in-law, a worthy woman who is far greater than having 7 sons.” Naomi should no longer be sitting in a place of bitterness but in a place of gratefulness.
We need people in our life who will remind us of God’s work and blessing in our life. Sometimes in our own pain we can’t see God’s blessings. And we need people in our life to speak into our life to say, “Can I tell you how I see God at work in your life?”
There may be someone right now in your life and they can’t see God’s hand, but you can. And they need you to speak what you can’t see. They need you to make known what their pain is hiding from you.
These women not only speak into Naomi’s life but they recognize that God is doing something significant in this birth. Through the life of Ruth, through the life of Boaz, and what may seem like ordinary events on the surface, the people are recognizing the extraordinary hand of God so much so that their blessing is that this grandchild would be “renowned in Israel! The Elders gave a blessing to Boaz that his name would be renowned in Bethlehem, a small town. But now the women are giving a blessing that this child’s name would be renowned in all of Israel.
That is not an ordinary blessing. But these women see what maybe Naomi can’t right now. They see the extraordinary hand of God at work in ordinary and even painful circumstances.
Verses 16-22
And now we know the whole story. Now we know why two penniless, widowed woman living in Moab are still known today. Because one of the widows, Ruth, would give birth to the grandfather of King David—whose kingdom line would give birth to the Messiah, the greatest redeemer of the world who came to rescue us from sin and death and give salvation to to all who trust and believe in Him as Lord and Savior.
Now the story of redemption in Ruth is clearly a picture of God’s redemption story as displayed through the Jesus. Jesus, through his death on a cross, sacrificially gave of himself for our sake, to save us or redeem us from sin and death.
And His act of redemption required a similar act like Boaz in which he laid down his reputation for our sake.
In Philippians 2 we see the selfless attitude of Christ as our redeemer which says, “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
That was the attitude of Ruth toward Naomi, that was attitude of Boaz toward Ruth and that is the attitude of Christ toward us who came to be our redeemer.
Ephesians 1:7 says that in Christ “we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.”
And just like the blessing of Boaz that his name would be renowned for his act as a redeemer, God has blessed Jesus as our redeemer. Listen to the rest of Philippians 2:
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
What is so interesting about the story of Ruth is that God chose to weave this smaller story of redemption into his larger story of redemption reminding us that even in the ordinary events of life that God was at working accomplishing His purposes for His glory.
And God is still involved in the work of redemption inviting ordinary people, in ordinary circumstances to respond to Christ the redeemer and experience his extraordinary gift of salvation.
If you have placed your truth in Jesus as the only one who can forgive your sins and give you salvation, you have a story of redemption that can be told. And my challenge to you is tell your story. And live a life of grace and love toward others so that they may know redemption. And if you have not, may today be the day that you experience God’s redemption – saving you from sin and death.