Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Ruth
Chapter 4: A Kinsman, a Bride, and the Line of David
At the gate of Bethlehem, redemption is accomplished. The nearer kinsman cannot redeem without marring his own inheritance, but Boaz freely buys back the field and takes Ruth as his bride. The empty, bitter story of chapter one ends in fullness: a son is born, Naomi's life is restored, and a Moabite widow is woven by grace into the line of David, and of the Messiah.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Ruth chapter 4, the last chapter of the book. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Hebrew words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Chapter 4 brings the redemption to completion and reveals its place in the plan of God. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Redemption at the Gate (Ruth 4:1-8)
Boaz brings the matter before the elders, and the nearer kinsman, unwilling to endanger his own inheritance, yields the right of redemption.
I Cannot Redeem It
"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. And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, Sit ye down here. And they sat down. 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: 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. 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. 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. 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. Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it for thee. So he drew off his shoe."
Word Study
"redeem," Hebrew gaal (גָּאַל), the verb behind goel, "to redeem, buy back, act as kinsman." The word rings through this scene again and again: "if thou wilt redeem it, redeem it... I cannot redeem it." Redemption (gaal) meant buying back at a price what had been lost or forfeited, land, liberty, family line. The nearer kinsman was glad to redeem the field, which would enrich him, but when he learned he must also take Ruth and raise up an heir for the dead, so that the property would pass to that heir and not to himself, he refused: "I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance." He would redeem only if it cost him nothing. True redemption always costs the redeemer. This is why the law and its ceremonies could never save us; like the nearer kinsman, the law could point to redemption but would not pay the price to accomplish it. Only a Redeemer willing to "mar" His own inheritance, to spend Himself, could truly redeem.
Explanation
Boaz handles the matter with legal care at the city gate, the place of public business and justice. He gathers ten elders as witnesses and lays out the case to the nearer kinsman: Naomi is selling Elimelech's land; will he redeem it? At first the man agrees, seeing only the profit. But Boaz reveals the full obligation: to redeem the land is also to marry Ruth and "raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance", meaning the child would inherit the field, not the redeemer. At that, the nearer kinsman withdraws: "I cannot redeem it... lest I mar mine own inheritance." He formalizes his refusal by the ancient custom of removing his shoe, publicly ceding the right of redemption to Boaz. The one who could redeem would not, at cost to himself; the way is now open for the redeemer who will.
Gospel Focus
The nearer kinsman is a striking picture of what could not save us. He had the right to redeem but not the will to pay the cost; he would not "mar his own inheritance." So it is with the law and with every lesser hope: it can point to redemption but will not, cannot, pay the price. But our Redeemer was of another spirit. Christ did not spare Himself; He willingly "marred" His own glory, "made himself of no reputation" (Philippians 2:7), and "though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich" (2 Corinthians 8:9). He redeemed at the cost of Himself, His blood the price. Where the nearer kinsman said "I cannot," the true Redeemer said, "Lo, I come... to do thy will, O God." Redemption is never cheap; ours cost the Redeemer everything.
Boaz Redeems Ruth (Ruth 4:9-12)
Before all the witnesses, Boaz buys back the inheritance and takes Ruth as his wife, and the people bless the union.
Ruth Have I Purchased to Be My Wife
"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. 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. 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: 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."
Word Study
"purchased," Hebrew qanah (קָנָה), "to acquire, buy, get, possess." Boaz declares, "Ruth the Moabitess... have I purchased to be my wife." The redemption of the land and the winning of the bride are one act: to redeem the inheritance is to take Ruth as his own. The gospel does exactly this. Christ redeemed us by purchase, "ye are bought with a price" (1 Corinthians 6:20), "the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood" (Acts 20:28), and the redeemed become His bride, "the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready" (Revelation 19:7). Boaz did not merely rescue Ruth from poverty; he took her to himself in love as his wife. So Christ does not redeem us as distant beneficiaries but claims us as His own beloved. The purchase and the marriage are inseparable: we are bought to be His.
Explanation
Boaz publicly and formally completes the redemption before all the witnesses: he has bought all of Elimelech's estate, and he has taken Ruth "to be my wife," to preserve the family name of the dead. The people and elders respond with a joyful blessing, praying that Ruth would be like Rachel and Leah, who "did build the house of Israel," and that Boaz's house would be like the house of Pharez. These blessings are quietly remarkable: they invoke matriarchs and, in Pharez (born of Tamar, and Ruth herself a Moabitess), they weave outsiders and irregular histories into the honored line, a foreshadowing that God's grace runs through unexpected people. The town that once asked "Is this Naomi?" in her grief now rejoices over a wedding and prays a blessing on a Gentile bride brought into Israel.
Gospel Focus
The redemption is a marriage: Boaz buys the inheritance and takes the bride together. This is the gospel in a picture. Christ our Redeemer purchased us with His blood not to keep us at arm's length but to make us His bride, "I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ" (2 Corinthians 11:2). And notice who the bride is: Ruth the Moabitess, an outsider, brought in by grace and blessed alongside Rachel and Leah. The genealogies that follow, and the very ancestry of Christ, are studded with Gentiles and sinners saved by grace, Tamar, Rahab, Ruth. The message could not be clearer: the Redeemer delights to take a despised outsider and make her His honored bride. If Ruth the Moabitess could be woven into the line of the Messiah, no one is beyond the reach of redeeming grace.
A Son for Naomi, and the Line of David (Ruth 4:13-22)
A child is born who restores Naomi's life and joy, and the book closes by revealing that he is the grandfather of King David.
The Father of Jesse, the Father of David
"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. 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. 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. And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. 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. Now these are the generations of Pharez: Pharez begat Hezron, And Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab, And Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon, And Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed, And Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David."
Word Study
"a restorer of thy life," Hebrew meshiv nephesh (מֵשִׁיב נֶפֶשׁ), "one who brings back / restores the soul." The women tell Naomi that the child will be "a restorer of thy life", literally, a "bringer-back of the soul." It is the same beautiful phrase used of the LORD Himself: "he restoreth my soul" (Psalm 23:3, the same shuv nephesh). Naomi, who had gone out "full" and come home "empty" and bitter, crying "call me Mara," now has her very soul restored, her emptiness filled, her bitterness turned to joy, her old age nourished. The kinsman-redeemer's work reaches all the way back to the grieving, hopeless woman of chapter one and brings her life again. So our Redeemer is the great Restorer of the soul, who finds us empty and bitter and fills us, who "restoreth my soul" and turns our mourning into dancing. Redemption is not merely legal rescue; it is the restoring of a dead and empty life to fullness and joy.
Explanation
Boaz takes Ruth as his wife, and "the LORD gave her conception", the same LORD who had "visited his people in giving them bread" now gives a child, His hand over the whole story. The women bless God for giving Naomi a kinsman and a "restorer of thy life," praising Ruth, the Gentile daughter-in-law, as "better to thee than seven sons." Naomi, who had held only grief, now holds a child to her bosom. The women name him Obed, and then the book drops its glorious surprise: "he is the father of Jesse, the father of David." The whole quiet story of a famine, a widow, and a gleaner has been God secretly preparing the royal line. The closing genealogy runs from Pharez to David, and the New Testament carries it on to "Jesus, who is called Christ" (Matthew 1:5-16). Ruth the Moabitess stands in the ancestry of the King of kings.
Gospel Focus
The book ends by pulling back the curtain: all along, God was building the line of David, and through David, of the Messiah. A famine no one would have chosen, a grief that made Naomi call herself "bitter," the loyalty of a foreign widow, the kindness of a godly farmer, God wove them all into the genealogy of Jesus Christ. This is how God works: quietly, through ordinary faithfulness and hidden providence, accomplishing eternal purposes no one could see at the time. And the destination of it all is Christ, "the son of David, the son of Abraham" (Matthew 1:1), our Kinsman-Redeemer, who purchased a bride from among the nations at the price of His own blood. Ruth's story is the gospel in miniature: an outsider redeemed, married, restored, and brought into the family and the line of the King. What He did for Ruth, He does for all who take refuge under His wings.
Chapter 4 in Review
Ruth 4 completes the redemption. At the gate, the nearer kinsman gladly would redeem the field until he learns it means taking Ruth and raising an heir who would inherit it; then he refuses, "lest I mar mine own inheritance." So Boaz, who counts no cost too great, publicly buys back the estate and takes Ruth "to be my wife." The people bless the union, invoking Rachel, Leah, and Pharez. A son, Obed, is born; Naomi's empty, bitter life is restored; and the book ends by revealing that this child is the grandfather of King David, and so an ancestor of the Messiah.
For the Apostolic reader, the whole book has been the gospel in a village story. The kinsman who "could not redeem" pictures all that cannot save us; Boaz, who redeems at cost to himself and takes a Gentile outcast as his bride, pictures Christ our Kinsman-Redeemer. The purchase and the marriage are one; the empty are made full; and God's hidden providence weaves a famine and a widow's grief into the line of David and of Jesus. Ruth the Moabitess, brought under the wings of the LORD, stands forever in the ancestry of the King of kings, a shining sign that redeeming grace was always meant to reach the nations.
- The nearer kinsman "could not redeem... lest I mar mine own inheritance", a picture of all that cannot save.
- Boaz redeemed at cost to himself and took Ruth as his bride; the purchase and the marriage are one, as in Christ.
- A Gentile widow is blessed with Rachel and Leah and woven into the line of David, grace reaching the nations.
- The Redeemer is "a restorer of thy life"; He finds us empty and bitter and fills us with joy.
Questions for Reflection
- Have you rested in the Redeemer who "marred" His own inheritance to buy you back at the cost of His blood?
- Boaz purchased Ruth to be his bride. Do you know yourself as bought, and beloved, by Christ?
- God wove Naomi's grief into the line of the Messiah. Can you trust His hidden providence in your own losses?
- All four chapters of Ruth are now complete, from famine and loss in Moab to redemption and the line of David.
- Its great theme is the kinsman-redeemer, Boaz, a living picture of Jesus Christ, who redeems those who cannot redeem themselves and makes them His bride.
- A jewel set in the dark days of the Judges, Ruth shows that God's grace was always reaching out to the nations, and that His hidden hand is weaving even our losses into His good and eternal purpose.
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). The Hebrew terms are standard and can be checked in any Hebrew lexicon. Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- Redemption at the gate; the kinsman who could not: Ruth 4:1-8; Philippians 2:7; 2 Corinthians 8:9.
- Ruth purchased to be a bride; grace to outsiders: Ruth 4:9-12; 1 Corinthians 6:20; Acts 20:28; Revelation 19:7; 2 Corinthians 11:2.
- Restorer of life; the line of David and Christ: Ruth 4:13-22; Psalm 23:3; Matthew 1:1, 5-16.