Ruth: Our Kinsman-Redeemer

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Ruth 4:1-10, 13-15

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 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.

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.

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 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.

The story of Ruth is one of the greatest love stories in the entire Bible. It not only shows the great love between a man and a woman, but it also shows God’s love for both Israel and the world. But the story almost never came all the way to the ending. Most people who have heard this story know that Ruth came back to Israel with Naomi only to have no food. She then went to glean, or pick up the leftover grain, in the fields of a wealthy man named Boaz. Boaz took an instant liking to her and even gave her some special treatment. Naomi told Ruth to glean only in Boaz’s field. At the end of the harvest, Ruth asked Boaz to marry her. 

Many people stop this story right there. But there is a twist in chapter 3 that many people do not see coming. You see, Naomi and Ruth both thought that Boaz was their nearest kinsman. It was therefore his duty to take Ruth as his wife and bring children into the world with her. Unfortunately, there was a man who was a closer kin to Naomi than Boaz. God still worked His master plan even through this difficulty. This kinsman, who already had a wife and children of his own, was willing to redeem both the land and all the possessions that belonged to Naomi. What he was not willing to do, however, was take Ruth as his wife and have kids with her. Boaz then married Ruth and redeemed all of the land and possessions of Naomi and her family.

This is an amazing picture of what Christ has done for us. In this picture, Boaz represents Christ as kinsman-redeemer and Ruth represents the church. We were once foreigners to His kingdom. We were once without food, work, hope for the future, and life. We were once unwanted by others in this world. But Christ saw us and made us citizens in His kingdom. He gave us spiritual food, a work, or commission, to be done, a hope for all eternity, and restored to us our life (see Ruth 4:15). He wanted us and made us part of His family.

Now at the beginning I mentioned how this love story shows God’s love for Israel and the world. That comes at the end of chapter 5. Boaz and Ruth had a son named Obed. Obed’s son was Jesse, who became the father of David, the second king of Israel (Ruth 4:21-22). As you probably already know, Israel’s Messiah came through David’s family. That is the first part of God’s love displayed, His love toward Israel. His love toward the rest of the world, the Gentiles, was shown in two main characters of the book of Ruth, Ruth and Boaz. Ruth was born a Moabitess; that was all that was in her blood. Boaz’s mother was Rahab, a former harlot living in Jericho who rescued two of Israel’s spies. God used two people who were not even completely Jewish to be in the family line of the kings of Israel and eventually the Messiah.

Be ready for next time when we look at Christ in the books of First and Second Samuel as our Trusted Prophet. Until then, God bless!!!