Boaz Marries Ruth

4 Boaz went to the town gate and took a seat there. Just then the family redeemer he had mentioned came by, so Boaz called out to him, “Come over here and sit down, friend. I want to talk to you.” So they sat down together.

¹² But while it’s true that I am one of your family redeemers, there is another man who is more closely related to you than I am.

⁷ “But if the man refuses to marry his brother’s widow, she must go to the town gate and say to the elders assembled there, ‘My husband’s brother refuses to preserve his brother’s name in Israel—he refuses to fulfill the duties of a brother-in-law by marrying me.’

Justice for the People

¹⁸ “Appoint judges and officials for yourselves from each of your tribes in all the towns the Lord your God is giving you. They must judge the people fairly.

¹⁹ In such a case, the father and mother must take the son to the elders as they hold court at the town gate.

The Exiles Are Called Home

⁶ The Lord says, “Come away! Flee from Babylon in the land of the north, for I have scattered you to the four winds.