Ruth 4
King James Version
4 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.
11 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:
12 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.
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.
16 And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.
17 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.
18 Now these are the generations of Pharez: Pharez begat Hezron,
19 And Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab,
20 And Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon,
21 And Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed,
22 And Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.
Ruth 4
The Voice
4 At that same time, Boaz went to the city gate and he sat down. Just then, the kinsman-redeemer of the family he had told Ruth about walked by.
Normally the city gate is where the business of the city is conducted.
Boaz: My friend, come and sit down with me for awhile. We have some business.
So the man came and sat down beside Boaz. 2 Before he spoke further to the man, he gathered together 10 elders from the city and asked them to preside there, which they did.
Boaz (to the kinsman-redeemer): 3 You have heard of Naomi? She is the woman who recently returned from Moab. She is transferring her rights to the plot of land belonging to her deceased husband—our relative—Elimelech. 4 I wanted you to know about it because as a close family member, you have the first right to purchase it. If you want to do so, we have enough elders sitting here to witness the transaction. If you want to become the guardian and redeem this land, it is yours. But if you[a] are not interested in doing this, tell me now. The right belongs to you, but if you refuse it, I am next in line.
Kinsman-Redeemer: Of course, I exercise my option to redeem this land.
Boaz: 5 Now, just so you know, on the day you buy this plot of land [from Naomi, you will also acquire Ruth the Moabitess; she is][b] the dead man’s widow. It will be your responsibility to make sure she has children so that they can carry on her dead husband’s name with the inheritance.
Kinsman-Redeemer: 6 Then I will not be able to redeem it. I will not put my own property at risk. I relinquish my right to redeem the land. You do it.
7 Now in the old days of Israel when this story was playing out, land was redeemed and property was transferred legally when a man involved in the sale removed one of his sandals and gave it to the other. This was how contracts were sealed in Israel. 8 So the kinsman-redeemer took off his sandal and handed it to Boaz.
Kinsman-Redeemer: It’s now your responsibility.
Boaz (to the elders and all the people): 9 Every one of you have witnessed what happened here today. I secured the rights to everything that belonged to Elimelech and his sons, Mahlon and Chilion, from Naomi. 10 I have also taken responsibility for Ruth—the woman from Moab who was married to Mahlon. She will become my wife. I will see to it that his family and this city remember Mahlon. I will raise children who will bear his name and make sure his property stays in the family. You are all witnesses to this today.
Elders and People: 11 We are witnesses of what has happened here today. May the Eternal take this woman who is becoming a part of your family today and make her like Rachel and Leah, the two women responsible for building the nation of Israel with their children. And may your reputation become well known and well respected throughout Ephrathah and Bethlehem. 12 May the children the Eternal gives you and this woman make your family like the family of Perez, who was born from a Levirate union between Judah and Tamar.[c]
13 Then Boaz took responsibility of Ruth, and they married. After they came together, Ruth conceived by the Eternal’s provision, and later she gave birth to a son.
Women (to Naomi): 14 Praise the Eternal One. He has not abandoned you. He did not leave you without a redeeming guardian. May your offspring become famous all through Israel. 15 May this child give you a new life. May he strengthen you and provide for you in your old age. Look at your daughter-in-law, Ruth. She loves you. This one devoted daughter is better to you than seven sons would be. She is the one who gave you this child.
16 Then Naomi held the child tightly in her arms and cared for him. 17 All around her, friends cried out, “Naomi has a son!” They named the child Obed because he would provide for his grandmother. Obed grew up and became the father of Jesse. Jesse, too, became a father one day, the father of David.
18 Here is the genealogy of Perez’s family: Perez was Hezron’s father. 19 Hezron was Ram’s father. Ram was Amminadab’s father. 20 Amminadab was Nahshon’s father. Nahshon was Salmon’s[d] father. 21 Salmon was Boaz’s father. Boaz was Obed’s father. 22 Obed was Jesse’s father. And Jesse was the father of David.
Footnotes
- 4:4 Most Hebrew manuscripts read, “he.”
- 4:5 Hebrew manuscripts read, “from Naomi and Ruth the Moabitess, you will acquire.”
- 4:12 Genesis 38
- 4:20 Most Hebrew manuscripts read, “Salma.”
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.