Ruth and Boaz Unite

Boaz was a kind man, treating his servants and Ruth with generosity and blessing. Naomi shares with Ruth that Boaz is, in fact, a kinsman redeemer. By telling her what to say and do, she asks if Boaz will marry her and redeem their family. Excited at the opportunity, Boaz settles the matter of redeeming her at the city gate, and eventually, the two become one. The line of David comes from this union and, ultimately, the Messiah.

In our last episode, we heard how Naomi and Ruth journeyed from Moab to Bethlehem, Naomi’s homeland. Ruth had pledged her loyalty to her mother-in-law and embraced the God of Israel as her own. The two women faced a difficult life in their new home. Both were widowed, with no children to care for them, depending on gleanings from the harvest fields, which Ruth went to collect. There she met Boaz, a man who showed her great kindness, knowing what she’d done for Naomi. Boaz was a God-fearing man who was wealthy, generous, and protective of Ruth in her vulnerability as a poor foreigner. And today, we’ll learn of a deepening of this relationship and how Boaz and Ruth will come together to begin a family line that will trace to the fulfillment of God’s promised rescue, not just for Israel but the whole world.