Ruth 4 - NKJV Bible Online

Ruth 4

Boaz Redeems Ruth

Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there; and behold, ^athe close relative of whom Boaz had spoken came by. So Boaz said, “Come aside, ¹friend, sit down here.” So he came aside and sat down. 2 And he took ten men of ^athe elders of the city, and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down. 3 Then he said to the close relative, “Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, sold the piece of land ^awhich belonged to our brother Elimelech. 4 And I thought to ¹inform you, saying, ^a‘Buy it back ^bin the presence of the inhabitants and the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if ²you will not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know; ^cfor there is no one but you to redeem it, and I am next after you.’ ”
And he said, “I will redeem it.”
5 Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must also buy it from Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, ^ato ¹perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance.”
6 ^aAnd the close relative said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I ruin my own inheritance. You redeem my right of redemption for yourself, for I cannot redeem it.”
7 ^aNow this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging, to confirm anything: one man took off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was a confirmation in Israel.
8 Therefore the close relative said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself.” So he took off his sandal. 9 And Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses this day that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, from the hand of Naomi. 10 Moreover, Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, I have acquired as my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance, ^athat the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brethren and from ¹his position at the gate. You are witnesses this day.”
11 And all the people who were at the gate, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. ^aThe Lord make the woman who is coming to your house like Rachel and Leah, the two who ^bbuilt the house of Israel; and may you prosper in ^cEphrathah and be famous in ^dBethlehem. 12 May your house be like the house of ^aPerez, ^bwhom Tamar bore to Judah, because of ^cthe offspring which the Lord will give you from this young woman.”

Descendants of Boaz and Ruth

13 So Boaz ^atook Ruth and she became his wife; and when he went in to her, ^bthe Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. 14 Then ^athe women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a ¹close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel! 15 And may he be to you a restorer of life and a ¹nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is ^abetter to you than seven sons, has borne him.” 16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to him. 17 ^aAlso the neighbor women gave him 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 ^aNow this is the genealogy of Perez: ^bPerez begot Hezron; 19 Hezron begot Ram, and Ram begot Amminadab; 20 Amminadab begot ^aNahshon, and Nahshon begot ^bSalmon;¹ 21 Salmon begot Boaz, and Boaz begot Obed; 22 Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot ^aDavid.

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