Ruth and Boaz Marry

4 Boaz went to the gate of the town^(A) and sat down there. Soon the family redeemer Boaz had spoken about came by. Boaz called him by name and said, “Come^[a] over here and sit down.” So he went over and sat down. ² Then Boaz took 10 men of the town’s elders^(B) and said, “Sit here.” And they sat down. ³ He said to the redeemer, “Naomi, who has returned from the land of Moab, is selling a piece of land that belonged to our brother Elimelech.^{(C) 4} I thought I should inform you:^[b] Buy it back in the presence of those seated here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you want to redeem it, do so. But if you do^[c] not want to redeem it, tell me so that I will know, because there isn’t anyone other than you to redeem it, and I am next after you.”

“I want to redeem it,” he answered.

⁵ Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the land from Naomi, you will also acquire^[d] Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the deceased man, to perpetuate the man’s name on his property.”^(D)

⁶ The redeemer replied, “I can’t redeem it myself, or I will ruin my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption, because I can’t redeem it.”

⁷ At an earlier period in Israel, a man removed his sandal^(E) and gave it to the other party in order to make any matter legally binding concerning the right of redemption or the exchange of property. This was the method of legally binding a transaction in Israel.

⁸ So the redeemer removed his sandal and said to Boaz, “Buy back the property yourself.”

⁹ Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I am buying from Naomi everything that belonged to Elimelech, Chilion, and Mahlon. ¹⁰ I will also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, Mahlon’s widow, as my wife, to perpetuate the deceased man’s name on his property, so that his name will not disappear among his relatives or from the gate of his home. You are witnesses today.”

¹¹ The elders and all the people who were at the gate said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is entering your house like Rachel and Leah,^(F) who together built the house of Israel. May you be powerful in Ephrathah and famous in Bethlehem.

⁸ So the king got up and sat in the gate,^(A) and all the people were told: “Look, the king is sitting in the gate.” Then they all came into the king’s presence.

Meanwhile, each Israelite had fled to his tent.^(B)