Ruth 4:1–11

The Marriage of Ruth

¹Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there, and behold, ^athe ¹close relative of whom Boaz spoke was passing by, so he said, “Turn aside, ²friend, sit down here.” And he turned aside and sat down.

²He took ten men of the ^aelders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down.

³Then he said to the ¹closest relative, “Naomi, who has come back from the land of Moab, has to sell the piece of land ^awhich belonged to our brother Elimelech.

⁴“So I thought to ¹inform you, saying, ‘^aBuy it before those who are sitting here, and before the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if ²not, tell me that I may know; for ^bthere is no one but you to redeem it, and I am after you.’ ” And he said, “I will redeem it.”

⁵Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of the deceased, in order ^ato raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance.”

^6aThe ¹closest relative said, “I cannot redeem it for myself, because I would ²jeopardize my own inheritance. Redeem it for yourself; you may have my right of redemption, for I cannot redeem it.”

⁷Now this was ^athe custom in former times in Israel concerning the redemption and the exchange of land to confirm any matter: a man removed his sandal and gave it to another; and this was the manner of attestation in Israel.

⁸So the ¹closest relative said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself.” And he removed his sandal.

⁹Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon.

¹⁰“Moreover, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, to be my wife in order to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance, so ^athat the name of the deceased will not be cut off from his brothers or from the ¹court of his birth place; you are witnesses today.”

¹¹All the people who were in the ¹court, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your home ^alike Rachel and Leah, both of whom built the house of Israel; and may you achieve ²wealth in Ephrathah and ³become famous in Bethlehem.