Ruth 4

1 Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there; and there was the near relative going by, the one Boaz had spoken of. And Boaz said to him, “Turn aside and sit down here, you there.” So he turned aside and sat down. [a] 2 And Boaz took ten men from the elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” And they sat down.

3 And Boaz said to the near relative, “About the share of the field that belonged to our brother Elimelech, which has been given to Naomi, now that she has come back from the country of Moab — 4 I said I would tell you of it plainly: buy it, in front of these men sitting here and in front of the elders of my people. If you will act as the near relative, act as the near relative; but if you will not act as the near relative, tell me, so that I know — because there is no one but you to act as the near relative, and I come after you.” And he said, “Here I am. I will act as the near relative.” 5 And Boaz said, “On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi and from Ruth the Moabite, the wife of the dead man, you must buy her too, to raise up the name of the dead man over his inheritance.” 6 And the near relative said, “I will not be able to act as the near relative for myself — I would ruin my own inheritance. Take my right as the near relative and act on it yourself, because I will not be able to act as the near relative.”

7 Now this was the rule in Israel in earlier times, in the matter of the right of the near relative and in the matter of an exchange, to make every word stand: a man would pull off his sandal and give it to his neighbor who was taking over his right as near relative, and this was a witness in Israel. [b] 8 And the near relative said to Boaz, “Buy my right as near relative for yourself.” And he pulled off his sandal and gave it to him.

9 And Boaz said to the elders and to all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have bought everything that was Elimelech’s, and everything that belonged to Chilion and to Mahlon, from the hand of Naomi. 10 And Ruth the Moabite as well, the wife of Mahlon, I have bought for myself as my wife, to raise up the name of the dead man over his inheritance, so that the name of the dead man will not be destroyed from among his brothers and from the tribe of his people. You are witnesses today.”

11 And all the people who were in the gate said, “We are witnesses.” And the elders said, “May the Lord make your wife, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and like Leah, who between them built the house of Israel and did mightily in Ephrath; and there will be a name in Bethlehem. [c] 12 And may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, from the seed the Lord will give you by this servant girl.”

13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. He went in to her, and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. 14 And the women said to Naomi, “Blessed is the Lord, who has not left you without a near relative today; and may he make your name spoken of in Israel. [d] 15 He will be the one who brings your soul back to you and who feeds you in your old age; because your daughter-in-law, who has loved you, has borne him — and she is better to you than seven sons.” 16 And Naomi took the child and laid him in her lap, and she became his nurse. 17 And the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

18 And these are the generations of Perez. Perez became the father of Hezron; [e] 19 and Hezron became the father of Ram, and Ram became the father of Amminadab; 20 and Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon became the father of Salmon; 21 and Salmon became the father of Boaz, and Boaz became the father of Obed; 22 and Obed became the father of Jesse, and Jesse became the father of David.