I'm studying Ruth and wondered about a few questions I had. What are your thoughts, friends?
#1: Boaz redeemed Ruth, and they had one son. Whose name does Obed carry on?
#2: In cases like these, what happens to Boaz's inheritance since he only had one son?
#3: What do redeemers get for buying back relative's land? Why don't they just buy it outright instead of waiting to buy it back?
(These I think I know the answer, but would like to hear yours.)
Redeemed = acquire the inheritance of a deceased relative (land, free-women and slaves) with the closest relative having priority ..
thus as it applies to Ruth, she belonged to Boaz as his wife .. see Rth 4:10 ..
SO RUTH WAS BOAZ'S LEGAL WIFE ..
the thing was, he could not just marry her even though single, because she was a part of the deceased household legally ..
Salmon & Rahab had Boaz (siblings un-named) ..
Boaz & Ruth (a moabite) had Obed (siblings un-named) ..
Obed & un-named wife had Jesse (siblings un-named) ..
Jesse & un-named wife(s) had David, Abigail, Eliab, Abinadab, Nethanel, Ozem, Raddai, Zeruiah & Shimea (who was the father of Johnathon) ..
Naomai's husband (Elimelech) died ..
her two sons (Mahlon and Chilion) married (Mahlon to Ruth) ..
both Naomai's sons also died ..
leaving Ruth a widow along with Naomai (mother in-law) and Orpah (sister in-law) ..
Boaz was either a brother or cousin (
Rth 2:20) of Naomai's deceased husband Elimelech ..
Rth 3:4 “It shall be when he lies down, that you shall notice the place where he lies, and you shall go and uncover his feet and lie down; then he will tell you what you shall do.”
Rth 3:8 It happened in the middle of the night that the man was startled and bent forward; and behold, a woman was lying at his feet.
Rth 3:10 Then he said, “May you be blessed of the LORD, my daughter. You have shown your last kindness to be better than the first
by not going after young men, whether poor or rich.
which seems to be the way a woman would sleep with by the man she close to be her husband, and implies it was him, an older man whom she had chose ..
so he then says there is a relative closer then me (whom would have rights to marry her first) so it seems he was a cousin to Naomai's husband, but there was still a brother to Naomai's husband ..
Rth 3:12 “Now it is true
I am a close relative; however, there is a relative closer than I.
Rth 3:13 “Remain this night, and when morning comes,
if he will redeem you, good; let him redeem you. But if he does not wish to redeem you, then I will redeem you, as the LORD lives. Lie down until morning.”
Boaz wanted Ruth for his wife, so he went to find the closer relative who had rights to marry her before him, and 10 witnesses for the purchase of the land, to which the woman and the land seemed to come together as some kind of dowry (which must have been the custom) .. so he is saying, buy the land an d get her, or I will ..
Rth 4:4 “So I thought to inform you, saying, ‘
Buy it before those who are sitting here, and before the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if not, tell me that I may know;
for there is no one but you to redeem it, and I am after you.’” And he said,
“I will redeem it.”
Rth 4:5 Then 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 to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance.”
note: it was Hebrew custom that a deceased brother's wife is his if he wants her .. back at this point all women connected to the brothers household that are free-women this rule seems to apply to ..
Rth 4:6 The closest relative said, “I cannot redeem
it for myself, because I would fnjeopardize my own inheritance. Redeem
it for yourself; you
may have my right of redemption, for I cannot redeem
it.”
so he gave the "right-of-way" to Boaz .. to redeem the inheritance (land and Ruth) ..
Rth 4:9 Then 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.
which meant Orpah (Chilion's widow) also belonged to Boaz household ..
Rth 4:10 “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 that the name of the deceased will not be cut off from his brothers or from the court of his
birth place; you are witnesses today.”