Ruth 4

Well, good morning, good morning, good morning. Welcome to Coffee and Devotions. This morning we are at the book of Ruth, chapter 4. We're at the very end of the book of Ruth. Ruth chapter 4, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth. Then 1st and 2nd Samuel, 1st and 2nd Kings, 1st and 2nd Chronicles. So what we're doing is over the next two years-ish, we will be going through chronologically the historical books, and the prophets, minus the ones I've already done. So, we'll kind of be bouncing back around a little bit, but I hope it's gonna be a fun kind of adventure. Joshua judges Ruth. Joshua judges Ruth. And in Ruth chapter four, we get this beautiful picture of redemption.
So, let's have some coffee, we'll pray, and we'll get into God's word. You gonna have your coffee? Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for the blessing it is that we get to read your word. It is such a treat for us, such a rich treasure trove of story and teaching. It corrects us, it encourages us, it inspires us, and we need your Holy Spirit to actually do those things. So Lord, please soften our hearts. Please give our minds the ability to understand. And please give us hearts that would actually live out and be the type of people you have designed us to be. In loving you and loving others. In Jesus' name. Amen.
Here we go. Ruth chapter 4. You want to start? sure.
Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there and behold a close relative of whom the close relative of whom Boaz had spoken came by. So Boaz said come aside friends sit down here. So he came aside and sat down and he took 10 men of the elders of the city and said sit down here. So they sat down
then he said to the close relative Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, sold the piece of land which belonged to our brother Elimelech. And I thought to inform you, saying, Buy it back in the presence of the inhabitants and the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it. But if you will not redeem it, then tell me that I may know, for there is no one but you to redeem it, and I am next after you.
And he said, I will redeem it. 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, to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance.
And 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.
Now 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 to Israel. Therefore the close relative said to Boaz, buy it for yourself. So he took off his sandal 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 Chileans and Maluns from the hand of Naomi. Moreover, Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Malun, I have acquired as my wife to perpetuate a name for the dead through his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brethren and from his possessions at the gate.
You are witnesses this day. And all the people who were at the gate, the elders and the elders, said, We are witnesses.
The Lord make the woman who is coming to your house like Rachel and Leah, the two who built the house of Israel. May you prosper in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem. May your house be like the house of Paris, whom Tamar bore to Judah because of the offspring which the Lord will give you from this young woman.
So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. And when he went into her, the Lord gave her conception and she bore a son.
Then the woman said to Naomi, Blessed be Jehovah, who has not left you this day without a close relative. And may his name be famous in Israel. And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age. your daughter-in-law who loves you is better than seven sons has born him. Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom and became a nurse to him. Also the neighbor women gave him a name saying this is a son born to Naomi and they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
Now this is the genealogy of Perez. Perez begot Hezron. Hezron begot Ram. Ram begot Aminadab. Aminadab begot Nation. Nation begot Salmon. Salmon begot Boaz and Boaz begot Obed. Obed begot Jesse and Jesse begot David.
All right, great. So, we need to ask ourselves, A, what is this? About. B, what's the? Best first to summarize. And C, what are we? Called to do. Called to do.
So, what's this section about? It's about, about Boaz redeeming Ruth and All right, so redeeming the whole family, right? Ali Malek, Naomi, Chilean, Malone, and Ruth. He redeems all of it. It's just how he did that too, right? Remember the whole ceremony at the gate? The guy says, oh yeah, I'll redeem it. He's like, yeah, remember Naomi's got a daughter and her daughter-in-law's name is Ruth. you need to perpetuate an heir for her too. And what's he say? Uh, nevermind. Yeah. How would your mom feel if I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah. Hey, I'll buy that field. I'll redeem that family. And then they said, oh yeah, by the way, you have to marry the widow too and have babies. Well, I've already got one. Yeah, maybe my wife will kill me. How about we not do this?
It was one of these cultural things at the time. This is how it worked in Israel. Okay. We find a little bit odd. I would find it immoral today if somebody was trying to pull that off because we don't have property rights in the same way. We're not the nation of Israel. Those same ceremonial and sundry laws back then don't apply to the Christian world today. So to which I think your mom would say, good. And you know what? I would probably say good. Having multiple wives normally doesn't turn out well every time we see it.
Anyways, but there's nothing in here that tells us that Boaz actually has a wife. I think the other guy though, when he says, I'll spoil my inheritance. I think he's probably got some kids and a wife and they're like, what are you doing? You can't do that. So, okay. So, uh, Boaz redeeming, giving a name. Now it's interesting just because you marry someone, are you guaranteed to have a baby? No. Who's the one who gives life? God. Yeah. And so notice what does verse, uh, 13 say? So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And when he went into her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. Who brought this kid? The Lord. The Lord. God's the one who brings babies, right? That's why David would say, you formed me in my mother's womb. I'm fearfully and wonderfully made. I know that full well. Life in the womb is a gift from God. And here, there's no guarantee. Boaz has already said he's an old dude. At least he's older than the other guys. Ruth could have been chasing after the young guys. But she chooses him. And God gives them a baby. So this is a blessing that they're able to have this child and they're able to have an inheritance.
But notice, what does Ruth do with the baby? Did you catch that at the end? In verse 15? I'm sorry, verse 16? Naomi took the child. No. Yeah, Naomi takes the child and what happens? And nurses him. This is a little bit odd, right? Some ambiguity. Is it nurses him as in like cares for him to health and watches over him or as some commentators think, She actually nursed him like the same way your mother has nursed all five of you from her own breasts, right? And so is that what this is talking about? If it is, she's a middle-aged woman. She may be even past that. There's a certain age at which normally ladies don't nurse babies anymore. And there's a certain amount of hormones and all this other stuff that has to work for mammograms and actually start producing milk. And somehow, she is able to nurse OBED. This is a miracle. In my mind, I think it is.
But this is a close connection. She had come into Bethlehem and she said, don't call me Naomi, call me Mara, call me bitterness. I left out with a family, I came back with nothing. And now, she had told Ruth, if you wait for me, could I produce boys that you would be able to marry? You wouldn't wait that long. And now the family's been redeemed. Ruth has a husband. And Emily gets to raise this grandson like it's her own. All over again. It's a beautiful picture, isn't it?
And who's this Obed? Turn out. Like, why is he end up being important? Because he's the granddad of David. Yeah, he's David's granddad. That's right. Interestingly, if we went back here uh Hezron so the genealogy of Perez oh we're going way back now this is Perez begot Hezron, Hezron begot Ram, Ram begot Aminadab, Aminadab begot Nashon, Nashon begot Salmon do you know whose wife Salmon like who who Salmon married who his wife was Rahab Okay, so I keep reading this and like I keep like reading Rahab and I keep forgetting to ask you which Rahab it is. So Rahab was the one at Jericho that she was the harlot who hid the spies and then she ends up becoming a believer in the Lord and she ends up marrying one of the leading men of Israel brought into the covenant. So a woman who had been mired in all sorts of questionable sinful type stuff ends up marrying one of the chief men of Israel, and here it's two Gentile, two goyim, non-Jewish women, who are brought into the covenant, and they're brought, like Ruth Samoa by this, they're brought into the family, and they're part of the story of our Savior. How cool is that?
Yeah, so, oh, we got somebody outside the door, so maybe we should wrap up with C calling. What do we call the dude? What do you think? Stick close to your mother-in-law when you get married? Is that what this is telling you? I think it's more about like... Like this is kind of like a... Like just a shadow of what was to come. Yeah, right. This is preparing the way for David and then preparing a way for eventually Christ. Definitely, right? So we can believe in Jesus Christ. We know that this is pointing us to David and we know the true David is Jesus. Yeah, I think that's good that we can hope in Jesus that way.
I think also we can trust the Lord when there's dark days in life and this is a really desperate story. Actually, remember this morning we were just learning about the book of Esther and how often the Lord likes to reverse fortunes. Everything looks bleak and desolate and horrible and out of those types of situations the Lord loves to make amazing things. I think He does that even in our lives.
You ready to pray? Okay. God, thank you so much for letting us read your word and for telling us of the amazing ways in which you have cared for your people. Lord, we pray that you would please let us love you. Let us follow in your ways. Thank you for bringing us this beautiful story. and for what a picture it is of the gospel at work, of you caring for your people, and of how you brought us our Redeemer from this story of redemption. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.
May God bless you. May you have the faith of Ruth. May He be your Lord and your God until your dying days. I'll see you next time. Bye.