Ruth 4:3
in Ruth 4And he said to the kinsman-redeemer, “Naomi, who has returned from the land of Moab, is selling the piece of land that belonged to our brother Elimelech.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he said unto the near kinsman, Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, selleth the parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech’s:
KJV
And he said unto the kinsman, Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, selleth a parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech’s:
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This verse in Ruth 4
Commentary
8 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
According to the law Lev 25:25-28, if any Israelite, through poverty, would sell his possession, the next of kin (the גאל gā'al) had a right to redeem it by paying the value of the number of years remaining until the jubilee (see the marginal reference). This right Boaz advertises the גאל gā'al of, so as to give him the option which the law secured to him of redeeming “our brother Elimelech’s” land, i. e. our kinsman’s, according to the common use of the term brother, for near relation (see Gen 13:8; Gen 24:27; Lev 25:25; Num 27:4; Jdg 9:1).
This site's exposition
selleth a parcel of land
on Ruth 4:3-4
The statute behind the offer is Leviticus 25:25, where a kinsman redeems the land of a poor relation, and the whole transaction runs on that law before a marriage is mentioned at all. Boaz names Naomi and the field and stops there, and the man answers I will redeem it before he knows what else is attached to it. How Naomi holds land to sell is disputed: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read a right to the use of it during her life rather than the title, and Albert Barnes reads a sale priced against the years remaining until the jubilee. Nothing is signed, because the elders and the inhabitants standing at the gate are the record.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
The man was so virtuous that he did not rush into a marriage outside the law, but he spoke with his neighbors about the marriage. However, his words are also worthy of admiration. For his first words were not about the marriage but about the …
The Medieval Church1 voice
When Ruth entered the land of Israel with her mother-in-law, it was provided (on account of the merits of her prayers) that she be married to a man of the lineage of Abraham and whom, indeed, she at first believed to be her closest kinsman. …
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
): " Naomi has a parcel of land to sell, namely, the equity of the redemption of it out of the hands of the mortgagee, which she is willing to part with;" or, as some think, it was her jointure for her life, and, wanting money, for a small matter she would sell her interest to the heir at law, who was fittest to be the purchaser.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And he said unto the kinsman,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
In her circumstances she was at liberty to part with it (Le 25:25). Both Naomi and Ruth had an interest in the land during their lives; but Naomi alone was mentioned, not only because she directed all the negotiations, but because the introduction of Ruth's name would awaken a suspicion of the necessity of marrying her, before the first proposition was answered.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
Naomi - selleth a parcel of land - She was reduced to want; the immediate inheritors were extinct, and it was now open for the next heir to purchase the land, and thus preserve the inheritance in the family according to the custom of Israel.
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| לַגֹּאֵ֔ל | lagoel | to the kinsman redeemer | H1350 → | 104 times |
| חֶלְקַת֙ | chelkat | [the] portion of | H2513 → | |
| הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה | hasadeh | the field | H7704 → | 334 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| לְאָחִ֖ינוּ | leachinu | [belonged] to brother our | H251 → | |
| לֶאֱלִימֶ֑לֶךְ | leelimelekh | to Elimelech | H458 → | 6 times |
| מָכְרָ֣ה | makherah | she has sold | H4376 → | |
| נָעֳמִ֔י | noomi | Naomi | H5281 → | 21 times |
| הַשָּׁ֖בָה | hashavah | who <she> returned | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| מִשְּׂדֵ֥ה | misedeh | from [the] region of | H7704 → | 334 times |
| מוֹאָֽב׃ | moav | Moab | H4124 → | 181 times |
וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙and he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
לַגֹּאֵ֔לto the kinsman redeemer
lagoelH1350 →104 times
חֶלְקַת֙[the] portion of
chelkatH2513 →
הַשָּׂדֶ֔הthe field
hasadehH7704 →334 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
לְאָחִ֖ינוּ[belonged] to brother our
leachinuH251 →
לֶאֱלִימֶ֑לֶךְto Elimelech
leelimelekhH458 →6 times
מָכְרָ֣הshe has sold
makherahH4376 →
נָעֳמִ֔יNaomi
noomiH5281 →21 times
הַשָּׁ֖בָהwho <she> returned
hashavahH7725 →1056 times
מִשְּׂדֵ֥הfrom [the] region of
misedehH7704 →334 times
מוֹאָֽב׃Moab
moavH4124 →181 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 112:5It is well with the man who is generous and lends freely, whose affairs are guided by justice.
it leads to
- Psalms 37:21
The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous are gracious and giving.
- Ephesians 5:15
Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,
- Proverbs 2:20
So you will follow in the ways of the good, and keep to the paths of the righteous.
- Proverbs 24:30–34
I went past the field of a slacker and by the vineyard of a man lacking judgment.
- Philippians 1:9
And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,
- Psalms 37:21
Through
Proverbs 13:10Arrogance leads only to strife, but wisdom is with the well-advised.
it leads to
- Proverbs 19:20
Listen to counsel and accept discipline, that you may be wise the rest of your days.
- Proverbs 12:15–16
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to counsel.
- Proverbs 17:14
To start a quarrel is to release a flood; so abandon the dispute before it breaks out.
- Proverbs 19:20
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
About Ruth
Who and where
2 names in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Isidore of Seville, ON RUTH; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Theodoret of Cyrus, QUESTIONS ON RUTH.