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7 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 in Israel. 8 Therefore the close relative said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself.” So he took off his sandal. 9 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 Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, from the hand of Naomi. 10 Moreover, Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, I have acquired as my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brethren and from his position at the gate. You are witnesses this day.” ~ Ruth 4:7-10
Today, we return to Ruth 4 which is only 1 of the 1189 chapters in the Bible. But, this chapter is of great significance because with the taking off of a sandal and the giving it to another, it was sealed that the lineage of the Messiah would include both Ruth and Boaz. Boaz became the kinsman redeemer for Ruth; he measured up to the task that was at hand. There were several requirements a man had to meet in order to qualify as a kinsman-redeemer. First of all, he had to be a near relative. Second, he had to be willing to redeem. Third, he had to be able to redeem. Boaz fit the bill for all of these, and in so doing, he became a type of the ultimate Kinsman Redeemer.
In v.7 of today's passage we read, "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 in Israel."
Today's passage begins with a custom in Israel at that time. Many of the customs that we find even today in our culture has as their origin, the Bible. However, we live in a world that is anxiously looking for ways to redefine things. With these redefinitions, our world is continually being defined by the enemy himself. This explains the collapsing of what was once a great society largely impacted by the word of God.
Center stage in this chapter is a sandal. Throughout the Scriptures sandals have been of great importance. Sandals are mentioned 35 times in the Bible. The legal way that folks during the days of the Judges confirmed legal matters, whether it was marriage, the sale of real estate, or the making of wills, was the passing of a sandal from one to the other.
In v.8-10 of today's passage we read, "8 Therefore the close relative said to Boaz, 'Buy it for yourself.' So he took off his sandal. 9 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 Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, from the hand of Naomi. 10 Moreover, Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, I have acquired as my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead through his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brethren and from his position at the gate. You are witnesses this day.'"
Knowing already that Boaz was willing to redeem Ruth and the families land, the unnamed relative stated out loud in the presence of the witnesses, "Buy it for yourself." This relative's integrity was maintained by the way Boaz handled the situation. Ruth could have first gone to the unnamed relative and insisted on her right of redemption and then the law would have applied if he refused to fulfill the obligation. But, due to the skillful and thoughtful way that Boaz handled the situation with much tact, there was no loss of face. Since Boaz knew the grace of God for himself, he extended it to the unnamed relative. So, Boaz took off his own sandal and he willingly and legally redeemed Ruth.
When Boaz married Ruth the wife of Mahlon, he referred to her as "Ruth the Moabitess." God does not desire for us to forget that she was a Gentile. God did this to remind all, especially the Jews, that He has a heart for all mankind. Sadly, to this day, the most orthodox of Jews disdain Gentiles. This shouldn't be for the sure fire way that we know that someone has entered into a personal relationship with the God of the Bible is that he has God's heart for all of mankind.
It is worth noting Ruth's position in the Hebrew Bible. It is placed directly succeeding Proverbs. As the book of Proverbs illustrates the wisdom of a righteous man, it concludes with Proverbs 31, the description of the virtuous woman. Ironically, Boaz is wisdom personified. He was a wise man, who acted with respect and dignity even in the most tempting situation. Interestingly, Ruth, a Moabitess, is personified as the godly woman. In fact, the very language used to describe the Proverbs 31 woman whose "works praise her in the gates," is used to describe Ruth. It is as if the compliers of the Hebrew Bible placed the book of Ruth directly after Proverbs to describe the marriage between the wise man and the virtuous woman.
Whereas the book of Ruth is a book describing the redemption of one Gentile woman, the book of the Revelation is a book of redemption for the whole earth. At the time of the vision that God gave to the Apostle John while on the island of Patmos, recorded in Revelation 4, John was in heaven. John was at that moment was a type of the Bride of Christ. The soul and body had been redeemed through the blood of the Lamb, but the earth had not received its redemption yet. The earth’s redemption was to begin with the judgments of God during the Tribulation Period.
In his vision, John saw Heaven searching for someone to meet redemption’s qualifications, looking not only in Heaven and Earth, but under the earth as well. But now the Lamb of God appeared as the only One worthy to open the seven-sealed book. The Lord Jesus Christ is the only One to be found worthy, able and willing to redeem all of Creation that was subjected to the rule of Satan in the Garden of Eden. Our father, Adam, lost his sinless nature foolishly; and he couldn’t buy it back. He wasn’t able. He did not qualify as a kinsman redeemer.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the only One who has ever met the qualifications to be mankind’s Kinsman Redeemer. He was fit; He had become related to the human race by being born of the Virgin Mary. When He took on the form of flesh, He was eligible, fit to be our Redeemer. The Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary; that which was conceived within her was of the Holy Spirit. Divine blood, not human blood, flowed through the veins of the Lord Jesus; for the blood of the child comes from the earthly father. And at the crucifixion, His divine blood was offered up for sinful man's redemption. The Lord Jesus Christ became our older Brother. Willingly He said, "I come…to do your will, O God." As a result, the Lord Jesus Christ was able to fill that role because only His sinless blood could redeem the willing back to God. Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness for sin.
It was John the Baptist who said of the Lord Jesus, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire."
