Ruth 4:12-22

4:12 May your family ¹  become like the family of Perez ²  – whom Tamar bore to Judah – through the descendants ³  the Lord gives you by this young woman.”

A Grandson is Born to Naomi

4:13 So Boaz married Ruth and had sexual relations with her. ⁴  The Lord enabled her to conceive ⁵  and she gave birth to a son. 4:14 The village women said to Naomi, “May the Lord be praised because he has not left you without a guardian ⁶  today! May he ⁷  become famous in Israel! ⁸  4:15 He will encourage you and provide for you when you are old, ⁹  for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, has given him birth. She ¹⁰  is better to you than seven sons!” 4:16 Naomi took the child and placed him on her lap; ¹¹  she became his caregiver. ¹²  4:17 The neighbor women named him, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. ¹³  Now he became the father of Jesse – David’s father!

Epilogue: Obed in the Genealogy of David

4:18 These are the descendants ¹⁴  of Perez: Perez was the father of Hezron, 4:19 Hezron was the father of Ram, Ram was the father of Amminadab, 4:20 Amminadab was the father of Nachshon, Nachshon was the father of Salmah, 4:21 Salmon ¹⁵  was the father of Boaz, Boaz was the father of Obed, 4:22 Obed was the father of Jesse, and Jesse was the father of David. ¹⁶ 

[4:12]  ¹ tn Heb “your house” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[4:12]  ² tn Heb “and may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, from the offspring whom the Lord gives to you from this young woman.”

[4:12]  ³ tn Heb “from the seed” (KJV, ASV both similar); NASB, NIV “through the offspring”; NRSV “through the children.”

[4:13]  ⁴ tn Heb “and Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife and he went in to her.” Here the phrase “went in to her” (so NASB) is a euphemism for having sexual relations (cf. NCV); NLT “When he slept with her.”

[4:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “gave her conception” (so KJV); NRSV “made her conceive”; NLT “enabled her to become pregnant.”

[4:14]  ⁷ tn Or “redeemer.” See the note on the phrase “guardian of the family interests” in 3:9. As the following context indicates, the child is referred to here.

[4:14]  ⁸ tn The “guardian” is the subject of the verb, as the next verse makes clear.

[4:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “may his name be called [i.e., “perpetuated”; see Gen 48:16] in Israel.”

[4:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and he will become for you a restorer of life and a sustainer of your old age” (NASB similar).

[4:15]  ¹¹ tn Heb “who, she”; KJV “which is better to thee.”

[4:16]  ¹³ tn Or “breast”; KJV, NRSV “in her bosom.”

[4:16]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “his nurse,” but this refers to a dry nurse, not a medical attendant. Cf. NIV “and cared for him”; TEV “and took (+ good CEV) care of him.”

[4:17]  ¹⁶ tn The name “Obed” means “one who serves,” perhaps anticipating how he would help Naomi (see v. 15).

[4:18]  ¹⁹ tn Or “generations” (so KJV, NASB); NIV, NLT “family line.”

[4:21]  ²² sn Salmon appears to be an alternate spelling of Salmah in the preceding line.

[4:22]  ²⁵ sn The theological message of the Book of Ruth may be summarized as follows: God cares for needy people like Naomi and Ruth; he is their ally in this chaotic world. He richly rewards people like Ruth and Boaz who demonstrate sacrificial love and in so doing become his instruments in helping the needy. God’s rewards for those who sacrificially love others sometimes exceed their wildest imagination and transcend their lifetime.