Lay It on Me

66 / L AY I T ON M E

A S PARK OF N EW H OPE When Naomi heard that Boaz had noticed Ruth, a new hope sprang forth in her heart. When Naomi's husband died, she lost the family property in Bethlehem. The land remained in the name of the husband and was passed on as an inheritance to the oldest son. Because of her son's death, however, there was no one to claim the inheritance. God had established a law of redemption. If a woman lost her husband and had no children, she was to marry a brother of the deceased so she could have sons to carry on her husband's name. If there was no brother to marry, she could redeem her property back through the process of the kinsman-redeemer. A kinsman-redeemer was a next-of-kin who could, through a legal rite at the gate of the city, redeem the lost inheritance back to its original owner. In this case, the original owner was Naomi. Boaz was the kinsman-redeemer. As Ruth continued to labor in the field, God's perfect plan began to come into focus. [Boaz] also said to me, "You shall stay close by my young men until they have finished all my harvest" (Ruth 2:21).