Bible in a Year - Women’s Thematic Reading Plan | Day 111

Day 111 of the Women’s Bible Plan: Read Ruth 4:1-12 and reflect on Boaz marrying Ruth. Through Boaz’s public willingness to take responsibility as a near kinsman, this devotional helps women consider how marriage can carry redemption, family responsibility, covenant faithfulness, and God’s gracious purpose. This page includes Ruth 4:1-12 Scripture, a devotional guide on marriage and relationships, reflection questions, a daily verse, prayer, and a life response.

🌸  Dear Sister, welcome to Day 111 of our reading journey. 

When we think about marriage, we often think of love, companionship, romance, home life, and the daily journey of two people walking together. But Ruth Chapter 4 helps us see that marriage before God can carry a deeper meaning. It is not only an emotional union; it can also include responsibility, commitment, protection, provision, family continuity, and covering for the vulnerable.

Ruth was a Moabite woman and a widow. She left her own land and people to follow Naomi to Bethlehem. She had no powerful social position and no secure inheritance to rely on. From a human perspective, her life was marked by loss, uncertainty, and lowliness. Yet through the faithfulness and responsibility of Boaz, God opened a way for her.

In today’s passage, Boaz does not make a private or careless decision. At the city gate, before the elders and the people, he handles the matter of redeeming the land and marrying Ruth according to righteousness and proper order. His love is not merely a sudden feeling; it is a public commitment. His marriage is not only about his own desire; it is a willingness to take family responsibility, protect Ruth, and preserve the name of the dead.

A Minute of Grace

Ruth 4:1-12 records Boaz going up to the gate and waiting for the nearer kinsman to pass by. According to the law and custom of Israel at that time, the near kinsman had responsibility to redeem family property and, in this situation, also to consider preserving the name of the dead through marriage. Boaz does not bypass order or settle the matter according to private desire. Instead, he handles it publicly and properly at the city gate.

At first, the nearer kinsman is willing to redeem the land. But when he learns that redeeming the land also includes taking Ruth the Moabitess as wife in order to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, he steps back. Then Boaz declares before the elders and all the people that he has bought all that belonged to Elimelech, Chilion, and Mahlon, and that he has taken Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, to be his wife, so that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brethren.

The marriage in this passage is not merely two people liking each other and deciding to be together. It carries the meaning of redemption and family responsibility. Boaz is willing to bear the cost, receive Ruth, protect Naomi’s family inheritance, and continue the name of a broken family line. His action reveals a mature, godly, responsible love.

Ruth seems silent in this passage, but her life is being gently turned by God. She was once a foreign woman, a widow, a sojourner, and one who gleaned in the field. Now, by God’s grace, she is brought into a new household and into the line of David and the genealogy of the Messiah. Through this marriage, God not only comforts a widow but also prepares an important part of redemptive history.

Today’s theme, “Boaz Marries Ruth,” invites us to reflect: When marriage is built according to God’s heart, it is not only about personal emotion. It is also a calling to keep covenant, take responsibility, protect, and bless a family. True love does not only say, “I want this.” It also says, “I am willing to bear responsibility, honor what is right, consider others, and make a faithful commitment before God.”

Whispers for the Heart

1 Boaz handled the matter of redeeming the land and marrying Ruth publicly at the city gate. He did not hide or avoid responsibility. How do you understand public commitment and responsibility in marriage? In relationships today, are we sometimes more focused on feelings than on covenant faithfulness, responsibility, and loyalty before God?

2 The nearer kinsman was willing to redeem the land, but not willing to bear the responsibility of marrying Ruth and preserving the family name. Do you see that true love is not only receiving benefits, but also bearing cost? In marriage, family, or close relationships, is God inviting you to rethink the relationship between love and responsibility?

3 Ruth went from losing her husband, leaving her homeland, and gleaning in the fields to being received by Boaz as wife and entering a new family. Are there broken, lost, or hopeless places in your life where you need to believe that God can rebuild through His grace? How does this passage help you see God’s redemptive heart in marriage and family?

As you read Ruth 4:1-12 today, do not see this passage only as a beautiful marriage ending. See also its redemption, responsibility, public commitment, and God’s hidden plan of grace. May the story of Boaz and Ruth remind us that in God’s hand, marriage can become a place where blessing, covering, and redeeming grace flow.

Take a quiet breath before you begin. Bring your thoughts about marriage, family, responsibility, commitment, loss, and hope before the Lord, and let His Word meet you there.

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🪕 Response Hymn: 

Ruth 4:1-12 (KJV)

4 Then went Boaz up to the gate, and sat him down there: and, behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spake came by; unto whom he said, Ho, such a one! turn aside, sit down here. And he turned aside, and sat down.

2 And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, Sit ye down here. And they sat down.

3 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:

4 And I thought to advertise thee, saying, Buy it before the inhabitants, and before the elders of my people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it: but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know: for there is none to redeem it beside thee; and I am after thee. And he said, I will redeem it.

5 Then said Boaz, What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance.

6 And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I cannot redeem it.

7 Now this was the manner in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning changing, for to confirm all things; a man plucked off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbour: and this was a testimony in Israel.

8 Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it for thee. So he drew off his shoe.

9 And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech's, and all that was Chilion's and Mahlon's, of the hand of Naomi.

10 Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day.

11 And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, We are witnesses. The Lord make the woman that is come into thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem:

12 And let thy house be like the house of Pharez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed which the Lord shall give thee of this young woman.

🪕 Response Hymn: 

💡 Closing Thought · Love Is Not Only a Choice, but Also a Responsibility

After reading Ruth 4:1-12, we see that Boaz marrying Ruth is not only the beautiful ending of a love story. It is also a picture of redemption, responsibility, and faithful commitment. Boaz was willing to bear the cost before the people, receive Ruth, and care for Naomi’s family and the name of the dead. This kind of love is not merely emotional expression; it is covenant-keeping action.

As we close this page and return to real life, whether you are married, preparing for marriage, carrying family responsibilities, or praying over brokenness and hope in relationships, remember this: in God’s eyes, marriage is not only for personal fulfillment. It is also a calling to learn self-giving love, covenant faithfulness, support, and the witness of grace.

May today’s Scripture remind you that true love is not only “I desire,” but also “I am willing to bear responsibility.” It is not only a romantic beginning, but also faithful companionship. May God help us see His redemptive heart in marriage and family, and let our relationships become places where grace, responsibility, and blessing flow.

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