Commentary - Ruth 4:13-17

Bird's-eye view

This brief section is the glorious capstone of the entire book of Ruth. All the threads of God's intricate providence, woven through famine, death, loyalty, and law, are now tied together in the birth of a single child. The story, which began with emptiness, bitterness, and death, now overflows with fullness, blessing, and new life. Boaz, the faithful kinsman, acts decisively, and God sovereignly grants the fruit of that union. The focus immediately shifts to Naomi, the one who returned with nothing, and the community of women who now bless Yahweh for His covenant faithfulness. They recognize that this child is not just a private joy but a public provision, a redeemer for Naomi's line and a future name in Israel. The passage concludes by anchoring this small-town story into the grand sweep of redemptive history, revealing that this child, Obed, is the grandfather of King David. Thus, a simple story of faithfulness in a dark time becomes a crucial link in the chain leading to Israel's greatest king and, ultimately, to the King of Kings, Jesus Christ.

What we are witnessing here is the gospel in miniature. A Gentile bride is brought into the covenant people through the work of a redeemer. A line that was dead is brought back to life. A woman who was empty is made full. And all of it is accomplished through the interplay of human responsibility and divine sovereignty. Boaz acts, Ruth is loyal, and Yahweh gives the growth. This is how God always works, using the faithful obedience of His people to accomplish His grand, cosmic purposes.

Outline

Context In Ruth

This passage is the climax and resolution of everything that has come before. Chapter 1 began with Elimelech's family leaving Bethlehem ("the house of bread") because of famine, and it ended with Naomi returning, empty and bitter, having lost her husband and two sons. Chapter 2 introduced Boaz, a man of standing, and showed the first glimmers of hope as Ruth found favor in his fields. Chapter 3 was the pivotal scene at the threshing floor, where Ruth, following Naomi's bold instructions, appealed to Boaz to act as her kinsman-redeemer. The first part of chapter 4 details Boaz's legal maneuvering at the city gate, where he secured the right to redeem Elimelech's land and marry Ruth. Our passage, then, is the direct and joyful result of that legal redemption. It answers Naomi's initial cry of emptiness ("the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me") with the tangible reality of God's restorative blessing.

Key Issues

From Barrenness to Blessing

One of the central themes running through the Bible is God's power to bring life out of death, fruitfulness out of barrenness. From Sarah to Rebekah to Rachel, and later to Hannah and Elizabeth, the Lord repeatedly shows that He is the one who opens and closes the womb. The story of Ruth fits squarely within this pattern. The narrative begins with three deaths and two childless marriages. Naomi is past the age of childbearing, and Ruth, though young, was barren for ten years with her first husband. The line of Elimelech is on the verge of extinction. But here, at the climax, God intervenes directly. The text is plain: "Yahweh granted her conception."

This is not incidental. It is the theological center of the passage. Boaz can do his part, he can fulfill all the legal requirements, he can take Ruth as his wife, but only God can give life. This is a profound reminder that our salvation, and all the fruit that flows from it, is ultimately a gift of God. We are spiritually barren, dead in our sins, and it is God who grants us conception by His Spirit, making us alive in Christ. The birth of Obed is a picture of regeneration. It is the sovereign grace of God making a dead family line live again, just as He does with our dead souls.

Verse by Verse Commentary

13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife, and he went in to her. And Yahweh granted her conception, and she gave birth to a son.

The action is stated simply and directly, with no wasted words. Boaz fulfills his commitment made at the city gate. He takes Ruth, a Moabite woman, as his lawful wife. The phrase "he went in to her" is the standard biblical expression for the consummation of the marriage. But the crucial action belongs to God. All the human faithfulness, integrity, and love shown by Boaz and Ruth would have been for nothing if God had not acted. Yahweh granted her conception. This is a sovereign act of creative grace. After a decade of barrenness in Moab, Ruth immediately conceives. God is the author of life, and this child is His direct provision, a gift from His hand in response to the faithfulness of His people. The son is born, and the redemption is now tangible.

14 Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed is Yahweh who has not left you without a kinsman redeemer today, and may his name be proclaimed in Israel.

The scene shifts immediately to Naomi. The women of the town, who had greeted her with pity upon her return ("Can this be Naomi?"), now greet her with praise to God. Their blessing is directed rightly, not to Boaz or Ruth, but to Yahweh. They recognize His hand in all of this. They bless Him because He has not left Naomi without a go'el, a kinsman-redeemer. While Boaz is the human redeemer, the women see this newborn child as the ultimate provision, the one who will carry on the family name. Their prayer, "may his name be proclaimed in Israel," is prophetic. They have no idea how famous this child's line will become, but their words are truer than they know. This child's name, through David, will be part of the most famous name in all of Israel's history.

15 May he also be to you a restorer of your soul and a sustainer of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

The women continue their blessing, outlining the specific ways this child will be a redeemer for Naomi. He will be a "restorer of your soul," or more literally, a restorer of life. He represents the turning back of her fortunes from death and bitterness to life and joy. He will be a "sustainer of your old age," providing for her and protecting her when she is most vulnerable. Then they give the reason for this great blessing, and in doing so, they honor Ruth. This child has come through "your daughter-in-law, who loves you." Her covenant loyalty, her hesed, is explicitly acknowledged as the human instrument of this blessing. And their praise for her is extravagant: she "is better to you than seven sons." In a culture where sons were the measure of a woman's security and blessing, this is the highest possible compliment. Seven is the number of perfection and completeness. They are saying that Ruth's faithful love has brought Naomi more blessing than a whole family of sons could have.

16 Then Naomi took the child and put him on her bosom and became his nurse.

This is a beautiful, tender picture of restoration. The woman who returned with empty hands and an empty heart now has her arms filled with new life. The Hebrew for "put him on her bosom" is a gesture of formal adoption and acceptance. Naomi is claiming this child as her own, the heir of her husband's line. By becoming his nurse, she takes on the role of caregiver, pouring her love and affection into the child who has restored her life. The bitterness is gone, washed away by the gurgles of a baby. This is the tangible evidence that God has turned her mourning into dancing.

17 The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.

The community continues to identify the child with Naomi: "A son has been born to Naomi!" In a very real, covenantal sense, he is her son, the restorer of her dead lineage. The women name him Obed, which means "servant" or "worshiper." It is a fitting name for one who would serve to restore his family and worship the God who gave him life. And then, the narrator pulls back the curtain and shows us the ultimate significance of this moment. With three simple, powerful strokes, the connection is made: Obed, the father of Jesse, the father of David. The quiet story of a Moabite widow and a Bethlehem farmer is suddenly revealed to be a cornerstone in the grand cathedral of God's redemptive plan. God was not just restoring one family; He was building a throne. He was preparing the way for Israel's king, and through that king, preparing the way for the King of the universe.

Application

The story of Ruth's redemption and Obed's birth is our story. Like Naomi, we begin in a state of emptiness and famine, alienated from the house of bread. We are spiritually destitute, with no hope and no heir. Like Ruth, we are foreigners and aliens, outside the covenants of promise, with no claim on God's kindness. But God, in His rich mercy, provides a Kinsman-Redeemer for us, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is our Boaz, a man of great wealth, who was not ashamed to call us His own.

He saw our destitution and paid the price to redeem us, not with silver or gold, but with His own precious blood. He took us, a Gentile bride, and made us part of His family, the Israel of God. And through our union with Him, God does what we could never do for ourselves: He grants conception. He gives us new life, the life of the Spirit. The fruit of our salvation is a new creation, a child of promise. And this new life doesn't just save us; it restores all that was lost. It fills the empty arms of a broken creation and brings joy where there was only bitterness. This story reminds us that God's plan is always bigger than our circumstances. In our small acts of faithfulness, loyalty, and obedience, God is at work, weaving a story that stretches to the throne of David, to the cross of Christ, and ultimately to the new heavens and the new earth. Our lives, like Ruth's, have meaning only when they are caught up in His great redemptive purpose.