Uncovering Feet - Ruth 3

Now that Ruth and Naomi have figured out that Boaz is a kinsman and a potential marriage possibility, they get to work. There’s a lot that goes into the kinsman redeemer concept that we discussed earlier in the Torah, and I don’t really want to go through it now but it has to do with buying and selling land that belonged to God but that the people used, and when a family sold their land, a close relative was obligated to buy it back for that family. Naomi was trying to sell the land her husband’s family had and Boaz, as a kinsman redeemer, was obligated to buy it to keep it in the family. Similarly, the tradition was the same for widows who did not have living sons to take care of them, a close relative was supposed to marry them, give them sons, and keep the land and bloodline in the family. That’s basically what the premise is here, I just thought that Boaz and Ruth got married because they loved each other and it was probably that too but according to tradition, he had an obligation to marry her and take care of her and by extension Naomi.

Naomi and Ruth are living in Naomi’s place with her people and their traditions, and Ruth would have been unfamiliar with it, so that’s why Naomi’s instructions to her are so explicit. Naomi tells Ruth to get cleaned up and dressed nicely, then go to Boaz, and when he’s asleep, “thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.” This doesn’t make any sense to me and it never has, but TB says that this was probably the local custom at the time of making someone know of an interest in betrothal or letting them know that they are the kinsman redeemer. Either way, it was probably an appropriate custom for the time and place where this occurred. TB notes that this has always been a sexualized part of the Bible, and even the accusations that Ruth seduced Boaz, which to be honest, that’s what it sounds like to me. But TB rejects that premise because it was expressly forbidden in the Torah and both Ruth and Boaz had shown themselves to be people of exemplary character and righteousness so the belief that they engaged in sexual immorality outside of marriage is completely out of character for them.

Lots of parts of this story have never made sense to me, like why was Boaz asleep in the grain storage facility? Probably to protect the grain from robbers. Makes sense. Boaz had a big meal, drank some wine, probably had a buzz on, and fell asleep. Ruth comes in and uncovers his feet as the verse says, but TB says that it was probably legs, which was probably a local custom. She lays down next to him. It doesn’t say that she fell asleep, maybe she did, maybe she was just waiting. Around midnight, Boaz wakes up and is shocked to find a woman in his bed. He asks who it is and Ruth answers, “I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou are a near kinsman.” TB says that the word for “skirt” here is referring to a Kanaff which was a blanket cape thing that people wore back then and had a double meaning of “wings” like the wings protection that was offered by God to his covenant Israel. So she was asking him to cover her with his protective wings physically by marriage and also showing that she had adopted the religion of Naomi and believes in the God of Israel.

Whatever the words and context were, Boaz knew exactly what she meant and exactly what she wanted. He knew that she was asking him to marry her and that she was referencing, as well, the kinsman redeemer concept. His response is unexpected, because it isn’t a yes or no, it’s to praise her for being kind to him. He says, “for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether rich or poor.” Boaz knew that Ruth was a catch and would have had lots of potential suitors, and he himself being an older man, he’s thrilled that she choose him to be her husband instead of one of the younger men that she would probably have been more attracted to. The IM notes, “Boaz, who was an honourable man, and no doubt somewhat advanced in years, praised Ruth for having taken refuge with him, and promised to fulfill her wishes… As he acknowledge by his very declaration, that under certain circumstances it would be his duty as redeemer to marry Ruth, he took no offense at the manner in which she had approached him and proposed to become his wife. On the contrary, he regarded it as a proof of feminine virtue and modesty, that she had not gone after young men, but offered herself as a wife to an old man like him. This conduct on the part of Boaz is a sufficient proof that women might have confidence in him that eh would do nothing unseemly. And he justified such confidence.” I’m a firm believer in shooting your shot, especially as a woman, so good for her.

There is a slight problem, however. Yes, Boaz is a kinsman to Naomi but there is another man who is even closer a kinsman to her and so Boaz has to go talk to that guy to make sure he doesn’t want to marry Ruth instead as his obligation. Boaz tells Ruth to stay until it’s almost morning and then go home and wait there because he’s going to go talk to the other guy and work out what to do. TB notes, “What we see is that Boaz acted responsibly toward Ruth in four specific ways. First he did not tell her to leave and go hoe in the dark, thus exposing her to danger. Second he did not touch her until she would have been rightfully his. Third he protected the rights of the kinsman that was a nearer relative to the deceased Elimelech than himself, and fourth he vowed to resolve the matter within hours and accept the results however it turned out.” I thought that those points were interesting.

Ruth waits until it’s almost morning then leaves without anyone seeing so that nothing improper would have been assumed, and goes home and tells Naomi what happened. Naomi says “ok wait here, Boaz is going to handle it quickly.” Either way, whether Boaz married her or the other kinsman redeemer married her, Ruth and Naomi’s situation was about to change. I bet Ruth was hoping that it ended up being Boaz though.