Ruth 3:12

12 Yes, it is true that I am a kinsman-redeemer, but there is a redeemer nearer than I. ^[a]

Ruth 3:12 Meaning and Commentary

Ruth 3:12

And now it is true, that I am thy near kinsman
Her husband and he being brothers' sons, so own cousins:

howbeit, there is a kinsman nearer than I,
who was, the Jews say ^F23, the brother of her husband's father, and so his uncle, which was a nearer relation than an own cousin.

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FOOTNOTES:

F23 Midrash Ruth, ut supra. (31. 4. & 34. 2) Jarchi in loc.

Ruth 3:12 In-Context

10 Then Boaz said, “May the LORD bless you, my daughter. You have shown more kindness now than before, because you have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.

11 And now do not be afraid, my daughter. I will do for you whatever you request, since all my fellow townspeople know that you are a woman of noble character.

12 Yes, it is true that I am a kinsman-redeemer, but there is a redeemer nearer than I.

13 Stay here tonight, and in the morning, if he wants to redeem you, good. Let him redeem you. But if he does not want to redeem you, as surely as the LORD lives, I will. Now lie here until morning.”

14 So she lay down at his feet until morning, but she got up before anyone else could recognize her. Then Boaz said, “Do not let it be known that a woman came to the threshing floor.”

Footnotes

• [a]. That is, more closely related