Ruth 4:10 (WEB)

Passage

Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, I have purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead on his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers, and from the gate of his place. You are witnesses today.”

Nearby Context

Ruth 4:8 So the near kinsman said to Boaz, “Buy it for yourself,” then he took off his shoe.

Ruth 4:9 Boaz said to the elders, and to all the people, “You are witnesses today, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, from the hand of Naomi.

Ruth 4:10 Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, I have purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead on his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers, and from the gate of his place. You are witnesses today.”

Ruth 4:11 All the people who were in the gate, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May Yahweh make the woman who has come into your house like Rachel and like Leah, which both built the house of Israel; and treat you worthily in Ephrathah, and be famous in Bethlehem.

Ruth 4:12 Let your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, of the offspring which Yahweh will give you by this young woman.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "moreover", "ruth", "moabitess", "wife", "mahlon", "purchased", and "raise". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "moreover" and "ruth", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 9's "Boaz said to the elders and to..." into verse 11's "All the people who were in the...", so "moreover" and "ruth" belong inside that flow. In Ruth context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "moreover" and "ruth" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.