Let me tell you the name of my
message this morning. I'm preaching on the subject,
The Kinsman Redeemer. Our Go-El Redeemer. The Kinsman
Redeemer. And that's really set forth in
vivid language in the book of Ruth. And if you'll turn there,
we'll read the first three verses of the second chapter, and then
we'll go to Hebrews, and then we'll be all over the place in
both of the books. Ruth chapter 2 and verses 1 through
3. And Naomi had a kinsman of her
husband's, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech, and
his name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabitess said unto
Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after
him, in whose sight I shall find grace. And she said unto her,
Go, my daughter. And she went and came and gleaned
in the field after the reapers. And watch this most amazing statement. And her hap, her hap happened,
in other words. And her hap was to lie on a part
of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech. That's so important. All right,
let's go to the book of Hebrews and the second chapter, and from
here we're reading verse 10 through verse 18. for it became him,
for whom of all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing
many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation
perfect through suffering. For both he that sanctifies and
they that are sanctified are all of one, for which cause he
is not ashamed to call them brethren. saying, I will declare thy name
unto my children. In the midst of the church will
I sing praise unto thee. And again, I will put my trust
in him. And again, behold, I and the
children which God has given me. In other words, he's quoting
from the Old Testament. Watch verse 14 and following. For as much then as the children
are partakers of flesh and blood, he, that is Christ, also himself
likewise took part of the same, that through death he might destroy
him that had the power of death, that is the devil, and deliver
them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject
to bondage. For verily he took not on him
the nature of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore, in all things, It
behooved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might
be a merciful and a faithful high priest in thing pertaining
to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself has suffered,
being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted."
Now, Christ is our great kinsman, and in verse 14, It says he likewise
took part of the same. It's again in verse 17, wherefore
it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren in all things. Now, we recently studied Christ
in the Old Testament. We had an entire sermon about
Christ as he is set forth in the Old Testament scripture.
Here we have in this small Old Testament book by the name of
Ruth, a good and close human type of our blessed Lord and
Savior, He that was to redeem Israel. Now, this we have in
the man Boaz whose name is here mentioned, who is most certainly
a figure or a type or a shadow of the Lord Jesus Christ and
his great work as a kinsman redeemer. We notice how he is described
in the book. His name Boaz means something
like in him is strength. A man of strength is the meaning
of Boaz. Then how he is described? A mighty
man of wealth in chapter 2 and verse 1. He was the owner of
a very large barley plantation in that day. A resident of the
city of Bethlehem and a faithful Israelite whose heart was toward
God. But the thing that is most emphasized
about Boaz, and that is relevant and important to our study today,
is that Boaz was a kinsman. Now let's look at chapter 2 and
verse 1. He was a kinsman of Naomi's husband. Look at chapter 2 and verse 20. The man is near of kin unto us,
one of our near kinsmen. Down in chapter 3 and verse 9. Thou art our kinsman, Ruth said
unto him. Chapter 3 and verse 12. Boaz says, I am thy near kinsman. Now, in all of these, and there
are about 10 mentions of this kinsman in the book of Ruth,
and most of them referring under this man Boaz that we want to
consider this morning. there is a reference in this
book to quote the part of a kinsman. Chapter 3 and verse 13. The part of a kinsman. I will do unto thee the part
of a kinsman. Now what is this, this kinsman?
Why is he so important and what is it about him? So let's ponder
the words of the women to Naomi when things had gone well and
happiness had returned under that family. Let's consider the
words of the women to Naomi and their significance in that particular
setting that she had married Boaz, that God had given her
a son and such like. In Ruth chapter 4, And verse
14, we see, and the women said unto Naomi. Now this would be
her friends, her family, her neighbors, and godly women of
Israel. And they said this, Blessed be
the Lord God, which has not left thee this day without a kinsman,
that his name may be famous in Israel. God has not left you
without a kinsman. So let's keep to the idea of
a kinsman in our mind while we scan some of the events of the
history of the book of Ruth and see how it is that the kinsman
comes into play. Now the book of Ruth contains
the history of the family of an Israelite man by the name
of Elimelech, and of course his wife Naomi, a very famous name
and we know it well. And this family, this man and
his wife, left Bethlehem because a great famine had hit their
land. And they went down into Moab,
which was, of course, a heathen land, and they took with them
their two sons, Malon and Chilion. And then, by this time, while
they dwelt there, all three of those men died. Elimelech died,
his two sons died, and Naomi was left a widow and with two
pagan daughters-in-law in the land of Moab. Now don't forget
the fact of the three dead. This is significant because not
only is Elimelech the patron, the head, the patriarch of the
family, he is dead, but also his sons, who are his heirs,
are dead as well. That means that there is no male
left to carry on the family and the name of Elimelech. There is none to carry on the
name because of death. So that his name would be blotted
out in Israel if none is found to raise up the name of the dead. Deuteronomy chapter 25 and verse
6 said, and it's a catastrophe that his name be not put out
of Israel. There was a way, there was a
process by which the name of a man could be kept alive and
raised up in the land of Israel. that his name and his line do
not come to an absolute end. Now, Moab became the house of
death for the family of Elimelech, especially was it a house of
death for Naomi. Now, she is a destitute widow. when word came from Bethlehem
just in time that God had visited his people in giving them bread. You'll find that in chapter 1
and verse 6. When Naomi heard that good news,
she determined to return again to Bethlehem. And you might remember
the story. One daughter-in-law turned back
and went back to her people and her God, but the other daughter-in-law
who was named Ruth, made a great confession. And that wonderful
vow of Ruth is found in chapter 1, verse 16 through 18 of the
book of Ruth. Thy God shall be my God, thy
people my people, where you die will I die, where you're buried
there will I be buried. So Ruth determined in her heart
and the margin in Ruth 1 and 18 has it, she strengthened herself. She was determined to cleave
to Naomi and become a worshiper of the God of Israel. So now
consider what or who made these sisters-in-law to differ. One going again to her people
and her God, and the other embracing Jehovah and leaving her people
forever. Both of these ladies were Moabites,
both had the same relationship unto Naomi, and both of them
had become a widow. Who but God should make such
a difference in the heart of Ruth as opposed to Oprah? Ruth being a Gentile, became
the wife of Boaz and became an actual link in the lineage and
the family of David and ultimately of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus
Christ. So here we have a Gentile in
the family and the lineage of David and of Christ. Now let's notice how Providence
carried the matter. In chapter 1 and verse 22, they
arrived exactly at the appropriate time, in the beginning of barley
harvest. Now they heard that God had visited,
but when they came into the city, It was the time of the harvest
of barley, and thus good news. There was bread, there was food.
The famine is broken, and God has visited them in his mercy. Now the second thing that we
notice about the providence of God is in chapter 2 and verse
3, and we read it, and I emphasized it. And that is that Ruth's hap
was to lie exactly upon the field of the kinsman-redeemer, not
knowing his property, not knowing his name, not knowing who he
was, and yet the providence of God guided her exactly to that
field of the one who became the kinsman-redeemer. So let's look
closely at Ruth chapter 2 and verse 1. As the author, who some
say was the prophet Samuel, gives us some important facts here
in verse 1 that are soon to come into play relative to Naomi's
situation as a destitute widow and the name dying out in Israel. Now, the facts in this verse,
Ruth chapter 2 and verse 1, are at the very heart of the following
unfolding drama that we will be looking at this morning. Now,
the verse tells us something. Ruth 2. And verse 1. Number 1,
it tells us Naomi had a kinsman. This was a kinsman of her husband. Whether an uncle, cousin, we're
not told. Verse 1. Of the family of Elimelech. And his kinship was toward Elimelech's
side of the family. Perfect as a redeemer. not Naomi. Though Elimelech was
dead of some time now, he was deceased. Secondly, we are told
that this kinsman was, quote, a mighty man of wealth, unquote. He was well off, as we say, in
our day. Matthew Henry points out that
the Shaldee renders this, he was a mighty man in the law. And Gil wrote that the Targum
has it, he was mighty in the law, in the scripture, in the
word of God. He was a man of good character
and he was a devout Israelite worshiping and being faithful
unto God, as seen in chapter 2 and verse 4. When he came to
the field, he greeted his guests in the name of the Lord, and
they hymned, God bless you, the Lord bless you, he said to his
workers as he came in among them. Not only that, But when he saw
Ruth and when he found out who she was, he treated her with
great respect, and he commanded his workers to do the very same
thing. He commanded them, don't be familiar
with this young widow who has come to glean in the field, chapter
2 and verse 9. Don't touch her. Don't be overly
familiar with her. Do not molest her. Treat her
with modesty and with decency and dignity. And he called her,
quote, a virtuous woman, unquote, in chapter 3 and verse 11. Boaz
referred to Ruth as a virtuous woman. Thirdly, I've already
mentioned this, but his name Boaz meant string. And if you
go to Matthew chapter 1 and verse 5, you'll find his place in the
lineage of our blessed Lord and what was begotten by Ruth and
him. And for what was said about Boaz,
and his religious character. He was a man that served the
Lord, that had in mind the law of God and the glory of God. He abode by that law that had
been given through Moses unto the people. He remembered God's
law and he adhered to that law and kept it as he would. even
at a cost unto himself. It cost him to perform the work
of a kinsman-redeemer, and yet he held not back. He willingly
gave what it cost to be the kinsman-redeemer. Now, forget a little bit of detour
if we might, but I think that there are three, at least three,
important laws, civic laws, out of Israel that are brought before
us here in the book of Ruth. And I want us to identify them
and look at them before we move along. Number one, there was
in Israel what we might call the law of gleaning. What did Ruth do? She went forth
to glean in the field and lighted upon that of Boaz. And the law
concerning gleaning you can find in Deuteronomy chapter 24. and
verse 19 through 22. It is again in the book of Leviticus
chapter 19 verse 9 and 10 and again in Leviticus chapter 23
and verse 22. Now what is gleaning and what
was a gleaner under that economy? Now, a gleaner, one like Ruth,
marked one as poor, or as an orphan, or as a widow, or something
of that sort. Something poor. For only the
poor were those that you would find leaning in the corners of
the field. And so, Raboas went beyond the
law. He not only said, let her lean,
leave her alone, but in chapter 2 and verse 16, he commanded
his workers, throw out handfuls on purpose. His heart was toward
her. She found grace in the sight
of this man. And so he told his worker, not
only what shakes out of the bush as you harvest it, but throw
her some handful on purpose that her basket might be full when
she goes home. So the law of gleaning comes
into play here. Then secondly, the law of redemption
comes into play here. And this is actually twofold. A, in Israel, one could redeem
a fellow a fellow brother who had sold himself or had in some
manner fallen into slavery and into poverty. And then B, he
could redeem the property of one who had lost it or mortgaged
it because of circumstances And he had become so desperate as
to mortgage his property that he might survive. Now you have
this law in Leviticus 25, 47 through 49, and again in chapter
25, verse 25 and 35. In fact, we read in verse 49,
his uncle or his cousin, or any that is not of kin under
his family may redeem him," unquote. And in Ruth chapter four and
verse nine, this Boaz vowed to do. I will redeem all that is
Naomi's of the house of Elimelech. Boaz did that. Now the third
law that comes into play here, there was a law in Israel that
allowed for the raising up of the name of the dead. And you'll find that in Deuteronomy
chapter 25 in verse 5 through 10. That's very interesting passage
of the scripture. And this raising up of the name
of the dead is in the eye of Boaz concerning the widowhood
of Naomi and of Ruth. And he is willing and desirous
to perform that work. Chapter 4, verse 5, to raise
up the name of the dead upon his inheritance. Then look at
Ruth 4 and 10. The wife of Malon 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,
unquote. Now Boaz combined both of these
laws together, restoring the inheritance paying off the mortgage
upon the land, and by redeeming his property, and then raising
up the name of the dead by his marriage unto Ruth, Malon's widow,
and the daughter-in-law of Elimelech, and giving her seed, or child. Our children. For in this way
was the name of the dead raised up in Israel. Deuteronomy 25. Now there's a very interesting
thing in Genesis chapter 38, verse 7 through 10. You might
have read it and wondered about it. Remember a man named Onan? Onan and his refusal to raise
up the name of his deceased brother. He refused to do that. He was
a wicked man anyway, and his brother had died, and he refused
to take his brother's widow and raise up children unto his dead
brother. Now, there are two things there
in Genesis 38 and 9. Unan did go in unto his brother's
wife, did take her, but Unan knew that the seed should not
be his. Catch that. Unan knew that the
seed, the firstborn male, would not be his child. It would be
reckoned the child of his dead brother. And secondly, Deuteronomy
25 and 6, it shall be that the firstborn which she bears shall
succeed in the name of the dead, that his name not be put out
of Israel. This was a sovereign act of God. to count the firstborn male begotten
by the living brother and the widow to be the child of the
deceased brother so that his name might continue in Israel,
to keep his name alive. And the sin of Unan was that
when he went in unto his wife, his brother's wife rather, a
widow, that he spilled his seed upon the ground. God killed him
right there. God put him unto death. So we
go back to Ruth, and we view the duty and the work of a kinsman
redeemer as seen in Boaz. And here are the words, if you
would, of Ruth, chapter 3 and verse 9. She tells Boaz, spread
your skirt over me, your maid, for you are a near kinsman, a
near relative. I think it literally means one
who has the right to redeem. You're a kinsman. You're a redeemer. One and the same thing. So you are a redeemer. You are
a goel. And Ruth 2 in 20 speaks of kindness
to the living and the dead. We might refer to Boaz as a redeeming
relative. He was a redeeming relative. And as such, he was able to revive
the name even of the dead, even of Elimelech who's dead, and
even of Malon who is dead. And so Ruth says to him, you
are a near kinsman, or you are a redeemer. Now reading the footnotes
of the new Geneva Bible, King James Version, and in Ruth chapter
two and 20, It sums up this work of a kinsman this way, that a
near-blood relative, quote, had the duty of preserving the family
name and property, unquote. That's the work of a kinsman
redeemer and his duties would include, A, in numbers 35, 19
through 21, avenging the name of the dead relative or avenging
the death of a relative. When one had killed a relative,
then the kinsman redeemer would go to the city of refuge and
there take him if possible. This was related to the city
of refuge. We don't have time to get into
that. But then B, in Leviticus 25, 25, redeeming the property
of a relative that had been under mortgage or that had some kind
of lien against it or had passed into the hand of another. This man had sold himself into
servitude and so the redeemer would return unto him the status
of a free man. pay off his mortgage, put him
in ownership of his property once again. So Deuteronomy 25,
5 through 10, taking the wife of a widow of a deceased kin
to get children by her and raise up the name of the dead. And
Boaz performed all three of these laws in Israel. And if I may
look to Christ, he did so publicly. In the gate, where public transactions
were conducted, before the elders and the witnesses and the people
of the city, before many witnesses, Boaz performed that duty. And in Ruth 4 and verse 9, Boaz
says, you are witnesses. I have bought, that is, I have
redeemed, I purchased all that was Elimelech's And chapter 4
verse 10, moreover Ruth have I purchased to be my wife. Now Boaz did this with legal
currency. That is, he paid with gold or
with silver. He paid with the currency of
the day. He paid off all pending debts. of the family of Elimelech, restoring
that which had been lost, and Ruth he took to become his wife
to raise up children. And he was put in possession
of an inheritance which had been lost forever, except for Boaz
and his redemption. Now, before we transfer our focus
to our great kinsmen redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, let's
lay down this point. That all of what Boaz did, all
of that was based upon the law of kinsmen, of near kinship. It could only be done by a kinsman. Only by someone who was a near
kin under the family. Could not be done by a stranger
or by a foreigner. It must be a kinsman. And of course, Boaz, as kin and
redeemer, is a type of our great Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. He's our Goel. He's our Redeemer. He answers in all of these points
such as, number one, He has the means, our Savior does, being
rich in grace and mercy, mighty in wealth. Our Lord fits the
bill. Number two, He is willing, willing as was Boaz. His heart
is toward the work of the redemption of his brothers and his children,
as we shall read. He said this, Lo, I come to do
thy will, O God. His heart was toward redeeming
his sons and children. And thirdly, he has assumed a
proper kinship. Our Lord has assumed the proper
kinship that he might be the Redeemer. What's that? Partaking
of flesh and blood. He became as our kinsman in such
a way as to act as our Redeemer and it be effectual to raise
us up out of deadness and to give us an inheritance among
all of them that are sanctified, to raise us up out of our deadness,
and to bestow upon us an inheritance among them that are sanctified."
Acts 20, 32. 26 and 18. So now let's go to Hebrews the
second chapter and look at our kinsman redeemer. Let's consider
that passage from Hebrews chapter 2 and 10 first of all. Now the apostle is writing here,
I think, some call this a digression, this part of Hebrews, as he seeks
to have the Jewish believer in that day reconcile a great problem
to them concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. And that problem that
might come in the Jewish mind is this, If this is the Great
One, if this is the Eternal Son of God, if this is the Highest
of the High, if this one is in the very image of God, if this
one is our Great High Priest, if this is indeed the Messiah,
how is it? How did He die such an agonizing,
shameful death as He did upon the cross? How could such a one
as that be our glorious ruler, sovereign, and redeemer? And
so the apostle explains in chapter 2, 10 and following that it was
the intent of God and the Son of God to bring many sons unto
glory by means of his suffering and his death. He did not do
that apart from suffering and death, but they're brought to
glory through the suffering and the death of our Lord. And these
verses, if you notice as we read, declare the kinship of Christ
and his people. particular kinship that suits
him makes him meet to redeem verse let's go through it verse
10 many sons bringing many sons to glory verse 11 he is not ashamed
of to call them brethren. Verse 12, he refers to them as
my brethren. Verse 13, the children which
God has given unto me. And in verse 14 again, the children. Now we see the essence and the
extent of the kinship of our Lord if you'll tolerate me reading
verse 14 again. Watch it. For as much then as
the children partakers of flesh and blood he also likewise took
part of the same that through death he might destroy him that
had the power of death that is the devil that he might partake
of flesh and blood then look at verse 17 again wherefore in
all things It behooved him. It was necessary. It was incumbent
that he be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a
merciful and a faithful high priest in things pertaining to
God. to make reconciliation for the
sin of the people. Now the first half of each verse,
the apostle tells why the Lord must or did partake of human
nature. And in the end of each verse,
he tells what his partaking did accomplish or enable him to do. So look again at verse 14, that
by his death in the nature he assumed, he took away the power
of death from the devil. Then secondly, verse 17, he was
made like unto his brethren. He partook of flesh and blood.
In other words, he took human nature and was true man, that
he might perform the work of a high priest for his brethren
in things pertaining to God. Remember, a high priest could
only be a man, or only a man could be a high priest, not an
angel or such like. Now, of the three things we mentioned
about the Goel, The first and foremost is this, as it was with
BOAC. He must be a kinsman, and Boaz
certainly was. So the Christ, the eternal son
of the living God, took a particular kinship unto the children which
God had given unto him. They, that is we, were partakers
of flesh and blood, and as such we were subject unto death and
the fear and the bondage of death. So he himself also likewise took
part of the same in like manner. He shared the same, he partook
of the same flesh and blood. Now the children shared or had
in common flesh and blood. This was the mode and the only
mode of their existence. And most refer this to human
nature, and I think so. While the Son, who had eternal
existence in the divine nature, but then in the fullness of time
partook of human nature, that humanity even being born of a
woman." Galatians 4 and 4. He that was in the form of God
took the form of a servant, and being found in the likeness of
men, he was obedient even unto the death of the cross." Philippians
2, 6 and 7. Being made in the likeness of
sinful flesh. Romans 8 and verse 3. Though
without sin, I hasten to say, He had true human nature, but
not sinful human nature. It could not sin, it could not
be made sinful, but it could be made sin for us. 2nd Corinthians
5 and 21, he took a body that could suffer and could die, but
not on his account, but on the account of others. He could die
for the sins of others, but not for his own sin, for he had none. Now, while keeping his divine
nature, he assumed human nature, as such made him our near kinsman,
our next of kin, giving him the right to redeem. Unlike the case
of Boaz, there was not a nearer kinsman that stood between that
must disqualify himself for Christ to act. So we look at Hebrews
2 and 16, please. An unusual verse. We wonder,
why is this brought in here, and what does it mean? How does
it fit the context? And here's verse 16. For verily
he took not on him the nature of angels, but he took on him
the seed of Abraham. Now he mentioned angels before
in this chapter, in chapter 1, several times. But he makes a
contrast here in verse 16 to clarify the meaning of verse
14 and 15. For verily, of course, assuredly,
certainly, he did not take hold of angel, but he took hold of
the seed of Abraham. And for what purpose? And to
what extent? to bring them the glory, to save
them, to deliver them, who through all their lifetime were subject
to the bondage and fear of death. Now, we need not decide, I think,
whether this refers to the angels that are holy or the angels that
are sinful and fallen. It has the meaning, the word
took has the meaning of to lay hold on, to seize and that for
a purpose or after an intent. It literally means to catch or
to take. So he took, he took the seed
of Abraham. John Brown committed on this
word took. that the word means to lay hold
of, the purpose must be determined by the context. You can take
hold on somebody to beat them or arrest them, or you can take
hold on them to deliver them and rescue them. Consider the
word, same word, in Hebrews 8 and verse 9. I took them by the hand
to lead them out of the land of Egypt. Talking about the children
of Israel. In Philippians 3 and 12, Paul
speaks of being, quote, apprehended of Christ, unquote. For whom I am apprehended. That is, Christ laid hold. of me. And he likens his conversion
to a seizure by the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who took
hold of him in a mighty and in an efficacious way. Christ lay
hold of the seed of Abraham, the intent being to save them
Now, not all of Abraham's natural seed, for Abraham has two seed,
natural and spiritual. And in verse 17, the apostle
returns to the necessity of the son partaking of flesh and blood,
saying, it behooved him. That's a strong, interesting
word. It means he must, he needs to. For him to say, though, in human
nature, it was necessary that he assume human nature himself,
it must be punished, sin must be punished in the nature in
which it was committed. And so our Lord has partaken
of human nature in a real way, but without its depravity, He
has partaken of impeccable humanity. By man came sin. Righteousness must come by a
man, that is, by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. By man came
death, by man a resurrection. 1 Corinthians 15 and 21. In Adam
all die, in Christ all be made alive. 1 Corinthians 15 and 22.
Now, what did the women say unto Naomi in Ruth 4 and 14 again? Blessed be the Lord which has
not left thee this day without a kinsman or a redeemer. And he redeemed with silver and
with gold. And so we say this morning, blessed
indeed be God who has not left us without a kinsman redeemer. one who assumed human nature,
was despitefully treated, suffered much, and crucified upon a Roman
cross, who shed his blood, who paid the price of our redemption,
not with silver and with gold, perishable thing, but with his
own precious blood, purchased the church, to be His glorious
bride, raised up the name of the dead, that we might continue
on in continuity forever and ever. So that our Lord, like
Boaz, declared His intention to do so, I will be crucified
the third day I will raise again. And he did it publicly, like
Boaz. He did it in the sight of many,
not in a corner, but on a hill, with many antagonizers there. He did it publicly with many
witnesses, some his friend and many his enemy. He shed his blood,
and he shed that blood as the price and means of our redemption,
and he shed it for many. and as wretched as we had been
by nature. He is not ashamed to call us
brethren. He's not ashamed to redeem his
children. Not ashamed at all. And I just
close with this thought. You must get this. This must
be impressed upon our mind. Jesus Christ paid it all. He paid every debt that we owe. He settled every transgression
that we are guilty of. He paid that debt, paid it into
the hands of a righteous God, made full satisfaction. There's
nothing more for us to pay. Nothing can we pay, nothing can
we add. Our Lord shed his blood, the
price of our redemption. And that blood is the blood of
our salvation, the blood of the new and the everlasting covenant. So he paid the debt. They are
his. He takes possession of them.
His bride, the church, his people individually, one by one, for
he has bought us. He's redeemed us. We are bought
with a price, even the blood of our blessed Lord. Thank God
for that.