SUMMARY
The people at the city gateGates are openings in walls or fences for entrance and departure. In the Bible (as in Ruth and the prophets) the city gate was a commercial center where business and social transactions took place. In Amos the gate is the location of the law court... bear witness to the agreement between BoazHusband of Ruth and great-grandfather of David. and the nearer next-of-kin, and they bless the marriage of Boaz and RuthThe great-grandmother of David..
ANALYSIS
The eldersElders are leaders who exercise wisdom or leadership by virtue of their age and experience. In the New Testament elders, along with the chief priests and scribes, constituted the primary opposition to Jesus when he taught in Jerusalem. and all the people then become the witnesses, a legal function as well as proclaimers of the penultimate blessingBlessing is the asking for or the giving of God's favor. Isaac was tricked into blessing Jacob instead of his firstborn Esau. At the Last Supper Jesus offered a blessing over bread and wine. To be blessed is to be favored by God.. Their witnessing and blessing expand the meaning of family, embracing the immigrant. They beseech the Lord’s blessing on Ruth that she, this Moabite woman in their midst, might become like their matriarchs, RachelLaban's younger daughter and Jacob's second wife. and LeahLaban's oldest daughter and Jacob's first wife.. In short, through blessing, they weave Ruth into the sacred family story. And then they include in their blessing remembrance of another foreigner in the family tree, Tamar, the mother of Perez. The story of Tamar and JudahJudah was the name of Jacob's fourth son and one of the 12 tribes. in Genesis 38 has many parallels to the Book of Ruth. Tamar is also a foreign woman who risks sexual impropriety and calls on the law of the levirate. Like Ruth, she becomes an ancestor of DavidSecond king of Israel, David united the northern and southern kingdoms. and JesusJesus is the Messiah whose life, death, and resurrection are God's saving act for humanity. (MatthewA tax collector who became one of Jesus' 12 disciples. 1:3).
