Naomi then names Boaz as one of their goelim—a redeemer or kinsman-redeemer. In Israel’s legal world, the verb ga’al can involve a family member acting to preserve clan property, freedom, or family interests. Leviticus 25 gives especially important land-redemption background. Ruth will combine that family-redemption world with the need to preserve the dead man’s name, but the book’s arrangement is not a simple copy of one Torah statute.

That distinction matters. Boaz is not Mahlon’s brother, so Ruth’s later marriage is not an exact case of Deuteronomy 25’s brother-in-law or levirate law. Ruth’s story draws several family-protection customs together: land redemption, kinship obligation, widow care, inheritance, and continuation of the deceased’s name.

Naomi’s emotional movement is now visible. In chapter 1 she said the LORD had brought her back empty. In chapter 2 she begins blessing. She has not yet seen the outcome, but she has recognized a possible redeemer. The book’s great restoration is underway long before the birth of Obed.