Women and The Church: Boaz Against the Patriarchy

Oh Boaz! Your sacrifices have been so downplayed! It's time to redeem the role of Boaz in the story. You might be thinking - wait a second! I thought we were talking about women and the church! - and you'd be right. It seems like I'm veering off course but bear with me and let's see how Boaz is quite revolutionary!

From the complementarian perspective Boaz was the redeemer of Ruth and Naomi. He graciously stepped in and lifted them out of their situation. He married Ruth so that neither woman would suffer anymore. This is all true but there's so much more!

Make no mistake, Boaz was a man of wealth and power (Ruth 2:1). He is referred to as a man of valour. Ruth and Naomi were unprotected widows. Ruth was more vulnerable still because she was a foreigner. Remember how Israel was supposed to take care of widows? Remember how Jesus admonished individuals for not taking care of widows? It seems as though that part of God's instructions were not being followed very well. Cue Isaiah's condemnation against Israel-

"Woe to those who make unjust laws... who make widows their prey"

(Is. 10:1-2, NLT)

So, we have a very distinct power dynamic. What does Boaz do about it? Let's consider Boaz a little more closely.

1. Being named a man of valour, in a patriarchal society, meant Boaz had sons. Whether he had other wives or was a widower isn't mentioned.

2. Being a man of valour meant he didn't neglect his family duty.

3. Being a man in his position meant he was likely closer to Naomi's age than Ruth.

4. Under patriarchal laws, if Ruth gave birth to sons, their firstborn son together would actually be considered the son of her first husband.

5. In terms of patriarchy, Ruth brings nothing to this marriage. Patriarchal marriages were all about opportunity. What could be brought to the marriage that would benefit the family? The fact that Ruth has nothing to offer means that Boaz is making a huge social faux pas.

6. Within the community it would be common knowledge that Ruth had been married to Naomi's son for ten years and had no children to show for it. Naomi returning to her homeland meant returning to where the family was. Marrying Ruth meant that Boaz may not have any sons with her. Yet another reason for Boaz to turn away.

What about the kinsman-redeemer law? Surely that means that Boaz redeemed Ruth, and by association Naomi, from their situation! Actually, the guardian-redeemer law was more about property inheritance, redeeming slaves and legal restitution of crimes. Within the levirate law, which is separate, it did apply to widow's but meant the husband's brother, not a distant relative.

What Boaz does for Ruth goes against many of the patriarchal laws that were relevant to ancient Israel. He embodies the lovingkindness of God in his actions towards Ruth. He doesn't "redeem" Ruth, he sacrifices himself to elevate her demonstrating how God wanted his daughters treated. His actions place his name in the genealogy of Jesus that you can find in the New Testament.

Speaking of Jesus, let's check in and see how he treats women in my next post.