רות, פרק ד׳, פסוק י״ג

The union of Boaz and Ruth serves as the peak of their story, merging human kindness, divine guidance, and historical repair. After years of suffering and barrenness, their marriage creates a pathway for a lasting family line and a miracle of new life.

Boaz did not simply engage in a standard levirate marriage, where physical intimacy alone finalizes the union. Instead, he ensured they were fully married through a formal betrothal with money and a canopy before they were intimate [מלבי״ם, אגרת שמואל, אשכול הכופר]. This careful process highlights Boaz's deep righteousness and self-control. Even though they had met previously at night on the threshing floor, he waited until they could establish a completely pure and legal marriage [אלשיך]. Furthermore, their union was a match arranged in heaven. Ruth was never truly meant for her first husband, which is why they never had children. By marrying Boaz, she finally met the man destined for her from the very beginning [אגרת שמואל].

When it came to having a child, a profound medical miracle took place. The primary approach among commentators is that Ruth was entirely barren, naturally lacking a womb and reproductive organs. God actively intervened, creating and gifting her these organs, much like the miracle experienced by Sarah [תורה תמימה, אגרת שמואל, אשכול הכופר]. As a reward for ensuring all their actions were directed toward heaven, God granted Ruth immediate conception during their very first moment of intimacy [מלבי״ם, אלשיך].

Behind this joyous event was a hidden tragedy. Boaz, who was very old and free of sin, had rushed to clarify the law permitting marriage to a Moabite woman and married Ruth immediately because his time on earth was ending. In fact, he passed away on the exact night they were together [חומת אנך]. However, this tragic timing, paired with her immediate pregnancy, acted as a divine shield for Ruth's reputation. Because Boaz died right after, the public knew exactly when she conceived. This prevented any malicious rumors from spreading among the people that she might have become pregnant by other men in the fields or on the roads [אלשיך, חנוכת התורה].

Finally, God guided the natural process to determine the child's gender, ensuring that Ruth would give birth to a boy [אלשיך, אגרת שמואל]. This specific divine gift was meant to guarantee that the child would possess true strength and lasting life, protected from the early death that had taken Ruth's first husband, and capable of safely continuing the family legacy [אלשיך].