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The near kinsman said, I can`t redeem it for myself, lest I mar my own inheritance: take my right of redemption on you; for I can`t redeem it.
Verse Takeaways
1
A Costly Complication
The kinsman's refusal was a practical calculation. Commentators explain that by marrying Ruth, he would spend his own money to acquire land that would legally belong to an heir of Ruth's deceased husband, not his own family. This, combined with the cost of supporting Ruth and Naomi, would diminish or "mar" his own inheritance, making it a financially damaging proposition for his existing family.
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Ruth
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4
18th Century
Presbyterian
I mar mine own inheritance - The meaning of these words is doubtful. Some explain them by saying that the גאל gā'al
19th Century
Anglican
Lest I mar ... —The redemption of the land would involve the spending of money, drawn away from the Goel’s own estate; bu…
17th Century
Reformed Baptist
And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself On such a condition, because he had a wife, as the Targum suggests; and to…
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This matter depended on the laws given by Moses about inheritances, and undoubtedly the whole was settled in the regular and legal manner. This kin…