Then went Boaz up to the gate, and sat him down there: and, behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spake came by; unto whom he said, Ho, such a one! turn aside, sit down here. And he turned aside, and sat down.
Then went Boaz up to the gate - a roofed building, unenclosed by walls; the place where in ancient times, and in many Eastern towns still, all business transactions are made, and where therefore the kinsman was most likely to be found. No preliminaries were necessary in summoning one before the public assemblage; no writings and no delay were required. In a short conversation the matter was stated and arranged-probably in the morning, as people went out, or at noon, when they returned from the field.