Good weekend to you my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
This weekend is, for many people around the world, a weekend of great transition. Hearts, minds, eyes and ears turn toward Christmas. You’ll see Christmas displays, you’ll hear Christmas music, you’ll probably receive lots of Christmas advertisements and some Christmas cards, and perhaps you’ll be refining your Christmas plans. Of course, there is no time of the year more than the Christmas season when more people around the world think of Israel and the town of Bethlehem in particular.
Yet this year the eyes and hearts of the world are drawn to Israel for a totally different reason… the exact opposite of the birth and celebration of Jesus the Prince of Peace, this year Israel is defending itself against the vicious attacks of those who seek to totally annihilate it!
Oh friends, let’s keep interceding for Israel. Psalm 122:6 says, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.”
Come with me to the quiet village of Bethlehem about 3000 years ago. We’re walking together through the story of Ruth found in the Bible and we’ve come to chapter 3. Yesterday we looked at what Ruth and Noami were experiencing as they had returned to Bethlehem from Moab where Naomi and her family had sought refuge from a terrible famine. During her years in Moab Naomi’s husband and both adult sons had died. Returning from Moab, heartbroken Naomi was accompanied by her humble, faithful daughter-in-law Ruth who was also widowed after the death of her husband, Naomi’s son. Two women, two generations, two ethnicities, united by the common, terrible experience of widowhood!
Ruth 2:23 summarizes what these first weeks back in Bethlehem were like for Naomi and Ruth: “So Ruth stayed close to the women of Boaz to glean until the barley and wheat harvests were finished. And Ruth lived with her mother-in-law Naomi.”
Near the end of the harvest seasons, Naomi evidently felt it was time to more proactively plan for the future, for while she and Ruth were grateful for the food Ruth was able to gather each day, without husbands, they had no one to provide for or protect them longer term. The record shows us what Naomi was thinking: “One day Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi said to Ruth, ‘My daughter, I must find a home for you, where you will be well provided for. Now Boaz, with whose women you have worked, is a relative of ours. Tonight he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor. Wash, put on perfume and get dressed in your best clothes. Then go to the threshing floor, but don’t let Boaz know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking. When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do.” (Ruth 3:1-4)
Do you notice Naomi feels responsible to help Ruth find a permanent home and husband to care for her? In those times marriage was far more practical then romantic. Parents negotiated arranged marriages for their children taking into account the girls potential for childbearing, teaching and raising the children, and wisely caring for all things related to the home. A Proverbs 31 woman.
The man was responsible to be a wise husband, pursuing a responsible career and achieving a role of respect and honor in the community so his family would be well regarded, his financial provision for his wife and children would be sufficient, and his family would feel safe both in the present and the future. For Ruth, however, things were more complicated, for she was a foreigner, from Moab, and few Israelite families in Bethlehem would want a Moabitess marrying into their Jewish family.
Naomi’s instructions to Ruth probably sound quite foreign to us in 2023, but in that time, in the Middle Eastern cultures, it was very appropriate. The significance of what Ruth was instructed to do really depended on the honor and character of the man Ruth would approach. Boaz was likely the age of Naomi, thus a generation older than Ruth. Easily a man of lesser character could have responded to Ruth’s approach as the offer of a prostitute for an evening of pleasure.
But Boaz had already proved himself, both by his God honoring interactions with Ruth as he blessed her in the name of the God of Israel, (Ruth 2:11,12) and his provision of a safe place for Ruth’s daily work, instructing his men not to touch her but to provide safety for her gleaning in his fields. (Ruth 2:15,16) Boaz was a man of wisdom and honor. It seems to me he had known Naomi and her husband many years ago, before they had fled to Moab. Boaz had likely been thinking and praying about the future of these two widows, asking God to show him what God expected of Boaz. For Ruth, we can assume she once again felt vulnerable but trusting fully in both Naomi and Boaz, she proceeded to do exactly what Naomi had instructed her.
In smaller towns like Bethlehem, there would likely be one community threshing floor where the farmers would come to thresh their grain after harvesting. It should not be difficult for us to imagine the work taking place at the threshing floor of Bethlehem, nor the piles of grain at the end of a long day of energetic threshing, separating the grain from the stalks. That grain would be taken to a place for storage until selling, but until then, the harvester would sleep at the threshing floor, by his grain at night, to protect it. A hearty meal and good drink would conclude a long hard day of work, and a night of rest would be very welcome, I’m sure!
Ruth’s visit to the threshing floor would be totally unexpected, yet the response of Boaz is a challenge to me, and I hope to every man in every culture who reads Ruth chapter 3. Why? Because the enemy of our soul, the devil, know we men are vulnerable when we are weary or facing the unexpected in our weariness. But even in his weariness, Boaz was a God honoring man of character!
When suddenly awakened in the night by a rustling at his feet, in the moonlight Boaz asked the woman he found lying at his feet: “Who are you?’ ‘I am your servant Ruth’, the woman responded. ‘Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a kinsman redeemer of our family.“ (Ruth 3:9) Do you see Ruth making it clear she had not come as a prostitute inviting a hardworking man to a brief encounter, rather she was quick to identify herself by name and remind Mr. Boaz of his God given privilege and responsibility in the Jewish culture, for Naomi and Ruth.
I don’t know how clearly you think if awakened in the middle of the night, but I know for me it often takes a few minutes to clear my head in the night. I’m challenged by the response of Mr. Boaz: “The LORD bless you, my daughter. This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier. You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor. And now my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you all that you ask. All the people of my town know that you are a woman of noble character. Although it is true, I am a kinsman-redeemer of our family, there is another who is more closely related than I. Stay here for the night, and in the morning if this man wants to do his duty as your kinsman-redeemer, good; let him redeem you. But if he is not willing, as surely as the LORD lives, I will do it…” (Ruth 3:10-13)
His choice of tender words in speaking TO Ruth, and his choice of responsible words when speaking ABOUT his obligation for Naomi and Ruth are amazing to me. Sadly, we live at a time when so many people prioritize their own desires, their own hopes and ambitions, their own needs far above that of anyone else. Do you also notice the words Boaz used to affirm and encourage Ruth to remain steadfast in building her ‘noble character’ reputation in Bethlehem? I wonder who is encouraging you in your efforts to do the same?
I think we should pause and ponder right here. What’s happening in this sacred, late night, unexpected encounter? How will their lives change in the days to come? What if Boaz had responded in the way most men of lesser character would respond in that situation? Here’s a song to help us worship and reflect on what Ruth might have felt that night. And on Monday, let’s return here to see what God did.
Today’s Scripture is Ruth 3:1-13.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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