Ruth—Part 2—Faithfulness, Loyalty, and Humility

 

The Backstory

Earlier in the story of Ruth, a stage was set for this pictorial story of redemption. Naomi, Ruth's mother-in-law, is depicted as a covenant daughter of Abraham, reduced to nothing in a foreign pagan land, seeking to return home. She is joined by a faithful, loyal companion, Ruth the Moabitess, who refuses to leave Naomi's side and commits to following Naomi's God. 

This lesson introduces Boaz, the archetype of Christ, the wealthy landowner who sweeps Ruth off her feet with His sacrificial love upon their return to Naomi's homeland. Ruth's qualities and character displayed in her speech and actions will play a critical role in the reception of this divine miracle of love.

Boaz the Strong Wealthy Landowner

In chapter two, Ruth introduces Boaz, the hero in this story, whose name means "in Him is strength." The text describes him as a "kinsman," or close relative, of Elimelech, Naomi's deceased husband. Boaz's role gives us a forward glance at a strong "kinsman" redeemer who comes later: the Lord Jesus Christ. Interestingly, Ruth's first husband, Mahlon, died; his name means weak and represents our flesh. Our first husband and lord, the flesh, is weak.

The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. 

— Matthew 26:41

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul describes the inner strengthening and riches found only in being a close relative of Christ, our Redeemer.

I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man. 

— Ephesians 3:14-16 

 Boaz was also described as a mighty, wealthy man. The Hebrew word for wealth in this verse is "chayil," a military term denoting ability. Christ is our strong, capable kinsman Redeemer.

Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us. 

— Ephesians 3:20

He is also virtuous, upright, and full of integrity.

... Jesus Christ the righteous. 

— I John 2:1

Divine Providence

Ruth went out to gather provisions for both Naomi and herself. In God's land, it was law that field owners were required to leave some of their gleanings for the poor to gather. 

‘When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field when you reap, nor shall you gather any gleaning from your harvest. You shall leave them for the poor and for the stranger: I am the Lord your God.’ ” 

— Leviticus 23:22

It just so happened that the field Ruth chose to glean in belonged to Boaz, a strong, capable, and wealthy landowner. He was also a kinsman, though Ruth didn't know it yet. Was it Divine Providence? Ruth's choice of where to glean may have seemed random, but God was clearly working behind the scenes, leading her as she humbly served God and her mother-in-law. 1800s preacher Charles Spurgeon draws the following application from this scene.

“How blessed would it be, if, in wandering in the field of meditation to-night, our hap should be to light upon the place where our next Kinsman will reveal himself to us! O Spirit of God, guide us to him. We would sooner glean in his field than bear away the whole harvest from any other.” 

When we surrender all things to God and do what we know to do by faith in Him, we can expect Him to orchestrate good things for us behind the scenes.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 

— Jeremiah 29:11

God Has Taken Notice

In verse five of chapter two, Boaz notices Ruth. 

Then Boaz said to his servant who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?” 

— Ruth 2:5

Ruth being noticed by the strong, wealthy landowner is analogous to God in heaven, who owns all things, and to His seeing us.

Indeed, heaven and the highest heavens belong to the Lord your God, and so does the earth with all that is in it. The Lord delighted only in your fathers, to love them; and He chose their\ descendants after them, you above all peoples, as it is this day. 

— Deuteronomy 10:14-15

Hagar gives us an example of this when Sarah treats her harshly and sends her away. She finds herself desperate and alone in the wilderness, pregnant with Ishmael, Abraham's child. Yet she discovers that her plight does not go unnoticed.

Now the Angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur ... Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees ... 

— Genesis 16:7,13

God, the strongest and wealthiest landowner in the universe, has taken notice of our lowly condition. We can, therefore, claim, as Leah, Jacob's not-so-loved wife, did, that He has seen our affliction.

The Lord has surely looked on my affliction.
 
— Genesis 29:32

Ruth's Character and Qualities 

Ruth's qualities take center stage in this chapter. They offer clear examples of how we can position ourselves as recipients of the good graces of our God and King, the strongest and wealthiest landowner in the universe. Ruth's qualities also show us that, even though salvation is by God's grace alone, we play a critical role in receiving it.

Boaz observes Ruth's diligence at work, as Boaz's servant reports.

... she (Ruth) said (to Boaz's servant), ‘Please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ So she came and has continued from morning until now, though she rested a little in the house. 

— Ruth 2:7

Ruth doesn't just sit back and wait for circumstances to fall into place. She does whatever her hand finds to do. 

Whatever your hand finds to do—do it with all your might ... 

— Ecclesiastes 9:10

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Humility—Paving the Road to Redemption

Boaz gives Ruth instructions regarding her provision.

... when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink. 

— Ruth 2:9

His generosity reflects the provision of the Lord Jesus.

... whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. 

— John 4:14

Ruth responds with deep humility by falling on her face and bowing. She understands her position. As a Moabite, she was under no obligation to make such lavish protection and provision. A.B. Simpson writes about Ruth being a Moabitess.

"Ruth well represents the sinful state of God's redeemed people under the curse of a fallen race."

The above observation reflects our state outside of union with Christ. Therefore, like Ruth, we need to take another position.

... be clothed with humility,
for “God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble.”

— 1 Peter 5:5

It is tempting to think we are entitled to or deserve certain things. We tend to believe that God is obligated to love, provide for, and protect us. It is difficult to grasp the richness and depth of His graces amid such prideful entitlements.

Before destruction, the heart of a person is proud, but humility comes before honor. 

— Proverbs 18:12

With this promise of protection comes the expectation that Ruth should glean only in Boaz's field. There are many fields in this world to glean, but only one field where the Lord, its Master, so generously offers us His provision and protection. Gleaning in otherworldly fields is dangerous; from a spiritual perspective, it is adulterous and idolatrous. A late-1600s commentator, Matthew Henry, makes the same connection. 

"Has the Lord dealt bountifully with us? Let us not be found in any other field, nor seek for happiness and satisfaction in the creature."

Spurgeon's Commentary and Application

LET me learn from Ruth, the gleaner. As she went out to gather the ears of corn, so must I go forth into the fields of prayer, meditation, the ordinances, and hearing the word to gather spiritual food.The gleaner gathers her portion ear by ear; her gains are little by little: so must I be content to search for single truths, if there be no greater plenty of them. Every ear helps to make a bundle, and every gospel lesson assists in making us wise unto salvation. The gleaner keeps her eyes open: if she stumbled among the stubble in a dream, she would have no load to carry home rejoicingly at eventide. I must be watchful in religious exercises lest they become unprofitable to me; I fear I have lost much already—O that I may rightly estimate my opportunities, and glean with greater diligence. The gleaner stoops for all she finds, and so must I. High spirits criticize and object, but lowly minds glean and receive benefit. A humble heart is a great help towards profitably hearing the gospel. The engrafted soul-saving word is not received except with meekness. A stiff back makes a bad gleaner; down, master pride, thou art a vile robber, not to be endured for a moment. What the gleaner gathers she holds: if she dropped one ear to find another, the result of her day's work would be but scant; she is as careful to retain as to obtain, and so at last her gains are great. How often do I forget all that I hear; the second truth pushes the first out of my head, and so my reading and hearing end in much ado about nothing! Do I feel duly the importance of storing up the truth? A hungry belly makes the gleaner wise; if there be no corn in her hand, there will be no bread on her table; she labors under the sense of necessity, and hence her tread is nimble, and her grasp is firm; I have even a greater necessity, Lord, help me to feel it, that it may urge me onward to glean in fields which yield so plenteous a reward to diligence.

Grace Is Not an Entitlement

In Ruth 2:2, Ruth tells Naomi that she will seek a field to glean in with whom she finds "grace" in the landowner's sight.

And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace. 

— Ruth 2:2

Ruth understood that no one was technically required to let her glean. We, like Ruth, were strangers to God.

... at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 

— Ephesians 2:12

Inscription on a stone in the wall of an ancient building from Tel Zayit (south of Jerusalem). It means the first letters of the Phoenician-Hebrew alphabet (right-to-left): waw, he, het, zayin, tet. Earliest known specimen of the Hebrew

The Pictograph Meaning of Grace

The word "grace" ("Chen חן") in Hebrew means "favor" and "goodwill." It also includes compassion and mercy. This word is also used in association with covenant-making. 

Hebrew was once a pictographic language. Each letter was an image of something that helped form the conceptual meaning of the words they formed.

"Chen חן" consists of two Hebrew letters, "chet ח" and "noon נ," which will be studied in the following sections in their pictographic forms.

Chet ח Is a Fence 

"Chet ח," the first letter of "chen חן," is depicted as a fence. This letter conveys the idea of a protected, providential relationship. This association illustrates what a covenant does. A fence also suggests exclusivity, as we see in Boaz's command to glean only in His field. We cannot expect protection and provision if we step outside the fenced boundaries of loyalty to our Kinsman-Redeemer, Christ. 

A quick survey of all the "in Christ" statements in the New Testament is revealing. They all point to the endless benefits and privileges of those "in Christ." Those in Christ are inside the fence of a loving, loyal relationship with Him.

Noon נ is a Fish or Seed.

The second letter of the Hebrew word for grace is "noon." Its icon is a seed, symbolizing continuity and eternal life. Our physical and spiritual existence is entirely grounded in the grace of God. This is the very life Adam and Eve lost in their fall from grace. 

Examining these two concepts together shows that grace is eternal life restored through the protected relationship with the one and only Lord Jesus Christ. He covenanted with the Father on our behalf to qualify us once again for the grace of eternal life. 

Boaz responds with the following observation, namely Ruth's faithfulness.

It has been fully reported to me, all that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you have left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and have come to a people whom you did not know before. 

— Ruth 2:11

He then beautifully blesses her, rewarding and restoring her. He identifies the secret to why she was willing to work so hard and ready to leave what was familiar and, quite possibly, previously comfortable to her.

The Lord repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge. 

— Ruth 2:12

God Is Our Secret Place

Ruth had come to God for refuge. She did not trust her old gods or what was comfortable or familiar. Nor did Ruth trust her traditions. She didn't even trust Naomi. It was the God Naomi served that Ruth had come to believe in. She found refuge in the one and only true God, as Psalm 91 beautifully depicts. 

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust ... He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge. 

— Psalm 91:1-2,4

Only by living under the covenantal covering of our relationship with God and forsaking all can we find our refuge in Him.

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! 

— Matthew 23:37

From the verse above, we see that we are not automatically covered. We must submit and be willing.  

The secret place where we are covered and hidden in Him lies within the boundaries of a loyal relationship with Him. This type of commitment is not a feeling. It is a sacrificial commitment to live for Him. 

In the secret place of His Tabernacle He shall hide me ...

— Psalm 27:5

 This statement was made by the Psalmist, who looked to God alone.

The Second Posture of Humility Is Gratitude

Once again, Ruth's response to Boaz reveals her humility in understanding her position, which inspires such sincere gratitude.

“My lord,” she said, “you have been so kind to me, for you have comforted and encouraged your slave, although I am not like one of your female servants.” 

— Ruth 2:13 (HCSB translation)

The NET Bible observes that Ruth uses the Hebrew word "slave," generically translated as "hand-maid," in most translations, referring to herself in relationship to Boaz. The NET Bible notes describe this word as the lowest level of female servitude. Liberty Bible Commentary captures this sentiment.  

"She considered his kindness to the others as understandable, but his kindness to her was pure grace."

Is our heart filled with gratitude for His salvation, provision, and kindness? Perhaps we have never truly grasped our lowly position apart from Him.

We will never fully appreciate the grace of God until we fully understand the depth of our own human depravity.

— Jesse Gardner

Mary's song of praise reflects her understanding of her position and her knowledge of the redeeming life she carried in her womb.

"My soul magnifies the Lord,
And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant (female slave);
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.
For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
And holy is His name. And His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm;
He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts.
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
And exalted the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things,
And the rich He has sent away empty.

— Luke 1:46-53

There are two postures of humility: bowing, symbolizing our lowly position, and raising our hands in thanksgiving, representing our understanding and gratitude for the only one who can rescue us from that state.

The Table of Acceptance

When Ruth fully acknowledges the goodness and kindness of this Lord, Boaz, by invitation, promotes her to be a dinner guest at His table.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. 

— Psalm 23:5

In the Biblical world, eating with someone was a sign of acceptance. This helps explain why the religious rulers were upset when Jesus ate with tax collectors and sinners. By eating with them, He was accepting them. (Matthew 9:11)

... to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. 

— Ephesians 1:6

When we humble ourselves, recognizing our lowly state before Him and acknowledging His goodness and kindness, we are in a position to be promoted.  

... humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.

— 1 Peter 5:6

In her book The Prophetic Romance, Fuchsia Pickett observes Boaz's response to Ruth's inquiry about why she had found such favor in his eyes.

"When Ruth asked Boaz why she had found such grace in his eyes, he did not comment on her nationality, social status, or her poverty. Rather, his response showed that he was impressed with her character, her choices, and the consistency of her life. He understood that her desire for the living God had led her to trust in Him. Her devotion had won his admiration.

In that same way, our heavenly Kinsman Redeemer values and responds to our desire for Him and our devotion to Him. He does not condemn us because of our unworthiness as strangers to dwell with Him. He loves us for the choices we have made to follow Him. We find grace in His eyes as we continually come to "glean" truth and life from Him for ourselves and for others in need." 
 

His Grace Provides

Boaz's response ensures that Ruth is well provided for and illustrates what it means to be "favored." Verse seventeen reports that Ruth gleaned about an ephah of barley because Boaz instructed his young male employees to intentionally drop some of the grain they were harvesting. According to the Liberty Bible Commentary, an ephah was considered a week's worth, which was plenty.

"The receipt of a gleaner was only enough to support a family for one day." 

God, as depicted in the life of Boaz, has granted us much more.

You have granted me life and favor,
And Your care has preserved my spirit.

— Job 10:12

Ruth returned to her mother-in-law with her provisions, which piqued Naomi's curiosity about where she had gleaned. Naomi recognized who was orchestrating these events when it was revealed that Boaz was the landowner who had generously provided the gleanings.

“Blessed be he of the Lord, who has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead!” And Naomi said to her, “This man is a relation of ours, one of our close relatives (kinsman redeemer).”

— Ruth 2:20

Naomi realizes that this man could very well be their salvation in the earthly sense.

Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come. 

— Revelation 12:10

She also realizes he may be the only one able to save them. 

Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” 

— Acts 4:12

Final Thoughts

This chapter concludes with Ruth dwelling with her mother-in-law and continuing her good work and faithfulness. Therefore, we conclude this lesson with Paul's appeal to the Galatians. 

... let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. 

— Galatians 6:9

For more about Ruth and a look at our "Kinsman Redeemer," who leads and guides those who put their trust in Him, please visit The Book of Ruth: Boaz the Hero. 

Thus says the Lord, your Redeemer,
The Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
Who teaches you to profit,
Who leads you by the way you should go.

— Isaiah 48:17

Sources

Charles Spurgeon's "Morning and Evening" devotional, October 27; 

Charles Spurgeon's "Morning and Evening" devotional for August 2.

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