There are times when events in Bible times seem so close to our own culture and context, but many others which appear to belong to a culture and social context that appears to be entirely foreign to our own experience. Naomi has noticed that Ruth appears to be getting on very well with Boaz and that he appears to have a genuine affection for her. He had been very careful to maintain an appropriate distance between them, yet at the same time looking out for Ruth and her welfare.
It is possible that this man, a widower, had counted himself out of the reckoning for obtaining Ruth’s hand in marriage, both on the grounds of there being younger maybe better-looking young men who had taken a fancy to her and more probably because he was not the closest male relative who could function as the kinsman-redeemer for her (Ruth 3:12). Naomi explains to Ruth that Boaz was a close relative and invites her to wash and dress in her best clothes and go down to the threshing floor and in effect propose marriage to him. In a culture where women as well as children were rarely heard or seen in the public arena it was an extraordinary suggestion.
Ruth was not to be seen to be pushy, in fact she was asked simply to lie down and sleep next to his feet. Why was he sleeping in a field rather than in his bed at home? The reason is that he did it to provide security for the grain harvested to ensure that some or all of it was not stolen during the night. It was a lonely place as his employees and any temporary workers had long since gone home for the night. He did not expect to have company and would get a shock when he woke up in the middle of the night.
Naomi made a prophetic statement in Ruth 3:4: He will tell you what to do. It was an invitation to Ruth to place her faith in this man. It is a beautiful picture of our calling to place our lives in the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ. Have you trusted Him? Is He Lord of your life? Are you confident to place every area of your life in His hands or are there parts of your life that you hold back thinking (but never saying!) that you can do a better job? Have we not all tried to give the Lord a hand at times? Thinking and sometimes even politely suggesting to Him that the reason why our prayers have not been answered in the way we wanted is because the Lord is so busy that we ought not to burden Him with as many things to do. And if He doesn’t mind we will take the issue back from Him and take care of the matter ourselves, though we are more than happy for Him to bless our feeble efforts to sort out our own lives!
How did Ruth respond to this proposal from her mother-in-law: I will do whatever you say, Ruth answered. What a parallel to Mary’s words to the angel Gabriel in the New Testament, in Luke 1:38: I am the Lord’s servant, Mary answered. May it be to me as you have said. Is there an issue that you or I am struggling with today or over these past few weeks, months or even years and which we need to entrust to His care? Ruth as a young believer sets a powerful example for us.
Our song for reflection today is: ‘My heart is filled with thankfulness’
Brian