Too Much Heaven

Ruth 2:8-16

Introducing Boaz

Chapter one says, there is a famine in Israel, Elimelech brings his family to the neighboring country of Moab. While in this foreign land, Elimelech dies and his son marry Moabite women. Then the sons also die without producing any children. When Naomi hears that God has supplied food in Israel, she returns to Bethlehem with Ruth, the daughter-in-law.

As chapter two opens, verse 1 says: “Now Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side, a man of standing from the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz.”

In chapter one, all males are wordless and die quickly, but now Boaz appears, a male with substance in the clan of Elimelech, contra Naomi’s emptiness, poverty and powerlessness. Boaz will speak to restore man’s word and life. God is wonderful! He places the right person in the right time at the right place, to make a twist to the dire situation.

Verse 2 says, Ruth takes the initiative to ask Naomi’s permission to go gleaning--- that is, gather grain---behind the harvesters. Ancient Israelite law has this provision: “When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the foreigner; the fatherless and the widow, so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.” (Deut 24:19) 

So Ruth, a foreigner and widow, is out to do what she could for survival.  With Naomi’s blessing, Ruth goes out and guess what? She happens to stumble in to …Boaz’s field. Boaz also comes to the field, what a happy coincidence!

Boaz spots the female stranger, Ruth in his field. “Whose young woman is that?” Boaz enquires curiously. After the foreman tells him she is the hardworking daughter-in–law of Naomi, Boaz springs into action.

Boaz is very caring for the livelihood and safety of Ruth. He gives Ruth permission to glean in the field and also instructed her to stick close to the other girls.

The meeting of Ruth and Boaz at the harvesting field alluded to fertility and betrothal scene, no wonder Boaz tells Ruth to glean at his field only. (Verse 8) And Boaz told the male harvesters not to assault her, and allow her to drink from the water-cooler. (Verse 9)

Verse14, “At mealtime, Boaz said to her, come over here. Have some bread and dip it in the wine vinegar.” When she sat down with the harvesters, Boaz offered her some roasted grain. She ate all she wanted and had some left over to “dao bao” home for Naomi.

Then in verses 15—16, as Ruth got up to glean again, Boaz gave orders to his men, “Even if she gathers among the sheaves, don’t embarrass her, rather, pull out some stalks for her from the bundles and leave them for her to pick up, and don’t rebuke her.”

Ruth is surprised by Boaz’ kindness, asks Boaz in verse 10: “Why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me -- a foreigner?”

Boaz replies in verse 11, ““I have been told all about what you have done for you mother in law since the death of your husband—how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before.”

In other words, Boaz says, “ My kindness to you is because of the kindness you showed your mother in law, how you turned your back on family and home, and committed yourself to Naomi---her country, her people and her God.’’

Boaz is godly and kind. In his acts of kindness, he not only fulfils that strict requirements of the law, he generously goes way beyond it. He not only provides food, he also provides protection -- for the open field can be a dangerous place for an unaccounted-for foreign girl. Boaz has lived up to his billing as a man of standing, a man of great worth.

Verse 18 says, Ruth goes home, weighed down by the huge sack of barley on her back. Once get home, she shows Naomi what she has gathered for the day. Naomi’s earlier declaration of her emptiness (1:21) is matched here by her astonishment at the abundance of what Ruth has gleaned and da bao, so she asks Ruth, in verse 19:

“Where did you glean today, where did you work? Blessed be the man who took notice of you!”

Then Ruth told Naomi, “The name of the man I worked with today is Boaz,” She said.

“The Lord bless him!” Naomi said to her daughter in law, “He has not stopped showing his kindness to the living and the dead. “ She added, “That man is our close relative; he is one of our kinsman-redeemers.”

A kinsman redeemer is someone who is suppose to rescue other members from poverty, and grants them protection. So Naomi’s experience of God’s bitter providence is starting to turn sweet! She begins to move out of isolation and despair because the meeting of Ruth and Boaz reached her.

Naomi once grieved that the Almighty had brought calamity (1:21), but now Yahweh “whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead” (2:20). Self-centered sorrow yields to divine blessing through human agents. Naomi reinterprets her experience!

The narrator ends the final word of chapter 2 in verse 23, “So Ruth kept close to the women of Boaz, gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvests; and she lived with her mother-in-law.’

The end of to the barley season means the return of famine and emptiness. But we are reminded that Ruth is still with Naomi, so tension escalates and readers wait in suspense for another twist of fate to take place.

As everything starts to fall into place for Naomi and Ruth, it is time to bring together two thematic threads from this chapter two of Ruth: God’s providence and human action.

God's Providence

                                                                                                             

The first thread is God’s providence ---the hands-on way in which God governs His world and how he is involved in all events for his good purposes.

Verse 3 says, “…. As it turned out, Ruth found herself in Boaz’s field.” By happy coincidence, it seems, Ruth stumbled into Boaz’s field. What are we to make of this?

Up to this point of the story, it hasn’t seen said that God is directly involved in anything. There is nothing spectacular about the way God leads Ruth into Boaz’s field: No vision from God, no prophet, no burning bush, no wet and dry fleece. There is also absence of plan on Ruth’s part.

However, it is not purely by lucky coincidence, instead, there is divine providence. The whole context of the story of Ruth tells us that God works through ordinary, day-to–day life to accomplish his purpose, although the characters of the story do not feel it.  

This is a true reflection of life –of our lives—isn’t it? Often we may not sense God’s working in our lives or intervening spectacularly. Our lives seem to plod along, day after day, and God seems to have stepped back from our situations.

The story of Ruth reminds us that even when God doesn’t act miraculously, he is still in control of everything, even the small and insignificant things, or the day to day events of our lives.

But if God really determines everything, then what’s the point in making choices? Shouldn’t we just sit around and not make any plans for our lives?

Human Action

This is the second thematic thread: human action.

Beginning of Chapter two, Ruth takes the order as first speaker, informing Naomi of her decision to “glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor” (verse 2).

Ruth did not engross in pain and complaint. She did not yield to physical hunger passively. She also did not wait around for someone, not even the relatives to provide food. Instead, Ruth takes the initiative to find a field she can glean in. she steps out in faith when she sees an opportunity for survival and acts upon it, although she does not see God’s intervention vividly.

In chapter one, she determines to cling on with Naomi, now she takes concrete step to end sorrow and trying to resolve the mishap.

Today are you grasped by sorrows? You probably isolate yourself, refusing to be comforted, becoming more indignant, bitter, losing faith in God or waiting passively for God’s intervention and people’s help. Stand up; go out as Ruth does, take a step out into new phase of life, even if it is just a minor step of gleaning!

Boaz says to Ruth in verse 12, “May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”

Boaz affirms God’s providence. He stress that God is the one who will repay, or reward, yet he doesn’t just sit around. He acts, by displaying generous kindness to Ruth. God supplies Judah (1:6), but now he supplies the need of Ruth and Naomi through Boaz.

Boaz also prays in faith, asking God to repay Ruth for her loyalty to Naomi. He has the confidence in God’s providence that he prays. So in light of God’s providence, we are even compelled to step out in faith, and pray in faith.

Under the providence of God, Ruth stumbles in to Boaz’s field, and Boaz treats Ruth with exceeding kindness because of Ruth’s extraordinary initiative—left everything for her mother-in-law and her people. Consequently the distress of Naomi and Ruth is resolved.

In this scenario we witness God’s faithful and loving kindness, and tears turn to joy prevail in the community through people’s actions. Today our responsibility is to act in solidarity to mend the broken hearted and reform the damaged situation. God’s providence is the strong foundation for our action.

Conclusion

God is in control of all events, we can make our plans, pray in faith, and step out in faith, trusting that God will use our plans according to his purposes, although we are yet to see God’s intervention in a visible way. We are not to fret and worry about every little detail because God will supervene anyway if our plans are not according to his will.

This is very humbling, isn’t it? We make our plans but we need to be open to how God might use, adjust or even completely change our plans.