Tag: Ruth

True Love Will Never Fade

Ruth Chapter 4
Conclusion and then some final thoughts

1 Now Boaz went up to the gate, and sat him down there: and, behold, the near 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. 2 And he took ten men of the elders of the city, and said, Sit ye down here. And they sat down. 3And he said unto the near kinsman, Naomi, that is come again out of the country of Moab, selleth the parcel of land, which was our brother Elimelech’s: 4 And I thought to disclose it unto thee, saying, Buy it before them that sit here, and before the elders of my people. If thou wilt redeem it, redeem it: but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may know; for there is none to redeem it besides thee; and I am after thee. And he said, I will redeem it. 5 Then said Boaz, What day thou buyest the field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance. 6 And the near kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: take thou my right of redemption on thee; for I cannot redeem it. 7 Now this was [the custom] in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and concerning exchanging, to confirm all things: a man drew off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbor; and this was the [manner of] attestation in Israel. 8 So the near kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it for thyself. And he drew off his shoe. 9 And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s, and all that was Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, of the hand of Naomi. 10Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day.11 And all the people that were in the gate, and the elders, said, We are witnesses. The LORD make the woman that is come into thy house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel: and do thou worthily in Ephrathah, and be famous in Bethlehem:12 and let thy house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed which the LORD shall give thee of this young woman. 13 So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife; and he went in unto her, and the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son. 14 And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, who hath not left thee this day without a near kinsman; and let his name be famous in Israel. 15 And he shall be unto thee a restorer of life, and a nourisher of thine old age, for thy daughter-in-law, who loveth thee, who is better to thee than seven sons, hath borne him. 16 And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it. 17 And the women her neighbors gave it a name, saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the father of Jesse, the father of David. 18 Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez begat Hezron, 19 and Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat Amminadab, 20and Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon begat Salmon, 21 and Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed, 22 and Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.

THE END.

I hope anyone who reads the story of Ruth loves it as much as I do. After the lust, greed, violence and utter selfishness of most of the the characters running around in Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings, in the middle is this little oasis of peace, love, goodness, and family. What does it have to do with being born again, though? Scholars and preachers can dig deep and find all kinds of serious theology in this book, and it is worth taking the time for serious study. I think at its heart, though, it is about being lost and being found, at being dead and then being made alive. And that is what being born again is.

Naomi called herself Mara, or “bitter.” She was cut off — no husband, no children, no grandchildren to carry on the family name. It is a terrible thing in our time; it was beyond tragedy back then. Naomi was as good as dead. Yet through her kinsman-redeemer, Boaz, she became alive again. She and her dead loved ones were grafted into the lineage of David and, therefore, of Christ himself. You could say her redeemer made her new.

Ruth was a foreigner, a stranger. She came from Moab to Israel with nothing. But when she left Moab she left those foreign gods behind and became a seeker of the God of Israel. She told Naomi, “your God is my God.” She asked Boaz to cover her. And he did. He loved her, and married her. She became the great-grandmother of King David and an ancestor of Jesus Christ. She, too, was made new.

Boaz is obviously a type of Christ. A kinsman-redeemer, as Christ is our great Redeemer. Naomi represents Israel and Ruth the Gentile world. The Redeemer loves us all, and came to save us all.

Next time . . . Yeah, but you still haven’t said what being born again actually IS, have you?

Well, we will have to look at some more of Scripture and we what we can find out.

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved…for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” – Romans 10:9-13

The ol’ “cover me with your cloak for you are a kinsman-redeemer” trick

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I’m sure Ruth was beautiful, but I don’t know if she was as pretty as my cat.

When we left off, Ruth was spending the harvest time gleaning in the fields belonging to Boaz. There were provisions in the Torah for this very thing: “When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field, and hast forgot a sheaf in the field, thou shalt not go again to fetch it: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow: that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the works of thy hands.” – Deuteronomy 24:19

Boaz honored this command, and went above and beyond it, telling his reapers to deliberately pull out stalks for Ruth to glean.

I’m thinking maybe he liked the girl…
Ruth chapter 3

1 And Naomi her mother-in-law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? 2 And now is not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor. 3 Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the threshing-floor, but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. 4 And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do. 5 And she said unto her, All that thou sayest I will do. 6 And she went down unto the threshing-floor, and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her. 7 And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down. 8 And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself; and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. 9 And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thy handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman. 10 And he said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter: thou hast showed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. 11 And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou sayest; for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a worthy woman. 12 And now it is true that I am a near kinsman; howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I. 13 Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman’s part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth: lie down until the morning. 14 And she lay at his feet until the morning. And she rose up before one could discern another. For he said, Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing-floor. 15 And he said, Bring the mantle that is upon thee, and hold it; and she held it; and he measured six [measures] of barley, and laid it on her: and he went into the city. 16 And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her. 17 And she said, These six [measures] of barley gave he me; for he said, Go not empty unto thy mother-in-law. 18 Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall; for the man will not rest, until he have finished the thing this day.

… Did Ruth just propose to Boaz?!?

… Will the other kinsman get in the way and thwart true love?

… Is Naomi as bitter and desolate as she claimed?

STAY TUNED TOMORROW for the action-packed conclusion to this lovely story!

 

 

 

My vote for #1 [human] Biblical total dream-guy heartthrob

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Closest picture I have to Ruth in the barley field. I call it “Baylee in the knapweed patch.”

THE STORY CONTINUES! AS PROMISED! When we last saw Ruth and Naomi, the two widows left Moab and went back to Naomi’s hometown of Bethlehem. Destitute, barren, with nothing in the world except each other, how will they survive?
Ruth Chapter 2
(American Standard Version)
Apologies for the Elizabethan English, but if I use a copyrighted version I could get my heinie sued.
1 And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband’s, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech, and his name was Boaz.
2 And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor. And she said unto her, Go, my daughter.
3 And she went, and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and she happened to light on the portion of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.
4 And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto the reapers, the LORD be with you. And they answered him, the LORD bless thee.
5 Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers, Whose damsel is this?
6 And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab:
7And she said, Let me glean, I pray you, and gather after the reapers among the sheaves. So she came, and hath continued even from the morning until now, save that she tarried a little in the house.
8 Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither pass from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens.
9Let thine eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go thou after them: have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch thee? and when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels, and drink of that which the young men have drawn.
10 Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said unto him, Why have I found favor in thy sight, that thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a foreigner?
11 And Boaz answered and said unto her, It hath fully been showed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother-in-law since the death of thy husband; and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people that thou knewest not heretofore.
12 The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given thee of the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to take refuge.
13 Then she said, Let me find favor in thy sight, my lord, for that thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken kindly unto thy handmaid, though I be not as one of thy handmaidens.
14 And at meal-time Boaz said unto her, Come hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers, and they reached her parched grain, and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left thereof.
15 And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, Let her glean even among the sheaves, and reproach her not.
16 And also pull out some for her from the bundles, and leave it, and let her glean, and rebuke her not.
17 So she gleaned in the field until even; and she beat out that which she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley.
18 And she took it up, and went into the city; and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned: and she brought forth and gave to her that which she had left after she was sufficed.
19 And her mother-in-law said unto her, Where hast thou gleaned to-day? and where hast thou wrought? blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee. And she showed her mother-in-law with whom she had wrought, and said, The man’s name with whom I wrought to-day is Boaz.
20 And Naomi said unto her daughter-in-law, Blessed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man is nigh of kin unto us, one of our near kinsmen.
21 And Ruth the Moabitess said, Yea, he said unto me, Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my harvest.
22 And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter-in-law, It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, and that they meet thee not in any other field.
23 So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz, to glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law.
…Does Ruth make a success of gleaning?
…Are sparks flying between her and Boaz?
…Could Naomi have a scheme or two up her sleeve?
STAY TUNED FOR PART THREE AND FIND OUT!

If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved . . . For, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.  – Romans 10:9-13