“Overwhelming Provision”
By Pastor Rich Paradis
Ruth 2:8-16
With
the introduction of Boaz behind us, let’s continue by now introducing Ruth to
Boaz in a more formal way. Boaz has spoken to his servant in charge of the
reapers and has now put the face of Ruth with her name. He has heard of her and
what she did in care for her mother-in-law Naomi and we will shortly hear his
thoughts on those actions. With all of the players now on the field, let’s
continue seeing both the provision of Boaz and the providence of God in this
amazing story.
a.
Before
taking off on the content of Ruth 2, we needed to take a quick look at the last
verse of the preceding chapter. Ruth 1:22 spoke of the return of both Naomi and
Ruth to the town of Bethlehem. It also notes that the timing of this return is
the beginning of the barley harvest. This time of the year would be
approximately mid-April until mid-May.
b.
Once
we begin looking at the details of chapter 2, it may have appeared that Boaz was
quickly becoming the hero of the Naomi / Ruth family. And while he is indeed an
important part of the provision for these two hungry women, he is not the hero
of the story.
c.
The
very time signature, “at the beginning of the barley harvest” is notable. Not
only have Naomi and Ruth made the decision to return to Bethlehem not at all
knowing that they would be part of the greatest story in the history of man,
the birth of the Savior Jesus Christ, but God is also at work here. The women
have returned saddened by loss, but preparing to move forward, and God has
orchestrated the very timing of that decision to their advantage and to His
glory. It would be a long time before replanting and harvest could happen again,
much longer than they could wait to eat, but God knew this and brought them to
Bethlehem during a time when provision could be made for them in the normal
course of life.
d.
Do
you believe that God is involved in both the events and the timings of
life? Do you believe that God is at work even in the seemingly ordinary things
that come our way? The answer that this story is going to yield is absolutely
“YES”! God is without question the hero of this story and to see this fact from
the beginning of the details will help us to understand the story before us and
make a proper application to our own lives.
e.
With
that reminder from our last lesson, let’s go on to the details of Boaz and
Ruth’s first conversation.
II.
Boaz
speaks to Ruth Ruth 2:8-13
a.
With
the information secured as to the identity of this new person in the barley
field, Boaz leaves the discussion with his servant in charge of the reapers and
now begins a conversation with Ruth. Verse
8 is the beginning of the conversation and he begins with a greeting. An
identification of the age difference between Boaz and Ruth opens the
conversation as he refers to her as “my daughter”. Of course, she is not his
daughter but the very greeting that he offers gives us clue to his initial
reaction to her.
b.
A
plea and an invitation follow as he instructs her to not feel the need to glean
in another field. She may have indeed felt the need to glean as much as she
could with the dire circumstances that she and Naomi were under as they were
both without a man and without food. He invites her to both stay in this field
for her gleaning, but to also to follow his maidservants in the field.
c.
He
continues by instructing Ruth on how this new gleaning procedure would work. Verse 9 tells us that she was to keep
her eye on the reapers as they made their way through the field. She was to
follow them. So the process would look something like this: the men would make
the initial pass through the field with their sickles cutting the grain, the
maidservants would follow them and begin to gather up and bind the sheaves that
had been cut, and Ruth would follow them and glean for both her and Naomi.
d.
But
Boaz did not stop there with the instruction. In fact, he would calm her heart
with his next statements. In light of the fact that this process was not the
“normal” way of gleaning in that there would typically be time between the
maidservants passing through and the gleaners coming to the field, Boaz offers
the assurance that none of the servants (male or female) would touch her. In
fact, the next statement is even more astounding in that he shares that when
she is thirsty she can drink from the jars of water for the servants to drink
from. This would never have been the case in an ordinary gleaning situation.
e.
With
the amazing instructions now considered by Ruth, we now see her reactions in Verse 10. In a fairly typical
expression of both gratitude and humility, Ruth bows her face to the ground and
asks why she has been chosen to receive such an unusual and kind display of
favor and care from Boaz. She gives another hint into her perception as to why
Boaz’ care was so hard to believe: she is a foreigner.
f.
Boaz
wastes no time explaining why he is extending this type of care toward Ruth and
Naomi as Verse 11 opens up. He
offers 3 reasons to Ruth from reports of others and after the death of her own
husband for his decision to afford care toward the two women:
i.
He
realizes that both Naomi and Ruth have lost their husbands and are now widows.
ii.
He
realizes that Ruth returned with Naomi, leaving her father and her mother.
iii.
He
realizes that Ruth left her homeland and came to a land that she had not
previously known or visited.
g.
Boaz
continues his explanation with a desired outcome for this woman that had cared
for her mother-in-law at such a great price personally. Verse 12 has Boaz blessing Ruth by his desire that God reward:
i.
Her
work with success.
ii.
Her
wages as being plentiful from God.
iii.
Her
continued provision from the God that she now trusts for refuge and care.
h.
Ruth
offers her response to this overwhelming care from both Boaz and from God in Verse 13. She offers the realization
that she has indeed found favor in both the field of Boaz and the care of God.
She also refers to Boaz as “my lord”, which offers a really neat insight into
the passage. The term “lord” as used in this verse has no idea of Ruth seeing
Boaz as her God, but her offering a recognition that Boaz was someone of
greater nobility than herself and as someone that great honor was due. In fact,
the very term “my lord” has the implied meaning of “thy servant”! What a
wonderful gesture and recognition on Ruth’s part toward this man who had
extended such great provision toward her.
i.
As
we look into the story and see Boaz as a partial but noteworthy picture of our
Lord Jesus Christ, how wonderful and challenging it is to not only think of “my
Lord” but “thy servant” as we serve the One who made and continues to make
provision for us!
III.
Boaz
serves Ruth Ruth 2:14-16
a.
With
an unknown time between the first of the conversation recorded above and the
present conversation, Verse 14 again
has Boaz addressing the young woman Ruth. This time the setting is not in the
field during the work time, but as they break for a meal around lunchtime.
Again, look at the care and the provision of Boaz for this young woman that he
is deeply interested in. He invites her to come into the meal area and enjoy a
meal of bread, vinegar, and roasted grain.
b.
But
the story is really interesting and insightful to the one providing for her.
Boaz not only invites her to sit for the meal among the reapers, but then he
serves her! Both the sitting among the reapers and the serving by Boaz are
beautiful representations of both care and provision. Again, we are reminded of
our own Provider who not only invites us to His table, but also serves us with
such a wonderful meal that it both satisfies us but also provides us with
enough to serve others.
c.
When
the meal was completed, Ruth did not just sit there. She got up and returned to
work. This “other-centeredness” is fast becoming an easy trait to see in Ruth
and provides a wonderful example for us.
d.
As
the paragraph closes, Verses 15-16
has Boaz again offering instruction to his servants. He says:
i.
Let
her glean even among the sheaves – this area was not available to the gleaner
until the maidservants were done with their initial pass through the area.
ii.
Do
not insult / rebuke her – Again, the Law provided the gleaner with a field to
work in and be provided for by, but the Law did not command an attitude for
those in that field.
iii.
You
shall purposely pull some out, whether before or after binding, for her – Boaz
is now going far above both the letter and even the spirit of the Law in
providing for her in this way. You can see the deep care and concern that he
has for her and her need.
IV.
An
Application For All Of Us
a.
Kindness
toward those in need is something that all Christians should be involved in.
b.
A
grateful heart is the appropriate response to provision and care.
c.
God
is ultimately the One who is providing even as we involve ourselves in the
process.
d.
God’s
provision in Jesus Christ is the supreme example of love and care for someone
unable to care for themselves.
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