Ruth 3: “Wait Until You Find Out What Happens”

Mother’s Day: May 11, 2008

 

"Don't call me Naomi," she told them. "Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me" (Ruth 1:20-21).

 

Being “empty,” the kind of deeply rooted bitterness that can result from the hard knocks of life is hard to overcome.  Ephesians 4:30-32 teaches us that this kind of bitterness grieves the Holy Spirit; we are, therefore, required to rid ourselves of its influence in our lives. Emptiness or bitterness has the same affect on our spiritual life as “rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.” The bitter heart, leaving us spiritually empty, has no room for the Holy Spirit and His healing presence.

 

Ruth chapter 3 presents a character study of Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz. Ruth has refused to let the difficult things life has brought her way defeat her. In the midst of the loss of her husband, and brother and father-in-law, Ruth found the God of Israel in a personal way. The strength of her new-found faith gave her the courage to forsake the gods and the cultural practices of the Moabites, the strength and courage to leave her family and friends, and the strength and courage to stay at Naomi’s side and return with her to Bethlehem. Ruth’s relationship with the LORD, the God of Israel also gave her the courage she needed to refuse to give into life’s disheartening events and the strength to go into the fields of Boaz every day and bring home enough food for her and Naomi to survive. The small book of Ruth does not tell us everything, but it is safe to assume that in the time between Ruth’s arrival in Bethlehem, her first venture into the fields of Boaz and the events of this chapter, much has happened of which we are unaware. The phrasing of certain passages later in this chapter makes it clear that Ruth has used this time to earn a favorable reputation with everyone in Bethlehem.  The townsfolk have noticed her work habits, the way she has cared for Naomi, and her lack of concern for her own selfish needs. She has been accepted into the ways and life of the town.

 

This lag has also given Naomi time to slowly return to her blunt and practical self. The food Ruth provided quieted her immediate hunger and Ruth’s submissive, tender spirit, her daily expressions of love, and her commitment to Naomi have combined to erode most of Naomi’s bitterness. Naomi is starting to think of someone other than herself; her hope is returning, and with it comes the return of Naomi’s scheming.

 

“One day Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, "My daughter, should I not try to find a home for you, where you will be well provided for? Is not Boaz, with whose servant girls you have been, a kinsman of ours? Tonight he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor. Wash and perfume yourself, and put on your best clothes. Then go down to the threshing floor, but don't let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking. When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do." "I will do whatever you say," Ruth answered. So she went down to the threshing floor and did everything her mother-in-law told her to do” (Ruth 3:1-6).

 

Naomi knew all along the customs outlined in Deuteronomy 25:5-10. The closest living male relative to Elimelech was responsible for providing a future for Ruth. Whether it was her bitterness which kept her focused on herself, or her practical nature telling her a Moabite woman might not be accepted as a legal wife, Naomi had not claimed Ruth’s legal rights for her. But now her matchmaking desires and scheming ways have given birth to a secret plot. Naomi believes Boaz will provide an excellent match for Ruth so she will prevail upon Ruth’s marital relationship to Elimelech’s kin.

 

To further her plan along, Naomi tells Ruth that Boaz will be alone at the threshing floor this very night.  She tells Ruth to fix herself up as nicely as possible—clean herself up, put on her best clothes, and smell her best—and then secretly go where Boaz is and wait until he is asleep. Knowing that harvest time is a joyous time, a time for overeating and drinking at least enough to “feel good,” Naomi believes it is now or never for Ruth and Boaz to take their relationship to a more committed level. Since threshing floors are normally located in an isolated and somewhat windy area, as the winds are necessary to separate the grain from the chaff, uncovering Boaz’ feet will eventually cause his cold feet to awake him. 

 

When Boaz was awakened in the night, he saw a woman at his feet and asked, "Who are you?" "I am your servant Ruth," she said. "Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a kinsman-redeemer." (This was Ruth’s way of saying she was desirous of becoming his wife). "The LORD bless you, my daughter," he replied. "This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor. And now, my daughter, don't be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All my fellow townsmen know that you are a woman of noble character.  Although it is true that I am near of kin, there is a kinsman-redeemer nearer than I. Stay here for the night, and in the morning if he wants to redeem, good; let him redeem. But if he is not willing, as surely as the LORD lives I will do it. Lie here until morning." So she lay at his feet until morning, but got up before anyone could be recognized; and he said, "Don't let it be known that a woman came to the threshing floor." He also said, "Bring me the shawl you are wearing and hold it out." When she did so, he poured into it six measures of barley and put it on her. Then he went back to town” (Ruth 3:9-15).

 

Naomi was correct in her assessment of Boaz’ character.  He was a godly man who had indeed taken notice of Ruth, but, being significantly older than she was, he had not presumed himself upon her. Though he knew he was a kinsman redeemer to her, he also knew he was not the closest kinsman redeemer to her and could not act until the one who was closest had made his decision. Boaz protected her through the night, in no way taking any advantage of the situation as the closest redeemer might still make his claim upon her, and sent her home with as much as 88 pounds of barley in the very early morning.

 

Ruth character, hard work, and beauty had won Boaz’ heart.  He made as strong of a commitment to marry her as he could.  His oath, “as surely as the LORD lives I will do it,” is the strongest oath he could take.  It is also reflective of his personal walk with God.

 

“When Ruth came to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, "How did it go, my daughter?" Then she told her everything Boaz had done for her and added, "He gave me these six measures of barley, saying, 'Don't go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.' "Then Naomi said, "Wait, my daughter, until you find out what happens. For the man will not rest until the matter is settled today” (Ruth 3:16-18).

 

As Ruth recounts the events of the night to Naomi, the Bible makes a significant but slightly hidden statement. Boaz tells Ruth not to return to Naomi “empty-handed.” This word is the same word Naomi used in 1:21 (cited above) to describe her condition when she first returned to Bethlehem.  Naomi, either on her own or because of the choices made by Elimelech and her sons, had left Bethlehem for Moab to escape the Lord’s judgment in the famine. This shows a lack in Elimelech’s spiritual relationship with God and in his headship over the family. Naomi, in going along with this kind of practical and unspiritual way of thinking, believed she had lost everything and was returning home “empty.”  Naomi focused on the loss of the men in her life instead of what she gained in Ruth. Now Ruth was on the verge of giving Naomi more than she could ever imagine.  Ruth had simply trusted the God of Israel and the one who told her about Him, Naomi, gone to work every day, and “waited until she found out what was going to happen,” what the God of Israel was going to do for her.

 

As we close this morning I want us to focus for a few minutes on waiting on the Lord and letting Him solve our problems, on letting Him control our future, our destiny, and our place in this world.  Naomi focused on what she lost and became bitter. But because she never turned away from God, even though she was angry and bitter, she returned to Bethlehem.  She was not “a happy camper” but she knew where she belonged.  Sometimes it is hard to stay faithful when life brings us hard things.  I want to tell you this morning, even if it is not with the best attitude, even if we are angry and bitter, even mad at God Himself, redemption can never be found if we turn away from God.  Naomi never completely turned away from God, though she struggled mightily, and eventually found His love, compassion, and redemptive work in a very real way. That makes her a very real and important example for us.  Naomi is a godly example for all of us who have ever been hurt very deeply.

 

Ruth is an even better example of how we are to live when life brings difficult circumstances. Ruth found the God of Israel in the midst of life’s hurts and never turned away from Him.  No matter what she lost, her relationship with Him was what mattered the most to her. She was willing to live out her entire life as merely a daughter of God Himself and never as the wife of an earthly husband if that was what He had in store for her.  She accepted what life brought, the good and the bad, and went to work every day with a good attitude.  She was unafraid of hard work and submissively accepted the laws and customs of the God of Israel.  However God chose to provide for her was good.

 

This morning I also want to remember a very special lady in my life, a Ruth named for this Ruth of the Bible, a woman who lived a life with some significant parallels to the Biblical Ruth.  The Ruth I am talking about is my Grandmother, Ruth Flanick.  In a way very similar to the way Ruth served Naomi, "I will do whatever you say"(Ruth 3:5), my grandmother served my grandfather. Life wasn’t easy for her and after grandpa died in 1970 she struggled for a very significant period of time before learning to take care of herself rather than the taking care of others she was used to.  She made mistakes and she struggled.  But in the midst of her heartache and her struggling she found God’s strength and courage in a very special way. She lived almost another 30 years alone asking almost nothing of anyone else and giving so much of herself away. I can only pray that I live the rest of my life and pass from this world with the graceful acceptance of God’s provision that my grandma, my Ruth, found. She is a tremendous source of strength and courage to me.

 

When men think of courage and strength we often think of it in the arena—the battlefields of the business world or a sporting competition. We think of it in terms of winning and losing, of bottom lines and accomplishments, of statues and fame.  Mothers like Mary, Jesus’ mother, and Ruth, the Biblical Ruth and my grandma are examples of another kind of strength and courage we all need to learn—the strength and courage to wait upon the Lord to renew us and to provide for us our daily needs. I believe it is far easier to die in the great battlefields of life than to stand by and watch those we love die in that same battlefield. Only godly women seem to teach us the courage involved in loving and losing and of waiting for God to sovereignly intervene. Ruth, like so many women today, was childless and without an earthly future.  She didn’t ask the fertility gods around her to provide a husband or a male child, in fact she left Moab and Baal.  She waited on God to remember her.  When we examine chapter 4 next week, we will see what happens when we trust the God of Israel and accept the life he has prepared for us.