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SOUNDING OUT:
Love’s Response: Gleaning
in the Fields of Boaz
Chapter two of Ruth opens by
introducing another of the major characters in this
beautiful love story, the mighty man, Boaz.
Ruth 2:1:
And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband’s, a mighty
man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his name
was Boaz. [Boaz means “in him is strength.”]
“Mighty man”
is the Hebrew, “gibbor.” It denotes
one who is “mighty, strong, or valiant.”
It is frequently used of the heroes or champions among
the armed forces. As we will soon see Boaz will be the
hero of this story.
Ruth 2:2:
And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let me now go
[yalak] to the field, and glean1st
ears of corn [used generically of the small grains of
the barley harvest] after him in whose sight I shall
find grace [chen]. And she said unto her, Go,
my daughter.
Ruth makes the first of
three requests in chapter two. This one is made of Naomi.
She asks for permission to glean. Gleaning is a major
theme of chapter two, and we find it used 12 times in
this chapter.
In the Eastern custom of gleaning, God provided
for strangers, widows, and the fatherless by limiting
landowners to make only one pass through their harvest.
That which remained was to be reserved for those who
had need. God also instructed His people to leave crops
standing in the corners of the field so that those in
need could glean and provide for themselves. Ruth is
acting responsibly to procure support for her and Naomi.
She was acting upon the law of God that provided for
people in situations in which she found herself.
Deuteronomy
24:19-21:
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 work of thine hands.
When thou beatest thine olive tree, thou shalt not go
over the boughs again: it shall be for the stranger,
for the fatherless, and for the widow.
When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou
shalt not glean it afterward: it shall be for the stranger,
for the fatherless, and for the widow.
Appropriating the Lord’s
provision and following the custom of the day, Ruth
puts on her bonnet and apron and heads to the fields
to glean. She puts her trust in the Lord and expects
to find grace in the sight of the Lord of the harvest.
She is acting on the Word she knows that pertains to
her situation and depending on God’s grace.
Ruth 2:3:
And she [Ruth] went, and came, and gleaned2nd
in the field after the reapers: and her hap was to light
on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz,
who was of the kindred of Elimelech.
Since Boaz was introduced
into the record in verse one, we know that Ruth ending
up in his field was not by chance. Although it says,
“her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging
to Boaz,” don’t let the Old English fool
you. Yes, it happened that she ended up in Boaz’s
field, but it was by divine design. God emphasizes this
“chance” meeting with the figure of speech
polyptoton.
The phrase “her hap, miqreh, was
to light on, qarah…” contains the
polyptoton. Miqreh means an unforeseen meeting,
event, accident, or happening. It comes from the root
word qarah which means, “to encounter
or meet.” This repetition of the same part of
speech in different inflections emphasizes the encounter.
Do you think this encounter was a coincidence? I don’t.
I see God’s hand in it. I agree with the anonymous
quote I heard that handles these kind of coincidences:
“Coincidence is a miracle in which God wants to
remain anonymous.”
Remember the Bible is an Eastern book, and most
sources I have checked conclude that the idea of fate
or chance is utterly foreign to the Hebrew mind. This
was not a chance encounter; this is the hand of God
guiding Ruth. She was believing to find grace in someone’s
eyes, and God directs her to the right place.
Proverbs 16:9:
A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth
his steps.
Ruth devised a plan, and
God directed her steps. Ruth was believing to find grace
in the sight of the lord of the harvest, and she does.
However, first she found grace in the eyes of the Lord
who directed her to the right field.
Ruth 2:4:
And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said unto
the reapers, The LORD be with you. And they answered
him, The LORD bless thee.
“Behold” is
the figure of speech asterismos. It calls our attention
to the arrival of Boaz. Look at the timing of this trip;
this is not by chance. Look at the blessing that Boaz
speaks to his reapers, and look at their response to
bless him in return. Regardless of how the rest of Israel
was doing, these were God-fearing men who want God’s
best for each other.
Ruth 2:5-9:
Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the
reapers, Whose damsel is this? [She had caught his eye,
but he didn’t recognize her.]
And the servant that was set over the reapers answered
and said, It is the Moabitish damsel that came
back13th [shub] with Naomi
out of the country of Moab:
And she said, I pray you, let me glean3rd
[This was her second request. This one is of the foreman.]
and gather after the reapers among the sheaves: so she
came, and hath continued [steadfastly] even from the
morning until now, that she tarried a little in the
house. [The foreman recognized how polite and honorable
Ruth was. He said, “She showed up early and has
worked hard all day.” She had gotten a good report
from this chief servant.]
Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not [“listen
carefully” in the New American Standard Version],
my daughter? Go not to glean4th
in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here
fast by my maidens:
Let 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.
Boaz addressed Ruth as
“my daughter” because of the age difference
between them. He extends to her some wonderful kindnesses.
He invites her to follow along with the reapers. She
did not need to wait until they had left the field,
as was customary, before she went in to glean. Boaz
made sure that she was treated properly and respectfully
by his workers, and he also allowed her to drink from
the water provided for the workers. Boaz was being gracious
far beyond what the law required.
Ruth 2:10:
Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the
ground, and said unto him, Why have I found grace [chen]
in thine eyes, that thou shouldest take knowledge of
[pay attention to, notice, regard] me, seeing I am a
stranger? [Gentile]
Ruth had been expecting
gracious treatment (2:2), but she is still amazed when
it comes. Ruth responds with humility to the gracious
treatment. She shows respect by bowing, and then recognizes
the gracious treatment of the lord of the harvest with
a question. She was eager to find out why she was treated
so graciously.
When it comes to grace, asking “Why?”
can get kind of “slippery.” Since by definition
grace is unearned, the reason cannot be found in the
actions of the recipient, but rather in the heart and
character of the giver. In the first 40 occurrences
of chen, grace, in the Old Testament, it follows
the verb “to find.” It is not until the
Book of Esther that it says Esther “obtained grace,”
three times.
Ruth 2:11,12:
And Boaz answered and said unto her, It hath fully been
shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in
law since the death of thine husband: and how thou hast
left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy
nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest
not heretofore.
The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward be given
thee of the LORD God [Elohim] of Israel, under
whose wings thou art come to trust.
Don’t misunderstand,
verse 11 is not given as the reason for his gracious
treatment. We do not earn grace by good behavior. The
real reason is given in verse 12. Ruth trusted in God,
and God had initiated the gracious treatment. God had
touched Boaz’s heart, and Boaz blesses her. Boaz
also suggests that she hasn’t seen anything yet
and that this gracious treatment will continue until
a “full reward” is realized.
What a wonderful blessing that Boaz spoke. That
was Boaz’s believing image of victory for Ruth.
“The LORD recompense thy work, and a full reward
be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose
wings thou art come to trust.” Does God have wings?
No, this is the figure of speech, condescensio. God
is comparing Himself to a mother bird protecting and
caring for her young under her expansive wings. What
a vivid picture it communicates of Him in Whom she trusted.
(This will come up again in Chapter 3.) Little did Boaz
know at this time how much he would be involved in bringing
this to pass.
Ruth 2:13:
Then she said, Let me find favour [chen] in
thy sight [This is her third request, and this one is
of Boaz.], my lord [adon, Boaz was the lord
of the harvest.]; for that thou hast comforted me, and
for that thou hast spoken friendly unto thine handmaid,
though I be not like unto one of thine handmaidens.
Ruth is saying, “You
treated me like one of your own workers, even though
I am not. She continued to respond humbly. She took
comfort in his blessing, and, recognizing the position
he was in, she requests that his kindness continue.
Although she acknowledges she has no right to make such
a request, she was bold in asking that his favor continue.
Her well-mannered response is again met with gracious
words from Boaz.
Ruth 2:14:
And Boaz said unto her, At mealtime come thou hither,
and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar.
And she sat beside the reapers: and he reached her parched
corn, and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left.
Look at the personal care
of the lord of the harvest. Boaz invited her to come
and dine with the reapers and even provided for her
himself, making sure she had more than enough so she
had some to take home to Naomi. Ruth accepted this additional
kindness, and after she ate, she returned to the field
to glean. She continued to hold Boaz’s attention,
and he directs his servants to extend further kindnesses
unto her.
Ruth 2:15,16:
And when she was risen up to glean,5th
Boaz commanded his young men, saying, Let her glean6th
even among the sheaves, and reproach her not:
And let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for
her, and leave them, that she may glean7th
them, and rebuke her not.
Boaz instructed his workman
to leave handfuls on purpose for her, but to do it so
that she was unaware of it. The grace that was extended
to her went far beyond that, of which Ruth was even
aware. Boaz was intent on seeing that she was provided
for. Neither was he concerned that people knew about
it.
Ruth 2:17:
So she gleaned8th in the
field until even, and beat out that she had gleaned;9th
and it was about an ephah of barley.
Ruth continued in the
field until evening. Then she willowed the grain separating
the chaff. An ephah was about half a bushel, a truly
generous amount for a day’s work. It would have
weighed about 25 pounds and been enough food to last
for quite some time.
Ruth 2:18:
And she took it up, and went into the city: and her
mother in law saw what she had gleaned:10th
and she brought forth, and gave to her that she had
reserved after she was sufficed.
Ruth brought what she
had gleaned to Naomi as well as the food she had left
over from the meal with the reapers. Naomi is elated
with the abundance and blessed the one who took knowledge
of Ruth before even finding out who it was.
Ruth 2:19,20:
And her mother in law said unto her, Where hast thou
gleaned11th to day? [This
is not a casual question. Naomi was impressed.] and
where wroughtest thou? blessed be he that did take knowledge
of thee. And she shewed her mother in law with whom
she had wrought, and said, The man’s name with
whom I wrought to day is Boaz.
And Naomi said unto her daughter in law, Blessed be
he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness
[chesed] to the living and to the dead. And
Naomi said unto her, The man is near of kin unto us,
one of our next kinsmen. [Key plot element.]
Naomi explains to Ruth
that Boaz is near of kin and qualifies as the goel,
the kinsman redeemer. Responsibilities of the goel
include the repurchase of a field, which was sold in
time of need (Leviticus 25:25-28) and the freeing of
an Israelite slave who sold himself in time of poverty
(Leviticus 25:48-55). Such purchase and restitution
was the duty of the next of kin.
Ruth 2:21-22:
And Ruth the Moabitess said, He said unto me also, Thou
shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended
all my harvest.
And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter in law, It is
good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens,
that they meet thee not in any other field.
Ruth has more good news
for Naomi. Boaz not only dealt so kindly with her on
this first morning, but also offered to watch over her
throughout the entire harvest. Naomi encouraged Ruth
to do as Boaz said and not venture anywhere else. Ruth’s
loyalty and love for Naomi is evidenced in that she
obeyed Naomi and stayed in the fields of Boaz.
Ruth 2:23:
So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz to glean12th
unto the end of barley harvest (around the time of Passover)
and of wheat harvest (around the time of Pentecost);
and dwelt with her mother in law.
The beginning of the barley
harvest was at Passover, and the beginning of the wheat
harvest was at Pentecost. So the time period covered
here was at least 50 days. This gracious treatment was
extended more than 50 days.
Ruth trusted God and found grace in the eyes
of Boaz. She believed for it to happen before she went
out, and when she encountered it, she graciously recognized
it. She was even bold enough to ask for it to continue.
Why should we ever think that God’s grace would
be any less sufficient for us? His grace will never
be exhausted! We should, like Ruth, expect it to continue.
Naomi is much more blessed at the end of chapter
two than she was at the end of chapter one. She returned
expecting things to change, and they already have. She
has been blessed by the Lord, Who graciously remembered
her in her affliction. However, the plot is about to
thicken.
They had been provided for during the harvest,
but what would happen to the widows after the harvests?
Ruth would obediently do as Naomi directed until the
end of the harvest. That would give Naomi enough time
to plan and prepare for what was yet to come, which
we will read about next week.
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