Reflections on Ruth 3

Ruth 03 (Contemporary English Version)

1. One day, Naomi said to Ruth: It's time I found you a husband, who will give you a home and take care of you.
   
2. You have been picking up grain alongside the women who work for Boaz, and you know he is a relative of ours. Tonight he will be threshing the grain.
   
3. Now take a bath and put on some perfume, then dress in your best clothes. Go where he is working, but don't let him see you until he has finished eating and drinking.
   
4. Watch where he goes to spend the night, then when he is asleep, lift the cover and lie down at his feet. He will tell you what to do.
   
5. Ruth answered, "I'll do whatever you say."
   
6. She went out to the place where Boaz was working and did what Naomi had told her.
   
7. After Boaz finished eating and drinking and was feeling happy, he went over and fell asleep near the pile of grain. Ruth slipped over quietly. She lifted the cover and lay down near his feet.
   
8. In the middle of the night, Boaz suddenly woke up and was shocked to see a woman lying at his feet.
   
9. "Who are you?" he asked. "Sir, I am Ruth," she answered, "and you are the relative who is supposed to take care of me. So spread the edge of your cover over me."
   
10. Boaz replied: The LORD bless you! This shows how truly loyal you are to your family. You could have looked for a younger man, either rich or poor, but you didn't.
    
11. Don't worry, I'll do what you have asked. You are respected by everyone in town.
    
12. It's true that I am one of the relatives who is supposed to take care of you, but there is someone who is an even closer relative.
    
13. Stay here until morning, then I will find out if he is willing to look after you. If he isn't, I promise by the living God to do it myself. Now go back to sleep until morning.
    
14. Ruth lay down again, but she got up before daylight, because Boaz did not want anyone to know she had been there.
    
15. Then he told her to spread out her cape. And he filled it with a lot of grain and placed it on her shoulder. When Ruth got back to town,
    
16. Naomi asked her what had happened, and Ruth told her everything.
    
17. She also said, "Boaz gave me this grain, because he didn't want me to come back without something for you."
    
18. Naomi replied, "Just be patient and don't worry about what will happen. He won't rest until everything is settled today!"
    

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    As noted in the previous chapter, with Ruth's good fortune of happening into the fields of Boaz and his kind and generous reception to her, Naomi's hope was restored that the Lord had not forgotten her. She recognized that Ruth's good fortune was not coincidental but rather God's providence. With the restoration of her hope came the restoration of her spirit and healing of her depression. Whereas Ruth had taken the initiative before to go out into the fields to provide them food, Naomi now took the initiative to formulate a plan to provide for Ruth's security through marriage.
    
    Chapter two established that Boaz was not only a kind man and helpful to Ruth but he was also Elimelech's relative. Now, in chapter three, it is established that he was also a kinsman redeemer. This meant that he had a responsibility to fulfill the custom of levirate marriage which was to marry the widow of a deceased brother who had no son so a son might be born of that marriage on behalf of the one deceased. Naomi's plan to provide marriage security for Ruth involved taking advantage of Boaz's family position. Her plan, however, did not involve going to Boaz and verbally asking him to fulfill this obligation. Maybe this was because they were women and such boldness was not appropriate.
    
    Naomi's plan involved Ruth going to the community threshing floor at a given time when Naomi knew Boaz would be there to thresh his grain. She also knew he would spend the night close to his grain to protect it. So, according to the plan, Ruth was to dress so her identity was hidden and go to the threshing floor when Boaz would be there but not reveal her identity to him. She was to merely observe his activities while eating and drinking and then notice where he laid down to sleep. When he was asleep she was to uncover his feet and lie down at his feet.
    
    Ruth followed Naomi's instructions and during the night while she lay at Boaz's feet, he was suddenly awakened and noticed her there and asked who she was. She told him, "I am Ruth, your slave," she replied. "Spread your cloak over me, for you are a family redeemer." (3:9) Boaz blessed her for her actions and assured her he would fulfill his obligation to marry her but there was another relative who was a closer redeemer and he needed to offer him the first opportunity to exercise this role. If he did not choose to do so, Boaz would. When daylight approached he sent her home with six measures of barley.
    
    Ruth told Naomi all that happened and Naomi said to her, "Wait, my daughter, until you find out how things go, for he won't rest unless he resolves this today." (3:18)