WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.000 the end of chapter one, that it's a barley harvest 00:00:04.000 --> 00:00:10.519 has come and it's time to glean. It's time to 00:00:10.519 --> 00:00:14.660 gather up the barley, which is a picture of hope. 00:00:16.339 --> 00:00:20.559 So Ruth goes with Naomi and they have nothing. 00:00:21.899 --> 00:00:26.600 And they discuss and Ruth says, I need to go 00:00:26.600 --> 00:00:29.260 glean. Gleaning was interesting. Gleaning was 00:00:29.260 --> 00:00:31.399 a system set up for the poor and the powerless 00:00:31.399 --> 00:00:34.560 to follow behind the harvesters. And the harvesters 00:00:34.560 --> 00:00:37.200 would leave a little bit of scraps -like, and 00:00:37.200 --> 00:00:38.880 they would scoop that up, and that gave them 00:00:38.880 --> 00:00:41.560 enough to eat because they had no power or position 00:00:41.560 --> 00:00:46.840 to get anything otherwise. And it just so happened, 00:00:46.979 --> 00:00:49.079 which is, by the way, one of the themes of Ruth, 00:00:49.259 --> 00:00:52.020 just so happened, God's sovereign hand is at 00:00:52.020 --> 00:00:54.689 play, but it just so happened. that Ruth shows 00:00:54.689 --> 00:00:59.770 up and begins to glean in a field of Boaz. Chapter 00:00:59.770 --> 00:01:04.650 2, Boaz sees her in the field. This is what Jared 00:01:04.650 --> 00:01:07.250 unpacked last week. Sees her in a field and invites 00:01:07.250 --> 00:01:11.609 Ruth to come eat with her at his table. This 00:01:11.609 --> 00:01:14.530 is a picture, the picture of this is that he 00:01:14.530 --> 00:01:19.290 serves her. He provides for her and he protects 00:01:19.290 --> 00:01:26.069 her. And then we see that Boaz is this godly 00:01:26.069 --> 00:01:32.349 man. He's a tough and a tender man. My boys, 00:01:32.510 --> 00:01:35.230 when I, in fact, my middle child, my first child, 00:01:35.310 --> 00:01:39.129 first child's middle name is Boaz. Sorry, middle 00:01:39.129 --> 00:01:44.750 child, I only have two. Isaac Boaz, his middle 00:01:44.750 --> 00:01:47.670 name is Boaz. And part of the reason his middle 00:01:47.670 --> 00:01:50.150 name is Boaz is because what we see in this guy 00:01:50.150 --> 00:01:53.640 Boaz. That he is a tough and a tender. And so 00:01:53.640 --> 00:01:55.980 as my boys, as we were growing up, we always 00:01:55.980 --> 00:01:57.500 would tell them, boys, we want you to grow up 00:01:57.500 --> 00:02:00.560 to be tough and tender. Tough to deal with this 00:02:00.560 --> 00:02:02.560 jacked up world that you're going to face as 00:02:02.560 --> 00:02:05.719 you grow into it. And you've got to stand. You've 00:02:05.719 --> 00:02:07.780 got to be tough. You've got to be strong. But 00:02:07.780 --> 00:02:10.060 you've got to be tender. And you've got to have 00:02:10.060 --> 00:02:12.539 compassion for those who are hurting. And both 00:02:12.539 --> 00:02:19.340 of those are in play with Boaz. So the name Boaz 00:02:19.340 --> 00:02:23.080 actually means strong man. He's a strong man. 00:02:23.300 --> 00:02:26.680 And he was. In a lot of different levels. And 00:02:26.680 --> 00:02:30.900 in chapter 2, he just invites her in. And so 00:02:30.900 --> 00:02:33.080 he's just drawing this picture of a helpless 00:02:33.080 --> 00:02:38.419 Ruth and Naomi. And somebody who is strong and 00:02:38.419 --> 00:02:44.219 able to provide someone of good character. In 00:02:44.219 --> 00:02:48.219 chapter 2, we see this idea of a kinsman redeemer. 00:02:49.229 --> 00:02:52.710 I think it's a family redeemer, which is what 00:02:52.710 --> 00:02:56.969 is oftentimes described in the CSB version. It's 00:02:56.969 --> 00:02:59.210 a redeemer in that we're going to see this idea 00:02:59.210 --> 00:03:02.229 of this redeemer coming to full in chapter 4. 00:03:02.349 --> 00:03:06.990 We'll get there. Because of his character and 00:03:06.990 --> 00:03:12.370 kindness, Boaz, Naomi says to Ruth, you should 00:03:12.370 --> 00:03:15.550 continue to glean at Boaz's field because it's 00:03:15.550 --> 00:03:16.969 safe. Now, you've got to remember the backdrop 00:03:16.969 --> 00:03:20.400 to this book. It's a backdrop of darkness and 00:03:20.400 --> 00:03:24.139 destruction. It's the time of the judges. And 00:03:24.139 --> 00:03:25.780 so what you see, if you were painting a picture, 00:03:25.879 --> 00:03:29.060 it's almost like behind the story is darkness 00:03:29.060 --> 00:03:34.120 and destruction and sin. And out of this picture 00:03:34.120 --> 00:03:39.819 comes Boaz and Ruth and this story. We've said 00:03:39.819 --> 00:03:42.379 it before that it's kind of like a whisper of 00:03:42.379 --> 00:03:48.300 hope in darkness. So she says, You've got to 00:03:48.300 --> 00:03:51.800 stay at Boaz. It's a safe place. He's actually 00:03:51.800 --> 00:03:56.919 demonstrating he will protect you. Now as we 00:03:56.919 --> 00:03:59.800 come to chapter 3, what I'd like to do first 00:03:59.800 --> 00:04:02.719 is just walk through the story. Because there's 00:04:02.719 --> 00:04:05.479 a lot of things. And there's a lot of different 00:04:05.479 --> 00:04:07.759 applications you can pull from this story. So 00:04:07.759 --> 00:04:09.800 even though I'm not going to hit all of those, 00:04:10.560 --> 00:04:12.759 I'll get like again, like the Lord might hit 00:04:12.759 --> 00:04:17.120 you with something in this. But we'll walk through 00:04:17.120 --> 00:04:18.680 it and we'll just jump into the story. We're 00:04:18.680 --> 00:04:21.019 going to like verse by verse through it. So just 00:04:21.019 --> 00:04:25.560 start with verse 1. It says, Ruth's mother -in 00:04:25.560 --> 00:04:30.959 -law, Naomi, said to her, My daughter, shouldn't 00:04:30.959 --> 00:04:35.259 I find rest for you so that you will be taken 00:04:35.259 --> 00:04:43.300 care of? Think back to Naomi. Here's Naomi, described 00:04:43.300 --> 00:04:47.220 in chapter 1 as bitter. And what we see with 00:04:47.220 --> 00:04:49.720 Naomi is she's taking her eyes off of herself 00:04:49.720 --> 00:04:52.620 here. And she's looking at Ruth and she says, 00:04:52.639 --> 00:04:54.639 Ruth, we've got to take care of you. I mean, 00:04:54.660 --> 00:04:56.319 I was just thinking, like, Ruth is probably thinking, 00:04:56.420 --> 00:05:01.040 if I die, she has nothing because she's a foreign 00:05:01.040 --> 00:05:06.300 lady. What Naomi wants for her is the same thing 00:05:06.300 --> 00:05:09.319 she stated back in chapter 1, verse 9, when she 00:05:09.319 --> 00:05:12.040 says, may the Lord grant each of you rest in 00:05:12.040 --> 00:05:15.060 the house of a husband. Because in order for 00:05:15.060 --> 00:05:19.180 Ruth to be taken care of, she needed to have 00:05:19.180 --> 00:05:22.259 somebody to provide for her. It was incapable 00:05:22.259 --> 00:05:25.860 of doing it on her own. So in order for Ruth 00:05:25.860 --> 00:05:29.480 to have security and rest as a woman in an Israelite 00:05:29.480 --> 00:05:35.560 society, she needed to be married. So, what Naomi 00:05:35.560 --> 00:05:39.800 says is, Ruth, you need a husband. And I have 00:05:39.800 --> 00:05:44.829 a plan. Now, My wife and I were talking about 00:05:44.829 --> 00:05:48.329 this. Ruth's track record on a plan and a strategy 00:05:48.329 --> 00:05:53.029 hasn't been that good. But she has a plan. And 00:05:53.029 --> 00:05:59.550 here it is. Verse 2. Now isn't Boaz our relative? 00:06:00.149 --> 00:06:04.550 Huh. Haven't you been working with the female 00:06:04.550 --> 00:06:08.870 servants? This evening, he will be winnowing 00:06:08.870 --> 00:06:12.699 barley on the threshing floor. Oh. Okay, let's 00:06:12.699 --> 00:06:16.360 unpack that. Naomi says, Ruth, I don't know if 00:06:16.360 --> 00:06:20.040 you've been paying attention, but Boaz is your 00:06:20.040 --> 00:06:23.759 man. Like, don't you just love a mother -in -law 00:06:23.759 --> 00:06:26.639 who gets up in your business? That's what she's 00:06:26.639 --> 00:06:29.819 doing here. She says, Boaz is your man. First 00:06:29.819 --> 00:06:33.860 of all, he is a kinsman redeemer, meaning he 00:06:33.860 --> 00:06:41.360 is an eligible bachelor. And, Ruth, he has a 00:06:41.360 --> 00:06:48.129 job. That's a big deal. Now, we don't have a 00:06:48.129 --> 00:06:51.949 lot of single young men around this church. Everybody's 00:06:51.949 --> 00:06:55.029 married to 4 .5 kids, so it's a little different, 00:06:55.110 --> 00:07:00.170 but man, he has a job. So ladies, if you're looking 00:07:00.170 --> 00:07:02.670 for a man, make sure he has a job first. His 00:07:02.670 --> 00:07:07.089 house is in order. His house is in order. So 00:07:07.089 --> 00:07:12.470 Ruth, it's time to make your move. Tonight. tonight 00:07:12.470 --> 00:07:16.470 he there will be this time when he's alone so 00:07:16.470 --> 00:07:20.910 here's the plan and now in verses three and four 00:07:20.910 --> 00:07:23.269 it starts to get a little shady please use your 00:07:23.269 --> 00:07:26.209 imagination okay it's meant to use this so here 00:07:26.209 --> 00:07:32.970 we go verse three wash wash okay we'll keep going 00:07:32.970 --> 00:07:37.649 put on perfumed oil and wear your best clothes 00:07:40.170 --> 00:07:44.149 Okay, so stop right there. It's not that she's 00:07:44.149 --> 00:07:48.029 stinky. Something's changing, okay? So we'll 00:07:48.029 --> 00:07:50.910 get to that in a second. Wash, put on your perfumed 00:07:50.910 --> 00:07:53.850 oil and wear your best clothes. Go down to the 00:07:53.850 --> 00:07:57.430 threshing floor, but don't let the man know that 00:07:57.430 --> 00:08:00.029 you're there until he's finished eating and drinking, 00:08:00.189 --> 00:08:06.949 okay? Ruth, go make yourself beautiful. It's 00:08:06.949 --> 00:08:11.379 time to transition from being a widow in mourning, 00:08:11.620 --> 00:08:16.939 and to present yourself as available. That's 00:08:16.939 --> 00:08:23.480 what's happening. It's time. So here's, so she's 00:08:23.480 --> 00:08:27.199 placing herself in front of Boaz now. Now, we 00:08:27.199 --> 00:08:29.160 know in chapter two that Boaz has paid attention 00:08:29.160 --> 00:08:31.399 to her already, right? He's already recognized 00:08:31.399 --> 00:08:33.860 who she is. He's already started to show protection 00:08:33.860 --> 00:08:37.690 and care for her. But now Ruth moves in and does 00:08:37.690 --> 00:08:39.710 something interesting. She's been kind of just 00:08:39.710 --> 00:08:42.009 in this place of mourning, maybe a little dirty. 00:08:42.029 --> 00:08:45.669 She's poor. She's got nothing. Maybe just average. 00:08:47.309 --> 00:08:52.789 Naomi says, uh -uh. Doll yourself up. Smell good. 00:08:53.929 --> 00:08:58.629 Guys are simple. We're visual. That's Caleb's 00:08:58.629 --> 00:09:05.470 addition. He's going to notice you. Years ago, 00:09:05.490 --> 00:09:07.710 I asked permission to tell this story, so I'm 00:09:07.710 --> 00:09:11.529 going to just state that. But I've been married 00:09:11.529 --> 00:09:16.669 30 years to a beautiful, but this summer that 00:09:16.669 --> 00:09:19.370 I met my wife. We were at Victor Bible Camp, 00:09:19.549 --> 00:09:22.950 and I was working as program director. She came 00:09:22.950 --> 00:09:25.309 up as a counselor, and I saw her, and I went, 00:09:25.370 --> 00:09:31.070 oh, la, la. And I got to know her, but there 00:09:31.070 --> 00:09:32.870 was something behind her that she says, I don't 00:09:32.870 --> 00:09:35.259 really want a relationship. She would tell me 00:09:35.259 --> 00:09:37.480 this. I'm not interested. I came to this camp. 00:09:37.539 --> 00:09:39.820 I'm out of the boy scene right now. Like, I'm 00:09:39.820 --> 00:09:41.419 just here to serve the Lord. And I went, yes. 00:09:42.240 --> 00:09:45.440 Right? But what happened throughout the summer 00:09:45.440 --> 00:09:48.220 is I really got to know her. And I knew her heart. 00:09:48.279 --> 00:09:51.500 And I began to really like her. And it grew. 00:09:52.559 --> 00:09:55.220 And at the end of the summer, we really made 00:09:55.220 --> 00:09:57.360 it official. We began to date. I knew at the 00:09:57.360 --> 00:09:58.620 end of the summer that was the girl I was going 00:09:58.620 --> 00:10:02.509 to marry. And then she moved back down to Memphis, 00:10:02.590 --> 00:10:04.590 Tennessee. I was up here in Alaska at the time. 00:10:05.350 --> 00:10:09.250 And I get this thing in the mail, and it's this 00:10:09.250 --> 00:10:13.590 picture, which I didn't know at first. It was 00:10:13.590 --> 00:10:17.250 a beautiful woman. And I looked at it, and I 00:10:17.250 --> 00:10:19.990 was like, wait a minute. Is this a setup? It 00:10:19.990 --> 00:10:23.429 doesn't look like her at first. But I knew it 00:10:23.429 --> 00:10:25.289 was, but she was baiting me because she's like, 00:10:25.370 --> 00:10:30.379 so what do you think? And I was like, hmm. If 00:10:30.379 --> 00:10:34.519 I say she's really that beautiful and it's not 00:10:34.519 --> 00:10:37.379 her, I'm in trouble. But if I don't say she's 00:10:37.379 --> 00:10:39.240 beautiful and it is her, I'm in trouble. I mean, 00:10:39.340 --> 00:10:42.259 yeah, you hear my dilemma. And finally, I just 00:10:42.259 --> 00:10:44.940 like, I got to risk this because she's amazing. 00:10:45.000 --> 00:10:49.679 It was beautiful to me. She put herself in front 00:10:49.679 --> 00:10:51.179 of me. And it's kind of reminding me of this 00:10:51.179 --> 00:10:53.100 text. Like, all of a sudden, it's like, and I 00:10:53.100 --> 00:10:56.799 went, oh, wow. Like, it wasn't she was trying 00:10:56.799 --> 00:10:58.639 to be ugly. She just said, oh, you want to see 00:10:58.639 --> 00:11:01.240 me? Now you see what else you get. It was just 00:11:01.240 --> 00:11:04.139 one of those pictures and I was like, I'll just 00:11:04.139 --> 00:11:10.519 leave it right there. I was like, yes! What's 00:11:10.519 --> 00:11:16.519 that? Sounds bad, I know, but it wasn't. So the 00:11:16.519 --> 00:11:19.179 plan is make yourself beautiful and available 00:11:19.179 --> 00:11:25.179 and get rid and go hide until your moment comes. 00:11:26.720 --> 00:11:30.820 And Boaz is in a relaxed mood. And then you're 00:11:30.820 --> 00:11:33.919 going to present yourself. Verse 4. Okay, here's 00:11:33.919 --> 00:11:36.799 it goes. This is really messed with a lot of 00:11:36.799 --> 00:11:39.279 people. This one mirrors a lot of Song of Solomon. 00:11:39.379 --> 00:11:43.159 So here we go. Verse 4. And when he lies down, 00:11:43.379 --> 00:11:48.320 notice the place where he is lying. And go uncover 00:11:48.320 --> 00:11:52.320 his feet and lie down. Then he will explain to 00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:57.259 you what to do. That's weird. Okay, there are 00:11:57.259 --> 00:11:59.700 three words in the Hebrew language here to see 00:11:59.700 --> 00:12:02.500 here. They're just filled with sexual overtones. 00:12:03.679 --> 00:12:06.799 Sorry, that's your Bible. It's loaded in this 00:12:06.799 --> 00:12:11.320 text right here. Uncover legs or feet, depending 00:12:11.320 --> 00:12:13.399 on which way it's translated in your Bible, and 00:12:13.399 --> 00:12:17.299 lie down. Okay, something's happening here. It's 00:12:17.299 --> 00:12:19.179 important to know, though, as we go through this, 00:12:19.360 --> 00:12:23.559 there is nothing immoral happens here, but is 00:12:23.559 --> 00:12:26.340 extremely provocative. And the original readers 00:12:26.340 --> 00:12:28.919 would have went, ooh. In fact, a couple of people 00:12:28.919 --> 00:12:31.100 have commentated, if the original readers were 00:12:31.100 --> 00:12:33.259 reading this, all of a sudden mom would reach 00:12:33.259 --> 00:12:35.559 over and cover the ears of the kid in this verse. 00:12:35.659 --> 00:12:38.379 This is how charged this is in their language. 00:12:39.159 --> 00:12:44.600 And so Ruth's actions of uncovering Boaz's feet 00:12:44.600 --> 00:12:49.360 and lying down is a nonverbal, customary means 00:12:49.360 --> 00:12:54.259 of requesting marriage. Okay, so she's going 00:12:54.259 --> 00:12:57.509 after it. That's what's happening here. She's 00:12:57.509 --> 00:13:03.710 like, going for it. So Ruth, she's actually saying, 00:13:03.789 --> 00:13:07.210 look at what verse 5 says. So Ruth said to her, 00:13:07.389 --> 00:13:10.309 mother -in -law, after the plan has been concocted, 00:13:10.309 --> 00:13:15.409 I will do everything you say. I will do everything 00:13:15.409 --> 00:13:19.730 you say. Okay, so it's on. So this is a picture 00:13:19.730 --> 00:13:24.559 of selflessness and submission of Ruth. Things 00:13:24.559 --> 00:13:27.179 could go really bad in this plan. Think about 00:13:27.179 --> 00:13:29.879 it. Boaz, she could lay down, do all the things 00:13:29.879 --> 00:13:33.299 she said, and Boaz could mock her request for 00:13:33.299 --> 00:13:38.220 marriage. And she's just a poor, widowed Moabite. 00:13:38.980 --> 00:13:41.679 What is she doing there? This could go really 00:13:41.679 --> 00:13:45.419 wrong for Ruth and Naomi. And it could be, she 00:13:45.419 --> 00:13:47.620 could also be branded as an adulteress because 00:13:47.620 --> 00:13:51.720 of how she presents herself to Boaz. He could 00:13:51.720 --> 00:13:54.399 say, get out of here. That's what he could do. 00:13:54.460 --> 00:14:01.159 Or, even worse, Boaz could use this night's opportunity 00:14:01.159 --> 00:14:04.899 as an opportunity for his sexual pleasure. She's 00:14:04.899 --> 00:14:09.139 right there, presenting herself to him, which 00:14:09.139 --> 00:14:14.500 would bring her great humiliation. All these 00:14:14.500 --> 00:14:17.799 things are risky. Everything she's doing is dangerous. 00:14:19.059 --> 00:14:23.970 And yet, Ruth responds, I'll do everything you 00:14:23.970 --> 00:14:28.970 say. I'll do everything you say. And this demonstrates 00:14:28.970 --> 00:14:34.710 her commitment and trust in Naomi. She's committed. 00:14:36.649 --> 00:14:41.149 Look at verse so and look at verse six. So she 00:14:41.149 --> 00:14:44.409 went down to the threshing floor and did everything 00:14:44.409 --> 00:14:48.289 her mother -in -law charged her to do. And after 00:14:48.289 --> 00:14:53.419 Boaz drank and was in good spirits, He went to 00:14:53.419 --> 00:14:58.679 lie down at the end of his pile of barley. Now, 00:14:58.720 --> 00:15:01.019 before I go any farther, the reason they did 00:15:01.019 --> 00:15:05.340 that was two things. One, protect his, that's 00:15:05.340 --> 00:15:07.379 cash. It's like he's going to the bank and laying 00:15:07.379 --> 00:15:10.279 in his pile of money, okay? But the second reason 00:15:10.279 --> 00:15:13.700 they did this was to show, it was to celebrate 00:15:13.700 --> 00:15:17.000 God's goodness. And so it was a picture. And 00:15:17.000 --> 00:15:21.039 so she, after he lays down in the pile of barley, 00:15:21.740 --> 00:15:25.940 She came secretly in. Some versions say softly 00:15:25.940 --> 00:15:30.000 in. He's kind of snoozing already. He's sleeping. 00:15:30.220 --> 00:15:34.659 She comes in, uncovers his feet, and lays down. 00:15:36.460 --> 00:15:40.240 Ruth is stepping out in bold and risky faith. 00:15:41.399 --> 00:15:44.659 And this thing is happening right now. Look at 00:15:44.659 --> 00:15:48.440 verse 8. At midnight, Boaz was startled. Maybe 00:15:48.440 --> 00:15:51.419 a little breeze on his legs. I don't know. Boaz 00:15:51.419 --> 00:15:54.580 is startled, turned over, and there lying at 00:15:54.580 --> 00:16:02.120 his feet was a woman. Okay. Guys. Can you imagine, 00:16:02.259 --> 00:16:05.460 not just guys, but all of you, but guys. Can 00:16:05.460 --> 00:16:10.360 you imagine what was racing through Boaz's head 00:16:10.360 --> 00:16:30.590 when this happened? Verse 9, so he asked, who 00:16:30.590 --> 00:16:37.250 are you? I am Ruth, your servant. She replied, 00:16:37.570 --> 00:16:43.230 take me under your wing, for you are a family 00:16:43.230 --> 00:16:48.970 redeemer. Ooh, what's going on here? So when 00:16:48.970 --> 00:16:54.659 Ruth says, Ruth, I am Ruth, your servant. This 00:16:54.659 --> 00:16:59.960 is not, I am Ruth, your slave. It is her saying, 00:17:00.100 --> 00:17:08.319 I am available for relationship with you. Wow. 00:17:09.700 --> 00:17:14.359 Now Ruth departs from Naomi's plan, right? Naomi's 00:17:14.359 --> 00:17:17.039 plan is to say, he'll tell you what to do. And 00:17:17.039 --> 00:17:21.740 she says, we're taking it one step farther. She 00:17:21.740 --> 00:17:24.500 says, She speaks for herself in this moment. 00:17:24.619 --> 00:17:30.299 She says, take me under your wing. She is saying, 00:17:30.359 --> 00:17:39.539 boys, I want you to pursue me and marry me. She's 00:17:39.539 --> 00:17:43.420 not proposing marriage to him. What she's proposing 00:17:43.420 --> 00:17:48.819 is that he propose to her. Like, hey, I know, 00:17:48.859 --> 00:17:52.000 guys, sometimes we're not that bright, but... 00:17:52.480 --> 00:17:59.000 Hey, I'm available. This is forward. Boaz, bring 00:17:59.000 --> 00:18:06.119 me under your care. Take me in. This really, 00:18:06.259 --> 00:18:09.420 this goes back to chapter 2, verse 12. Do you 00:18:09.420 --> 00:18:11.720 remember what Boaz said to Ruth when he invited 00:18:11.720 --> 00:18:13.279 her in for dinner and that kind of thing? She 00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:17.420 says, May the Lord, Boaz saying this to, may 00:18:17.420 --> 00:18:19.799 the Lord reward you for what you have done. He's 00:18:19.799 --> 00:18:22.079 talking about the relationship with Naomi and 00:18:22.079 --> 00:18:25.579 how she has just treated her so well. May the 00:18:25.579 --> 00:18:28.160 Lord reward you for what you have done. May you 00:18:28.160 --> 00:18:31.480 receive a full reward from the Lord God of Israel 00:18:31.480 --> 00:18:39.059 under whose wings you have come for refuge. This 00:18:39.059 --> 00:18:44.089 is the same exact words as used in verse. of 00:18:44.089 --> 00:18:48.450 chapter 3. What she is saying is, Boaz, be the 00:18:48.450 --> 00:18:53.869 answer to the prayer you prayed for me. You, 00:18:54.029 --> 00:18:58.430 Boaz, are the covering and rest for me. I want 00:18:58.430 --> 00:19:01.750 to be loved by you. I want your wings around 00:19:01.750 --> 00:19:07.650 me. Beautiful, isn't it? And Boaz responds like 00:19:07.650 --> 00:19:13.289 he should. And he said, May the Lord bless you, 00:19:13.369 --> 00:19:17.089 my daughter. That's an affection, not me, like 00:19:17.089 --> 00:19:20.109 my little kid, like my child. My daughter is 00:19:20.109 --> 00:19:22.349 an affectionate term. May the Lord bless you, 00:19:22.390 --> 00:19:25.150 my daughter. You have shown me more kindness 00:19:25.150 --> 00:19:27.950 than before because you have not pursued younger 00:19:27.950 --> 00:19:33.930 men with a richer poor. Boaz's first words out 00:19:33.930 --> 00:19:38.349 to Ruth are words of blessing. He says, this 00:19:38.349 --> 00:19:41.470 kindness, remember the word chesed? Which means, 00:19:41.650 --> 00:19:45.150 he says, this chesed, this kindness is greater 00:19:45.150 --> 00:19:46.910 than before. Remember what the word chesed means, 00:19:47.089 --> 00:19:52.490 right? The first kindness, chesed, was Ruth's 00:19:52.490 --> 00:19:56.930 compassionate move toward Naomi. Meaning, chesed 00:19:56.930 --> 00:19:59.509 is this word that we cannot define in the English 00:19:59.509 --> 00:20:02.650 language that is so full. But it's God's love 00:20:02.650 --> 00:20:06.190 and kindness and protection and care and beauty 00:20:06.190 --> 00:20:09.079 and... just all so big and encompassing, but 00:20:09.079 --> 00:20:13.440 it always comes from God to us. But what's happening 00:20:13.440 --> 00:20:16.019 here, he says, this has said, the reason he uses 00:20:16.019 --> 00:20:18.460 that term, he says, look, everything you've experienced, 00:20:18.579 --> 00:20:21.940 obviously, the vertical you have with God is 00:20:21.940 --> 00:20:25.279 a horizontal now to how you've treated Naomi. 00:20:25.480 --> 00:20:29.700 And I see it. And then he says it again. He said, 00:20:29.819 --> 00:20:34.259 that first has said, this is what you're doing 00:20:34.259 --> 00:20:37.309 for me? It's greater than what you did before. 00:20:38.630 --> 00:20:44.549 Same word. But now, but now her availability 00:20:44.549 --> 00:20:50.490 to Boaz is next level. He is stunned that she'd 00:20:50.490 --> 00:20:54.869 be interested in him. We don't know all the details. 00:20:55.109 --> 00:20:59.390 Is he older? Is he ugly? I mean, we don't know. 00:20:59.690 --> 00:21:05.349 All we know is that he is like, whoa. Look at 00:21:05.349 --> 00:21:09.450 verse, and so he continues. Verse 11. Now, don't 00:21:09.450 --> 00:21:14.529 be afraid, my daughter. I will do for you whatever 00:21:14.529 --> 00:21:19.289 you say. Since all the people in my town know 00:21:19.289 --> 00:21:22.750 that you are a woman of noble character. Oh, 00:21:22.930 --> 00:21:26.630 there's something to know about Ruth. He's been 00:21:26.630 --> 00:21:30.470 observing Ruth, right? Boy, it says, yes, I will 00:21:30.470 --> 00:21:35.849 pursue you. And he then points out her noble 00:21:35.849 --> 00:21:42.730 character. He's had his eye on her because of 00:21:42.730 --> 00:21:50.430 who she is. He's seen it. I could use my imagination, 00:21:50.490 --> 00:21:52.750 which is what you have to do here. Probably thinking, 00:21:52.890 --> 00:21:57.549 that's a good girl, but man, she's probably out 00:21:57.549 --> 00:22:05.599 of my league. I'm older. This verse mirrors Proverbs 00:22:05.599 --> 00:22:08.980 31 .10. If you get a chance, read Proverbs 31. 00:22:09.160 --> 00:22:11.660 It's the end of Ruth. Now, here's the thing about 00:22:11.660 --> 00:22:15.359 Proverbs 30. Proverbs is that many in the Hebrew 00:22:15.359 --> 00:22:18.079 believe that the Hebrew Bible was set up in such 00:22:18.079 --> 00:22:23.819 a way that Proverbs was there and then Ruth came 00:22:23.819 --> 00:22:25.680 right after it. Well, if you look at the very 00:22:25.680 --> 00:22:28.720 last chapter of Ruth, you see in chapter 31, 00:22:28.759 --> 00:22:31.519 it is really about a wife of, and it says this 00:22:31.519 --> 00:22:34.059 in verse 10. And this is the same language as 00:22:34.059 --> 00:22:36.160 used in Ruth. So there's this connection, there's 00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:39.319 tying this together. Who can find a wife of noble 00:22:39.319 --> 00:22:43.400 character? She is far more precious than jewels. 00:22:44.119 --> 00:22:48.099 It's kind of what he's saying. Oh, she's that 00:22:48.099 --> 00:22:52.400 kind of woman. Oh, she's more precious than anything. 00:22:54.019 --> 00:22:58.700 It's like Boaz is saying, you, Ruth, are precious. 00:22:59.700 --> 00:23:02.490 Man, that's a good way to... Have a good conversation 00:23:02.490 --> 00:23:04.329 now with your wife. Like, do you see your wife 00:23:04.329 --> 00:23:06.869 as precious? I think that's what he does right 00:23:06.869 --> 00:23:09.569 there. He's like, man, you're precious. I don't 00:23:09.569 --> 00:23:11.009 know a woman who doesn't want to be treated as 00:23:11.009 --> 00:23:17.069 precious. Isn't this just amazing? Everything 00:23:17.069 --> 00:23:19.750 seems to be working out. It's coming together. 00:23:20.329 --> 00:23:22.670 Naomi's plan is good. Love is in the air. Hope 00:23:22.670 --> 00:23:26.329 is in the air. But wait, there's verse 12. And 00:23:26.329 --> 00:23:29.690 nobody likes verse 12. Look at verse 12. Yes, 00:23:29.769 --> 00:23:34.230 it is true. that I am a family redeemer, but 00:23:34.230 --> 00:23:37.490 there is a redeemer closer than I am. Uh -oh. 00:23:38.490 --> 00:23:40.529 Wait, wait, wait, wait. There's another guy? 00:23:41.670 --> 00:23:43.970 You can just think of her belly just sink right 00:23:43.970 --> 00:23:49.769 there. Maybe this is why Boaz hadn't already 00:23:49.769 --> 00:23:56.490 pursued Ruth. What we see in this is Boaz's high 00:23:56.490 --> 00:24:00.329 integrity. He's like, you know what? I may desire 00:24:00.329 --> 00:24:04.789 her, but I can't do that because there is another 00:24:04.789 --> 00:24:11.990 that is family redeemer. Look at verse 13. He 00:24:11.990 --> 00:24:15.230 has more to say, though. He says this. Stay here 00:24:15.230 --> 00:24:19.049 tonight and in the morning. If he wants to redeem 00:24:19.049 --> 00:24:23.890 you, that's good. Talking about the other family 00:24:23.890 --> 00:24:25.750 redeemers. If he wants to redeem you, that's 00:24:25.750 --> 00:24:28.450 good. Let him redeem you. He will take care of 00:24:28.450 --> 00:24:34.940 you. But. If he doesn't want to redeem you, as 00:24:34.940 --> 00:24:38.079 the Lord lives, this is a vow, this is like massive 00:24:38.079 --> 00:24:43.099 statement, as the Lord lives, I will. Now lay 00:24:43.099 --> 00:24:46.859 down until morning. Basically, Boaz is saying, 00:24:47.000 --> 00:24:50.200 I am going to fight for you tomorrow morning. 00:24:51.019 --> 00:24:54.119 I'm going to do everything it takes to fight 00:24:54.119 --> 00:25:01.539 for you. Amen. This is not even my notes. Fight 00:25:01.539 --> 00:25:06.680 for your woman. How God's created us. Do everything 00:25:06.680 --> 00:25:11.559 you can. And so he does. Verse 14, he says, so 00:25:11.559 --> 00:25:14.279 they lay down at his feet until morning and got 00:25:14.279 --> 00:25:17.700 up while it was still dark. I'm pretty sure that 00:25:17.700 --> 00:25:20.400 nobody was sleeping right there. They were just 00:25:20.400 --> 00:25:24.000 wondering what was coming next, right? Then Boaz 00:25:24.000 --> 00:25:27.640 said, don't let it be known that a woman came 00:25:27.640 --> 00:25:30.839 to the threshing floor. He says, basically, let's 00:25:30.839 --> 00:25:37.339 just keep this whole thing quiet. Verse 15, he 00:25:37.339 --> 00:25:40.680 told Ruth, bring me your shawl or your overcoat, 00:25:40.779 --> 00:25:42.480 something you'd wrap around, a big kind of cape 00:25:42.480 --> 00:25:46.779 or something, that you're wearing and hold it 00:25:46.779 --> 00:25:51.880 out. And she held it out, and he shoveled in 00:25:51.880 --> 00:25:56.259 six measures of barley into the shawl, and she 00:25:56.259 --> 00:26:01.529 went to town. Okay. What Boaz does here is really 00:26:01.529 --> 00:26:05.049 subtle, but it's massive. He doesn't know if 00:26:05.049 --> 00:26:08.190 he's going to get her, does he? But that doesn't 00:26:08.190 --> 00:26:11.690 matter. What does he do? He blesses her. That's 00:26:11.690 --> 00:26:14.690 a lot of barley. Some people estimate that what 00:26:14.690 --> 00:26:17.950 he gave her was 50 to 70 pounds. Ruth's got some 00:26:17.950 --> 00:26:19.589 strong muscles. She's got this crossfit. She 00:26:19.589 --> 00:26:23.089 can throw the thing over and go. But she blesses 00:26:23.089 --> 00:26:25.950 her and Naomi regardless of how things are going 00:26:25.950 --> 00:26:29.289 to turn out. And then verse 16, she went to her 00:26:29.289 --> 00:26:32.609 mother -in -law, Naomi, who asked her, what happened, 00:26:32.710 --> 00:26:34.369 my daughter? You can just see here, she's like, 00:26:34.470 --> 00:26:36.890 what happened? How did it go? That's what's happening 00:26:36.890 --> 00:26:40.009 right here. Then Ruth told her everything the 00:26:40.009 --> 00:26:42.549 man had done for her. Now, I want you to do something 00:26:42.549 --> 00:26:46.490 in your Bibles. Circle that for her. It's not 00:26:46.490 --> 00:26:48.970 Ruth told her everything the man had done to 00:26:48.970 --> 00:26:52.710 her. It was what he did for her. Big thing. And 00:26:52.710 --> 00:26:59.160 what he did was bless her. Verse 17, he said, 00:26:59.339 --> 00:27:02.500 he gave me the six measures of barley because 00:27:02.500 --> 00:27:05.559 he said, don't go back to your mother -in -law 00:27:05.559 --> 00:27:10.059 empty -handed. Underline that, empty -handed. 00:27:11.160 --> 00:27:14.480 So this verse points back to Naomi's in chapter 00:27:14.480 --> 00:27:17.859 1, verse 21, when it talks about, I went away, 00:27:18.019 --> 00:27:23.180 what? Full. But the Lord brought me back empty. 00:27:23.839 --> 00:27:26.019 It's the same thing. He's pointing back to that. 00:27:26.579 --> 00:27:28.940 Don't go back to your mother -in -law empty. 00:27:29.039 --> 00:27:33.079 You're going to go back full. Naomi was empty. 00:27:33.240 --> 00:27:36.680 But Ruth, Naomi and Ruth were in a place of great 00:27:36.680 --> 00:27:41.099 despair. But God is working it out. And they're 00:27:41.099 --> 00:27:43.359 trusting God in this. And Boaz just says, you're 00:27:43.359 --> 00:27:48.559 going back full. I think the grain is a picture 00:27:48.559 --> 00:27:51.700 of the fullness that's coming. It's a fullness 00:27:51.700 --> 00:27:55.640 that's coming. Now, Naomi has one last thing 00:27:55.640 --> 00:28:00.740 to say. Verse 18. Naomi said, my daughter -in 00:28:00.740 --> 00:28:06.640 -law, underline this next word, wait. Wait until 00:28:06.640 --> 00:28:11.220 you find out how things go. For he won't rest 00:28:11.220 --> 00:28:16.640 until he resolves it today. Sit tight and wait. 00:28:17.880 --> 00:28:20.539 Things are in the hand of God. That's the picture. 00:28:21.259 --> 00:28:27.269 Trust him. So, As we wrap this up, there are 00:28:27.269 --> 00:28:29.269 a lot of different things that we could pull 00:28:29.269 --> 00:28:35.089 from this story. I want to zero in on Ruth. I 00:28:35.089 --> 00:28:37.730 want you to think about Ruth for a minute. This 00:28:37.730 --> 00:28:40.210 is the last time in our story that Ruth or Naomi 00:28:40.210 --> 00:28:45.470 speak. This is it. Everything now shifts. So, 00:28:45.490 --> 00:28:51.150 it's going to focus on Boaz the Redeemer. I think 00:28:51.150 --> 00:28:56.250 Ruth... is a picture to us on how we approach 00:28:56.250 --> 00:29:01.289 the great Redeemer, Jesus Christ. So I want you 00:29:01.289 --> 00:29:04.769 to think about who she is, and then we're going 00:29:04.769 --> 00:29:07.210 to throw this out for discussion, and just for 00:29:07.210 --> 00:29:09.190 a second here, just wrap this up with a question. 00:29:10.150 --> 00:29:12.450 Over the past three chapters, as you've been 00:29:12.450 --> 00:29:16.029 working through this story, what have you seen 00:29:16.029 --> 00:29:20.710 about Ruth that informs us about how we come 00:29:20.710 --> 00:29:24.940 before God? What is Ruth's posture before God? 00:29:26.420 --> 00:29:28.500 What do you see? Because it's pointing at it. 00:29:29.500 --> 00:29:31.960 What are some of the things you see about Ruth 00:29:31.960 --> 00:29:35.359 in relationship to how she's coming to God? What 00:29:35.359 --> 00:29:40.039 are your thoughts? I've got a whole bunch written 00:29:40.039 --> 00:29:41.779 down here, but I think you should go. What do 00:29:41.779 --> 00:29:46.220 you think? What do you see in Ruth? What kind 00:29:46.220 --> 00:29:48.799 of qualities would you see that inform us on 00:29:48.799 --> 00:29:51.380 how, in many ways, how we are to approach God? 00:29:51.900 --> 00:29:54.079 Or we are to go after our Redeemer. What do you 00:29:54.079 --> 00:29:58.180 see? Humility. Good. There's a sense of humility, 00:29:58.380 --> 00:30:01.619 like she's humble. She's like, I don't got nothing, 00:30:01.740 --> 00:30:06.279 but I humbly lay it down. What else? Okay, what? 00:30:07.039 --> 00:30:10.180 A willingness to serve. Yeah, yeah, what else? 00:30:10.240 --> 00:30:14.460 I heard desperation. Okay, but there's a calm 00:30:14.460 --> 00:30:16.519 desperation in that, isn't there? It's like... 00:30:16.799 --> 00:30:19.119 There's almost like more desperation in Naomi 00:30:19.119 --> 00:30:21.380 because she's concocting a plan. We've got to 00:30:21.380 --> 00:30:23.759 figure this out. But there's this posture of 00:30:23.759 --> 00:30:28.000 Ruth where she says, yeah, I got nothing, but 00:30:28.000 --> 00:30:29.900 I'm willing to go after it, even go into the 00:30:29.900 --> 00:30:31.640 fields to glean. I'm going to do it. What do 00:30:31.640 --> 00:30:36.000 you want me to do? Okay, so what else? Available? 00:30:36.480 --> 00:30:41.259 Is that what I heard? Okay, what else? Faith. 00:30:42.119 --> 00:30:44.500 It kind of comes right out and jumps out at us. 00:30:44.660 --> 00:30:48.099 She's got some crazy faith. She's left her own 00:30:48.099 --> 00:30:51.259 country and her gods and her family, everything 00:30:51.259 --> 00:30:54.359 that she had, and she's following Naomi to where? 00:30:56.420 --> 00:31:00.779 To nothing. And yet she says, your God is my 00:31:00.779 --> 00:31:05.140 God, and I will follow you. That's some faith. 00:31:05.720 --> 00:31:10.480 What else do you see? What's that? I'm sorry, 00:31:10.559 --> 00:31:14.460 I didn't hear you. Surrender. Thank you. There's 00:31:14.460 --> 00:31:19.140 a surrender, isn't there? Anybody else? What's 00:31:19.140 --> 00:31:23.279 that? There's action with what she's doing. Good. 00:31:25.079 --> 00:31:28.200 Okay, real life. Character. It's a really high, 00:31:28.380 --> 00:31:32.039 I mean, you're a noble character. There is a 00:31:32.039 --> 00:31:34.759 woman here that honors God, and you can just 00:31:34.759 --> 00:31:38.140 see it. It oozes out of her. That's what I saw 00:31:38.140 --> 00:31:40.140 in my wife when I first met her. That was the 00:31:40.140 --> 00:31:42.420 thing that I... fell for it was I was like and 00:31:42.420 --> 00:31:44.380 she's like don't you say this to me it was true 00:31:44.380 --> 00:31:50.740 like I was like oh that's it that's awesome what 00:31:50.740 --> 00:31:58.259 else patience what else obedience patience she 00:31:58.259 --> 00:32:01.299 genuinely loves Naomi she's willing she there's 00:32:01.299 --> 00:32:03.339 that something you don't do that that act like 00:32:03.339 --> 00:32:05.700 that or give up everything unless you love somebody 00:32:05.700 --> 00:32:14.599 okay what was that She's vulnerable. Yeah. This 00:32:14.599 --> 00:32:16.299 is something that I wrote down here. I want you 00:32:16.299 --> 00:32:20.500 to just think about Ruth's posture before God. 00:32:21.119 --> 00:32:25.980 She's humble. She's loyal. Meaning, she clung 00:32:25.980 --> 00:32:31.599 to Naomi and her God. She surrendered. She's 00:32:31.599 --> 00:32:36.160 not demanding anything. I think the one that 00:32:36.160 --> 00:32:39.200 really struck me the most, which you see really... 00:32:39.690 --> 00:32:42.089 It comes out in chapter 2, verse 10, is that 00:32:42.089 --> 00:32:45.509 she is poor in spirit. She knows she has nothing. 00:32:46.269 --> 00:32:51.630 She falls face down. Why have you found favor 00:32:51.630 --> 00:33:00.069 with me? I am a foreigner. And I think she's 00:33:00.069 --> 00:33:03.950 a person of noble character. She's a student 00:33:03.950 --> 00:33:08.619 of God's law. She's brave and bold. But again, 00:33:08.680 --> 00:33:10.240 I think one of the things that really struck 00:33:10.240 --> 00:33:13.240 me is how this mirrors the Sermon on the Mount 00:33:13.240 --> 00:33:17.099 with Jesus says, blessed are those who are poor 00:33:17.099 --> 00:33:21.500 in spirit. The starting point is to say, I got 00:33:21.500 --> 00:33:29.019 it. Next week, we will see the Redeemer go to 00:33:29.019 --> 00:33:33.940 work to redeem. I think the book of Ruth is a 00:33:33.940 --> 00:33:36.420 picture that is ultimately pointing through the 00:33:36.420 --> 00:33:39.980 Redeemer, Jesus. it's also pointed to that and 00:33:39.980 --> 00:33:43.160 the he is our ultimate redeemer and the question 00:33:43.160 --> 00:33:45.619 uh i think that we have to wrestle with is how 00:33:45.619 --> 00:33:49.319 are we approaching that redeemer are we approaching 00:33:49.319 --> 00:33:55.140 that with humility and surrender or are we approaching 00:33:55.140 --> 00:33:59.940 it going what can i get from this god are we 00:33:59.940 --> 00:34:02.880 saying i'm poor in spirit are we saying no no 00:34:02.880 --> 00:34:06.180 tell me what i can get out of being a christian 00:34:06.180 --> 00:34:13.159 tell me what i can get She is not at the center 00:34:13.159 --> 00:34:17.360 of her life anymore. She says, your God will 00:34:17.360 --> 00:34:21.000 become my God, meaning Ruth. Ruth, God is at 00:34:21.000 --> 00:34:22.840 the center. I think that's a challenge for us. 00:34:23.800 --> 00:34:26.039 We oftentimes look at our own faith and we go, 00:34:26.179 --> 00:34:28.519 yeah, I believe it intellectually, but the way 00:34:28.519 --> 00:34:34.739 we function is that we're at the center. Jesus 00:34:34.739 --> 00:34:40.699 is our true and final redeemer. And as that, 00:34:40.760 --> 00:34:43.420 he willingly, did what was necessary to redeem 00:34:43.420 --> 00:34:47.059 us, his bride, the church. Again, this is pointing 00:34:47.059 --> 00:34:51.059 to what's coming next week. But the posture, 00:34:51.119 --> 00:34:55.280 the thing that really stuck out to me and my 00:34:55.280 --> 00:34:58.440 encouragement for us this morning is this. Like 00:34:58.440 --> 00:35:06.460 Ruth, we need to walk in selfless humility. We 00:35:06.460 --> 00:35:11.960 need to walk as poor in spirit. We need to walk 00:35:11.960 --> 00:35:20.139 toward our Redeemer with surrender. Which is 00:35:20.139 --> 00:35:24.280 what Jesus did for us, didn't he? When we do 00:35:24.280 --> 00:35:26.199 communion every week, it is a picture of us looking 00:35:26.199 --> 00:35:28.579 at what Christ did and said, look, and what Christ 00:35:28.579 --> 00:35:32.159 did is he came surrendered and gave up everything 00:35:32.159 --> 00:35:35.519 for us. His body was broken, his blood was shed. 00:35:35.619 --> 00:35:37.639 Why we come back and look at that every week? 00:35:37.800 --> 00:35:41.010 Because it needs to look at that and go, Now 00:35:41.010 --> 00:35:43.710 the way I approach back my Savior is, God, I 00:35:43.710 --> 00:35:48.190 surrender. All to Jesus, I surrender. All to 00:35:48.190 --> 00:35:50.489 him, I freely give. Is that the way we live? 00:35:53.010 --> 00:35:59.010 So, my encouragement is walk in selfless humility, 00:35:59.329 --> 00:36:02.769 walk in poor in spirit, and walk surrendered 00:36:02.769 --> 00:36:11.639 before our God. Let's pray together. Everything 00:36:11.639 --> 00:36:19.239 in my flesh, Lord, wants to put me first. But 00:36:19.239 --> 00:36:23.699 your call to us is to come and be surrendered 00:36:23.699 --> 00:36:27.639 before you, the great Redeemer who surrendered 00:36:27.639 --> 00:36:33.400 all for us. So Lord, today I pray that as we 00:36:33.400 --> 00:36:37.380 examine our hearts, We're all in different places, 00:36:37.420 --> 00:36:39.840 Lord, I know that. But as we examine our hearts, 00:36:39.900 --> 00:36:45.139 will you prick the areas in our hearts that we 00:36:45.139 --> 00:36:48.179 need to surrender? And I pray, God, that we will 00:36:48.179 --> 00:36:53.500 be a people that come with humility and surrender 00:36:53.500 --> 00:36:57.920 before you. Thank you for being our Redeemer. 00:36:58.340 --> 00:37:01.039 In your name we pray, amen. Band, you can come 00:37:01.039 --> 00:37:01.179 up.