Good morning, I hope your week has gotten off to a good start. Today we will read the Book of Ruth.
Any section of scripture contains a hundred messages I could write about. I will narrow it down to about three so that you all can get on with the rest of your lives.
Emptiness of grief
We see in 1:5 that Naomi’s sons and husband had all died.
Ruth lived around 1050 BC. During this time, the average life expectancy was much like ours today, 70-80 years. From what we know, Ruth was between 45-50 years old. This would mean her sons were in their 20s or early 30s when they died.
For anyone to deal with this much tragedy is significant. A parent should never have to bury their children, but it happens often.
I sense Naomi isn’t going home to resume her life. She is going home to finish her life.
From her words, we hear that her life is over. She is too old to have more children, and feels there is not much left to live for.
She is running out the clock.
Over medicated
I have known people in this situation. My grandmother, who died when I was in my 20s, was dying every day I knew her.
She lived alone sometimes. At others, she lived with my cousins. There were a myriad of health problems, stemming from being overweight and over-medicated.
Her hypochondria likely led to polypharmacy. A condition where the medications you are taking cause the needs for more medications. This increases the likelihood of adverse drug reactions.
I remember staying with her, and she always had popsicles made from frozen Kool Aid on toothpicks. She had a dachshund hound dog and was always quirky.
Because I was young, I didn’t understand. She was a lonely lady who felt she had little to live for. She loved God and was waiting to go home to be with Him.
This is what I see in the earlier chapters of Ruth. Naomi believes her life is over and wants to conclude everything.
The encouragement of a new light
Ruth would have been in her 20s, maybe early 30s. I would imagine, based on Boaz’s reaction, she was beautiful.
This beauty was not skin deep. She had a lovely spirit and a dedication to her mother-in-law.
Her commitment to being buried with Naomi is admirable. Her story is significant because she is an ancestor of Jesus.
A Moabite woman who marries Boaz and bears him children, even though he was older.
Dedication, steadfastness, reliability. I don’t know if these traits are genetically determined, but this family clearly displays them.
She showed great humility, working tirelessly and always obeying her mother-in-law’s wishes. Each of these qualities is commendable and respectable.
Redemption
Boaz is one lucky gentleman. I can imagine, being an older man, waking up with a beautiful young lady at my feet, only because I wake up next to one every morning.
He does not take advantage of this situation, but offers her to the guardian-redeemer. This person, though not named, decides not to accept the proposition.
I am glad we no longer barter people, the way we trade land. In those days, this was a common practice.
All of this was a foreshadowing of God’s redemption plan. Before He spoke the universe into existence, He knew we would sin and He had a plan to save us.
Where we walk
I find it amusing how they would hand a sandal to someone as a sign of redemption and transfer of property in ancient Israel. Using a sandal signified walking on land. God gave the Israelites all the land they could walk on.
When the guardian-redeemer refused to take ownership, he removed his sandal. This meant he would not be walking onto the property. Therefore, he transferred it to Boaz.
How we witness
For something to be binding, others must witness it. Boaz shared with those at the gate His intentions to marry Ruth and continue the family line for Mahlon, his relative.
The public nature of the ceremony allowed the elders at the gate to bless the marriage. Which God then rewarded with a child. Had this not happened, there would be no line to Jesus.
When we witness to others about our faith in Jesus, we are doing a similar action. We are allowing them to see how God is working in our lives and bless us. For this, God blesses us and creates for Himself other adopted children.
Have you recently shared your testimony with anyone?
