Ruth: A Story of Virtue and Providence

"And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God."

Ruth was from Moab, a pagan land and one of Israel's arch enemies. Genesis 19 recounts the vile circumstances of the inception of Moab's existence.  Moab overtook Israel and oppressed them for 18 years (Judges 3) until God delivered them and gave peace for 80 years. Due to a famine in the land, a man named Elimelech moved his wife, Naomi and 2 sons, Mahlon and Chilion, from Bethlehem to Moab. Ruth married Mahlon, but after about 10 years he, along with his father and brother died. Naomi and Ruth are now childless and widowed. By human terms, they are completely destitute.

Naomi decides to go back to Bethlehem after God in His mercy brought the famine to an end. She tries to convince Ruth and Orpah (the widow of Chilion) to go back to their relatives, even beckoning them to go back to the gods they once worshipped. Orpah, likely through tear-stained eyes went back, but Ruth refused to leave her mother-in-law. The mighty saving power of Jehovah changed Ruth's heart to the point where she was willing to leave behind everything she had ever known and go to a strange land where she could be subject to much harm. Yet, the possibility of a life of abject poverty and danger did not deter her from trusting in Naomi's God. Naomi’s God has now become Ruth’s God. Ruth’s example reflects the words of Jesus to His disciples, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." (Matt. 16:24) Jesus would also tell the disciples to "Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead" (Matt. 8:22). Ruth was willing to risk all to follow the Lord and not the pagan gods of her past. Oh, that we as Christians today, would be willing to suffer loss of all earthly goods, and even our lives, in order to pursue the Lord!

“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 of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust.”

When Ruth and Naomi arrived in Bethlehem the temptation could have been for them to just sit around and feel sorry for themselves, panic, or just “pray about it” that the Lord would send them provision. Not so with Ruth; she immediately gets to work. She goes to find a field from which she could glean to provide food for Naomi and herself. In God's Providence, out of all the fields in Bethlehem, the Lord directs her to the field of her late father-in-law’s relative named Boaz. Boaz is described as a “mighty man of wealth,” which describes not only his financial status, but also his reputation. It could be said that Boaz was wealthy in integrity and virtue. After hearing from his employees of Ruth's unceasing work in his field, Boaz was clearly impressed by Ruth’s loyalty to her mother-in-law, and her unwavering trust in the Lord. We see here a great example of God's sovereignty and man's responsibility. The writer of Hebrews says, “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” We see an example of this faith in Ruth. She diligently worked in the fields to provide for herself and her mother-in-law, and God rewarded her by mercifully providing for all their needs in ways likely far beyond what they could have imagined. Boaz tells Ruth, “Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence…” Boaz made sure that Ruth and Naomi would never be in want for anything for the rest of their lives. Hallelujah! The Lord provided through Boaz’s kindness and because of Ruth’s virtuous reputation.

“And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou requirest: (requested) for all the city of my people doth know that art a virtuous woman.”

Due to an ancient law of Israel known as Levirate Marriage (Lev. 25 and Duet. 25), it was required for the widow’s husband’s closest male relative to marry the widow to preserve the seed of the deceased husband. Naomi, knowing that Boaz was a relative of her late husband, and caring deeply for Ruth’s future well-being, instructed Ruth to exercise her rights (under the Levirate Marriage law), and propose to Boaz. The way in which Naomi suggested Ruth make this proposal could be perceived as inappropriate and even dangerous. She told Naomi to take a bath, put on perfume, and go to the threshing floor where Boaz and his men had been working all day and most of the night. Naomi further instructed Ruth to lie at Boaz’s feet in a posture of humility. I can imagine it would have been easy for Ruth to refuse to do any of this as it could have been quite a risk. Yet, the text tells us Ruth’s response to her mother-in-law: “And she (Ruth) said unto her, all that thou sayest unto me I will do. And she went down unto the floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her. (3:5-6).

We see another example of Ruth’s complete trust and respect for her mother-in-law by taking her advice in this unique situation. When Boaz woke up Ruth said, “I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.” (3:9). In other words, Ruth proposed, asking him to take her under his wing because he is the Goel, or family redeemer.

Boaz clearly loved Ruth and was willing and able to do whatever it took to redeem this virtuous widow. Although, there was a kinsman nearer than Boaz, the nearer kinsman was not willing to jeopardize his own inheritance, freeing Boaz to marry Ruth. Soon afterwards, they were blessed with a son, named Obed, who would become King David’s grandfather. In God’s astounding providence, from the line of this Moabite woman would come not only Israel’s esteemed King David but also King David’s King: the King of Kings, Jesus Christ. (Matt. 1:1-16).

To summarize what we can take away from this beautiful historical account from thousands of years ago: Ruth trusted and God provided. One commentator stated Ruth “always did the right thing.” May the same be said of us: do the next right thing, trusting in the Lord with confidence that He will provide in His own sovereign time and way. May we take to heart the words of the great hymn writer John Newton: “Tho troubles assail, and dangers affright, tho friends should all fail, and foes all unite, yet one thing secures us, whatever be tide, the promise assures us the Lord will provide.”