For the Ruth 2:17-19 PODCAST, click here
17 So she gleaned in the field until evening, and beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. 18 Then she took it up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. So she brought out and gave to her what she had kept back after she had been satisfied. 19 And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where have you gleaned today? And where did you work? Blessed be the one who took notice of you.” So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.” ~ Ruth 2:17-19
Today, we return to our study of Ruth 2. At the end of Ruth 1 we saw the pain of Naomi that had turned into bitterness. There had been a famine in Israel so Naomi followed her husband Elimelech, taking along their two sons, to Moab for sustenance. Shortly after arriving in Moab, Elimelech died. Naomi’s sons married Moabite wives. And then, within ten years, both sons died. At the end of Ruth 1, Naomi referred to herself as "Mara" which means bitter, and she blamed God for her bitterness. This just underscores the fact that we can be in the family of God and still have our struggles trusting the Father.
Our pain either pushes us to dependence to the Lord or it pulls us away to be independent of the Lord. The outcome is determined by the disposition we embrace: either pride or humility. In Job 36:15 we read, "He delivers the afflicted by their affliction and opens their ear by adversity." This means God "grants us the ability to hear Him" through the adversity that we face in this fallen world. It is through our struggles that we are granted the choice to choose to listen to the Lord and subsequently be defined by Him. Our pain draws us to God, and once we are walking with Him, we will realize that everything in this world is just as broken as we. Through this process, we learn to recognize and to trust the voice of God who leads us through this sin ladened world.
In v.17-18 of today's passage we read, "17 So she gleaned in the field until evening, and beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. 18 Then she took it up and went into the city, and her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. So she brought out and gave to her what she had kept back after she had been satisfied."
Ruth had traveled back to Bethlehem with her bitter mother-in-law, Naomi, and she sought a job at a local grain field. God showed Ruth favor by giving her favor with a wealthy man of Bethlehem by the name of Boaz who was attracted to her even though he was at least fifteen years older. In these verses we learn that Ruth worked all day gathering and sifting barley in the fields and now she had taken her harvest home to her embittered mother-in-law, Naomi.
At the end of v.17 we learn that Ruth had gathered an ephah of barley for the day. This was no small amount of grain. In today’s measurements, it was approximately a bushel of barley. Undoubtedly, it was rather heavy for Ruth to haul, especially after her long day of working. In all, the grain that she obtained was enough to feed both herself and Naomi for five full days.
Even though Ruth was worn out and exhausted, she was satisfied with her work and her harvest. All work has dignity because it reflects God’s image in us. The first few words in the Bible reads, "In the beginning God created." God created us to feel better about ourselves as we responsibly hold down a job. And, if we do not take our cues from Him, we will be defined by something that is much lesser. This is the real issue which is that we are being defined by God on a daily basis. According to Genesis 2:15, work existed before the fall of man. The Bible clearly informs us that God put man in the Garden of Eden to work it and to take care of it. The one who brings home a paycheck to provide for themselves and their family has a sense of dignity and worth. God made us this way, and, when we are not being defined by Him, we will be defined by the lesser which will always lead us down the road of destruction.
In v.19 of today's passage we read, "And her mother-in-law said to her, 'Where have you gleaned today? And where did you work? Blessed be the one who took notice of you.' So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, 'The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.'"
It was at this point that the grace of God came rushing in upon Naomi. The astonishment of Naomi was evident in the repetition of her questions. She asked, "Where have you gleaned today?" Then she asked, "And where did you work?" Knowing Ruth’s character, there wasn’t even a hint of wrongdoing in Noami's questions. Instead of such thoughts, Naomi’s confidence in her character was never questioned. Naomi then realized that someone must have taken note of Ruth's plight and chose to help her. This led Naomi to say, "Blessed be the one who took notice of you!"
It was at that moment that Ruth revealed the identity of the man who had helped her and Naomi knew she was related to this man through her deceased husband, Elimelech. Earlier, we read that Ruth happened to come to the field owned by Boaz. But that was not how it actually came to pass. Ruth came to that field because God guided her there. To these unfolding events, Noami responded with praise. Naomi was the woman who had earlier come into town saying, "Call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me." This was the same woman who said, "The Almighty has afflicted me." Due to Ruth's walk with the Lord, Naomi was beginning to see more of God’s unfolding plan for her and she was responding in the right way.
Most believe our sanctification or the inculcating of God's culture into our souls is about us. No, my friends, our sanctification is so that others might look into our lives with God and to see God shown through our yielded lives. God used Ruth to turn Naomi’s bitterness into gratitude, her unbelief into faith, and her despair into hope. One person, trusting the Lord and obeying His will, can change a situation from defeat to victory. Ruth’s faith in God’s Word led her to the field of Boaz. The love of Boaz for Ruth compelled him to pour out his grace upon her in the way he did.
This is the lesson we are left with today through the life of a twenty-five year old girl who grew up on the other side of the tracks. This is the lesson we gain from the one who had learned that her pain was useful to God to drive her to Himself and His culture. Like Ruth, we must be defined by the God of the Bible today so that others might learn of Him through our yielded lives.
