Ruth 2:4-16

The writer of the book of Ruth has presented the story in terms of chance and luck. In 2:3, Ruth just happens to find herself in Boaz's field, a relative of Naomi's and a possible help to them. But what seems like 'Lady Luck' at work is actually the one true God who is over all things and who delights to bless his children and to overrule in their lives.

That is extended in v.4 where we read that "Just then, Boaz arrived". Not only has Ruth 'happened' on the right field but she's done so at the right time! God is at work and it's a joy to see.

But what is that going to mean for Ruth and Naomi? We saw in v.1 that Boaz seems eminently suited to help them - a worthy man, a rich man, a relative. But will he? There can be no guarantees. What follows in these verses is clear evidence that here is just the kind of man they need to help them.

1. Boaz - a man of God (v.4)
The first thing we notice about Boaz is that he is a man with God very much in his mind. As he arrives, he greets his workers with a blessing, "The LORD be with you!"

Some would see this simply as a conventional greeting but the evidence points in another direction. This is not just a custom, it is real and living for this man (and for his men too). Boaz is a man who is aware of the presence of God in this world and is clearly seeking to live his life in the light of that.

Years ago, a book was written, 'The Practice of the Presence of God'. In it, the writer tried to show how to live life in the light of God's presence in his world, whatever you might be doing. Boaz did so and we can too; not by a form of words but by an attitude of mind.

Treating life in that way means we don't separate our daily lives from what we might call our 'Christian' lives. All of life is sacred and can be lived for God.
That is shown here by the fact that the words used by Boaz are very similar to those pronounced by the priest upon the worshippers at the temple (“The Lord bless you and keep you...”). As someone has said, "the blessing which is appropriate for worship is appropriate also for the work place". (Atkinson p.64).

Don't we also see here that the hard and perhaps tedious work of harvesting can be transformed by just such a desire to know and honour God?

2. Boaz - a man of concern for others (vv.5-13)
So, Boaz was a God-conscious man who blessed others. But will the blessing extend to Ruth and Naomi?

As he greets his men, he sees this stranger and asks about her and who she works for. His foreman's answer is very full and reminds us of Ruth's ethnic origins - "she is the Moabitess who came back from Moab". Some have suggested that there is a sense of disdain in his words. Whether that is so or not, it does highlight for us again the possible troubles that Ruth faces. She may find it hard to gain acceptance in this society, even though they are God's people. How will Boaz treat her?

In vv.8,9 we can see that Boaz isn't the kind of man to exploit the vulnerability of others, nor is he a bigot. He treats this stranger with genuine kindness and is very protective towards her ("I've told the men not to touch you" v.9).

Isn't this something that should flow from our own sense of thankfulness to God for all he's given to us? Boaz and his men are grateful to God for the harvest, no doubt. And Boaz reflects that kindness to others too, regardless of their ethnic origin. He is a wall-breaker not a wall-maker. What sort of people are we?

But it also seems that Boaz is reacting to what he knows of Ruth, both in terms of her own kindness to Naomi and her new commitment to the one true God.

It seems clear that Boaz wants to reward Ruth for her kindness to Naomi and that desire affects both his doing and his praying (vv.11,12). This isn't saying to us 'Do good in the hope that you'll get treated well in return (by God or others)' but it is illustrating that God is no man's debtor and delights to bless those who choose to walk in his ways. Here, he is doing so for Ruth through Boaz (cf. Lk. 6:38).

Then it is also clear that Boaz responds to the fact that Ruth has become a believer in the one true God, "under whose wings you have come to take refuge" (v.12). What he does is something Paul writes about in Gal 6:10 - do good to all, especially those of the family of faith. He understands that as she has sought refuge in the LORD, so that refuge is to be (partly) met through the LORD's people, of which he is one.

Boaz – a man of God and, so, a man concerned for others.

3. Boaz -a man of grace (vv.14-17)
But there is one other thing to notice about Boaz here. He is a man of grace; he keeps the law and he goes beyond the law.

We see that in his generosity towards Ruth at the mealtime - he tells her to join them and then heaps up her plate! He is saying to this 'foreigner', 'You're welcome in God's family and at our table'.

Here is something pertinent to our own life & witness: How good are we at welcoming others, those who have come to faith and those who are perhaps beginning to seek the Lord? Boaz is a model for us of the kind of warm and open-hearted response that the Lord would have us show to others.

And then we have a lot to learn from the way Boaz handles God's law. Under the law, landowners were meant to leave the edges of the field untouched and not go over them a second time, to leave some crops for the poor and the alien. We've already seen just how ready Boaz is to help Ruth but here he goes well beyond what the law required: he tells his men to deliberately pull out stalks and leave them for her.

Here is a man set on doing what God says and more besides. So often our reaction is to do as little as we can get away with. But Boaz models a different way, a better way. He doesn't ask 'How can I minimise the demands of the law?' but rather 'Is there more that I can do?'

Here is a man who has drunk deeply from the wells of grace and whose life overflows to others. Here is a man who understands that LAW = Love At Work.

The great challenge, then, for us here is this: what are we like? Are we truly God-conscious people, kind-hearted and welcoming to others and looking for ways to do good and to go beyond what is required of us, simply because we have tasted and seen that the Lord is good? If Boaz could be just such a person, living on the other side of Calvary, surely we can be too, knowing just how costly God's grace is?

But you might object and say, 'It all seems so idyllic; life isn't like that'. No, it isn't like that now but it wasn't like that then either. Boaz lived during the days of the Judges - days of great moral and spiritual collapse. But he stood firm and loved God and his fellow man.

Are we ready to do the same?