Ruth 2:1-23 - Hope

Introduction

Brief overview of the first two sermons...

When we left Naomi last week, all seemed lost. She lost her family, she comes back home after years of being away, and she feels like God is against her. She has no prospect of a future, and no security. All her prospects for hope and certainty in this world.

Even in sorrow and loss, the Christian can have hope. But how? How do we have hope in hard times? This passage teaches us that a right understanding of God’s providence is for us a source of great hope. I want us to examine God’s plan in Chapter three, looking for hope as we study together. Three aspects of God’s plan that helps us have hope in hard times.

1. The timing of God’s plan (1-7)

As we said last week, we have to see God’s work as consistent, not intermittent. We often pray for God to work, and there is nothing wrong with that! But we should also pray that we would have our eyes opened to how He is already at work. In fact, an awful lot of the work of Christian maturity is in this principle - realizing that God is working, and tuning our eyes and hearts to see Him at work.

But often, God’s definition of “on time” can feel like our definition of “late.” We wonder when things are going to change, or when something is going to happen, and it almost never happens according to our chosen timeline. When we start to feel this way, we can lose hope pretty quickly. So as we are thinking about finding hope in hard times, we need to start with this concept: God is never late, and His plan will be accomplished precisely when He intends it to be. Let’s read the first seven verses together.

Ruth 2:1–7 ESV

Now Naomi had a relative of her husband’s, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” So she set out and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers, and she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the clan of Elimelech. And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to the reapers, “The Lord be with you!” And they answered, “The Lord bless you.” Then Boaz said to his young man who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?” And the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered, “She is the young Moabite woman, who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.’ So she came, and she has continued from early morning until now, except for a short rest.”

These seven verses are jam-packed with two truths that we must apply to our lives as we seek out hope:

First, there are no such things as coincidences. Not only that, we don’t want there to be. Nothing in the universe happens according to chance. Think, for a second how hopeless life would be if this were true! The Bible teaches us about a God who is completely sovereign. All things work according to His divine will and plan. We saw this in the great statement of Jacob in Genesis: “what you meant for evil, God meant for good.” We will see it next year as we study the Exodus, as God hardens Pharoah’s heart so that Israel would see that Yahweh is the Lord. In fact, if we are to trust that all of God’s promises are actually yes and amen, we must simply trust that there is no question as to the certainty of the fulfillment of those promises. RC Sproul says it this way: ““If there is one single molecule in this universe running around loose, totally free of God’s sovereignty, then we have no guarantee that a single promise of God will ever be fulfilled.” One single molecule. This chapter, especially the beginning of this chapter, is very intentionally crafted by the author of Ruth to teach you about the Sovereignty of God, and His control over even the most mundane, seemingly insignificant, events.

remember, they came at the beginning of barley harvest! Everything in Naomi’s 10 year journey to Moab was intended to culminate in this series of events, so that they arrive in Jerusalem at the beginning of this very barley harvest. We touched on this last week, but this is no coincidence! But wait, there’s more!

Ruth an Naomi have settled in a bit, and Ruth is going out to glean in the fields. Now, just in case you aren’t familiar with the concept of gleaning, we see this command in Scripture in Deuteronomy 24:19-22

Deuteronomy 24:19–22 ESV

“When you reap your harvest in your field and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over them again. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow. When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not strip it afterward. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt; therefore I command you to do this.

So, the poor would go out behind the reapers, and pick up what was left. Now, not everyone in Israel was committed to this practice. In fact, you will find multiple instances in the Old Testament of people who refuse to obey the law of gleaning. Now, again considering the time, if there was ever a time when this would be uncertain, it would be the time period when everyone did what was right in his own eyes! So, we get a picture of Ruth’s faith in action here, as she says” I’m going out, and gleaning.

And once Ruth makes that step out of the door, now we have another intersection with God’s providence: in verse three, she is in the field and we read in English that “she happened” to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz. Now, the Hebrew here is kind of funny, because it reads “her chance chanced upon the part of the field.” In other words, the author wants you to see this isn’t chance, or luck - it is the hand of the Lord that puts Ruth in this exact place, at this exact time.

Then the author does it again in verse 4, when you read “and behold! Boaz came from Bethlehem.” This may be better rendered “wouldn’t you know it, here comes Boaz!” it is intended to show you the precise nature of God’s timing here. As we read on, we see that it seems that Ruth was at least entertaining the thought of going into another field. Had Boaz waited five more minutes, Ruth would have been gone. Had Ruth left five minutes earlier, King David is never born. There is a precision to God’s timing that that author just doesn’t want us to miss.

God’s timing in all things is pinpoint precise. We can’t see what He is doing, or how it is actually going, but God’s timing is utterly perfect. Now, how does this give us hope? Because, wherever we are, and whatever is going on, it has purpose. We may never see what that purpose is, but it has purpose. There isn’t a thing in our lives that happens by accident.

You the New Testament church struggled with this as well, as they awaited the return of Jesus. Most seemed to think He would return in their lifetime, and they were a little discouraged that He hadn’t come back yet! Peter, in his letters, has a word of encouragement for them that is helpful for us as we think about the timing of God: 2 Peter 3:8-9

2 Peter 3:8–9 ESV

But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

For Ruth and Naomi, this one day probably felt like a thousand years in coming. But it was precisely designed by God to accomplish His good purpose for His glory and for the good of His people. So, we wait, not just to teach us patience, but also to enlarge our faith!

BUT, we must also be active. Look at what Ruth does in these first 7 verses:

She takes initiative to go out and glean. She isn’t just “letting go and letting God” here; she is getting up and doing something!

She works hard to take advantage of the opportunity given - once she finds a field, the workers report to Boaz that she “continued from early morning until now.” And this hard work is a testament to her character, which catches Boaz’ attention!

God’s work will be accomplished, we can live in certainty of this. And it will be done right when He wants it to be done. Our job? To continue to work, to live in an active obedience, trusting that He is accomplishing His plan.

And so our hope in hard times begins with hoping in His timing, and His plan, all the while living in obedience to His Word. We don’t just wait for His will to be done; we seek to do it! And that combination, of both waiting and working, does good for the sorrowful heart. But the required element for this type of waiting? Faith. Which is our next source of hope in hard times - we can wait for Him to accomplish His plan because we know the ultimate outcome will be good.

2. The end of God’s plan: our good (8-17)

Ruth 2:8–17 ESV

Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping, and go after them. Have I not charged the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn.” Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” But Boaz answered her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told to me, and how you left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did not know before. The Lord repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge!” Then she said, “I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your servant, though I am not one of your servants.” And at mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here and eat some bread and dip your morsel in the wine.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed to her roasted grain. And she ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over. When she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. And also pull out some from the bundles for her and leave it for her to glean, and do not rebuke her.” So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley.

Up to this point, we haven’t seen a righteous man at all in this story, and that alone is telling. Boaz comes on the scene in an almost picturesque fashion, as he goes into the fields telling the people “the Lord be with you.” He clearly had a good reputation, since the people responded back with “The Lord bless you!” I have worked construction, and I have worked maintenance, and I have done just a little work on a farm, and I am here to tell you that I have never walked into a situation like this at work! It’s like the way the old sitcoms portrayed life, in the Waltons or Andy Griffith or something. He is just missing a kid whistling behind him holding a fishing pole. But this picture is an image of hope in the Hebrew mind - maybe, just maybe, not literally everyone was doing what was right in his own mind?His providence provides! Boaz, a righteous man, demonstrates abundant grace towards Ruth.

And this entrance is supposed to set up an interaction between two faith-filled people: Boaz and Ruth. Boaz begins to speak, and we see that Ruth’s reputation precedes her. Boaz recounts her story in verses 11-12, and It seems that all the ways in which she has cared for and about Naomi have made it to Boaz’ ears. Faithful, earnest, hardworking Christian, may I encourage you in something? There are a great many times when we do God-honoring things that seem to go totally unnoticed. Two things are true in these situations. First, we live our whole life before the face of God, so all those things we think no one sees? The One who sees has seen it, and that should be enough for all of us. But beyond that, we never know who is watching and listening. Ruth didn’t care for Naomi thinking that an important, handsome, single Ephrathite may be watching - she did it because she was compelled by love. But it turns out, Boaz has seen her faith, and has been moved by it. So, he pronounces a blessing on her.

Boaz’ prayer foreshadows what is to come - God is our refuge. When we shelter under His wings, and we rest in His providence, we are cared for! This is the great picture of the story of Ruth. Regardless of what the circumstances of the Christian life are, we rest under the wings of God, and are perfectly cared for. In fact, we have superabundant grace!

When you get to verse 14, you are supposed to be blown away at the abundant grace of Boaz here. Boaz’ grace is far beyond what could be imagined! So, it begins with her getting to eat alongside the reapers. She was in no way entitled to do this, and Boaz gave her a seat at the proverbial table. Then, Boaz gave instruction to the men to not only refrain from picking up leftovers, but to pull some out as well! All told, a day’s worth of work has produced a week’s worth of food for the two women. This was not how it normally went! Normally, a gleaner would have gleaned enough to eat that one day, and then would have had to come back the next day for more, and so on. Boaz’ incredible generosity here is intended to show us God’s incredible grace to Naomi and Ruth, and to us. Naomi’s statement at the end of chapter 1 “I came back empty” is being turned on its head by the kind providence of God, and she will be able to see a bit of this, as we see the third way we can hope in hard times: we trust that the motive behind God’s plan is His kindness.

3. The motive of God’s plan: Chesed(18-23)

Ruth 2:18–23 ESV

And she took it up and went into the city. Her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She also brought out and gave her what food she had left over after being satisfied. And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today? And where have you worked? Blessed be the man 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.” And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by the Lord, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead!” Naomi also said to her, “The man is a close relative of ours, one of our redeemers.” And Ruth the Moabite said, “Besides, he said to me, ‘You shall keep close by my young men until they have finished all my harvest.’ ” And Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, “It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, lest in another field you be assaulted.” So she kept close to the young women of Boaz, gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvests. And she lived with her mother-in-law.

Just as Naomi interpreted her circumstances at the end of the chapter, so she does here as well. Ruth comes home with ....Naomi’s blind blessing - blessing be whoever did this! This is Naomi’s very sanctified way of saying “holy moly! I don’t know who did this, but this is amazing!”

Ruth responds with a summary of the story, and she waits until the very end of the story, almost ending with “oh yeah, and the guys name was Boaz?” She still doesn’t really know who this Boaz guy is, or why it would even be important to know. But her statement of his name is met by a gasp by Naomi, because all of a sudden, she can see a sliver of what God is doing to care for them.

The “a-ha!” moment for Naomi: “May he be blessed by the Lord, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead!” This move of God is not lost on Naomi

Boaz’ kindness has not forgotten living or dead, for sure. He is a righteous man, demonstrating righteousness towards others, but it goes deeper than this.

More importantly, and more significantly, God’s kindness has not forgotten living or the dead. Naomi, the one who said last chapter “the hand of the Lord has gone out against me” now can say “His kindness has not forgotten me.” It’s a subtle joy when God puts little, or sometimes big, things in your life to remind you that He has not forgotten you. That’s what Naomi gets here - a gentle, grace-filled reminder of the Kindness of God.

Now, we need to talk about that word “kindness.” That word? You guessed it. Chesed. Naomi, who prayed to the girls “may God show you kindness,” now sees that it God has shown kindness to her!

Now, here is the big point, the big way that we can have hope in hard times, as we trust God’s providence: The Bible teaches that God’s providence is an extension of His Chesed.

We are starting to see a bigger picture here. Chapter two shows us a God who has perfect timing, who gives abundant grace, and who does so simply because of His Chesed, His unwavering love and commitment to His own glory and to the good of His people. But there was, and is, an even greater example of the kindness of God.

In God’s providence, God’s kindness was fulfilled at the perfect time. As we read in Galatians 4:4-5

Galatians 4:4–5 ESV

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.

In God’s providence, grace upon grace was given through the Son of God, as John tells us in John 1:16

John 1:16 ESV

For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.

And in all this, we see the greatest evidence of love the world has ever seen.

John 15:13 ESV

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

You see, the book of Ruth could have easily been named “the book of God’s kindness to Israel.” In God’s good providence, He has orchestrated these folks to be an instrument of the demonstration of God’s kindness to the whole world. We are only two chapters away from seeing how! But for now, we should let this picture of God’s kindness point us to the ultimate picture of God’s kindness - the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. So, we end with a celebration of the Lord’s Supper today, so that we will do just that - stop and remember.

God calls us to gather today to come and eat, to remember God’s greatest demonstration of God’s Chesed: “But God demonstrated His love for us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Instruction.

Titus 3:3–7 ESV

For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.