Ruth 3 - Finding Rest
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Introduction:
We live in a world that is restlessness. This comes in all kinds of forms. One is in the form of sleep. According to the CDC, at least 1/3 of Americans do not get the recommended amount of sleep (1). They are restless. We see that Americans also struggle with finding rest and contentment in more recent studies during COVID as well. According to a study by the University of Chicago in 2020 - only 14% of Americans would consider themselves very happy. They are restless. They are worried and anxious. 50% of people in this study said they felt isolated and lonely as well (2).
Where do we turn in order to get rest? Many turn to drugs, alcohol, sexual sin, money. But they all leave you empty and restless in the end. The promise rest but the end up leading to more and more restlessness. Watch anyone who is addicted to a substance and you will someone striving for yet never finding rest. In fact, you will see someone who continually gets more restless with every use of the substance. Watch anyone seeking rest from money and you will see that they find that there is never enough money to provide a cure for their restlessness. When the stock market is going great they are restless knowing it is going to drop at some point. And when the stock market is down they are restless wondering how much more they are going to lose.
Today we are going to talk about finding rest in the Lord. We are going to see how God sovereignly provides rest for Ruth and we are going to see how this applies to us even today.
Let us pray.
Prayer
Today we are going to discuss three different realities that we find as we seek rest. The first is:
I. When We Seek Rest in the Lord... The Risk is Real (1-7)
I. When We Seek Rest in the Lord... The Risk is Real (1-7)
1 Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, should I not seek rest for you, that it may be well with you?
If you remember last week - we ended with around a 6-7 week barley harvest if not a bit longer. Ruth has been working in the field of Boaz and providing a great deal of food for she and Naomi. One must assume that the first day was not the only that Boaz invited Ruth to his table. They have probably had some further conversations during this time as well. God has continued showing favor to these poor and widowed women through the personal demonstration of grace through Boaz.
It has been such a blessed return to Bethlehem for Naomi and a blessed welcome for Ruth. Yet Naomi knows there is still something missing.
What does Naomi mean when she says she seeks rest for Ruth?
The word, mānôaḥ (mah-no-ah), translated rest, refers to finding her a husband under whose protection would guarantee her safety and security in Israel.
You see, Naomi is significantly older than Ruth and realizes that if she dies then Ruth will be in trouble. There is no Israelite inheritance for her. She would have no home and would likely be forced to go back to Moab or at best to live in poverty in Israel.
2 Is not Boaz our relative, with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.
Then we see Naomi start to reveal where Ruth can find that rest that she just mentioned!
Note that none of this is about Naomi. Naomi is fine. Her faith has been renewed through seeing the providential work of God in her own life. She is able to stay in her home. She is able to eat well because of the kindness of Boaz. However, she knows that after she passes, Ruth will be left with no one.
It is likely safe to assume that in the 6-7 week period, Boaz and Ruth have gotten to know each other a little more. Naomi has likely gotten to know more about Boaz as well. His reputation in a small town like Bethlehem would be easy to learn about for Naomi. Naomi has concluded that this man would be great for the job of marrying Ruth!
Note an incredibly subtle - yet important comment in verse 2:
Confirmation of Acceptance
Is not Boaz..our relative.
This is quite the first person plural pronoun here ladies and gentlemen. She just called Ruth an outright Israelite! Boaz has recognized her conversion to following Yahweh and Naomi has as well.
2 Is not Boaz our relative, with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.
Moving to the end of verse two we see that Boaz is going to be winnowing barley that night at the threshing floor.
For those of you who haven’t heard of winnowing - Boaz would hammer the barley grain and then throw up (or winnow) the straw which would be carried by windy gusts and the barley being heavier would fall onto a rocky surface and be collected. It separated the inedible straw from the edible barley.
Then we move on to the plan of Naomi:
3 Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak and go down to the threshing floor, but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. 4 But when he lies down, observe the place where he lies. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you what to do.” 5 And she replied, “All that you say I will do.”
Through verse two we are all probably on the same page. Boaz seems like a great guy. Ruth seems like a great girl. Why not hook these two up. Way to go Naomi!
And then we get to this crazy plan in verses 3-5.
Before going through this further I think it is important to understand a pivotal understanding of Scripture.
We have two big categories of Scripture:
Prescriptive - meaning that this is something that we should do.
Descriptive - meaning that this is something that is described in Scripture. Much of the descriptive parts of Scripture are things that we shouldn’t necessarily do ourselves but are provided so that we can learn from the historical narrative given.
Prescriptive sections of Scripture are commands given to us by God - such as do not murder, do not steal, etc.
This section would be classified as a descriptive historical narrative. This is not a plan we should make for our daughters. If this plan was made in a different situation with different people - well bad things would likely happen!
3 Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak and go down to the threshing floor, but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. 4 But when he lies down, observe the place where he lies. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you what to do.” 5 And she replied, “All that you say I will do.”
Naomi and Ruth know something important about Boaz as this plan is formulated. They know his reputation in the city and they know he is a righteous man (Ruth 2:1). As we read this - we must be careful that we also understand that everything done in the Bible isn’t always done correctly! Yet God sovereignly uses everything for His plan and purpose.
So getting back to this plan - Naomi comes up with a pretty crazy plan for Ruth to bathe herself, put on perfume (anoint herself), and sneak in at night and uncover his feet and lay down. This seems a bit risky!
What is just as crazy as the plan is verse 5! Ruth just goes with the plan!
Ruth says she will do it and doesn’t even interrogate Naomi! The faith of Ruth in God and in Naomi is incredible. I’m pretty sure most of us would have a lot of questions if asked to do something this risky. You would think she would ask questions like this:
What do I do if he gets angry?
What if he rejects me?
What if he tries to harm me?
But not Ruth - she goes in faith and does what Naomi tells her.
Then comes the plan in action:
6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had commanded her. 7 And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came softly and uncovered his feet and lay down.
We see Naomi’s plan played out here. He lays down at the end of the heap of grain - no one else is around him. And Ruth uncovers his feet and lays down.
I love this book of Ruth. It has so many places where you don’t know exactly what is going to happen next. We have just been presented with this outlandish plan of Naomi’s and we have seen Ruth follow it textbook. How will Boaz respond to this incredible risk that Ruth has just done? Will he cast her out? Will he see her as trying to damage both of their reputations? Or will he respond favorably?
This is the part of the show that the commercial would start. All 15 minutes of them. The suspense is definitely brewing!
While we are left with this cliffhanger - we can learn a lot from Ruth here. Although this plan is descriptive and not prescriptive - we see Ruth step out in faith and risk it all. She could have lost her good reputation. She could have lost her meal ticket. Boaz could have gotten upset and said no more gleaning for Ruth now! Yet she proceeded in faith.
Ruth is seeking rest. In this context - it is marriage, safety, protection. It is becoming a part of God’s chosen people officially and by law through marriage to Boaz.
Brothers and sisters - we have the offer of finding rest as well. In a world full of restlessness - we can seek rest under the wings of the Lord Jesus.
1 Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it.
Friends, you are invited to enter the rest of Christ and avoid eternal judgment. The promise of entering His rest still stands because you have not died yet. There will come a time where the promise of entering his rest is not offered any longer. There will come a time where you will not be able enter Christ’s eternal rest - or more understandably termed His salvation.
Yet entering the rest of Christ does come with a risk.
24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?
Just like Ruth risks it all to find rest under the wings of Boaz - we are asked to risk it all to find rest under the wings of Christ. We must give up our lives in order to find this rest. For some this may be a physical giving up your life - especially those in very anti-Christian cultures. For Americans - it looks more like giving up all of your sinful desires and submitting your life to the ways of Christ. Choosing to obey Christ and not follow your own sinful ways.
This is quite the risk my friends. I am not going to act like following Christ is always the easiest thing. No servant is greater than his master: John 18:18-20
18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.
Making the decision to go all in for Christ comes at a price. It might be losing friends. It might mean being shunned by family. It might mean being left out in social gatherings. It might mean losing your job. Friends - following Christ comes with a price. There is a risk involved. And the risk is real.
Next we see that:
Scripture References: Ruth 2:1, Hebrews 4:1, Matthew 16:24-26, John 15:18-20
II. When We Seek Rest in the Lord... The Reward is Relevant (8-11)
II. When We Seek Rest in the Lord... The Reward is Relevant (8-11)
8 At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet! 9 He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer.”
Boaz’ first response - Ah! I think that is an appropriate response when you wake up startled! He was sleeping and minding his own business and there is someone laying at his feet in the middle of the night! A woman for that matter. And it is so dark he has no idea who she even is.
We can only imagine what is going through his mind right now. He has no idea who this is. He has been a pure and righteous man. And now there is a woman at his feet at night. He is very confused about what to do! So he does what anyone would rationally do in this situation. He asks her who she is!
She identifies herself and repeats part of the prayer that Boaz expressed in chapter 2 and identifies him as God’s personal demonstration of God’s providence as we saw last week. She wants to be under his wings of protection.
How beautiful are Ruth’s words here.
Boaz had given her a beautiful blessing in the Lord in the previous chapter - weeks ago in real time.
12 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!”
And now Ruth repeats this blessing letting Boaz know that she wants him to be her continued personal demonstration of providence and protection from the Lord.
9 He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer.”
She brings up this word redeemer that we heard last week. We will start addressing it this week somewhat but we will address it in its entirety next week. In essence she is proposing marriage to Boaz. She is asking that he step in and take her as his wife and continue the line of Elimelech’s son, Mahlon (her deceased husband), through her. This is quite a request.
This idea of a kinsman redeemer is likely taken from Deuteronomy 25:5-10 where we see the line of a particular family should be continued if a man passes away with no sons. The brother is encouraged to step in to continue the lineage of his brother. If you remember, the Israelites were God’s chosen people and He wanted to ensure that these 12 tribes continued on. Even today we see God’s providential protection over the people of Israel. There is still a plan for these people as we see in Revelation 7:4-8 the 144,000 sealed during the Tribulation.
And he said, “May you be blessed by the Lord, my daughter. You have made this last kindness greater than the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman.
Then we get to Boaz’ response. He is humbled by her gesture.
His response is appreciation, love, and respect. He is amazed that this younger woman would choose him - an older man who is a bachelor. A man who is the son of a prostitute (Rahab) as we see in the Biblical record (Ruth 4:21, 1 Chron. 2:11, Matt. 1:5)
11 Nahshon fathered Salmon, Salmon fathered Boaz,
Ruth 4:21 (ESV)
Salmon fathered Boaz,
Matthew 1:5 (ESV)
5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab
It is clear that Rahab was the wife of Salmon who was the father of Boaz!
He states that this kindness is even greater than the first. The first kindness was her love for Naomi and her coming from Moab with Naomi. Her second kindness was greater because it showed a self-sacrifice for Naomi and her family. She could have been disgraced or shunned by Boaz. She risked her reputation for Naomi and in order to continue the line of Naomi’s family. She also valued Naomi’s security and the lineage of her deceased husband greater than her own passions and lusts. She didn’t go after the younger men that she could have tried to go after. She goes after a man with godly character instead.
Boaz lets her know in verse 11 that he will do all that she asks because she is a worthy woman. He sees her godly character. He has seen it clearly over the past several weeks as she has gleaned in his field. This is the kind of woman that he has been waiting for.
We see that Ruth stepped out in faith in the first section. The risk was real. This could have turned out very poorly. Yet, through God’s sovereign providence, Boaz responds very favorably and purely. Although the risk for Ruth was real - the reward is very relevant. With this response, she was shown that she will be cared for and protected.
During the first point we discussed the risk of following Christ. Why should we step out in faith and seek rest in the Lord Jesus Christ? Why should we take a risk and give our lives to Christ? Especially if it may mean some hardship in this life at times.
Friends - the reward is relevant. The reward is eternal life with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The reward is avoiding an eternity in Hell apart from our glorious Savior.
Put your trust in the Savior. Be sure that you have repented, or turned away from your sins. Be sure that you believe in the true only begotten Son of God - who lived a sinless life some 2000 years ago and died on the cross for the sins of the world (John 3:16). Who rose three days later and is now at the right hand of the Father. He is a wonderful Savior and His rest lasts for an eternity. Enter His rest.
Finally, we see that:
Scripture References: Ruth 2:12, Deuteronomy 25:5-10, Revelation 7:4-8, Ruth 4:21, 1 Chron. 2:11, Matt. 1:5, John 3:16
III. When We Seek Rest in the Lord... The Result is Reliable (12-18)
III. When We Seek Rest in the Lord... The Result is Reliable (12-18)
And now it is true that I am a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I. Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the Lord lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning.”
It seemed like the story was ready for a happy ending and then comes verse 12. There is a wrench in the plan! There is a closer redeemer nearer than Boaz who is related to Elimelech. Boaz shows integrity and complete purity here. He doesn’t make a move. He doesn’t fabricate the truth. He promises to redeem her if the other man will not but cares more for her than himself. He states that if the other man will redeem her then good. That is a very selfless statement. By his comments about Ruth it is clear that he admires her greatly. It is evident that he would be very happy to marry her. But he cares so much for her that even if it wasn’t him, he wants to make sure she is cared for.
We know that he cares deeply for Ruth because he lets her know that he will seek an answer the following morning.
So she lay at his feet until the morning, but arose before one could recognize another. And he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” And he said, “Bring the garment you are wearing and hold it out.” So she held it, and he measured out six measures of barley and put it on her. Then she went into the city.
In the morning she is sent out with 6 measures (probably scoops of some sort) of barley and Boaz lets his workers know that this should be kept secret. This is not to be secret because they were impure. It needed to be kept secret for their reputations and also so that it would not complicate his talks with the nearest kinsman redeemer.
She is then sent back home to Naomi into the city.
And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did you fare, my daughter?” Then she told her all that the man had done for her, saying, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said to me, ‘You must not go back empty-handed to your mother-in-law.’ ” She replied, “Wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out, for the man will not rest but will settle the matter today.”
When Ruth got back to Naomi - there was an intensity there. Naomi knew that Boaz would settle the matter as soon as possible - she actually is assured that he will settle the matter that very day!
There is an interesting subtle statement in verse 17 as well. Ruth was not to go to Naomi empty-handed. If you recall - Naomi, upon returning to Bethlehem, made the following comment:
I went away full, and the Lord has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi, when the Lord has testified against me and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me?”
Boaz remembers this and wants Naomi to know that he means business. He wants her to know that he is determined to follow through with his promise to redeem Ruth. And he also likely expresses a thankful heart for her encouragement to Ruth to make this kind proposal.
Then verse 18 leaves us with another climax - we will see what this other redeemer and Boaz decide!
As we come to the end of this section, we have seen that seeking rest in the Lord comes with a risk that is real and a reward that is relevant. Now we have seen that the result is reliable. Ruth stepped out in faith and God sovereignly provided a favorable result. We are in the midst of a climax at the end of this chapter of Ruth in not knowing who exactly this redeemer will be. But we are assured that there is a redeemer for Ruth one way or another.
Israel felt this way about the Messiah in the Old Testament. There was a sure result that was reliable because God is reliable. The Messiah was certainly going to come. However, they were in a situation that required much waiting and anticipation of the coming Messiah.
We are blessed with knowing just how reliable the result was of the promised Messiah. As we enter this Christmas season, we see that the promised Messiah was reliably sent as shown in Scripture.
Today, we can step out in faith despite any risks because we know the reward of eternal life and a relationship with Christ far exceeds any of the risks involved. And we know the result of heaven is reliable. Our faith is not a blind faith. Our faith is firmly founded on the Person of Jesus Christ who never lies - who always fulfills His promises - and who is the All-powerful and Sovereign Creator of the Heavens and the Earth.
Friends, as we prepare for Christmas, spend some time seeing how wonderful our Savior is. Trust Him.
And remember:
The Risk is Real - There is a Cost to Following Christ
The Reward is Relevant - No Reward is More Relevant than Salvation
The Result is Reliable - The Result of Following Christ is Sure - Eternal Life with Christ
Scripture References: Ruth 1:21
Let us pray.
Prayer
If you would like to learn more about salvation through Jesus Christ or want to obey Jesus by obeying the first commandment of a believer in going through the waters of baptism - please let me know.
Have a blessed week.