THE two girls have been spending some pleasant hours together in this field. Now they are going home to mother with their gleanings. They will most likely return to the same field the next day. The poor woman on the hill is bending to gather the grain. The children may have done this for pleasure, but with the woman, we may be quite sure it is a necessity. The bending woman makes every one of us think of. Ruth.
Ruth, you know, gleaned in the fields of Boaz for Naomi, her mother-in-law and herself. They came back from the land of Moab penniless. Naomi left her own land full but came back empty. Ruth loves Naomi and decides where Naomi goes, she will go; Naomi’s people shall be her people and Naomi’s God shall be her God.
Boaz showed kindness to Ruth, the stranger. He told her not to go to any other field to glean. To his young men he said, “Let her glean even among the sheaves and reproach her not. And let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her, and leave them, that she may glean them and rebuke her not.” Ruth 2:15, 1615And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, Let her glean even among the sheaves, and reproach her not: 16And let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her, and leave them, that she may glean them, and rebuke her not. (Ruth 2:15‑16). So we may expect her gleanings to be considerable. When she beat out what she had gleaned, it was about an ephah. An ephah is supposed to be eight gallons. This was quite a rich harvest, don’t you think? So Naomi advised Ruth to continue with the maidens of Boaz in his fields until the end of the harvest. Ruth obeyed Naomi and continued to be favored by Boaz.
When a near kinsman of Naomi did not choose to do as the law of Moses required, Boaz stepped in and bought the field that belonged to Naomi and also married Ruth.
Boaz is a picture of the Lord Jesus. When the law could not save us, then grace came in. Jesus came all the way from glory to die for sinners like you and me.
Ruth, the poor Moabitish damsel, was united to Boaz, the mighty man of wealth. So we who know the Lord Jesus as our Saviour are united to Christ.
ML 08/01/1909