Ruth Chapter 3

Rewards through Refining

by I Gordon

 

‘Anyone can sing in the day. When the cup is full and wealth rolls in abundance around him, any man can sing the praises of a God who gives a plenteous harvest… but no man can make a song in the night by himself… Songs in the night come only from God; they are not in the power of man.’

                                                                                                            Charles Spurgeon

 

Introduction

 

Chapter three takes us into the next stage of our Christian lives. We have seen the commitment of Ruth in her determination to follow the true God. We have also seen her grow in her relationship with Boaz, consistently relying upon his grace. This chapter is all about the three R’s – reading, writing, and arithmetic. Um, no, it’s about refining, rest and rewards. As a Christian grows, their faith has got to be tried and refined. Our faith is of little use to anyone until this has happened. But this chapter doesn’t leave us there, as it also shows us the rest and fruit that is produced in such a time. So among other things we can learn the following from this chapter:

-         the process the Lord uses in bringing us closer to Himself

-         what the true rest of God is

-         where fruit and growth in your Christian character comes from

 

Chapter 3 – Rewards through refining

 

3:1-2 Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, shall I not seek security for you, that it may be well with you? “And now is not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maids you were? Behold, he winnows barley at the threshing floor tonight.

 

Chapter 3 starts then with the next step in drawing closer to the Lord. Ruth had known the provision of Boaz, and had ‘sought refuge under the wings of the God of Israel’ as Boaz himself had earlier stated. We have also seen her working in Boaz’ field and seen his gracious commitment to her in return. But Naomi had a greater vision for Ruth. She could see something better for Ruth than just being a worker in Boaz’s field. She could see Ruth fully redeemed, loved, and honoured as a wife. So Naomi becomes a matchmaker! But it wasn’t going to be easy and would involve Ruth placing herself at the feet of Boaz, totally reliant upon his will. As we go on in our Christian life, there are times also when we must also be found at the threshing floor[1], where he is[2]. It is a time of testing and refining, and just as the threshing floor was used to separate the true grain from the chaff so these times in our life are used to refine and purify our faith in Him. But as we shall see, through this testing she would learn what it is to rest in him, and his provision would be greater than in any time before!

 

3:3 “Wash yourself therefore, and anoint yourself and put on your best clothes, and go down to the threshing floor; but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking.”

 

We see then that which is needed in preparing ourselves at this time. Three things are given for Ruth to do – wash herself, anoint herself, and put on her best clothes! Each of these acts are quite common in the Old Testament and each is interpreted for us in the New Testament.

1) Wash yourself – is being washed with the water of the word as Eph 5:26 tells us. It means examining ourselves by the word and allowing it to govern our attitudes, motives and desires. In times of testing the word of God is a light unto our path, giving us hope to persevere.

2) Anoint yourself – always speaks of the enabling of the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 5:18 tells us to be filled (or controlled) by the Holy Spirit and this is crucial in times of refining when our natural reaction is to be anything but controlled!

3) Put on your best clothes – speaks of a righteous life. Revelation 19:8 says ‘It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen… for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.’ This is only possible to the extent that we’ve got the first two tasks in place.

 

3:4-5 “And it shall be when he lies down, that you shall notice the place where he lies, and you shall go and uncover his feet and lie down; then he will tell you what you shall do.” And she said to her, “All that you say I will do.”

 

Ruth had to cast herself at Boaz’ feet! She didn’t know what would happen next or what his reaction would be but she just knew that she needed to be where he was and this meant the threshing floor![3] Ever felt like that? You’re going through a time of testing and all you can do is through yourself down at the Lords feet not really knowing what will happen next? To us it seems like a huge risk but to the Lord it is the very place He wants us to be.

 

3:6-7 So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law had commanded her. When Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain; and she came secretly, and uncovered his feet and lay down.

 

Unsure of how events would transpire, Ruth followed Naomi’s advice and went down to the threshing floor. Notice also that the threshing floor, the place of trial that refines our faith, is down! It’s a place where, as John the Baptist testified, ‘I must decrease and He must increase’. It’s easy to talk about but never nice in reality. Maybe it means coming and acknowledging to the Lord that you have been failure as a Christian, a failure as a husband, or a failure as a mother. When God creates, He starts with nothing, and creates something. And when God makes a ‘somebody’, He always starts with nobodies! But it always starts by laying yourself down in humility at His feet.

 

3:8 And it happened in the middle of the night that the man was startled and bent forward; and behold, a woman was lying at his feet.

 

The middle of the night! You’ve got to be kidding? I mean, it probably doesn’t sound long for us, but here was Ruth, laying at Boaz’s feet, thinking ‘will He marry me? Will he redeem me? Oh hurry up and wake up!’ It would have been a long wait for Ruth, believe me! How long it can be also when you find yourself on the threshing floor, in the midst of a trial. And often, God seems asleep[4] or at least oblivious to the whole ordeal. But He isn’t, and there will always come a time when Boaz awakes and though it takes longer usually than we would like, there will always come the time when God hears and acts on your cry. What would have been best for Ruth during this time? Well, to rest and much as possible and worry as lest as possible. And it is the same for you. So would laying her life and hopes at Boaz’s feet pay off?    

 

3:9-12 And he said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth your maid. So spread your covering over your maid, for you are a close relative.” Then he said, “May you be blessed of the Lord, my daughter. You have shown your last kindness to be better than the first by not going after young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you whatever you ask, for all my people in the city know that you are a woman of excellence.”

 

You bet it would! Pay off that is. Boaz was amazed at her commitment, faith and kindness stating that she was a woman of excellence[5]. Not only did she show commitment to Naomi but also she had now shown that same commitment to Boaz. Does it not also please the Lord Jesus when we choose to seek after Him instead of wealth or other worldly pleasures? I once read a quote that said you can test whether you love God by whether you seek after Him or His gifts. Boaz was pleased with Ruth’s choice and responds by the same words that Jesus said more than any other – ‘do not fear!’ Now what about you? Do you feel that you’re currently taking a beating down at the threshing floor, wondering how circumstances will turn out? If so, have you laid the result before Jesus and rested at His feet? Have you washed yourself in the word and allowed the Lord Jesus Christ to speak those words ‘Do not fear!’ into your life? May we continue to turn away from our problem and also hear those words from the Lord. Notice also that he said ‘I will do whatever you ask… for you are a woman of excellence.’ That is his response once we have put ourselves into this position at His feet.[6]

 

3:12-14 “And now it is true I am a close relative; however, there is a relative closer than I. “Remain this night, and when morning comes, if he will redeem you, good; let him redeem you. But if he does not wish to redeem you, then I will redeem you, as the Lord lives. Lie down until morning.” So she lay at his feet until morning and rose before one could recognize another; and he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”

 

Boaz, like the Lord Jesus Christ, is willing to redeem her but there is a closer relative than Boaz! Who would have the first choice to redeem you before the Lord? ‘Tis a mystery but we will have to save that for chapter four. But for now what is important is the Lord’s response to someone trusting and looking to Him. After telling Ruth not to fear the next thing he says is for her to remain resting for the night. The rest![7] She had to rest on the threshing floor knowing that Boaz would look after her! The picture couldn’t be any clearer for us. Testing and trials will come for the refining of our faith but what the Lord is after is that attitude which places the problem at the feet of Jesus, remaining restful in the midst of the trial.[8]

 

3:15-18 Again he said, “Give me the cloak that is on you and hold it.” So she held it, and he measured six measures of barley and laid it on her. Then she went into the city. And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did it go, my daughter?” And she told her all that the man had done for her. And she said, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said, ‘do not go to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” Then she said, “Wait, my daughter, until you know how the matter turns out; for the man will not rest until he has settled it today.”

 

One final thought as we close out the chapter.  In her early relationship with Boaz, Ruth had worked all day in Boaz’ field and beat out 22 litres of barley. Here, after being at the threshing floor, Boaz gives Ruth a gift of six measures, which according to the Bible Knowledge Commentary was six seahs or 46 litres! Have you found that in your own life? Have you noticed that hard times produce far more growth in your character than any amount of normal daily living. We may not like it but it is true. If you have been a Christian long enough I'm sure you can look back at specific difficult times and testify that that was when you truly learnt more about the character and faithfulness of the Lord. We may read our books and hear our sermons for years but we only truly know something once that knowledge has been tested. May we like Ruth, desire to go deeper, learning to rest and lay all at the feet of Jesus.

 

1 Peter 1:3-9 seems appropriate here.

 

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.