The Light

Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, "It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, and that people do not meet you in any other field." So she stayed close by the young women of Boaz, to glean until the end of barley harvest and wheat harvest; and she dwelt with her mother-in-law".

Ruth 2:22-23

In the last chapter we looked at the glorious provision that God made for Ruth when she came to the land of Judah with her mother-in-law Naomi. We are told that Ruth went out to glean, but there were many barriers between Ruth and her coming in to the full fellowship of the covenant people of God. These difficulties arose out of the simple fact that she was a Moabitess, and the law of God forbade the Moabite from coming into the congregation of God's people. But the same law also made provision for her in her state as a widow; her very poverty qualified her to glean in the fields at harvest time.

It is also true that the Bible that reminds us that by our sinnership we are barred from the fellowship of God and the fellowship of his people, comes to us with a glorious provision of a Gospel suited to our very need. There is one who says to us "I am the way" (John 14:6). Although by our sinful nature and through our sinful practice we cannot know peace with God, Christ is our peace -- he is the living bread come down from Heaven. God has given his Son to deal with the problem of alienation -- His Son for our sin. That Son took that sin, in order that us sinners might become the sons of God. Grace has overcome every barrier, and removed every hindrance to our knowing peace with God in our hearts.

Remember too that in these fields Ruth was able to pick up bundles of corn which had been dropped for her on purpose. She experienced a great love and a great provision in the fields of Boaz. Boaz went further than the law of God required in connection with harvesting his corn. The law required that the corners of the fields be left uncut, and any corn left which happened to fall was to be left. But Boaz went further. 'Drop bundles of corn for her', he said. You see, God always does that. God blesses his word to his people in such a way that it's as if he 'opens the very windows of Heaven and pours down his blessing upon them' (Malachi 3:10). And precisely at the point of our deepest need is the point at which he tailors his word to that very need, as if no-one in the world mattered to God at that very moment but us! The great C.H. Spurgeon once described his wife as "God's spoilt child", because he could see how wonderfully close she lived to the Lord, and how much God did for her and sent blessings her way. It was as if no other child of his mattered as much!

And then we took note of the blessings that Ruth enjoyed because of all of these great provisions. She picked up the corn, she gleaned all day and then she beat it out and she made flour and baked bread. Then she went home and both she and Naomi ate. And if that was not blessing enough, they ate until they were full. There is a fullness that belongs to God's people in Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us that in Jesus there dwells all the fullness of the godhead bodily and we are complete in Him (Colossians 2:9). Or, as David puts it in Psalm 34:10, "The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing." God's people may be lacking in many of this world's provisions and many other things besides, but they will not lack what they need to sustain them and to keep them every day of their lives. If you glean in the fields of the Gospel you will be filled. Those who seek will find, and those who knock will have a door opened for them, and those who ask, will receive. God's hand is not shortened: he gives to his people, and he gives to his people in abundance.

So when Ruth came home, at the end of her first day in the fields of Boaz and Naomi said to her, "Where have you gleaned today?" she was able to tell her of all the wonderful provision that God made for her. God had been going before her, opening the way for her, preparing the path for her that was to bring her into the fellowship and into the circle of God's covenant people. Through the marvellous grace and kindness of Boaz, blessings flowed into the life of Ruth. There is a Christ offering himself to us in all his glorious fullness, and his invitation is extended to us to make use of him.

I want us in this chapter to spend a little time thinking about the conversation between Ruth and Naomi. I believe that it was crucial, as a directive and incentive to Ruth at this point in her lives. We are told that Naomi said three things to Ruth. First, in 2:20, she blessed the Lord for Boaz -- that was a word of rejoicing. Then, again in 2:20, Naomi describes the relationship in which Boaz stands to them -- that was a word of revelation. Finally, in 2:22, Naomi speaks of Ruth's relationship to the other gleaners, and I am going to suggest that that was a word of rebuke to Ruth.

There is, I think, an important principle emerging here. It is that the speaking of Naomi is so crucial to the development of the story. What a wise old woman she is! Just as at 1:18 Naomi's silence was so critical, now her speaking becomes pivotal. There is a time to speak, and a time to be silent. And this is a time for speaking -- Ruth needs direction, and with the gentle leading of Naomi she will be guided into the next stage of her journey. Ruth needs counsel. She needs to hear what Naomi has to say. And what Naomi says is a word from the Lord, a word which is born out of her knowledge and her experience.

Paul's classic statement of the inspiration of the Bible in 2 Timothy 3:16 not only tells us that all Scripture is inspired by God, but goes on to say that it is profitable for us, for our instruction in righteousness, for our counsel, for our guidance, so that the people of God will be equipped for every good work. This emphasis on the centrality of the Bible is one of the hallmarks of evangelicalism. It is the word we need, and it is sufficient for every situation and circumstance. Naomi's words to Ruth were carefully chosen, and timeously given. They were a word from Heaven to Ruth's soul, and were a light to guide her on her journey.

In a sense, Naomi teaches us something here about what all good preaching should be: a word from God to his people, communicated through the experience and knowledge of the preacher. Naomi had come a long way to this point, and out of her maturity and experience of grace she can help Ruth. That is the hallmark of Gospel preaching also.

A Word of Rejoicing

The first of Naomi's words to Ruth expressed her gratitude to God for the attention Boaz has given them. "May the Lord bless him!" is what she says of Boaz. The word "bless" has not been often on the lips of Naomi. She has talked of emptiness -- but now she is aware of fullness. She has talked of bitterness, but now she can talk of blessedness. When Naomi hears that it is in Boaz's fields Ruth has been gleaning, she breaks out with this great note, this anthem of rejoicing and praise of the Lord, "blessed be he of the Lord who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead." You see not all that long before this there had been another word on the lips of Naomi. When she came to Bethlehem and the people that saw her were moved, they could hardly recognise her weakened form coming back from Moab after such a long absence of at least ten years. But she is back now after a decade, and the whole city is moved about Naomi and she says this, "Don't call me Naomi, call me Mara because the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me" (1:20). You see the word on her lips at that point was the word 'bitter'.

But now she has seen all these handfuls of corn that Ruth is gleaning and her voice has changed, her word is different, her whole attitude is different. Everything about her is different. She has moved from bitterness to blessedness. From saying that the hand of God has been against her, now, she says, the hand of God is with her. She said first of all "God has stood against me", now she is saying, "God is for me". And there, in that provision that Ruth brought home this evening Naomi sees God's unfailing kindness, his covenant love, his absolute faithfulness to his covenant people and promise.

Although Naomi drifted far away from Him, God remained the faithful God of Naomi. And he has taken Naomi out of bitterness and into blessedness. He has made the water sweet for her, all these experiences that she passed through: the death of her husband, the death of one son, then the death of another son, the departure of Orpah, the final leaving of her daughter-in-law, coming back from Moab with something she never expected; a Moabitess for a daughter-in-law. She went to Moab in order to get food with Elimelech, her husband. But her plans were overthrown, and she says as she comes back "bitterness, bitterness". But now she sees this great provision, now there is bread in the home, now God has been so evidently going before her, now she is saying, "blessedness, blessedness."

Is that not what God does for men and women? That is the joy he gives. That is the note of rejoicing that he plants in the hearts of men and women who have strayed far away from Him, and in his grace he's brought them back in to the bond of his covenant, back into the fellowship and to the circle of his own people. Any they have made this great transition from bitterness to blessedness.

What is your soul experiencing -- bitterness or blessedness? Are you bemoaning the fact that events have turned out the way they have? Or has God's leading and guiding become a source of blessing and praise? It may be that as a believer you have drifted far away from God, and allowed the fire of your devotion and your zeal to be reduced. Perhaps you've allowed some distance to come in between yourself and your covenant Saviour, and instead of going forward you've slidden back. The more we move away from God, the more room there will be in our soul for the seeds of bitterness to germinate and grow. But here is the great lesson of the unchanging faithful God of the covenant -- he is able to lift us out of bitterness and he is able to give us blessedness. He is able to transform the night into day, he is able to scatter the shadows of all of these feelings and he is able to come into our lives with the brightness of the noon-day sun. Do you remember how the psalmist put it so vividly? He says "You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness" (Psalm 30:11). Do remember what we read about the disciples in the New Testament: "Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord" (John 20:20). The moment they saw him, it transformed their whole outlook and their praises began and their hearts were caught up in the thrill of knowing him and having him there.

Does it move your heart to rejoice with Naomi, to see the Lord? Does it move your heart to hear Christ extolled and exalted every time the Gospel is preached? Does it thrill you to read about all that he has done and all that he is as the bread of life come down from Heaven? If we can look into the Bible, and read about the Saviour and his dying there for sinners and remain unmoved, there is something radically wrong with us. God can change situations, and can fill us with rejoicing and blessedness. Is that not what Psalm 126 is full of? "When God turned the captivity of Zion, we were like men that dreamed, our mouths were filled with laughter because God had done great things for us" (Psalm 126:1).

Have you any reason to praise the Lord today? Having seen him at work in your life, and having discovered what he is in himself and what he has done for sinners and is able to do has promised to do, do you have any reason to sing his glorious praises? To exalt his name and to call him blessed? Do you know anything about that? I will tell you this -- the work of Heaven is a work of praise. The moment a door in Heaven is open for John in the Isle of Patmos to see what's going on on the other side, immediately he hears singing. He hears an anthem being sung. He hears a name being exalted, he hears heavenly music, he hears celestial singing, he hears the choirs of angels and the spirits of just men made perfect, and they are singing the praises of him that loved them and washed them from their sins in his blood. Do you know anything of that singing? Have you nothing to sing about?

God's people have something to sing about. I have belonged all my life to a psalm-singing denomination, although I have had the great privilege of preaching and worshipping in a variety of churches whose approach to worship is different to mine. I respect all those who take the Bible as the rule for their worship, even if they apply it in ways different to me. But I take exception to the highbrow, high-dance worship style that insists that I should be jumping for joy with a laugh on my face every time I sing in God's praise. The psalms of the Bible do not insist on me being happy every time I praise God! Let's remember that! Sometimes they reflect the fact that my soul might be filled with sadness, and grief and melancholy. The glorious thing is that even when I don't feel like singing, I can recognise God's goodness and acknowledge his love.

That is also why I do not think the word 'blessed' in Scripture should be translated as 'happy'. Happiness is a subjective, emotional condition -- blessedness is an objective state. If I am blessed, it does not matter how I may be feeling, and I can bless the Lord even from the depths of my sorrow and need. It is not necessary to have a lively, party-style service in our worship. Nor is it necessary to have a polished, choral performance. I don't want a congregation to sing as if they were the best choir that ever performed in four-part harmony. Don't get me wrong -- I am not excusing bad singing! I do want us to get as near perfection as we can in our worship, but it does not interest me to have an absolutely polished performance because when I look into the New Testament I see that the one great principle of our singing is that we make melody in our hearts to the Lord.

I think that is how Naomi is. She has had her share of heartache and tears, but there is joy in her heart. There is melancholy, but there is also melody. Her life had been so changed by the grace God that she couldn't but shout out when Ruth came home, "blessed, blessed be he of the Lord." There is rejoicing on the lips of Naomi. God save us from a religion that does not move us to rejoice! From a religion that does not capture us with the thrill and the glory and the joy of God's salvation! I think that's what Naomi is experiencing here at this point, a transition from bitterness to blessing. And her rejoicing is the measure of what God is able to do in one human life.

A Word of Revelation

Naomi then told Ruth that the man with whom she had worked was related to them: "This man is a relative of ours, one of our near kinsmen" (2:20). This is obviously a very important thing to Naomi because she repeats it in the following chapter. In 3:2 she says to Ruth, "Now Boaz, whose young women you were with, is he not our kinsman?"

Naomi sees the significance of this fact: that the man in whose fields Ruth went to glean, was Boaz, their close relative. There was a family. The Bible does not spell out for us what the relationship was, but it was close enough to give Naomi hope.

The important question to clarify at this point is this: what hope did the fact of Boaz's being a relative give to Naomi? I think it gave her a two-fold hope that was based on the provisions of God's law, particularly the laws we read about in Deuteronomy 25 and Leviticus 25. One law that stated that if a family lost their father through death, a close relative, (a brother, or in some cases if there was no brother, another relative) could bring up the children and continue the family name within the household (Deuteronomy 25:5ff). This included the brother or close relative marrying the widow and having children to her. The law included a proviso that if the close relative did not wish to do so, the widow could sue him before the elders of the city.

There was another law that stated that if a man lost his property, then another kinsman could redeem it and buy it back (Leviticus 25:23-34). This law is based on a two-fold principle: first, that the land belonged to Jehovah (no-one could claim absolute ownership), and second, that restoration was an expression of grace. The idea of redemption has already been fundamental in Israel's history -- the release from Egypt was an act of redemption (Exodus 15:13). In terms of land owndership, God's law made provision for lost land to be restored, either through the payment of a redemption price, or in the Year of the Jubilee.

Although the legal situation behind the Book of Ruth is complex, it is clear that here we have a mingling of these two themes. We are going to see, as the Book of Ruth unfolds, that the story of Ruth is the story of redemption by the near relative. Boaz is going to do two things: he is going to fulfill the law in respect of marriage and in respect of property. He will play the part of a kinsman-redeemer, by which he will continue the name of Elimelech, and see to the restoration of the land.

One of the most significant commentaries on the Book of Ruth is the mention of Boaz in the genealogy of our Lord (Matthew 1:5). Not only in the immediate story of Ruth, but also in the 'bigger' story of God's salvation, Boaz is going to play a primary and pivotal role. Indeed, precisely because of his involvement with Ruth will he have a significant role in the unfolding purposes of God's grace. But there is something else: because of the way in which Boaz will fulfill the two-fold law regarding family and regarding property, Ruth is going to find a way in to the covenant people of God through marriage.

And that is why Naomi is so thrilled by this tremendous provision. Ruth had said to Naomi in 2:2, "Please let me go to the field and glean heads of grain after him in whose sight I might find favour." Was that only this morning? Ruth did not know where she was going when she set off. And all that the Bible says in 2:3 is that "she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz...". I believe in coincidence. 'Coincidence' just means two events happening at the same time. I do not, however, believe in mere coincidence: I believe in measured coincidence. I believe in God's ordering of every event and his working out his purposes in the events of this life and in the coincidences of this life. In God's providence, when two things happen together at the same time, it is not without a reason. It was a coincidence that Ruth found herself gleaning in the fields of Boaz, but it was not a mere coincidence. It was not an accident. It was not without a design. God brought her into that field, and now Naomi is explaining to her the significance of it all. The man is a close relative. He is able to undertake the duties of a kinsman redeemer. He can continue the family name, able to look after the interests of the family inheritance. He is able to do for us the things that we cannot do for ourselves, Naomi is saying to her daughter-in-law. There are things here, she is revealing to Ruth, that are beyond our capacity and beyond our ability, but this man, this man into whose field God drew you, this man is able to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

This is precisely the point at which the Book of Ruth becomes so full of Christ and his Gospel. There is a redeemer of whom it is exactly true that what we cannot do for ourselves, he can do for us. We take Christ's lead and search the Scriptures because they testify of him -- and we find him here, in the work and in the ability of Boaz. Can we imagine Christ unfolding himself out of the Old Testament to the disciples on the road to Emmaus and not stopping in his exposition at the Book of Ruth? Can we doubt that he drew attention to the laws which Boaz alone could fulfill -- laws that could ensure the continuance of the line of his people and guarantee the security of their inheritance? Only one man could do it -- the man who was related to them and acceptable in terms of the law's standards.

Jesus Christ is brought before us on the pages of the Gospel as precisely such a man. He, and he alone, can do things for us that we cannot do for ourselves. He is able to undertake for us our interests when our hands are tied. There are limits to our ability and our power, but there is a Redeemer, Jesus, God's own Son. And the glory of the Gospel revelation is that the one in whose fields we glean in the Gospel, the Jesus who can fulfill the law and make it honourable, and who can do for us what we need, is 'a close relative' to us -- he is in our blood-line, the God-man, Christ Jesus.

The glory of Christ's redeeming work lies in the fact that he did not take to himself the nature of angels, but he took on him the seed of Abraham (Hebrews 2:16). The glory of his redemptive work lies in the fact that the Son of Man was made a little lower than the angels. And it was fitting that in all points he should be made like his brethren (Hebrews 2:17). In order to save the lost sons and daughters of Adam, Christ had to "destroy him who had the power of death, that is the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage" (Hebrews 2:14-15). Who is the devil? He is represented as the enemy of God, the angel who wished to be God and who set his sights on occupying the throne of the universe. He is portrayed in Hebrews as holding in fear and bondage those who have followed him and who are slaves to sin. The death of Christ was many things, among which it was an assault on the devil's kingdom, power and lordship in human life.

And the teaching of Hebrews 2 is that in order to destroy the power of the devil, Jesus did not take on the nature of angels -- to destroy an angel he had to become a man! He took our nature to himself, and was found in fashion as a man. It is the close proximity of Jesus to those whom he determined to save that is the basis upon which an effective redemption can be accomplished.

Just as the glory of Boaz for Ruth and Naomi lay in the closeness of the relationship that bound him to them, the glory of Christ for us lies in the nearness of his relationship to us. There is one who is near of kin to us. Love compelled the godhead, as the poet put it, to wear frail flesh and blood. Jesus stands before us as an able and a competent Saviour, and his ability and his competence and his power to save arise out of the fact that things came to be true about him that were not always true about him. The second person of the godhead, the delight of the father, the God who has no point of origin, the God who is eternal and unchangeable, possessing all the glories that belong to the absolute supreme being, the Son of God now, in addition to all of these, has taken bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. He remains an eternally divine person. But he has two natures: he is God and he is Man. But one nature has not extinguished the other. His man-ness has not extinguished his god-ness; his godness has not extinguished his man-ness. They are not intermingled into one nature, they are not confused, the boundaries between them are clear. But they are united together forever in his one person. That's why he can save. That's why he is able to undertake all the duties of a Redeemer and do for sinners what they cannot do for themselves.

Hebrews 2:17 presses it to its great climax and to its great consummation. Why is Jesus become like his brethren? So that he will be a merciful and faithful High Priest. In things pertaining to God, man and law, in every issue of our life, Jesus is able to perform the duties of Priestly Redeemer because he was made like his people. He took the nature of those whom he intended to save, he lived a life in the world of those whom he intended to save. He took the place and he died the death of those whom he intended to save. He rose with power in the nature of those whom he intended to save. And at the right-hand of God, in our nature he intercedes on behalf of all those whom he intends to save. And every single one of these heirs of salvation has only one Saviour. And that one Saviour is near of kin to every one of them.

But I want to ask how near is Jesus to me personally? Hebrews 2:18 tells me, "He suffered being tempted; He is able to aid those that are tempted." The one who suffered is able to help. Or, to use the language of the King James Version, the sufferer is the succourer. The one that endured the cross and despised the shame is able to give strength and grace to all of his people; he is that near to them. He is a near relative. That means that he understands perfectly everything that I may be experiencing, enduring and suffering. And he is able to give grace and help to those who stand in need of strength and grace and help. He can identify with weakness on the part of his people. He can feel their pain and understand their need. The God-man is the one who can truly stand by us and help us every step of the way.

A Word of Rebuke

I am going to suggest in conclusion that there is a third thing on the lips of Naomi and it is a word of rebuke. In 2:21 Ruth added the following information: "He also said to me, 'You shall stay close by my young men until they have finished all my harvest'". The striking thing about that was that Boaz had not said this to Ruth at all. Boaz had said to Ruth, "Stay by my maidens." In reference to the young men, Boaz had said to Ruth "I have commanded the young men not to go near you. They'll not harm you."

In fact Naomi, who was not in the fields of Boaz at all, hears what is being said. This is how Naomi answers Ruth, "It is good, my daughter, that you go out with the young women, and that people do not meet you in any other field." It is not with the young men that Ruth ought to remain, but with the young women. What seems to be stressed in 2:21 is that when Ruth misrepresented the words of Boaz, this was the Moabitess in her speaking. And I wonder if perhaps there was something of the old nature coming out here. Is there a signal here that there are still sinful tendencies here that need to be overcome?

Even when God, by his grace, changes our status from sinners under condemnation to sinners justified, and makes all things new for us, there remains in our hearts a world of corruption which needs to be put to death. That is what the doctrine of sanctification is about -- it is about our lifestyle, our desires and our motives matching our status before God. I wonder if, in Ruth's statement, there was something of the sin that remains in all of God's people, coming here to the surface and calling forth a tender rebuke from Naomi. Boaz did not, in fact, tell Ruth to stay close to his young men. So Naomi gently corrects her. "Stay," she says to Ruth, "with his young women."

The interesting thing is that the closing words of chapter two make it clear that Ruth heard, took, and acted on, Naomi's counsel. In 2:23 we read that until the harvest was ended, Ruth "stayed close by the young women of Boaz". For all that the Book of Ruth tells the romantic story of a young woman of faith, it also tells a realistic story. Ruth was open to temptation as we all are. It takes a lot of courage, grace and strength to resist temptation. Sometimes we fall into temptation, only to be torn apart by remorse and sorrow for what we do. What a blessing it is that God, in Christ, covers our every need, and cleanses from every stain.

We do not read that Ruth sinned, but I do think we read that a door of temptation was opening. And she hears the wise words of Naomi, directing her to retain her purity and integrity in Boaz's fields. The church is not free from imperfections and sins. Indeed, there are some people who are all too ready to point the finger at the church for all her faults and inconsistencies, not one of which is justifiable or excusable. For that reason, there is a great encouragement for us in the Bible, because the Christians of the word of God, were, as Elijah is described in James 5:17, men and women with the same (sinful) nature as ours. And that takes us back to the fact of Jesus' being made a perfect high priest by taking our nature: he knows the reality of temptation and is able to help those who are tempted. It was not without reason that his baptism was followed by six weeks of intense temptation in the wilderness. He can understand and follow and sympathise with -- and help -- those of his people who descend so quickly from the mountain tops of blessing and assurance to the valleys of temptation and sin.

Sometimes God allows us to fall into these very sins and temptations. The story of Naomi herself shows us that, and shows us that God is able to use the hard lessons of our lives to show us our weakness and sin, that we might all the more lean on him and put our trust in him. It was the same with Peter, when he denied three times that he knew the Lord. Hard and all as the lesson was, and hard and all as the long nights of sorrow and tears afterwards were, Peter was of benefit to the church following his experience of temptation, sin and repentance. His sin emptied him of all the self-reliance and independence which had led him to deny Christ. He came to see himself as nothing, as one who needed to be kept by God's grace and power (1 Peter 1:3).

So Ruth continued gleaning, and working, as God blessed his people with harvest and with bread. And in walking the path of integrity, holiness and obedience, Ruth found blessing. There is no blessing to be found along the path of compromise, sin and disobedience. But there is blessing to be found in the path of God's will. May we all learn to walk that road, and enjoy the bounty and fulness of God's blessing!

© Iain D. Campbell 2001