Ruth 3: 8-18 “Who are you?” he asked. “I am your servant Ruth,” she replied. “Spread the corner of your garment over me, for you are a kinsman-redeemer.” Then Boaz said, “May the LORD bless you, my daughter. You have shown more kindness now than before, because you have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor. And now do not be afraid, my daughter. I will do for you whatever you request, since all my fellow townspeople know that you are a woman of noble character. Yes, it is true that I am a kinsman-redeemer, but there is a redeemer nearer than I. Stay here tonight, and in the morning, if he wants to redeem you, good. Let him redeem you. But if he does not want to redeem you, as surely as the LORD lives, I will. Now lie here until morning.”
So she lay down at his feet until morning, but she got up before anyone else could recognize her. Then Boaz said, “Do not let it be known that a woman came to the threshing floor.” And he told her, “Bring the shawl you are wearing and hold it out.” When she did so, he shoveled six measures of barley (about 58 pounds or 26.3 kilograms of barley) into her shawl. Then he went into the city. When Ruth returned to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked her, “How did it go, my daughter?” Then Ruth told her all that Boaz had done for her. And she said, “He gave me these six measures of barley, for he said, ‘Do not go back to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” “Wait, my daughter,” said Naomi, “until you find out how things go, for he will not rest unless he has resolved the matter today.”
What were the duties of the kinsman – redeemer? The Bible describes three different types of kinsman – . (https://messianic-revolution.com/l25-21-three-roles-kinsman-redeemer/)
The first type is the one who purchases back land for a family member who is about to lose it due financially crushing circumstances.
The second type is the one who avenges the death of a family member, assuming that family member died as the result of violence or negligence.
The third type is the one who steps in to marry a son-less widow so she can give birth to a son who will carry on the deceased father’s line.
Ruth as a citizen of Moab would not be considered an Israelite; however, if a foreigner renounced his/her land and gods and chose to live in Israel and to worship the One True Living God of Israel, then that person could be considered an Israelite. At this point, it is important to remember Ruth’s assertion to Naomi prior to leaving Moab. (Ruth 1:16 “But Ruth replied: “Do not urge me to leave you or to turn from following you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.”) Having renounced her country and her gods and having chosen to join Naomi in Israel and to worship Naomi’s God, Ruth could now be considered an Israelite. And the amount of barley Boaz gave Ruth this time was twice as much as she had been able to glean on her first day, roughly enough to feed Ruth and Naomi for nearly two months. When Naomi saw that barley, she must have been elated. Boaz had graphically demonstrated that he was going to take definite action, justifying Naomi’s confidence in him.
APPLICATION: Many of us love TV shows or videos in which the tall strong super hero conquers the villains, solves all the problems, saves the innocent, and gets the heroine. You can transfer that theme to any genre such as the wild West, outer space or shows featuring police or fire service. But at the end of the day, we find the idea of a strong protector who rights all wrongs incredibly appealing. For the Israelites, the kinsman – redeemer fulfilled the role of a family hero.
While we don’t know very much about Boaz, we can assume that he was a bit older than Ruth, since he commended Ruth for not having run after younger men, “whether rich or poor.” What did Ruth think when she heard that there was another kinsman – redeemer who was more closely related to Elimelech than was Boaz? Ruth knew Boaz to be honest, kind, and hard – working, but what about this other fellow? Who knows what he might do? Would he be kind to Ruth, or might he treat her as an inferior concubine or even refuse to do anything at all? Had I been Ruth, I would have been begging the God of Israel for H*E*L*P!!!
Why is the story of Ruth and Boaz important for us? We too have a Kinsman – Redeemer; His name is Jesus. Each one of us was born with a sin nature; we might want to be good and noble all the time, but invariably, we fail. Sometimes we fail the most when we are trying the hardest. And God Almighty is a just and holy God, who cannot tolerate anything or anybody sinful to enter heaven. Even if we are willing to die for our own sins, our sacrifice will be tainted because we are inherently sinful. Only the blood sacrifice of a perfect sinless man would be sufficient to pay for our sins.
Jesus Christ came as the Son of God, born to a virgin. Jesus was – and is – fully God and fully man. Although Jesus was without any sin whatsoever, He willingly gave up His life by crucifixion, one of the cruelest deaths any government could ever administer. But because Jesus was – and is – also fully God, He rose from the dead. For those of us who believe in Jesus’ death and resurrection, we can copy Ruth. We can renounce our citizenship in a fallen sinful world and claim citizenship in heaven – not because of any good thing we have done but because Jesus has already paid the price for our sins.
For Ruth and Naomi, Boaz became their earthly savior, but Boaz also died. But for anyone who will believe in Jesus Christ, our citizenship is an eternal one. One day, even though our physical bodies will die, we will be in heaven eternally because of the Blood of Jesus.
PRAYER: Father God, thank you so much for sending Jesus as our Kinsman – Redeemer to live as a man and to shed His Blood for our sins. Help us to fully trust in that sacrifice and to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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