Would You Rather: Ruth vs. Esther

Would you rather is a fun game to play, particularly when getting to know someone. A person is asked to choose betwen two things of equal desiring—making it hard to decide and opening dialouge as to why the person chooses the option they choose. Recently I stumbled accross several versions of "Would You Rather?: Bible Edition" and found the questions quite intriguing. I've decided to answer one every Sabbath. Let me know your answer to today's "Would You Rather?" in the comment section.

Would you rather have dinner with Ruth or Esther?

Answer: Ruth

Backstory

Ruth

Ruth was a Moabite woman who married into an Israelite family that was living in Moab. After her husband died, she left her home country, her family, her culture, and everything she knew to support her mother-in-law. Ruth is most known for her marriage to Boaz, but her journey of conversion and loyalty is about so much more than the husband she gained at the end of the journey. One of two women to have a book in the Biblical cannon named after her, and one of four women to be named in the lineage of Christ, Ruth had a pround effect on the history of both Israel and Christianity.[2]

Esther

Esther was an Israelite living in Persia during the captivity. When the king decided to look for a bride, she was chosen. This may have felt like a fairytale (or it may have been a nightmare, considering approaching the king without permission was punishable by death even for the queen), but after the king's right hand man issue a decree for the death of the Israelites, Esther was placed in a horrible position. She became the only one who could save the lives of all her people—no pressure. We don't know how old Esther is when this takes place, but given the time period and the fact that until recently women were expected to be married by their late teens, she was probably about 16. If it weren't for Esther, there would have been no Israelites to return to Israel to usher in the Messiah!! [1]

Rationale

This is a hard one because there is so much to talk about with both of these women! They both have relatable experiences, which would make for excellent conversation. Ruth stepped out of her comfort zone and went on a whole adventure in the name of family—even though "family" was not blood. Esther experienced a Cinderella story and saved her people with a mastery of persuasion. Both women displayed courage, experienced life as a minority, were leaders, and fundamentally shaped the nation of Israel.

¹The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. ²Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. Ecclesiastes 1:1-2 KJV

As a black woman, I easily relate to Esther being an Israelite in captivity in Persia. The concept of Esther "passing" for a Persian is very much like the concept of "passing" for white. I don't know what kind of cultural stigma was associated with abandonning he Jewish heritage or what she had to give up to not draw attention to her background, but I imagine that was a difficult path to navigate.

We never see Esther's choice in the matter—whether she desired to be married to the king or this was forced upon her by the king and her uncle (akin to the plight of Sally Hemmings). Esther was thrust into a bad situation and the lives of all her people became dependent upon her. She didn't ask for that kind of responsibility, and yet she rose to the challenge. Esther showed us the importance of spiritual fasting. From Esther we could learn about diplomacy, courage, and faith.

But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house. Judges 16:21 KJV

Ruth, on the other was fully in control of her situation. She left the home she knew to maintain the bond of family with her mother-in-law, including converting to Judaism. I relate to her in the sense that I've made major changes in my relationship with God to bring them in line with His Word—changes that the rest of my family have not made—and live 11 hours away from them.

Like Esther, Ruth is also a despised minority (Moabite) in a foreign land (Israel). She was courageous and had faith that following Naomi would work out for the best. Allow we know that the goal was to get Boaz to become her husband, Ruth proved to be a hardworker. From Ruth we could learn about adaptation to change, taking the first step toward a dream or adventure, and how to treat strangers as family.

I don't think there would be a single con of going back in time and meeting either one of these ladies (or meeting them after all is said and done). Ultimately, I like the go-getter-ness of Ruth. I feel like she more proactive in her situation, which leads me to jump to the conclusion that she would have the most advice and be more engaging in conversation. Who would you choose?

References and Footnotes

1. The Book of Esther
2. The Book of Ruth
3. I found many versions of "Whould You Rather?: Scripture Edition"; this question was found in a version made by Rebecca of Out Upon the Waters

Most Likely to Shoot Their Shot

Season 1 Episode 30

⁵So Ruth said to her, “I will do everything you say.” ⁶She went down to the threshing floor and did everything her mother-in-law had charged her to do. ⁷After Boaz ate, drank, and was in good spirits, he went to lie down at the end of the pile of barley, and she came secretly, uncovered his feet, and lay down.

⁸At midnight, Boaz was startled, turned over, and there lying at his feet was a woman! ⁹So he asked, “Who are you?”

“I am Ruth, your servant,” she replied. “Take me under your wing, for you are a family redeemer.”Ruth 3:5-9 CSB

The entrance to where I stayed in Belize
Photocredit: Unsplash.com/Tamarcus Brown

Is it proper for a woman to "shoot her shot"? My friends and I have been talking about dating almost nonstop for the past week and while I wish I'd just recorded our conversation, I had to let some of that conversation bleed over in to the podcast. So let's talk about Ruth basically asking Boaz to marry her...

Footnotes and References

Ronald L. Eisenberg. "Levirate Marriage". My Jewish Learning; visited August 2019

Christopher R. Smith. "Did Ruth seduce Boaz to get him to marry her? (Part 3)". Good Question Blog. February 20, 2013

Judah and Tamar - Genesis 38

Most Likely to Have Your Back

Can you imagine giving up everything you know to stand by someone who's not a blood relative? Actually can you imagine doing the same for a blood relative? Would you give up your career? Friends? Way of living? Basically, how far would you go to have someone's back?

Season 1 Episode 19

¹Don’t rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger men as brothers, ²older women as mothers, and the younger women as sisters with all purity. ³Support widows who are genuinely in need. ⁴But if any widow has children or grandchildren, let them learn to practice godliness toward their own family first and to repay their parents, for this pleases God. ⁵The widow who is truly in need and left all alone has put her hope in God and continues night and day in her petitions and prayers; ⁶however, she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. ⁷Command this also, so that they will be above reproach. ⁸But if anyone does not provide for his own family, especially for his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 1 Timothy 5:1-8 CSB

00:01:52	Hey guys! Welcome back to the PSALMS to God podcast. So today I want to talk about the person that is Most Likely to Have Your Back. This is the “ride or die” loyal friend that you know you can count on. Whatever is happening, they've got your back. They're going to help you get through it, and you know, I think that this is the person we all desire to have in our life. We may not be so good at being this person, but you can bet everybody wants this person in their life.
00:02:27	And I want to point out up front that when I say they having your back, I don't mean following you up. So there are... I'ma use an extreme. OK, let's say I got locked up and I was in jail. There are one or two reasons why I could be there—OK, technically they're three, but we’re not going to get into the third one because I feel like that's a whole podcast on its own, and that's you know false accusations and the system. And y’all already know, we be here all day talking about this, so we're going to ignore that one for the sake of this podcast and for the sake of time—but either I actually committed a crime or there's some law that is unjust and I've inadvertently broken it or I protested it. Think like the Civil Rights Movement: like, Rosa Parks getting arrested for sitting on the bus or a black person getting arrested for simply being present in a white only space. So, if I've been arrested because I legitimately broke a law, like I've done something that I should not have done, when I say this person has my back, sure they may come bail me out or they may come visit me in the prison and not bailed me out, but they're going to come to me, they're going to come find me, and they're also going to have the conversation with me about what happened that put me in that position. Like “Why did you commit this crime, you know better. What are you doing? What's going on? Why didn't you reach out to me to help you before you went and robbed the bank?”[1] You know, things like this. OK, but on the flip side, if I'm in jail because I was protesting some unjust law or something went down, I'm talking about the person that's in the cell with you. Like they went to the march with you. They got spat on with you. The whole nine yards. That's what I really mean when I say they have your back. Not somebody that's just like “Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, What my girl said.” I don't mean that person is just hyping you up and following along with foolishness, OK.
00:04:40	But like I said, we all desire this person in our life. Now, some of us might not be quite ready to handle the truth, so we might not necessarily want somebody who's real enough to check us when we're wrong, but we want somebody that we can count on, somebody that's reliable. And like I said is a little hard to actually be that reliable person, but the truth is if I'm expecting you to be that person for me, I need to be that person for you. Right? And for a while, there has been an issue that was I guess weighing on my heart that I've been thinking about over the years, for over a year, and trying to figure out what's going to happen in the future, and it deals with this issue of loyalty and having someone's back.
00:05:40	A couple of days ago the group chat that I'm with in the young adult group at my church, someone posed a question in reference to the rich man in the Bible that was told to sell all of his belongings and follow Jesus.[2] And we got into a discussion about what that looks like, whether we would be able to do that—like I said what it would look like in today's society and all of these things, and while the conversation kind of went in a slightly different direction than what we're going to talk about today, as I was talking in this conversation a lot of these ideas also started to formulate in my head because I realize this situation that I've been thinking about also falls into that category, in a way, of would I sell all of my belongings to have somebody's back per sé (and you'll understand why I'm saying that as we get into the topic).
00:06:45	So the person that we’re talking about today is none other than Ruth. I know y'all wasn't ready for that because when we talk about Ruth, we always talk about Boaz. Ruth and Boaz. The poster child of you know like happy couples and singles’ ministries because every time I've heard a singles’ ministry, they're telling us to wait on our Boaz and all of this stuff. And it gets into this whole like romance or the romantic idea of Ruth and Boaz, but that's not what we're going to talk about today. Boaz isn't even important in the aspect of Ruth’s story that we're going to talk about right now.
00:07:26	So Ruth is an important person in the Bible. How do I know this? I know this because Ruth is one of two women in the Bible that have an entire book named after them,[3] and the entire story is about them. It's not many women in the Bible that can say that. So we know they’re important because people took the time to talk about them, and I mean that was a big deal! On top of that, Ruth is one of four women named in the lineage of Jesus. The lineages in the Bible are almost solely patriarchal. It's all about the men, you know, this person begat that person begat that person, and it’s all men all the way down. They don't typically take time to talk about the women in the lineage, and so the fact that Ruth is called out and mentioned in that lineage also speaks about her importance and her significance. And I'm saying that in the terminology that significance and importance that there are things that we are meant to learn from Ruth; there is something about her story that is important and relevant to us today.
00:08:44	I found the most relevant part of her story particularly for the conversation we're about to have, at the very beginning of Ruth. So in the beginning of Ruth, we find out about this family that is fleeing Israel, specifically Judah, I think. They're fleeing this area because there's a famine, and they're trying to go to a place that has more food, more opportunities—Y’all know the deal. We still have this issue in modern-day: people fleeing their countries for better opportunities in other countries; that's basically what happened. So this family goes to Moab in search of safety, stability, security, etc. It's a man, his wife, and their two sons. While they're in Moab, the man dies and the two sons take wives that are Moabites. One of these women is Ruth, and eventually both of these men die, as well. But Ruth and the other woman do not have children.
00:09:51	Now if Naomi, who was the woman—the mother—if she had had another son, then there could have been a levirate marriage and one of the two women could have married the other son and tried to have children, which would have continued the lineage, yada yada yada. But there was no other son. So at this point, Naomi can't really do anything for these two women and there's nothing left for them. So Naomi tells them to go back to their respective families and she's planning to go back to Israel. One of the women listens and goes back to her family, but Ruth decide that she's going to stay with her mother-in-law and she makes the decision to go to a foreign land with a foreign people, convert to a foreign religion, because, you know, she was a Moabite, she was pagan, and now she is telling Naomi that Naomi's God will be her God and where she goes she will go.[4]
00:11:00	Like we talkin’ about like she had her mother-in-law's back. She was ride or die, ready to give up everything, sell everything and go. Now, we don't really get the details of this family dynamic, all right. I'm not really sure how close Ruth was with her mother-in-law. Like it says that 10 years passed before you know all of this stuff I guess kind of came out, but it doesn't exactly specify how long Ruth was married to her husband. Like how long did she know Naomi? How... We don't know, like had she already converted to following and worshipping God or was this a spur-of-the-moment thing that happened as she was deciding to follow Naomi back to Israel? We don't really know all of the details, but we do understand that Ruth felt an obligation to take care of this woman.
00:12:04	Naomi was also a widow, but Naomi was not of marriageable age.[5] Like it wasn't that she should go off and get married and find another husband and start having more children. She was not going to be able to do that, and she wasn't going to be able to have anybody that would take care of her. And like women couldn't have jobs and things back then. So, what was going to happen to Naomi when she left? And this is probably what Ruth was saying, “Who's going to look after you? Who's going to take care of you? Who's going to pay your bills? Who is going to protect you and provide for you and make sure that, you know, everything is OK?”
00:12:45	Now, Ruth on the other hand, she was younger, which is why Ruth ends up being the one who's gleaning the field and getting food for them. But she was also of marriageable age, which is why she was able to marry Boaz, and then she could secure finance and the well-being of both her and her mother-in-law, and that's obviously, you know the story, that's how things play out. But Ruth had enough sense to know that she… Even though like legally she didn't have an obligation to this woman, morally, she felt like she did have some sort of obligation to her.
00:13:28	So let me switch gears a little bit to kind of pull in how I think this relates today and how this relates to me specifically, and what I've been I guess asking myself for the past year. Last year in May, life got really crazy. So at the beginning of May, one of my uncles died. Two weeks later another uncle died. And about a week later my great aunt died. Then at the end of the summer, in August one of my high school classmates was given like a two-week prognosis to live, maybe it was 3 weeks... It was weeks, OK. It was a very short amount of time. And so basically over the course of you know 4/5 months, like 4 people that I knew died. And I realized a lot of things over the course of those couple of months.
00:14:44	The first thing I realized is that I come from a very old family, and I don't mean old like old money, ‘cause we ain't got no money. I mean old like there are extreme age gaps between generations. So my parents are... I mean my dad is almost 70; he ain't there yet, but he's getting really close and my dad is the baby in his family. OK, so I'm giving you an idea of the age of my aunts and uncles, and so when all of these people in my family died back to back like this, I realize that these people are aging and I'm not there. Now, one of the reasons that I live in South Florida and not in California is because I did have enough sense to know that I didn't want to live that far away from my family. I can fly to my family in about an hour. I can drive to my family in about 11 hours. And I wanted to be in the position where if something were to happen I could get to my family with fairly reasonable time. OK? And you know California is it out. But for the field that I work in California is like primetime. That's where all the computer science jobs are California, Seattle, even some in Texas and in Arizona. You know, maybe New York, but all of these places that are tremendously further away from home than I am now.
00:16:35	There really aren't any jobs in my field at home. And the ones that are, are for less-experienced— I don't really know how to explain it but they're definitely not going to pay what it's worth, I guess. So it's basically like, I have a PhD in computer science, the jobs that I could find at home are the jobs you could probably get without having a degree at all, or all you need is a bachelor's, and they're not going to pay you for the fact that you have a PhD, so I might as well not have gone and gotten it type of a situation—which is one of the reasons why I'm not home. But as all of this was happening I was like oh my goodness like, “What... What would I do if I needed to be there for my parents?” Like would I quit my job here? Would I sell everything I have down here and go back home?
00:17:38	And it's an interesting thing for me to think about when I look at Ruth. Ruth went to a foreign land. The Israelites were not the most friendly when it came to welcoming foreigners. Now, yeah ok, we know they used to intermingle with people even though they wasn't supposed to, and they got into a whole lot of things. The Israelite men loved them some non-Israelite women. Like it was a thing, OK. But just because you are allowing somebody to participate in your society or marry into your society, does not mean these biases that you've been taught just disappear.
00:18:22	We see this in the New Testament.[6] Peter was, you know, adamant.[7] There were a lot of people were like “Nah, we're not really here for the Gentiles, like we don't talk to Gentiles.” When Jesus went and talked to the Samaritan woman, people were looking like “What are you doing? You're not supposed to talk to her. Like she's not, she's not one of us.”
00:18:40	And the same thing we can see that in today's society. How many white women have married black men in have said mildly racist things about their black daughter's hair? And you know what it doesn't even have to be a white woman. I remember distinctly, I was in high school, I think—middle school? Probably middle school—and I went to a pool with my aunt and my uncle. My aunt by marriage, my uncle by blood; my aunt is Vietnamese. We went to a pool, so obviously my hair got wet. And for those of y’all who know me, this is when my hair was relaxed, OK. This is not all natural Shiree, so my hair wasn't even in full affect, y’all. This is baby curls at this point, and when she saw my hair, the first thing out of her mouth was “Oh I'm glad that [insert her daughter's name]’s hair didn't come out like that, or isn't like that.” And I don't think she meant harm when she said it, but like this is what I mean by you can marry into people and you can... She doesn't actively hate black people, but the things that you've been taught, the things, the systematic, you know, ideas, you know, beauty standards, what you expect, cultural norms, they are still programmed in your mind, and so like subconsciously what you're thinking is that you don't… You're glad your daughter is not really black, like she only kind of black. Like that's basically what you just said to me.
00:20:36	I imagine that's the same kind of thing Ruth stepped into. For anybody listening that’s a minority, you know what it's like to be the only, or you know the oddball in the space of the majority— particularly if it's a hostile environment, where you're seen as an inferior person, whether it's because you're a woman, because you're black, because you're Asian because, you know, whatever, and that's not the best feeling. So the fact that Ruth was willing to go through that says a lot, a lot about her commitment to Naomi. I have to ask myself, like you know, Ruth at most knew Naomi for like 10 years. My momma birthed me. My dad, you know that's been my dad forever. Like we talking about almost 31 years I've known these people! It should not be hard for me to leave where I am now and go where my parents are at the drop of a hat because they need me, because that is my responsibility.
00:21:45	And so, I mean it's just something that... I'm not going to lie that's not what I want to do. And I have my fingers crossed... Y'all my grandmother was 92 when she passed away. She was still in her full, right mind. She was living at home by herself, cooking, cleaning, doing her own thing. I hope both of my parents are like that. I wish them great longevity, and great health into very very old ages, but I also realize that I have to start thinking about the fact that there may be a time where I do have to go home to help out. Even if it's not for my parents but for other members of the family, ‘cause I have a large family, and this is what we're supposed to do, is take care of each other.
00:22:39	Photocredit: ShutterStock/Monkey Business Images So generally speaking I don't go home that often. The last time I went home was in August. Like I said earlier in the podcast one of my friends from high school actually had cancer and she passed away in the fall—and actually I think it might have been September when I went home. Y'all don't quote me on dates, OK, it was in the fall. And when I found out that she had been given like a final date, I was upset because she was a really nice person. I thought she was cool, we got along, excetera excetera, but I was also concerned for a mutual friend that we had. So the other friend was way closer to her than I was, but I was closer to the other friend than I was to her. I don't know if that makes any sense, but basically I was concerned for how this other friend was going to take the death of this friend. And that friend was in her last trimester of pregnancy, and so she was, you know, she was dealing with a lot of things herself. She could not travel, and like I said about this whole West Coast situation she lives on the West Coast and she was not able to come to her friend. I know she would have given anything to be there but she could not. And I happened to be in the middle of planning to go home anyway so I was like okay I'm going to go, and I'm going to go see her. And while I was doing this, you know obviously this was a short-term visit, like I'm just going, you know, to tell her that I'm thinking about her to give her a hug for the friend that can't come, and to just be there. But when I was there, I learned so many things that I did not know. Like for instance, the fact that her father who actually worked with my father, he had retired, her mother had retired. They quit their jobs to travel to take care of her, because you know she was going to different hospitals and her husband works, and just all these things. Like the things that they gave up to take care of her.
00:25:08	And I started thinking about all of the ways that we as people try to help each other, or try to take care of our family members. Another instance of this is when the recession hit in the early 2000s, they found that black families were hit harder than other families, but it wasn't just systematic racism that played into this. There was also the fact that black families were more likely to try to help family members. If there are two brothers, one brother gets laid off, one brother still has a job. The brother that still had a job was trying to support the brother that didn't have a job. So instead of one home struggling, both homes were struggling, because they were trying to redistribute the money to keep both people afloat. So both people were taking a hit.
00:25:59	And to be honest, that’s how it's supposed to be. Like, sometimes it feels like we should just cut off the dead weight, and pull ourselves up. And some people will tell you that. But one of the things that I've really been understanding for myself and reminding myself is that I am not here to be Dr. Shiree Hughes, the computer scientist with the coolest job, getting the mega paycheck. Like if I get to do that that's great, but God put me here for some totally different responsibility, and He has asked me to have his children's back. And he gave me one particular group of His children, and that is a family that I am supposed to be there for. No matter the situation, I am supposed to be there for my parents. I am supposed to be there for my cousins or whatever the case may be. Whatever family member. Like I am the first line of defense being there, like I said, for my parents.
00:27:08	And that transcends some of the more selfish ideas that I may have. So I, you know, like I said it's hard, ‘cause you're like “I want to go out and see the world. I want to travel. I don't want to be cooped up in this small town where everybody is related to me, and you know, they have very, very few vegetarian options for food.” But the fact is, if the time came, would I sell everything and go home to be that rock for my parents? And I think that if Ruth can go into a foreign country that would have been hostile to her, change religions, and you know struggle for a while—’cause she didn't know what was going to happen when they got there. If she can do that, then I can move cities. Like it's not that big of a deal. It really isn't. Like I can take a job that is quote-unquote below my paygrade, and make less money, and deal with it. Like… Sometimes we have to swallow our pride. And it's a lot harder to do than it is to say, but it's something I've been thinking about and it's something that I think we should all think about in our lives.
00:28:33	Where is God calling you to be? Who is he calling you to be there for? And if you had to fly across the world to be there for that person, would you drop everything and go

Footnotes and References

1. So for some reason as I was talking Set it Off popped into my mind and that’s why I said this
2. Matthew 19:21
3. Esther is the other
4. Ruth 1:16-17
5. Context! I meant for the time period and in the eyes of society. Even today the perceived value of women decreases as we age. However, as a never-been-married 30 year old, you know I don’t subscribe to the idea that someone is “too old” to be married.
6. This being the bias against non-Israelites
7. Reference to Acts 10, where God has to explain to Peter that he should receive Gentiles

My 10 Favorite Books of the Bible

Photocredit: Unsplash.com/Herrmann Stamm

Book for Motivation in Life

I feel like most of life's scenarios and questions can be found and answered in the following three books: Job, Jonah, and Proverbs.

Job

Job is basically a tragedy that pulls an ex machina and ends on a happy note. What could possibly happen in my life that would be worse than what happened to Job? He lost all his children. He lost his wealth. He lost his health. The people were convinced he had some major skeletons in his closet for such tragedy to befall him, so he lost his reputation too. Yet, Job was highly favored by God. The book of Job answers the question of why bad things happen to good people and it reminds me to keep my faith through dark times.

Proverbs

Proverbs needs no explanation. The book is full of gems that grace walls, pictures, shirts, etc. There's a proverb for nearly every situation. The short, succinct messages are easy to memorize, poetic, and profound.

Jonah

When I was a child, my grandmother used to always remind me that "a hard head makes a soft tail"—i.e., when you don't listen you get a lot of spankings. Jonah is the spiritual embodiment of that theme for me. Jonah is most famous for ending up in the belly of a sea creature for 3 days. Why was he in the sea creature? Because he didn't listen to God. Jonah took the long, hard road, choosing to ignore God's calling. Imagine how different the story would be if he'd just gone where God told him to and done what God told him to do in the first place! That's the story of all our lives. We often wrestle with God, trying to go our own way, and in doing so we put our lives and the lives of others in danger.

The Relationship Between God and the Church

I know, you're expecting the gospels, or some other books from the New Testament that talk directly about the Bride of Christ or the history of the church, but actually this set of three (and a quarter) is all from the old testament. The themes in these books drive home God's love for us in a way that just touches my soul.

Genesis 1-3

Don't get me wrong, Genesis is a great book as a whole, and probably one of the best books of the Bible when it comes to the ratio between importance, interesting, and ease of understanding, but when it comes to the relationship of God and the Church, Genesis 1-3 melts my heart every time. When you truly dig into God creating us, giving us free will, the parallels between Adam (God's created son) and Jesus (God's only begotten son), and the fact that God spoke salvation into existence before He ever uttered the punishment for mankind's sin, it's powerful.

Exodus

Exodus tell us about the formation of Israel as an independent nation the first time, which was spurred by God delivering them from bondage in Egypt. It doesn't seem that important from a Gentile perspective, but it actually has a ton of spiritual significance. The journey of the Israelites out of bondage into freedom is the same as our journey from sinfulness to righteousness. Exodus introduces us to the holy feasts, which align with their journey, but also foretell of Christ's coming. We see God call Moses directly and using Moses, triumph over the most powerful king of the time. There's a song, "Reckless Love," that says "There's no shadow You won't light up, mountain You won't climb up, coming after me. There's no wall You won't kick down, lie You won't tear down, coming after me." Exodus truly shows us the lengths God is willing to go through to save His people.

Ruth

Most people go to Ruth to talk about waiting for love and basically romanticize the book as a how-to for dating. While that may be a valid interpretation, Ruth really is about the relationship of Jesus, the redeemer, and the Church, who needs redeeming. Ruth travels a great distance and gives up everything she knew to follow her mother-in-law, but the two women can't survive without a male benefactor, just as the church cannot survive without Jesus as our protector. Ruth puts in the effort of gleaning the fields for food (i.e., reading the Word and seeking God for spiritual food). Boaz ensures that there's always enough for her to glean, just as Jesus paved a way for us to get to Him. In the end we see the happy resolution of redemption and protection bestowed upon Ruth (the Church) by Boaz (Jesus).

Esther

How did Esther end up in my list of favorite books concerning God and His relationship with the Church when the book of Esther never mentions God? When I reread Esther last year and realized the whole story could also be interpreted as an allegory for the transferal of God's Word from the Israelites to the Gentiles and the salvation of God's people through Jesus, my mind was blown. If you shortened the history and foretellings of the Bible into their simplest forms, you would get the book of Esther with different names.

Prophecy and the End Times

Seeing prophecy come true is mind boggling. If there's one way to shock yourself into awe of God and the legitimacy of God's Word, it's to read and understand prophecy. That's why my actual favorite book of the Bible is in this set of three wonderful books on prophecy and the end times.

Daniel

Daniel is a history book, except it was written hundreds of years before the history took place. Reading Daniel and a history text book at the same time is life changing; not to mention what you see once you realize that Daniel is a key to Revelation! Not only does the book give us a roadmap of events for what to expect, Daniel and his friends provide an example of how we should react. From refusing to eat unclean foods to refusing to bow to the golden statue and face death, Daniel defines standing firm in the face of persecution. We can be confident that if we stand with God, when we get thrown in the fire, He'll bring us out unscathed because that's exactly what happened in the book of Daniel.

Matthew

A list of favorites isn't complete without a book from the gospels! In Matthew, Jesus addresses His return and the end of the Jewish nation. Sometimes it's hard to figure out which end He's referring to, but Jesus' Word about the end of days resonate for both occasions. Jesus gives us the tools and signs to identify false prophets and false doctrine, reminding us that if something is devoid of love, it's also devoid of God. Unfortunately, so many people do not know how to spot false doctrine and we have so many people turned away from God over false prophets and false doctrine. Matthew is the book that I feel like should be in the forefront of everyone's mind, may be then there'd be less non-believers.

Revelation

My absolute favorite book in the Bible is Revelation. I had an irrational fear of the end of the world as a child because I didn't understand what was supposed to happen or what it meant. Reading Revelation helped me understand that the end of the world is actually a victory for those who surrendered to God. Piecing together the pieces of the puzzle and finally understanding what's really written there was a fun journey, but more importantly, it gave me peace. The church—at least the churches I grew up attending—never really explained the end of the world, so it seemed uncharacteristically evil and harsh. It was only when I truly understood the book of Revelation that I could truly accept God and be at peace with Him.

Lessons Learned: The Perfect Marriage?

The book of Ruth is about so much more than just marriage.

Introduction

The story of Ruth and Boaz always comes back to the idea of a perfect husband and a perfect marriage. Yet, reading back through the book of Ruth, one has to add a lot in to the story to get the story of romance people make it out to be. As I mentioned in the posts on each chapter, the story of Ruth and Boaz really tells the story of the Church and Christ. Personally, I think this is even more interesting.
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The Romance

Photocredit: FreeImages.com/Jennifer Freeman

Despite being unmarried, I'm well aware that any Christian marriage counselor will tell you that if God is not at the center of your marriage, you will not have a successful marriage. Amos 3:3 asks us the question "Can two walk together, except they be agreed." Generally this is used to confirm that we are not to be unequally yoked, but it also speaks about God being the center of a relationship—any relationship, really. If both people are walking together, they will end up in the same place, but who's to say that place is one of happiness? Two people could walk into adultery together for all we know. In the movie Why Did I Get Married? there is a scene where a husband nervously reveals that he caught an STD from a woman he cheated on his wife with; she shocks the whole table by informing him that he didn't get the STD from the woman he cheated with but from his wife who acquired the STD from a man she had cheated with. Dizzying? That's a whole lot of drama, but it seems like these two people were walking in exactly the same direction, it just happened to be a bad direction. The solution to that is to let God do the steering. If I'm walking with God and my spouse is walking with God, then we're clearly walking together, but we also are guaranteed to end up in a positive place.

Ruth didn't know much about the God of Israel when she was introduced. However, she took a leap of faith and chose to follow Him when she decided to stick by Naomi's side. Boaz also chose to follow God when he decided to heed God's commands about providing for the poor and widows. In following God, they found each other.

I'm not particularly qualified to speak on relationships and marriage, being that I am perpetually single and unmarried, but one thing I know that is illustrated by the book of Ruth, is that God orchestrates the right pairing at the right time. Ruth did not go to Boaz's barley field with the intent of finding a husband, and Boaz did not check on his field with the intent of finding a wife.

There is a saying to be dolled up and prepared because you never know where you'll meet your husband and another encouraging people not to cry/frown because "you never know who's falling in love with your smile." However, if a man or woman cannot accept you when you aren't dressed for the run way and they are not willing to comfort you when you are hurting, how is this the mate God intends you to spend your life with? Sure, first impressions go a long way, but does anyone think Ruth was Instagram ready and smiling as she struggled to harvest barley when Boaz first saw her?

God already knew that these two would meet and marry, just like He already knows who each of us will marry. He sets the stage and He brings the couple together when both people are ready. I know people who knew each other and were friends for a long time. Each person was dating someone else, and when their respective relationships crumbled they found their way to each other and are now happily married. One can always speculated what would have happened if they'd dumped their significant others earlier in life, would they have dated sooner, married sooner, etc.? Possibly, but the truth is, they weren't the same people when they first met. It was only after spending time alone and working on their relationship with God that they were ready to pursue the relationship God intended.

The concept of waiting for your Boaz (or waiting for your Ruth if you're a man) speaks of exercising patience while we grow in Christ. Just like my friends who found their way to each other later in their friendship, we have to be solid in our relationship with Christ first and foremost. It is only when we are rock solid in our connection to Him that we can fulfill the duties of a spouse.
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Controversy

This is why I think the underlying example of the love story between the Church (also known as the Bride of Christ) and Christ is what really establishes the book of Ruth. The problem is that so many people miss this underlying message

I've seen commentaries on the book that confuse Ruth's act of lying at Boaz's feet (Ruth 3:7-8) for the vulgar act of trying to seduce Boaz into consummating a marriage in his drunkenness. Pastor Deffinbaugh at Bible.org suggests that Naomi and Ruth schemed to wait for Boaz to be drunk, have Ruth slip into bed with him, and hope that he would sleep with her thus obligating him to marry her. This is the furthest thing from what is actually written. The act of lying at his feet is confirmed 3—there's that holy number 3—times.

And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.Ruth 3:4 KJV

And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down. ⁸And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet.Ruth 3:7-8 KJV

Ruth wasn't playing the role of seductive temptress, she was declaring herself a servant of Boaz. This is confirmed in Ruth 3:9 when Boaz inquires as to who she is and she replies " I am Ruth thine handmaid." It was common practice during that time period for servants to lie at the foot of their master, ready to aid the master should he (or she) need anything in the night. If any confusion enters from the use of the phrase "uncover his feet," which admittedly sounds like the euphemism for sex "uncover thy nakedness," it is cleared in Ruth 3:8 when Boaz wakes to find a woman literally lying at his feet. Notice that Boaz was afraid, then he turned himself and then he saw Ruth laying at his feet. Some suggest the word "feet" was a euphemism for male genitalia, but really if you start turning the word foot in the Bible to male genitalia, you're gonna get a really perverted reading of the scriptures... Which brings us back to logic. Let's say they're right that "feet" is a euphemism for Boaz's privates. Now that could be why he woke afraid, but if he turned himself, would not Ruth have been forced to move? Also, if Ruth was laying on his "uncovered" sexual organ, why did it take until he turned over for him to notice her? It doesn't make sense in the context of the scene!

This is just an effort to distract people from the real message. While people are entertaining lustful thoughts and trying to make the Bible out to be as pornographic as modern TV, they're missing the very real symbolism that Ruth was declaring herself as a servant to Boaz the same way we are to declare ourselves as servants to Jesus. Luke 8:35 tells us the man whom Jesus cleansed of demons was found sitting at Jesus' feet; Luke 10:39 tells us Martha's sister Mary sat at the feet of Jesus. Think of the countless worship songs that reference falling at the feet of Jesus. This is a sign of servitude and committing ourselves to Him. In the context of Ruth and Boaz, this was the sign that Ruth was proclaiming herself a servant of Boaz.

¹⁰And he said, Blessed be thou of the Lord, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. ¹¹And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou requirest: for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman.Ruth 3:10-11 KJV

Boaz's reply that she is a virtuous woman proves that Ruth was not in a compromising position!

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Relationship with Christ

I digress back to the point of the love story between the Church (also known as the Bride of Christ) and Christ. In the New Testament we are told to go to our closet and pray in secret; Ruth went in secret to ask Boaz to redeem her. There parallels are endless! What you should leave the book of Ruth with is an example of how Christ acts as our Redeemer, how we approach him for redemption and He settles the matter.
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References

1. Annie. "When is a Foot Really a Penis? And Other Things the Bible Taught Me". AnnieGirl1138. 2011
2. Davïd. "How does the act of “foot washing” lead to the act of “sexual intercourse”?". Biblical Hermeneutics. 2014

Ruth 4: The Legacy

The final chapter of Ruth concludes the narrative with Ruth's "happily ever after" and the legacy of the couple.

Introduction

The final chapter of Ruth concludes the narrative with Ruth's "happily ever after" and the legacy of the couple. It also contains the story of the unnamed relative who was first in line to redeem Ruth and Namoi. This is yet another subtle message in this narrative.
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The Significance of the Unnamed Man

The nearest kin of Ruth, with whom Boaz requests an audience to discuss the issue of Ruth's redemption, is all for buying the property but fears a marriage to Ruth. This fear isn't because she's a Moabite, but because he is afraid no one will remember his name if he continues Mahlon's line Ruth. Talk about ironic! Boaz is the prototype for the perfect husband and known to millions of people over 3,000 years later. The Bible doesn't even record this near kinsman's name! Had this man said yes, it would have been his name we remembered throughout history as an ancestors of David and Jesus.

This is one of those moments that reminds you of how real the story really is. Think about it, if you were making up this story, why would you tack on this kind of ending after the climax? The entire issue of the unnamed kinsmen is wrapped up in a few verses; it doesn't really add to the plot. Remember, the book of Ruth isn't written such that at this point Ruth and Boaz are madly in love and this unnamed man is looming as a threat to destroy their love. There may have been some feelings brewing, but none of that is recorded; thus, from a literary standpoint there is no purpose for the inclusion of this information. The whole plot of the unnamed kinsmen is like watching all of Cinderella and after the prince discovers Cinderella's identity he says "well, I'd love to marry you but there's this other guy—oh, you don't want to marry her? Great, Cinderella let's get married." That being said, the reality TV shows of today would have a field day with such "drama." Scripted by one of these producers there would have been an all out brawl over who would get the honor of marrying Ruth. Shakespeare would have made sure everyone died... Instead, we are given a matter-of-fact rehashing of events with no emotional appeal. Clearly, God had a reason for including this information, and not for entertainment or suspense.
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The Fear of Losing Self

What stands out once again is why we are given this information. The Old Testament is both prophetic and historical. From it we learn about the history of the Israelites and their relationship with God, as well as what to expect concerning the first and second comings of the Messiah. We've already established that the overall story of Ruth fits in as an example of Christ's relationship with the Church, but how does the unnamed man's denial of Ruth connect to all of this. Why did God tell the author of Ruth to add this information?

Think about it, this part of the narrative could have been simplified to "after discussing the matter with the nearer kinsmen it was decided that Boaz would be the redeemer." Instead, we get Boaz's delivery of this "setback" to Ruth, followed by him setting up the meeting, the denial of Ruth by the man, a reference to him taking off his shoe (see Deuteronomy 25:5-10) and Boaz boasting his victory after the fact. There has to be some significance.

Let's start with why the man refused Ruth. This man's fear was that he would not be remembered. He thought that by doing something God instructed, he would lose part of himself. While it may be true that you lose parts of yourself by honoring God's Will, it is also true that the parts you lose are the dead branches that bear rotten fruit, i.e. the parts you shouldn't want to keep.

The man did not want to marry Ruth because he would then lose what he had just redeemed to any children they produced. He would have spent money to buy the land or at least to keep up the land, followed by any money needed to raise the child (and take care of Ruth), only for all of that investment to fall under Mahlon's name. From a worldly perspective, particularly in a time where God is not the forefront of every issue (like today and during the Judges era that this occurred), you can see why this man was not willing to take on this responsibility. From a logical standpoint, most would come to the conclusion that it would ultimately be a financial loss, especially if Ruth was in her early 20s as I presumed earlier in the book. This meant that even without God's divine intervention she had a good 10 more years left of childbearing capabilities. He might not just produce one heir but multiple heirs! Of course, it is unclear if after the first son the other sons could be considered his or if they were still to be considered Mahlon's...

The lesson to be learned from this seemingly random part of the story is to be careful in these situations. One can easily see how a worldly mindset could lead you to conclude that redeeming Ruth and the land was not a prudent decision. Today, many of us try to use our mind to think through issues and arrive at a logical conclusion. Sometimes that logical conclusion is against what God has commanded; this part of the narrative is an example of this. In choosing what he thought was best for himself and ignoring God's commandments, he brought upon himself the one thing he feared: a forgotten existence. Similarly, when we choose popularity or wealth over God we too will lose out in the end.

Note, too, that by changing his perspective, everything changes. By redeeming Elimelech's land and marrying Ruth, the man stood to inherit more land. Yes, it was possible that Ruth could produce an heir who would claim that extra land, thus resulting in a loss of his investments, but he may have produce an heir of his own too who would inherit the land he already had. Furthermore, while name and land seemed to be a big deal to them, I can't imagine his name would have completely disappeared from the situation. I never remember Ruth's first husband's name, so even though Ruth and Boaz's son was to be attributed to Elimelech through Mahlon (Ruth's first husband), I still think of Boaz first. I'm quite sure the people of the town were the same. The lineage given in the last verses and in Matthew all list Boaz as the ancestor, not Mahlon.

A modern example can be witnessed in my own family. My mother was raised by her aunt and uncle. She always retained the surname of her parents, yet most people in the town I grew up in have no idea that the people I called grandma and grandpa weren't actually my grandparents. Similarly, I'm sure that while Elimelech's name would be thrown in the mix somehow, people would have known this child as the nameless man's son, just as we know Obed to be Boaz's son.
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Allegory for the Jesus as an Intercessory

In relation to the allegory with Christ, I wonder if this nameless man is an allegory for Christ's conversation with God the Father about us. We are covered in sin and unable to approach the Father directly, so Christ intervenes. By allowing Jesus to come in this world as a man and die for our sins, God gave Christ the right to redeem us—He handed Him the sandal and said redeem your bride (the Church). The main difference is the motivation. God isn't worried about His name disappearing; He's God, the beginning and the end, His name can't disappear. Though an argument could possibly be made for Him defending His inheritance (Heaven) from those who are not worthy.
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The Number 10

When Boaz confronts the nearest kinsman, he conducts the matter as a formal business proceeding with 10 witnesses. This represented the quorum needed to carry the transaction and make it legal. It is also the number of kingdoms that will exist at the end of the world when Jesus comes to retrieve His bride.^[1] Those 10 kingdoms will witness the transaction of Jesus taking His nation (the Church) as his bride. I don't think this is a coincidence, do you?
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Legacy

Photocredit: ShutterStock.com/Monkey Business Image

Most people don't need to be told that Boaz and Ruth's union paved the way for King David, which is the lineage of Christ. The last few verses of chapter 4 take us from Judah and Tamar's son Pharez, through Ruth and Boaz, to King David. It's interesting to remember that Tamar was also a foreign woman who's husband died before she produced an heir. Judah sent his second son to fulfill the levirate marriage, but he died too. After this, Judah was reluctant to send his final son to Tamar and became a bit like the unnamed man. However, God already knew that Jesus was to descend from this line and He was working to make sure an heir was produced. Judah is eventually tricked into sleeping with Tamar when he mistakes her for a prostitute and hires her! Nevermind the obvious that Judah hired a prostitute, but this union produces Pharez who is the ancestor of Boaz. Reference is even made to Tamar and Judah in Ruth 4:12 when the town is pronouncing blessings on Ruth and Boaz.

Obed, Ruth and Boaz's son, is named by the people not Ruth and Boaz, which is interesting. His name means "servant" which may have been a foreshadowing of the coming Messiah through his lineage.^[1]

We can learn a lot from the lineage given here. Note that through this lineage we see that not only did the line start with a Gentile (Tamar), but Salmon, the father of Boaz according to Ruth 4:21, is the man who married Rahab, the harlot, another Gentile (see Matthew 1:5, bare in mind the Old Testament was written in Hebrew and the New in Greek, this is the cause for the changes in spelling). Also, we see that Nahshon who was a prince of the tribe of Judah, as told in Numbers 7, is also a descendant of Boaz, King David, and Jesus. There are clearly a lot of notable ancestors in this lineage. Most importantly, we see the inclusion of Gentiles in this important line.
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References

1. Cayce, Ken. "Ruth Chapter 4". Discover Books of the Bible. 2016
2. Deffinbaugh, Robert L. "Redeemed (Ruth 4)". Bible.org. 2016

Ruth 3: The Redeeming Relative

People often say "the ball is in your court" when they expect someone else to make the next move, and I think it is interesting to watch how "the ball" gets passed in the story of Ruth and Boaz. God showed us favor. Now the ball is in our court, to lay at the feet of Jesus in servitude to ask for forgiveness.

Introduction

Ruth 3 is where the story climaxes. Here we really start to see how Boaz and Ruth parallel Christ and the church. We also see that—surprise—Ruth actually makes the first move.
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Obligations

As a next kinsmen, it was Boaz's responsibility to step in and redeem the family. The law stated that a near kinsmen was supposed to redeem their land in order to keep it in their family. Also, it was customary for the person to marry the widow to produce children and ensure the line continued. Deuteronomy 25 speaks on levirate marriage in which the brother of a deceased man was to marry the widow of his brother and produce heirs if none existed. Leviticus 25 discusses the responsibility of redeeming the land. Ruth may not have had any knowledge of these laws, since she was not an Israelite, but Naomi knew was aware of the law and hoped that Boaz's generosity was a sign that he was willing to redeem them by marrying Ruth.
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Naomi's Advice

Naomi instructs Ruth to subtly bring up the topic of marriage to Boaz. Interestingly, reading Naomi's coaching of Ruth, I really felt the mother-daughter, or even a sisterly, relationship between the two. The scene of a woman trying to help another woman bring up a sensitive topic to a man she's trying to pursue is completely relatable! This really is a conversation I can see women having even today.

Of course, at some point my overactive brain kicked in and asked if this is an example of God sanctioning "ladies' choice" or the practice of a woman asking a man to marry her. Marriage was more of a business deal than the romanticized practice of today for most of human history. Fathers often handled the affair, not just for women but for children in general. While Jacob found and committed to Rachel without Isaac's assistance, it was Abraham sending a servant to find a wife for Isaac that brought Isaac and Rebekah together. It seems quite contrary to the narrative people try to present about the role of women in the Bible to see that it was completely acceptable for Ruth to bring up the topic of marriage to Boaz.

I bring up this point because it shatters the idea that women were not to have a voice. We could argue that in the absence of a father or husband, Ruth has autonomy that she would not have had otherwise—Numbers 30 suggests women who were widowed or divorced were responsible for themselves. However, in Ruth 1, Naomi suggests Ruth return to her family which implies Ruth's father may have been living. Remember, it was only after the fall that God told Eve she was to submit to Adam. God's original design was for them to be equal partners. Even if Adam (man) was given the final authority on decision making, hence the command for Eve (woman) to submit to his decision, there was still meant to be a dialogue between the two. Otherwise why bother to create Eve or sanction marriage? Before making Eve, God says "It is not good that the man should be alone." What good is having another person present if they have no voice? If that other person isn't allowed to think or opine, to broach subjects or to introduce you to a new perspective? If the other person is just going to agree with everything you say and rubber-stamp you, you might as well talk to yourself! Clearly it was acceptable for Ruth to tell Boaz she was ready to be redeemed, which is really no different than a woman saying "It's time to take this to the next level" to a man today...

I'm not suggesting a revolution of women proposing to men—I quite a fan of the tradition of men proposing. However, I am suggesting we revisit how we view the Bible's stance on what women can and cannot do.
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Confronting Boaz

Photocredit: ShutterStock.com/Phase4Studios

The first thing Ruth does is change clothes, which seems pretty natural even in our world today. One of our first inclinations in dating is to pick the "right" outfit. Though, Ruth's reasons for changing clothes weren't as superficial as ours generally are. Ruth was removing her mourning clothes, a sign that she was ready to move on and to be remarried. For Ruth, this wasn't just about finding the right color to bring out her eyes or accentuate the right features to make her more desirable, but a literal sign saying she was "over" her deceased husband and now "available" for Boaz.

Following Naomi's instructions, Ruth attends a gathering Boaz is hosting, but does not interact with him until he has finished eating and drinking. While "drinking" is mentioned, something tells me Boaz wasn't out getting drunk... Of course he does go to sleep right after so it's hard to say. Either way, chances are that Naomi's advice was meant to 1) ensure he was in a pleasant mood when Ruth approached (you probably don't want to broach the topic of marriage to a man who is "hangry") and 2) ensure he was not busy entertaining guests, this was a personal and private matter that didn't need prying eyes eavesdropping into.

After Boaz has eaten and drank his fill, Ruth finds him asleep by some corn. She uncovers his feet and lays there, per Naomi's instructions. While this may seem extremely forward (and a little weird, to be honest), in Ruth's era this was a sign of servitude. Many servants slept at their master's feet in this same manner, so it would not have been considered improper or forward nor weird^[1]

Boaz doesn't wake up until a little pass midnight. As you could imagine, he was surprised to find Ruth laying at his feet. In fact, he doesn't even recognize her at first. Ruth identifies herself and reveals to him that he is a near kinsmen, which was the subtle way of saying "you have an obligation to marry me." It is unclear if Boaz already knew she was a kinsmen. Boaz shows himself to be quite the gentleman after hearing her words. Whether he was in love with Ruth or not, he recognized that there was actually a man who was closer kin to Ruth and Naomi than he and by right that man had the right to accept or refuse the offer first. Boaz promises Ruth that he will take care of the matter and broach the topic with the man, assuring her that if the man refuses Boaz will do it himself.

It is very possible that Boaz always knew of his relationship to Ruth and made no move because he expected the nearer kinsmen to fulfill this duty. It is also possible that Boaz was interested in Ruth and her redemption but didn't make a move because she was still in mourning. There isn't a conclusive answer in the text.

Boaz allows Ruth to sleep until the morning, but makes sure she leaves before anyone can see her. This was to protect both of their reputations. Boaz did not want people to think they had done anything improper. He also gives her 6 measures of barely, a suitable excuse for why she would be at his house.
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Reminder For Today

People are often quick to judge, and sometimes they make leaps that you would never think of, especially if you are innocent minded. I remember once I was talking about how much fun undergrad was and the person I was talking to immediately assumed I was talking about drunken nights and wild parties. Sometimes there is nothing in our power to control where people's minds go, however, there are times when we know exactly what people will think. On the one hand, it really isn't anyone's business what other people do, but as Christians we are to set an example. We are told not to be a stumbling block for our fellow man. Allowing people to think Ruth had slept with Boaz would have been an affirmation from him that the behavior was OK. If people perceive us to condone ungodly behavior it can cause confusion. Whether the person believes that we are hypocrites and loses faith in God (this is seen by the argument presented by people who support homosexuality give, pointing out the amount of premarital heterosexual sex in the church) or whether they believe that it is acceptable because someone they trusted did it and decide to do the same, we are the source of that person's stumble. When we have the power to avoid such cases of misinterpretation, we should do so.
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Parallels to Christ

The parallels to our relationship with Christ are powerful. Like Ruth, we lay at Christ's feet and ask Him to redeem us. It is the Father whom we really seek forgiveness from, and Jesus acts as our intercessory, just as Boaz acted as an intercessory to the nearest kinsman for ruth. Jesus promises us that once we ask it of Him, it is taken care of; we don't have to worry about the details anymore. Boaz also promises Ruth that he will make sure she is redeemed, be it by the man who was supposed to do it or by himself.

People often say "the ball is in your court" when they expect someone else to make the next move, and I think it is interesting to watch how "the ball" gets passed in the story of Ruth and Boaz. Ruth acted first by choosing to go into the field to harvest barley. Boaz then acted by showing favor to Ruth. Ruth followed this with an indirect proposition for redemption, and Boaz took it from there. This pattern is true for the Church's relationship with Christ. Israel prayed to be delivered from bondage—they meant bondage from Egypt, but God was already planning to save mankind from the bondage of sin all together. God responded by creating a nation of His people—the first nation or "Church" of God. Just like Boaz provided safety, water, food, and extra grain for Ruth, God provided laws meant to keep the Israelites safe and healthy and His Son to fulfill this law. God showed us favor. Now the ball is in our court, to lay at the feet of Jesus in servitude to ask for forgiveness. When we shed the clothes of the world and vow to serve God, Jesus will tell us not to worry that He has it covered, just like Boaz told Ruth she was guaranteed redemption.
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References

1. Ruth 3 Commentary. Bible Study Tools. 2016

Ruth 1&2: The Fields of Boaz

There's a lot more to Boaz than simply being a suitable husband.

Introduction

The last few verses of Ruth 1 introduces Ruth to Boaz and we find out more about him in Ruth 2. Touted as the perfect man by people today, Boaz is generous, kind, and a savior figure. It's not surprising that we are so intrigued with him, when you dive into his relationship with Ruth we see a perfect foreshadowing of Christ's relationship with His church. No wonder Boaz seems like the perfect husband, right?
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Ruth in the Fields of Boaz

If you've studied the books of law, you'll remember that the Israelites were commanded not to pick their fields dry. Instead, they were to leave some for the poor to glean. Despite the era of the judges being wrought with disobedience, the book of Ruth shows that at least some of the Israelites were adhering to God's law. Ruth goes to glean the fields so that she and Naomi can survive. God places her in the fields of Boaz, a wealthy relative of Elimelech (Naomi's deceased husband), although Ruth is not aware of the relationship.
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Boaz is Sympathetic

Photocredit: FreeImages.com/Giovanni Miniato

Boaz's greets his servants pleasantly, humbly, and in the name of God, as though they are his friends and equals. Boaz is immediately curious about Ruth; he inquires of the servants about her origins and purpose. The Bible doesn't expound upon why Boaz was so curious about Ruth, but there are plenty of logical reasons. Sure, she could have been gorgeous, but it also could have simply been the fact that she was a new face. Boaz was probably used to the same people coming by to harvest his leftovers each day.

Harvesting in the fields as a foreign woman probably wasn't the safest occupation for Ruth. If being a alone as a woman is dangerous today, which it is, then it was definitely dangerous back then. Boaz was acutely aware of this and instructs his servants that Ruth is not to be harmed. On top of guaranteeing her safety, Boaz allows her to drink the water his servant draw from the well instead of forcing her to retrieve her own. This bit of mercy may indicate a romantic interest, but moreso, it shows that Boaz recognized he was in a position of power and by wielding that power, he could help someone in need.

Boaz's action is a perfect example of generosity. He didn't just hand Ruth the grain, she had to do the work herself, but he made a way for her. Boaz's actions ensured that if Ruth did her part, she would succeed. Unlike many people in his position tend to do, he didn't stand in her way. Similarly, Jesus ensures us a way into Heaven as long as we believe in Him.

Just as we would be shocked by this type of generosity in today's society, Ruth is shocked by Boaz's kindness. Her inquiry as to how and why she has found grace in the eyes of this man, even as a stranger echoes the question we ask when Jesus accepts us despite our many faults. Knowing her sacrifice and commitment, Boaz acknowledges Ruth's loyalty to Naomi the same way Jesus will acknowledge our commitment to Him. Boaz even reminds Ruth that God will reward her.

If Boaz wasn't already playing the part of a knight in shining armor, he also allows Ruth to dine with him and instructs his workers to purposefully drop grain for her to retrieve. Due to his generosity, Ruth is able to glean an ephah of barley. This was much more than the table scraps the poor generally gleaned. While Boaz's generosity certainly played a role in Ruth's ability to glean so much, Ruth's hard work also played a role.
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Naomi's Reaction

Naomi is shocked that Ruth gathered so much and acknowledges that Ruth has found favor. This seems to restore Naomi's faith in God. She and Ruth agree that Ruth should still close to Boaz, gleaning only in his field for the rest of the harvest. Naomi uses this opportunity to reveal their kinship to Boaz, and Ruth sticks by Naomi (who is likely too old to harvest for herself).
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Shelter in the Storm

Ruth and Naomi had been through a lot, and on top of that, they were poor. When Ruth decided to glean fields, she was basically deciding to do hard labor for scraps. Ruth had no way of knowing if her efforts would provide enough food for them, but because God would looking out for her, she found a generous benefactor. Boaz provided safety and peace of mind for Ruth to accomplish her mission. Jesus does the same for us. He will protect us and remove obstacles we are unable to defeat while we walk in His purpose for us and accomplish our mission. Ruth finding Boaz isn't about the helpless damsel being rescued by the valiant prince; it's about a hardworking woman finding someone who could shelter her in a storm. Really, it's an allegory for Jesus redeeming His followers.
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An Example for Today

When you think of Boaz's generosity, it should strike you as odd that there are many Christians in the US who are staunchly against the idea of government assistance. Boaz could have said "this is my field; I worked for it, and I bought it, go harvest your own field." This would have echoed the mindset of many today, that we have worked for what we have and do not owe anything to those who do not have. Of course, God commanded otherwise.

Why? Probably because there were so many factors limiting someone like Ruth from simply harvesting her own field. For one, she probably didn't have a field. Even if she did have a field, she would have needed to plant crops and cultivate the land in advance; during the time she would have needed to be planting, her husband might not have even been dead yet. To plant the crops, she would need money, something else she didn't have.

Ruth was willing to put in the work, but she needed someone to give her the opportunity. How many people today are stuck in an unfortunate circumstance, but working as hard as they can to make their life better? Sure, we probably all know a few lazybones who are simply mooching off the system, but I definitely know people who need someone like Boaz to make a way from them—from children who've lost their parents to drug addicts that have turned their life around.

When you think of Boaz, don't just remember him as the perfect husband, remember his generosity. Remember, when you meet people who are struggling, if you have the power to help them follow Boaz's example.
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References

Ruth 1: In the Land of Moab

In Ruth 1, we are introduced to the family of Elimelech (Ruth's in-laws) and Ruth.

Introduction

The first chapter of Ruth gives us the backstory of how Ruth ends up in Israel gleaning fields, which centers around a family from Bethlehem-judah, who leave Israel during a famine. This family consists of Elimelech, Naomi, and their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion. It is through this family that Ruth winds up in the land of Judah.
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Joining the Family

Photocredit: ShutterStock.com/Monkey Business Images

During the famine in the land of Judah, Elimelech moves his family to Moab. After his death, Elimelech's sons take wives amongst the Moabite women. Chilion marries a woman named Orpah and Mahlon marries Ruth.^[1][2] The families are together for 10 years before Mahlon and Chilion join their father in death. This leaves all three women as widows.
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Naomi's Perspective

Naomi hears that the Lord has returned to Israel and is giving the Israelites "bread" to end the famine. This was the word spreading in Moab about the magnificence of Israel's God who was delivering them from famine. This inspires Naomi to return to her home. She suggests her daughter-in-laws return to their respective homes as well.

The love for their mother-in-law shows in that both women weep when she tries to bid them farewell. We see that this must have been a tightly knit family from the reactions. Initially both Orpah and Ruth declare that they will return to Judah with Naomi. It does not seem like many of the families today that would go through extreme lengths to get rid of their in-laws. When we marry and acquire in-laws, we should be willing to stick it out with them the same way Ruth and Orpah were with Naomi.

Would ye tarry for them till they were grown? would ye stay for them from having husbands? nay, my daughters; for it grieveth me much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord is gone out against me.Ruth 1:13 KJV

Naomi, however, was against the two women joining her. Knowing that the Israelites were not supposed to marry Moabites, Naomi blames the deaths and her fate on the fact that she allowed her sons to marry Moabite women and suggests that God is against her. It is possible Naomi expected the Israelites in Judah to ostracize the two women and was looking out for their best interest in refusing their offer.

Another reason Naomi lists is their prospects for husbands. Levirate marriages were popular during this time period, but Naomi didn't have any more sons for the women to marry. Note that if the women were 20 years old when they married Naomi's sons, which is probably a bit old for the time period, they would have been 30 at the time of their husband's death. It was much more likely that Ruth and Orpah were young teens at the time of their marriage and in their early 20's at the time of their husband's deaths.^[3][4] Either way, This is quite young to be a widow or single for the rest of your life, hence Naomi's urging that they go back to their own homes and find new husbands. We also see a possible reason for the closeness of these women to Naomi; she would have been like a real mother to them if they had been teenagers when they married into the family.
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Ruth's Determination

¹⁶And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: ¹⁷Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.Ruth 1:16-17 KJV

Orpah is eventually persuaded to return to her family, but Ruth is determined to stay with Naomi. Ruth boldly declares that she will not leave Naomi; her declaration is so powerful that Noami simply stops talking—she can't argue with Ruth's vow. Unable to deter Ruth, Naomi sets out for her hometown of Bethlehem with company. The two women return to the city during the barley harvest, which explains why later on we see Ruth gleaning barley.

Upon their arrival, the people recognize Naomi and call her by name. Naomi shuns her name, however, and asks that the people call her Mara. The name Naomi means "pleasant,"^[5] something Naomi certainly was not feeling. Instead she wishes to be called a name that means "bitter,"^[5] what she actually feels. Top

Relating to Today

In this chapter we see a great contrast between the two women. Naomi is quite sullen and bitter; her outlook on the world is negative. Ruth on the other hand is much younger and still views the world with optimism. Each of us goes through trials in life and we each have the option to react like Naomi or like Ruth. The older we become, the easier it is to react the way Naomi did.

A personal example is in the similar issue of finding a spouse. When I was in middle school and high school, I had an abundance of hope that (1) I would become popular and (2) new students (specifically male students) would pop up at my school so that (3) I would find that special someone. While my attitude had changed slightly in college, I still felt very hopeful that "the one" was lurking around the corner. The peak of this optimism came sometime during my Master's degree. Since the age of 25 it has become much easier to fall into Naomi's rut and believe I won't meet anyone.

Fortunately, we are not doomed to stay in a bitter mood forever; even Naomi cheers up by the end of the book. What we need is the ability to recognize this slump and pull ourselves out of it. Whether we are down about potential mates or our job or something else all together, we know that God has promised to take care of us, to provide for us, and to be our rock. Why then should we allow bitterness to cloud our view of the future? The story of Ruth proves that when one door closes, God opens another door for us.

References

1. Ruth 1:4
2. Ruth 4:10
3. West, Jim. "Ancient Israelite Marriage Customs". Quartz Hill School of Theology. 2016
4. Lemos, Tracey M. "Weddings and Marriage Traditions in Ancient Israel". Society of Biblical Literature. 2016
5. Holman Bible Publishers. Holman KJV Study Bible. pg. 460. 2016