From our Sunday service on February 16, 2025, Ruth 3. This is part 3 of our Ruth series. Watch the full message: A Step Toward Redemption – Ruth Series #3 on YouTube.
Three months have passed since the beginning of the barley harvest. Ruth entered Bethlehem in March, and now we’re in early June, when the grain is being processed on the threshing floor. Ruth has been harvesting in Boaz’s field for a few months, faithfully caring for her mother-in-law the whole time. What I want us to take away is that we should emulate the kind of relationship Ruth and Boaz have.
Naomi's Plan
Naomi is saying, “Ruth, you’ve spent these last few months taking care of me and feeding me. It’s time for you to think about yourself.” It’s okay once in a while to think about yourself. Sometimes we can be a little too strict about “Jesus, others, you.” But it’s very hard to serve others when you yourself are suffering.
Boaz, our family member, is working tonight on the threshing floor. In that day, when you harvested all your grain, you wouldn’t leave it alone. If you left it sitting in the barn, thieves would come in and steal it, so Boaz is there at night guarding his harvest. Naomi knows that Boaz is a family redeemer, which means he’s viable for marriage. “You don’t want to be a widow your whole life. He’s a good man of character, and you’re a good woman of character. He’s going to be down there all night, so you can get some private time to talk to him about this sensitive matter. You don’t have to ask him in front of his workers.” She says, “Wash yourself.” Young people, if you’re going on a date, that’s good advice: go take a shower first. “Anoint yourself” means put on some perfume and some good clothes. Then go down to the floor, but don’t let anybody else know you’re there. Don’t make a big deal out of this. And once it gets dark you can’t see where people are sleeping, so she has to memorize where he sleeps. Don’t go to the wrong person in the middle of the night and ask them to marry you.
Naomi recognizes that Ruth is a Moabite and doesn’t know the traditions of Israel, so she says, “If you do exactly what I say, he’ll catch on and take care of the rest.” Here we get another application. Ruth’s situation wasn’t going to improve on its own. A lot of times in life we think, “I’m a person of faith, I’m just going to pray and trust God to deal with the situation.” It’s good to pray and trust God, but it’s better to pray and trust God and also be active in trying to have your prayer answered. Take the first step and let God do the rest.
What Is a Kinsman Redeemer?
The Hebrew word goel refers to a male relative who had the responsibility to act on behalf of a relative in need. By default it would be the oldest son. First, he redeemed land, buying it back so the family wouldn’t lose it through a younger son’s foolishness. Second, he redeemed relatives from slavery. In ancient Israel they didn’t have a prison system; you worked off the debt, and the family redeemer would buy the captive back. Redeem means to buy back. Third, he was an avenger of blood. If a family member was killed unlawfully, the kinsman redeemer had the responsibility to bring the murderer to justice, and to kill him if it came to that. Fourth, and most relevant here, was levirate marriage. If a man died without an heir, the kinsman redeemer was supposed to marry the widow in order to produce an heir and preserve the family’s property.
While Naomi owned the land and had the right to sell it or use it, she could not legally pass it on to Ruth. When Naomi dies, Ruth will get nothing, because there’s no patriarch to inherit it. If Ruth was unmarried, she would potentially lose the right to the land and be alone in this country with no caretaker. This is also a picture of Christ, our Redeemer, who buys us out of slavery, marries us, and passes on His inheritance to us at the marriage supper of the Lamb.
At His Feet
Sometimes this passage gets twisted. People try to make it something it’s not. They say Ruth was having an improper relationship with Boaz. That is not what’s happening. Boaz is not drunk. It says he was satisfied with his meal, not inebriated. He was full, and he was sleeping soundly on the floor because he was protecting his grain from thieves. The phrase “uncovered his feet” is often called a euphemism for improper relations, but that’s not what happened. This was a cultural practice that signified a request for his protection. In the ancient Near East the outer cloak represented a man’s protection. Even in our culture today, in your favorite Hallmark movie a guy takes off his jacket on a snowy day and puts it around the woman who’s out there in the cold. Young men who have dated know they’re going to miss a lot of hoodies in their lifetime, because women want to keep it as a symbol: “I’m protecting you, I will take care of you.” It was used sort of like a proposal, the way you would give somebody a ring.
And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.
Ruth 3:8–9
“Midnight” doesn’t have to be literally 12:00; it just means the middle of the night. He’s naturally startled. Who wouldn’t be scared if you went to sleep alone and found somebody there? And of course it’s dark, because there were no lights back then. She answers, “I’m Ruth, your handmaid.” She doesn’t work for him, but she’s been working alongside his female servants. She puts herself in that role of humility. Then she gives him her request: “Spread your skirt over your handmaid.” Spreading your coat over your maid was a symbol of “I will redeem you.” We see this illustrated in Ezekiel, where God speaks to Jerusalem.
Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine.
Ezekiel 16:8
God is saying to the nation of Israel, “I found you naked, with nothing, alone and destitute. I spread My cloak over you and made you Mine.” You can think of this like seeking refuge under His wing, the hen putting her wings over her chicks. So Ruth clarifies: “You qualify as a kinsman redeemer. You can be my protector, and I am in need of that protection.”
A Man of Character
And 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. And 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
Ruth is making somewhat of a sacrifice herself. Boaz realizes that she is not just marrying him for money, attractiveness, or security. She chose him because of his character. She could have married a young man, who could also have wealth in this society, and a young man would also live longer. Ruth’s whole problem was that her husband died, so wouldn’t she want to marry a younger man who would protect her from widowhood even longer? But she doesn’t do that. Safety from widowhood is not as important to her as marrying a man of character. Here’s the application for young people: what are you looking for in a spouse? Polygamy was pretty common at this time, so she didn’t have to go to a man who wasn’t married yet. She could have piggybacked off another marriage and enjoyed the comfort of his money, never having to work. But she looked at his character. If you marry someone who does good to everyone around them, you’ll never have to worry a day in your life about them loving you, because the way they love you is the way they treat everyone.
There is one problem. Boaz is not the nearest family member. That person must be offered the marriage first. Boaz doesn’t want any rumors started about what happened that night. He wants to keep her reputation pure. He also doesn’t let her go home with nothing. One commentary says he measured about 60 pounds of barley into her cloak, which I think is pretty hard for her to carry all the way home. Naomi gives some good advice. Relationships can cause a lot of anxiety. She says, “Instead of worrying, trust God. Sit still, take a deep breath, and wait. I know Boaz’s character. He isn’t even going to wait until tomorrow. By the end of the day you’ll know what’s going to happen.”
Boaz could have been a little slick about this. Once the marriage was done it couldn’t be undone. He could have said, “My older brother or cousin, I’m not sure which one it was, wouldn’t want you to marry him anyway, so I’m not even going to ask.” But Boaz says, “No, we need to do this right. We need to honor the law God set for us, and if it’s God’s will, we will get married.” Both Ruth and Boaz chose to love others more than themselves. Ruth prioritized her mother-in-law over her own good, even to a fault, and Boaz preferred to help those in need over his own profits. Honor each other, have respect for each other, follow God together, and sacrifice for each other, and you will see a relationship that is truly blessed. Will you emulate that kind of relationship?
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