The exchange between Boaz
and Ruth has been beautiful to consider. As Boaz doted upon Ruth,
Ruth humbly accepted his offers. Now after giving an explanation for
his graciousness toward Ruth, Boaz includes more benefits in chapter
two and verse fourteen where we read:
And Boaz said unto her,
At mealtime come here, and eat of the bread, and dip your morsel in
the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers: and he reached her
parched [corn], and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left.
Boaz
instructed Ruth to stay in his field, continue with his handmaidens,
enjoy the protection provided by him, drink when she was thirsty from
the water drawn by his servants, and be blessed by the LORD with
reward, and now he said, “At mealtime come here , and eat of the
bread, and dip your morsel in the vinegar.” Boaz just asked
Ruth over to eat! He desires to feed her when she is hungry. Most
people who gleaned in a field would simply go home or provide their
own food after harvesting, but not Ruth. She was invited to come and
dine with the owner of the field. Notice with me, Ruth was to be
given opportunity to glean, given drink when thirsty, blessed by the
Lord, and now fed when she was hungry. What else does Ruth need?
There is even more favor to come.
Boaz has
extended gracious favor to Ruth, and now she is sitting at dinner
with him. “And she sat beside the reapers:” Let's think
about this for a moment. Boaz has only known Ruth for a portion of a
day. He has learned details about her from someone else, and although
she has a great reputation, Boaz has found her to be as humble and
serving as he has heard. He wants to dine with her, and she is
willing to accept his offer to do so. But there is more, so let's
look at what happened next.
We read,
“and he reached her parched corn, and she did eat, and was
suffice, and left.” The idea of “parched corn” here is
roasted barley, and notice, “he reached her” which means
he was close enough to her to give her the meal. It was as if they
were sitting together for dinner. This is nothing more than the
beginning of a romance, and as people in love begin their journey
together, we are watching the back and forth exchange of two people
interested in one another. The kinsman redeemer and the foreign
servant handmaiden are intrigued, and we are attending their
proceedings. The meal was so complete that Ruth had all she desired
and had leftovers to take home with her.
We
should be thrilled as we read this story when we consider that Boaz
is a type of Jesus Christ, and we are like unto Ruth. Our kinsman
redeemer notices us, desires to protect us, provide for us, and bless
us with His grace. He is willing to feed us when we are hungry and
provide drink for us when we thirst, but mostly He desires that we
have interest in Him and know He has interest in us. We are
participants in a romance with the Creator of the Universe and the
one who owns not only a field but everything we see and know desires
to spend time with us. Our part is to humbly, quietly, and sincerely
accept his offer, and be thankful to Him by coming to dine with Him.
Let us come and dine. The Master is calling.
Next
time we will watch as Boaz works behind the scenes caring for Ruth,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the new devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation” in all major bookstore sites,
www.amazon.com
; www.barnesandnobles.com
; download
to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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