Naomi and Ruth returned to
Naomi's homeland, and Naomi changed her name to Marah. She was no
longer “pleasant” but “bitter” because of the events in her
life. Her appearance in Bethlehem was during the barley harvest, and
although she felt that God Almighty was against her, He actually had
a barley field growing with a plan in mind. Today we continue our
story with the addition of a new character, Boaz. We read in chapter
two and verse one:
And Naomi had a kinsman
of her husband's, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech;
and his name [was] Boaz.
At last
the scripture itself introduces the idea of a “kinsman” into our
story. “And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's”. If we
recall, the kinsman was a person who was designated as a close
relative of another. In the book of Deuteronomy in chapter
twenty-five and verse five we read:
If brethren dwell
together, and one of them die, and have no child, the wife of the
dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her husband's brother
shall go in unto her, and take her to him to wife, and perform the
duty of an husband's brother unto her.
This
brother was to continue the name of the deceased, and if there was
not a brother, then the next closest in line to the deceased was to
perform the same act. Naomi's husband, Elimelech, had a kinsman in
line to be able to keep his name alive.
This
kinsman was “a mighty man of wealth” which tells us that
he was no ordinary gentleman. First, he was mighty which implies he
was brave, powerful and strong, and as we discover more about him we
shall see that he was a man of great means both in servants and
material goods.
Next we
identify his relation to Elimelech: “of the family of
Elimelech”. If we are wise we shall begin to see the master
plan of God as he just so happens to bring this man who happens to be
related to Naomi's husband into the story. It was vital that this
person be related to Elimelech for him to be a kinsman, and the
necessity of this characteristic was prepared by the Almighty Himself
even before this man fulfills his part in the story. As we shared
yesterday, God had prepared a “barley harvest”, but we realize
today that God had also prepared a “kinsman” as well.
We read
next, “His name was Boaz” which means “fleetness”. The
idea is haste, fastness, hustle or quickness. We think of rapid,
rush, speed or hurried. If there is any significance to his name
being such, it could quite possibly be that when Naomi was in
despair, God was quick to respond. However, the importance of the
meaning of his name is not nearly as important as him being a kinsman
who has position to alter Naomi and Ruth's path.
As we
study this part of the story, let us keep in mind the idea of a
kinsman redeemer as it relates to Jesus Christ. When the bride, Ruth,
needed saving, the kinsman was in a position to affect a change. Thus
it is with us who are known as or potentially known as “the bride
of Christ.” Jesus, our kinsman redeemer awaits on the scene, and
God has placed Him there in advance or our knowing it. May the
inspiration of the story of Boaz and Ruth keep us forever grateful
for the provision our Heavenly Father makes for those He loves so
dearly.
Next
time we will continue our story by reading about Ruth's request to
Naomi to go work in the field, 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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