BEREA THEOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY COLLEGE

RUTH A HUMAN OF DECISION & BOAZ KINDNESS TOWARDS HER

PRESENTED TO KIMBRELY FRANKS MTS/BS

IN PARTIAIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT

FOR OT 102 RUTH & ESTHER

THE SCHOLL OF RELIGION

BY

ITAI FRANCISCO VIEGAS

ZAMBIA LUZAKA
23th January 23, 2020
 RUTH A HUMAN OF DECISION & BOAZ KINDNESS TOWARDS HER

Introduction

In this present paper present the history of domestic affairs of one particular family

fitly follow the book of Judges (the events related here happening in the days of the judges),

and fitly goes before the books of Samuel, because in the close it introduces David. In the

same paper will be there the value of persistence of Ruth which she had with her Mother in

law, it will be there the kindness of Boaz towards Ruth and her mother in Law.

The Bible tells us that in those days there was a great famine in Israel, and in the

midst of this turmoil one family stands out for its faithfulness to God: Naomi's family (sweet,

happy), Elimelech (my God is king), along with his sons Malom (disease) and Chiliom

(weakness). Due to this famine, this family left Bethlehem (House of Bread) and went to live

in the fields of Moab. It happened when the Judges ruled; it must have been towards the
beginning of the Judges. An account of one particular family distressed in the famine; it is

that of Elimelech. His name signifies my God a King1. But instead of happiness, they found

misfortune and suffering. The going of Elimelech’s family to Moab was unsuccessful,

because they left the House of Bread to seek survival, but found disease and death.

Sometimes we make decisions that we think are right, but in fact, we make mistakes by not

asking our Lord for direction. But our God, who is great in mercy, even when we make

mistakes He extends His hand and gives us another chance, because He loves us and is a God

of opportunity. The death of Elimelech and his two sons, and the discondition Naomi was

thereby reduced to. Her husband died, and her two sons, soon after their marriage, and the

Chaldee says, their days were shortened, because they transgressed the law in marring strange

wives2. Ruth the Moabite enters this family's history when she marries Mallon. She had not

met her father-in-law, who had already passed away when she and Orpha married Malom and

Chiliom, respectively, becoming Naomi widowed. We all know the pain of losing someone

dear, and because of that pain, sadness and bitterness settled in your mother-in-law's heart.

After nearly 10 years in Moab, Malom and Kiliom also die, leaving Naomi and her two

daughters-in-law helpless. Because of so much pain and suffering, and knowing that God

had visited his people in Bethlehem, Naomi decides to return home with her two daughters-

in-law. But in the middle of the road, she asks them to come back because he would have

nothing more to offer them. Orphan return to your land, your home, your gods. Its name

means "stubbornness3" the back of the neck behind your back, symbolizes that kind of friend

who, when you need it most, turns your back on you. Richards says “how much of a person’s

choice is determined by social conditions and how much by the individual’s free volition is a

1
Matthew Henry. Commentary on the Whole Bible. Volume one. Zondervan. Publishing House.
1960. 279
2
Matthew Herry. Commentary on the Whole Bible. Volume One. Zondervan. Publishing House.
1960. 275
3
J.D. Douglas, Merrill C. Tenney. The New International Dictionary of the Bible. Zondervan
Publishing House. Grand Rapids, MI, U.S.A. 1987. 738
tangled question. There is no doubt that environment and society do have an impact on

personality4” Boaz is a biblical character from the Old Testament which his name means

“Well-to-do”5. He lived in the time of the judges of Israel, shortly after the conquest of

Canaan. He was rich and influential. (Ruth 2.1) He was also related to a woman named

Naomi. Subsequently, Boaz married Ruth. Their story is a special key point of the Bible,

because among the descendants of this couple is very important biblical characters, such as

King David and the Lord Jesus. It was harvest time and Boaz's plantation was full of working

reapers. Arriving from Bethlehem, Boaz saw someone different harvesting in his field. It

was a young girl. So he called the foreman and asked her to whom this young woman

belonged. (Ruth 2.4-5) The foreman soon tells him that this was Ruth, a young woman from

another land named Moab. She came to Bethlehem accompanying Naomi. That girl had

asked for permission to pick ears after the reapers. She was hard-working, since she was

working early, and had only sat a little. (Ruth 2.6-7). But the sacred text does not say in verse

14 of chapter 1 that "Ruth closed to his sound. And God spoke to my heart that, as Ruth did

not abandon Naomi, in the moments we need more, the Holy Spirit friend, the comforter,

never leaves us alone. Jesus said in Matthew 28:20c "Behold, I am with you always until the

end of the age. The adversities in Ruth's life were weighing heavily: the death of her

husband, of her brother-in-law, the trip to Bethlehem with little provision, the poverty, and

his dear sad and bitter mother-in-law.

4
Lawrence O. Richards. The Teacher’s Commentary. Victory Books. Press Publication. Wheaton.
1987. 193
5
J.D. Douglas, Merrill C. Tenney. The New International Dictionary of the Bible. Zondervan.
Publishing House. Grand Rapids, MI, U.S.A. 1987. 168
 The decisions Ruth has taken to overcome adversities

Ruth has decided to see refuge in the God of Israel

In verses 16 and 17 of the chapter Ruth says that the god of Naomi will be her god,

she decided to seek help from the Elshadai, and the almighty God she met in living with her

mother-in-law. In times of crisis, we should not flee but seek help from the great and

tremendous God who is refuge and strength, a very present help in distress (Psalm 46). And

this God will help us.

Ruth decided to act to change the situation

In verse 2 of chapter 2, Ruth asks Naomi to go to the field, picking ears, for they

blinded in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest. At that time in Israel, there was

a Mosaic law in favor of the poor, strangers, and widows that said they could pick up the ears

that fell to the ground to survive. The King of kings and Lord of lords, want to act in that

situation that afflicts your heart, but He is waiting for you to take the initiative, do not let the

problem make you prostrate. It is an evidence of a discontented, distrustedful unstable spirit,

to be weary of the place in which God hath set us, and to be for leaving it immediately

whenever we meet with any uneasiness or inconvenience in it6. God wants to act, wants to

give you victory, He is saying: My son, react that I will act in your cause.

Ruth decided to obey the voice of his sound

Naomi, knowing that Boaz was her redeeming relative, (Reminder was a close

relative of a deceased who could buy his property if he had no children or siblings) instructed

Ruth to show Boaz that she needed help, and that under the law of levirate, he could marry
6
Matthew Herry. Commentary on the Whole Bible. Zondervan Publishing House. Grand rapids,
Michigan. 1960. 275
that relative's widow to protect her. Ruth obeyed her mother-in-law's instructions and God

blessed her. Our God is pleased with our obedience to His Word. Peter spent the night

fishing and caught nothing, but Jesus told him to throw the net in the same place; Peter

obeying the word of Jesus cast the net and so many fish came that they could hardly pull

them. If we Want victory, we need to Obey God's Word.

Ruth decided to rest on the good foot

After Ruth asked Boaz to rescue her, save her, she rested lying at her feet on the

threshing floor, sleeping peacefully because she knew the providence would come. Boaz, as

the redeemer and savior of Ruth typifies Jesus Christ, who rescued us from the world and

called us into his wonderful light, and also today Jesus calls us to change our history, and to

nourish our soul because He is the bread of life. And if we are facing a difficult situation, we

need to give our affliction to the Lord, seeking refuge in Him, seeking refuge in the God of

Ruth and Naomi, who never forsake their own and rest at the feet of Jesus, because He is

taking care of our history.

Boaz Kindness Ruth 2.1-12; 3.8-18

In the same history we see also Boaz Kindness towards Ruth but not only for her alone

but also for her mother in law. Boaz was a wealthy farmer from the small village called

Bethlehem. One day he met a young widow named Ruth. She was a foreigner who had come

to work in her field. He saw that she was very devoted and knew that he was doing this to

take care of his mother-in-law, a widow, Naomi. Boaz not only gave Ruth a job, but made

sure they had plenty of food. Throughout the harvest he sustained them. We see that Boaz:
 He was honest, respectful and responsible for his duties

These women inherited only debts from their husbands, who due to the crisis had lost

their property. At the time Jewish law ensured that, in the year of jubilee, land should be

returned to its former owners. For this, Naomi needed a rescuer, because according to

tradition, such land could only be acquired by a close relative. Being related, Naomi sought

to bring Ruth closer to Boaz. He could have taken advantage of the situation, but respected it

and did everything correctly. Before marrying Ruth, Boaz knew of another close relative

who would have priority in the marriage and went to him. Luckily, he didn't want her. Boaz

then paid the price, redeemed the land, took Ruth as his wife, and they had a son who was

Naomi's renewing joy. And all the people were very happy with their remission.

As a result of his marriage, Boaz entered the genealogy of Jesus (Rom. 4: 13-17; Matt. 1: 5).

Note how interesting some similarities of Boaz with Jesus are: Boaz's heart was filled with

compassion for the poor girl and her mother-in-law who needed help (Rt. 2: 8-15). Jesus

moved with compassion for his people (Mark 8: 2); Boaz paid the ransom with his resources

(Ruth 4.9, 10). Jesus bought us with his own blood (Acts 20:28; 1 Cor. 6:20); Boaz became a

redeemer of Ruth, taking her as his wife (Ruth 4:13); likewise, Jesus towards the church (Rev

21.2, 9; 22.17).
 Personal Comment

The history of Ruth brings to us a great teaching and a big reflection in our lives, through

this history we see the declaration which Ruth made to her mother; in her declaration, she

shows a convinced and determined heart to the Lord, she says: “Do not insist with me that I

leave you and do not accompany you anymore. Wherever you go, where I will go, where I

will stay where you will stay, your God will be my God and you people will be my people.

Here is one of the most beautiful decision statement in the Bible, Ruth decided that she would

serve Almighty God, the one to whom her mother-in-law Naemi followed, although there is

no evidence that her future would be guaranteed in a foreign land, Ruth chose to trust in the

God of Noemi, whose faith must have been transmitted to him during the years of

coexistence. While I was reading this history I saw that:

God does not need an exclusive people, the love of the Lord is available to everyone, even

though he is Moabite, Ruth can decide to serve God and have his whole life changed and the

privilege of being one of the ascendants of Jesus Christ; this teaches us that God wants to

reach all peoples, languages and nations, without exception and for that He wants to use the

life of Naomi to reach Ruth the Lord, wants to use us to reach the lives of our relatives,

neighbors, friends and even strangers;

Faith is not based on what we can see, Ruth did not see for herself a prosperous future, on the

contrary all possible predictions were that she would suffer and suffer needs, but she did not

fear, she trusted the God of Naomi and Just as He had perfomed great wonders for the people

of Israel, she believed that she would also do for her and Naomi; Even when we can not see

what is waiting us on then next page of our life, we must believe and trust that the Lord, the

Beloved of our Souls, has the best reserved for our lives and that at the right time he will rise
up in our favor (Job 8:6); that is why we cannot look at the circumstances, but at the Lord,

who is a reward of those who seek Him (11:6);

Ruth was obedient and faithful to Naomi’s advise. As a foreigner, Ruth was not used to the

customs, laws and traditions that belonged to Israel nation, decision was to obey him; We

must also be obedient first to the word of God and also the authorities that He has made over

our lives, such as parents, pastors, leaders because they take care of our lives, as those who

will give an account to God for our souls;

The importance of the decision, Ruth received the Lord’s blessings for deciding to give her

life to Him; we can only have in our lives all that the Bible promises us, if in fact we hand

over control of our lives to the Lord, let us do this, bringing to Him all our anxiety, with the

certainty that He is taking care of us ( I Peter 5:7). May we make our decisions on the side of

the Lord and so we will have his blessing on our lives and on our families.
 Conclusion

Ruth behaves with humility, submissive to the Lord and the directions of her mother-

in-law. She knew how to listen. Ruth was the servant of the higher God, and it was her will

that happened. Let us ask God for wisdom to pray as it is fitting. Let us always pray

according to God’s will and not according to God’s will and not according to ours. Let us

prepare ourselves, let us first serve the one who can give us all things, trusting that the best

will come at the right time, God’s time. Boaz was an example to us that we can have a good

heart, be honest, respectful, and do our duty, but above all, let people look at us and see that

we are like Jesus. As a result of Boaz’s acts of kindness, Obed is born, bringing joy to

Grandmother Naomi’s heart. Through an act of kindness is born the grandfather of David, the

ancestor of our Lord Jesus Christ. God’s goodness manifests for up to a thousand generations

to those who love Him and obey His commandments (Exodus 20:6). True goodness comes

from the love God pours into us when we let Him act.
 Bibliography

Arthur, B. G. (1962). The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible. New York: Abingdom
Press, Nashville.

Bush, F. (1996). Word Biblical Commentary. Dallas, Texas: Word Books, Publisher.

Douglas. J D, T. M. (1987). The New International Dictionary of the Bible. Grand

Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House.

Henry, M. (1960). Commentary on the whole Bible. Grand Rapids, Michigan:

Zondervan Publishing House.

O, R. L. (1987). The Teacher's Commentary. Wheaton, Illinois: Press Publication.