don’t jump the gun

Posted on June 3, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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don’t jump the gun

Ruth 3:6-13 (JDV)

Ruth 3:6 She went down to the threshing floor and did everything her mother-in-law had charged her to do.
Ruth 3:7 After 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.
Ruth 3:8 At midnight, Boaz was startled, turned over, and there lying at his feet was a woman!
Ruth 3:9 So he asked, “Who are you?” “I am Ruth, your servant,” she replied. “Spread out your wing, because you are a family deliverer.”
Ruth 3:10 Then he said, “May Yahveh bless you, my daughter. You have shown more kindness now than before, because you have not pursued younger men, whether rich or poor.
Ruth 3:11 Now don’t be afraid, my daughter. I will do for you whatever you say, since all the people in my town know that you are a woman of noble character.
Ruth 3:12 Yes, it is true that I am a family deliverer, but there is a deliverer closer than I am.
Ruth 3:13 Stay here tonight, and in the morning, if he wants to deliver you, that’s good. Let him deliver you. But if he doesn’t want to deliver you, as Yahveh lives, I will. Now lie down until morning.”

don’t jump the gun

Boaz wanted to do what was proper, so he had to be patient, even though he had already noticed Ruth, and shown kindness to her. He knew that the other relative had to reject Ruth first. He would not jump the gun.

Sometimes we will want to do something, and be able to do it, but there will be some obstacle in the way. It could be a test to see if we will jump the gun.

LORD, make us people determined to do the right thing at the right time.

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teaming up

Posted on June 2, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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teaming up

Ruth 3:1-5 (JDV)

Ruth 3:1 Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi said to her, “My daughter, shouldn’t I find a resting place for you so that you will be taken care of?

Ruth 3:2 Now isn’t Boaz our relative? Haven’t you been working with his female servants? This evening he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor.

Ruth 3:3 Wash – put on perfumed oil, and wear your best clothes. Go down to the threshing floor, but don’t let the man know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking.

Ruth 3:4 When he lies down, notice the place where he’s lying, go in and uncover his feet, and lie down. Then he will explain to you what you should do.”

Ruth 3:5 So Ruth said to her, “I will do everything you say.”

teaming up

Ruth was helping Naomi by gleaning in the fields. Now, Naomi — because of her awareness of social customs in Bethlehem — had the opportunity to help Ruth.

We should always be looking for ways to help each other. We should never assume that because a person is dependent on others, they cannot contribute something.

LORD, give us the wisdom to team up, sharing our abilities and wisdom.

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staying at the work

Posted on June 1, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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staying at the work

Ruth 2:17-23 (JDV)

Ruth 2:17 So Ruth gathered grain in the field until evening. She beat out what she had gathered, and it was about twenty-six quarts of barley.

Ruth 2:18 She picked up the grain and went into the town, where her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She brought out what she had left over from her meal and gave it to her.

Ruth 2:19 Her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you gather barley today, and where did you work? May he be blessed who noticed you.” Ruth told her mother-in-law whom she had worked with and said, “The name of the man I worked with today is Boaz.”

Ruth 2:20 Then Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May Yahveh bless him because he has not abandoned his kindness to the living or the dead.” Naomi continued, “The man is a close relative. He is one of our family deliverers.”1

Ruth 2:21 Ruth the Moabitess said, “He also told me, ‘Stay with my young men until they have finished all of my harvest.'”

Ruth 2:22 So Naomi said to her daughter-in-law Ruth, “My daughter, it is good for you to work with his female servants, so that nothing will happen to you in another field.”

Ruth 2:23 Ruth stayed close to Boaz’s female servants and gathered grain until the barley and the wheat harvests were finished. And she lived with her mother-in-law.

staying at the work

If you are looking for love at first sight, and then happily ever after, this passage might present a let-down. Ruth kept up her commitment to Naomi, and Boaz his commitment to Ruth. They kept at it until the barley and wheat harvests were finished.

Our Lord has called us to keep working until the harvests are over as well. He warns us against getting lazy and self indulgent while there is work to be done.

Matthew 24:45 “Who then is the authentic and intelligent servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time?
Matthew 24:46 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.
Matthew 24:47 Honestly, I am telling you, he will appoint him over all his possessions.
Matthew 24:48 But if that sinful servant says to himself, ‘My master is overdue,’
Matthew 24:49 and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards,
Matthew 24:50 the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not discovering
Matthew 24:51 and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

LORD, make us people who stay at the work until the harvest is done.

1 גָּאַל = family deliverer. Ruth 2:20; 3:9, 12-13; 4:1, 3-4, 6, 8, 14.

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Boaz loves Ruth

Posted on May 31, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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Boaz loves Ruth

Ruth 2:14-16

Ruth 2:14 At mealtime Boaz told her, “Come over here and have some bread and dip it in the vinegar sauce.” So she sat beside the harvesters, and he offered her roasted grain. She ate and was satisfied and had some left over.

Ruth 2:15 When she got up to gather grain, Boaz ordered his young men, “Let her even gather grain among the bundles, and don’t shame her.

Ruth 2:16 Pull out some stalks from the bundles for her and leave them for her to gather. Don’t rebuke her.”

Boaz loves Ruth

I read a lot, and a variety of genres, but I don’t usually read romance. Still, it is not hard to see the clues from this narrative that Boaz is being more than helpful to this young woman. The way he expresses his interest in her is delightful. The way he protects her honor is wise.

This is God’s word, and it tells me that our God wants to be part of our lives — even the parts of our lives we tend to keep to ourselves.

Thank you LORD for caring about every area of our lives.

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already rewarded

Posted on May 30, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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already rewarded

Ruth 2:8-13 (JDV)

Ruth 2:8 Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen, my daughter. Don’t go and gather grain in another field, and don’t leave this one, but stay here close to my female servants.

Ruth 2:9 See which field they are harvesting, and follow them. Haven’t I ordered the young men not to touch you? When you are thirsty, go and drink from the jars the young men have filled.”

Ruth 2:10 She fell face down, bowed to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor with you, so that you notice me, even though I am a foreigner?”

Ruth 2:11 Boaz answered her, “Everything you have done for your mother-in-law since your husband’s death has been fully reported to me: how you left your father and mother and your native land, and how you came to a people you didn’t previously know.

Ruth 2:12 May Yahveh reward you for what you have done, and may you receive a full reward from Yahveh, God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge.”

Ruth 2:13 “My lord,” she said, “I have found favor with you, because you have comforted and encouraged your servant, although I am not like one of your female servants.”

God loves people like Ruth, who come under his wings for refuge, and in this case, God showed his love for Ruth by providing Boaz. He came along just at the right time to comfort and encourage her.

already rewarded

This has all the trappings of a sappy love story, but it also highlights some principles about how our choices matter to God. When Boaz prayed for God to reward Ruth, she responded by saying “I have found favor with you.” In other words, Ruth recognized that God had already rewarded her by Boaz’ acts of kindness.

Some of the people around us are how God is rewarding us for our choice to love and serve him. They are not our only reward. There will be a permanent inheritance. But we should take note of the ways God is blessing us today as well.

LORD, thank you for the acts of kindness you show us every day.

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will you let me …?

Posted on May 29, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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Ruth 2:1-7 (JDV)

will you let me …?

Ruth 2:1 Now Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side. He was a prominent man of noble character from Elimelech’s clan.1 His name was Boaz.

Ruth 2:2 Ruth the Moabitess asked Naomi, “Will you let me go into the fields and gather fallen grain behind someone with whom I find favor?” Naomi answered her, “Go ahead, my daughter.”

Ruth 2:3 So Ruth left and entered the field to gather grain behind the harvesters. She happened to be in the section of the field belonging to Boaz, who was from Elimelech’s clan.

Ruth 2:4 Later, when Boaz arrived from Bethlehem, he said to the harvesters, “Yahveh be with you.” “Yahveh bless you,” they replied.

Ruth 2:5 Boaz asked his servant who was in charge of the harvesters, “Whose young woman is this?”

Ruth 2:6 The servant answered, “She is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi from the territory of Moab.

Ruth 2:7 She asked, ‘Will you let me gather fallen grain among the bundles behind the harvesters? ‘ She came and has been on her feet since early morning, except that she rested a little in the shelter.”

will you let me …?

Did you notice the politeness and lack of presumption in Ruth’s voice here? She is a foreigner, with no claim that she has the right to go anywhere or do anything. She asks for permission — first from her mother-in-law Naomi, then from Boaz’s servant. Whatever God is going to do in this young woman’s life — she is not going to jump the gun and make it happen.

The Lord has some doors he plans to open for you and me, too. But when we first come to those doors, we should not be surprised if they appear to be sealed-up block walls. Living in triumph with Jesus will often require us to take up the cross of submitting to life as it is, and trusting in God’s deliverance. If Ruth had not submitted first, she would not have known the deliverance that would come later.

“Be subject to every human institution for the Lord’s sake, whether to a king as supreme or to governors as those he commissions to punish wrongdoers and praise those who do good. For God wants you to silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good. Live as free people, not using your freedom as a pretext for evil, but as God’s slaves. Honor all people, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the king.”

(1 Peter 2:13-17 NET)

LORD, give us the courage to submit — so that you can save.

1מִשְׁפָּחָה = clan. Ruth 2:1, 3.

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divine coincidence

Posted on May 28, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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divine coincidence

Ruth 1:22 (JDV)

Ruth 1:22 So Naomi came back from the territory of Moab with her daughter-in-law Ruth the Moabitess. They arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.

divine coincidence

Naomi and Ruth’s travel to Bethlehem coincided with the barley harvest. But this was no coincidence. Either Naomi timed their travel so that it would allow them a means to provide for their needs, or God planned their travel so that the story of Ruth would have his desired ending.

The more we meditate on our life’s story, the more occurrences we tend to see of this divine coincidence. He either gives us wisdom to make choices that turn out to be beneficial for us, or he orchestrates those choices from above. These things are not dumb luck, but visible signs of an invisible hand moving the pieces on the board.

LORD, thank you for your invisible hand, orchestrating the divine coincidences of our lives.

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Can this be Naomi?

Posted on May 27, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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Can this be Naomi?

Ruth 1:19-21 (JDV)

Ruth 1:19 The two of them traveled until they came to Bethlehem. When they entered Bethlehem, the whole town was excited about their arrival and the local women exclaimed, “Can this be Naomi?”

Ruth 1:20 “Don’t call me Naomi. Call me Mara,” she answered, “because the Almighty has made me very bitter.

Ruth 1:21 I went away full, but Yahveh has brought me back empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has opposed me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?”

Can this be Naomi?

With all her losses in Moab, Naomi did pick up something there, and brought it back with her to Judah. She brought an attitude with her. She had grown pessimistic and disheartened. Given what she had experienced, it is understandable that she would become bitter.

Yet, if she had only known what was in store for her back in Bethlehem, it would have changed her demeaner.

The name “Naomi” is related to the Hebrew na’im (נעים) — meaning nice or pleasant. “Mara” means bitter. There was another woman who stayed in Bethlehem for a while whose name is related to “Mara.” Her name was Mary. She also had a lot of sorrow and pain in her life, but what a life that was!

Perhaps you are reading this today, and you relate more to “Mara” than to “Naomi.” I encourage you to focus your mind on the hope of what God can do, rather than fixating on past failures and losses.

LORD, make me a hopeful Naomi instead of a bitter Mara.

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would we welcome Ruth?

Posted on May 26, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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would we welcome Ruth?

Ruth 1:15-18 (JDV)

Ruth 1:15 Naomi said, “Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods. Follow your sister-in-law.”

Ruth 1:16 But Ruth replied: Don’t plead with me to abandon you or to return and not follow you, because wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.

Ruth 1:17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May Yahveh punish me, and do so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.

Ruth 1:18 When Naomi saw that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped talking to her.

would we welcome Ruth?

Ruth had gotten to know her mother-in-law, Naomi, and Naomi’s God as well. She would not follow her sister back to the Moabite community with its pagan religion and culture. She was determined to attach herself to Naomi, her people, and her God. That is commitment, and all over the planet such people are doing the same thing Ruth did.

We Christians should be applauding that kind of courage and commitment, but often we let our own fears and prejudices get in the way. We should be welcoming foreigners to live as guests in our communities, but we often do everything but that.

Would we be at the borders of Israel welcoming Ruth, or trying to keep her out?

LORD, give us the courage to welcome foreigners into our communities, and the courage to share our faith with them.

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beyond ordinary wisdom

Posted on May 25, 2022 by Jefferson Vann

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beyond ordinary wisdom

Ruth 1:6-14 (JDV)

Ruth 1:6 She and her daughters-in-law set out to return from the country of Moab, because she had heard in Moab that Yahveh1 had paid attention to his people’s need by providing them food.

Ruth 1:7 She left the place where she had been living, accompanied by her two daughters-in-law, and traveled along the road leading back to the land of Judah.

Ruth 1:8 Naomi said to them, “Each of you go back to your mother’s home. May Yahveh show kindness to you as you have shown to the dead and to me.

Ruth 1:9 May Yahveh grant each of you rest in the house of a new husband.” She kissed them, and they wept loudly.

Ruth 1:10 They said to her, “We plan on returning with you to your people.”

Ruth 1:11 But Naomi replied, “Return home, my daughters. Why do you want to go with me? Am I able to have any more sons who could become your husbands?

Ruth 1:12 Return home, my daughters. Go on, because I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was still hope for me to have a husband tonight and to bear sons,

Ruth 1:13 would you be willing to wait for them to grow up? Would you restrain yourselves from remarrying? No, my daughters, it is much too bitter for you to share, because Yahveh’s hand has turned against me.”

Ruth 1:14 Again they wept loudly, and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

beyond ordinary wisdom

Naomi was only thinking of the future and welfare of her daughters-in-law when she asked them to stop travelling with her and go back home to their own people. She knew they needed to get connected to new families so that they could live and flourish.

Orpah cared about Naomi, and respected her wishes. She didn’t make her decision out of selfishness or greed. She just wanted to do the right thing. We should not look down on that. She was demonstrating ordinary wisdom.

But Ruth was blessed with an insight that went beyond ordinary wisdom. She cared about Naomi too, and her love for that woman led her to risk her own future to go with her to the foreign land of Israel. Naomi was coming home, but Ruth was going to Israel as a foreign immigrant. Naomi was destitute, but Ruth was making the choice to become worse than that.

What leads a person to make such a choice? She was leaving everything she knew. She was stepping out in faith — and demonstrating faithful love.

LORD, give us the wisdom of Ruth — to see beyond ordinary wisdom.

1 יהוה = Yahveh. Ruth 1:6, 8-9, 13, 17, 21; 2:4, 12, 20; 3:10, 13; 4:11-14.

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