Can Boaz Be Trusted? - [Ruth 3:1ff]

A tale of two quotes. Quote number one. Even among the artful narratives of scripture,

Ruth stands out in the power of its concentration, in the limpidity of its vocabulary, in the versatility of its language.

So moving, isn't it? Well, not quite. Quote number two.

The gospel is a fact, therefore tell it simply. The gospel is a joyful fact, therefore tell it cheerfully.

The gospel is an entrusted fact, therefore tell it faithfully. The gospel is a fact of infinite moment, therefore tell it earnestly.

And the gospel is a fact about a person, therefore preach Christ. Let's open our

Bibles to Ruth this morning to see that very thing happen, the gospel according to Ruth. Ruth chapter three this morning.

Like Boaz, Jesus is a powerful redeemer, but better. Like Boaz, Jesus is a powerful and personal redeemer, but better.

Like Boaz, Jesus is a powerful personal kinsman redeemer, but better.

Like Boaz, Jesus is a powerful personal kinsman redeemer who's willing to redeem, but better.

This is a great little gem of a book tucked in the Old Testament, and I'm thankful that my pages now are super worn in the

Old Testament, and my Bible just naturally falls open to Ruth. Ruth chapter 3.

Like many narratives, both secular and sacred, there's trouble, and then there's a solution.

As drama increases, there's something gone on that's wrong. For instance, chapter 1. Husbands die in a barren land and barren wombs and anything but barren graves.

And how does God provide the solution? Providentially through Boaz in the life of Ruth and Naomi.

The real love, the covenant -keeping love of Chesed found in chapter 2. Can God overcome obstacles that are placed before him in the lives of characters who were anything but perfect?

We come to chapter 3 today to talk about dealing with the needs of Ruth and Naomi long -term.

It's one thing to have food, they've got food now, but once that's taken care of, do you need something else?

And in society back in those days, you needed food and you needed a husband if you were a You needed protection, you needed security, and how can

God give these things to Ruth? Ruth chapter 3 happens pretty much in a 24 -hour day, one single day.

So maybe for those young ones here, you can call it, this is the real 24, right? 24. And the thing is, dark, literally, spicy, seedy, dicey, suspenseful, there's all kinds of intrigue.

What's going to happen to Ruth in this chapter? Can Boaz be trusted?

Out of everything that can go wrong, as we read this passage, lots of things could go wrong.

Double entendres abound, disastrous possibilities exist. Will David eventually have a good apologetic for the throne?

Will the King David, Jesus Christ, come through this line?

Fascinatingly, this chapter is so dark and so dicey, that three times the writer doesn't even identify

Boaz as Boaz, or Ruth as Ruth, it just calls Boaz the man. Chapter 3, verse 8, verse 14, verse 18, and it calls

Ruth the woman, because it's not like we're permitted to see what's going on, because if I identify them by name, how could those two people get put in such a situation?

So let's keep anonymity at a premium. At midnight, the man, and behold, a woman.

Right here in the center of Ruth, tucked away.

Ruth was very lucky to receive blessings from generous

Boaz. He gave grain, he gave protection, he gave opportunity to work for two, three months the harvest time.

Maybe he's the kind of guy that will give something more like marriage and a seed.

But will he do the right thing? Will he prove himself a kinsman, redeemer to these needy women?

Will he portray Christ's righteousness? Will he act like Jesus did?

Will he act sacrificially and humbly? Will he say, I love the person enough to do what's in their best interest?

Chapter 3, verse 1, first we'll see the dialogue between Naomi and Ruth, then

Boaz and Ruth, and then at the end of the chapter, Naomi and Ruth. I don't think we'll get that far. Let's And without any mother -in -law jokes here, it's mainly the mother -in -law who's doing the talking.

Verse 1. I find that funny, but it's about the funniest thing we'll see today.

Then Naomi, her mother -in -law, said to her, my daughter, should I not seek rest for you that it may be well with you?

Now remember, congregation, you've been taught and you so excel in this area. We have to think like Jewish people thousands of years ago.

This isn't just, hi, how are you? I want you to be blessed. A Jewish person hears, should I not seek rest for you?

What kind of rest would this be? It's not, you worked hard in the fields, put your feet up for a while.

It's a different kind of rest. It's bridal rest. It's the security and rest that comes from a marriage.

That's what you need. You've been taken care of with food, now you need something more.

And it was customary then and now for Eastern parents to arrange marriages. In America we have love marriages.

Often in the East we'll have, even today, arranged marriages. And you need rest.

You need security and lifelong prosperity that a husband will give you. You need a godly marriage.

Matter of fact, that's a great definition of a godly marriage. Rest. It's nice to have rest, isn't it?

Same word used in the New Testament of spiritual rest. A quiet settling of spirit.

Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you what? Rest, Jesus said.

Take my yoke upon you. Learn from me. I'm gentle and humble in heart, and you shall find rest for your souls.

And you know, Naomi prayed for rest in chapter 1, verse 9.

Do you see it? Go to Ruth 1 .9. Remember? She wanted her to have rest found in a husband.

And remember, it was very important to have a husband back in those days to protect you and provide for you.

It's important today as well. Ruth 1 .9, may the Lord grant that you may find rest.

And now she makes it explicit. Each in the house of her husband.

And she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. Naomi, I just want you,

Ruth, to have, Naomi says, I just want you to have some rest. And she says what? And it might be well with you. Not just like you're having a good day, but what's this mean?

That you might have children. I want you to find a husband and have children.

Sounds like a mother -in -law to me, doesn't it? Hear, therefore, O Israel, Deuteronomy 6, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you might multiply greatly as the

Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you. The idea, semantically, is I want you to find a husband, and I want you to have children.

Widows without children. Now I want you to have a child. And you know, a marriage with Boaz would solve all these problems.

So what does Naomi do? Naomi is one of the original kind of Pelagian, semi -Pelagian,

I'm going to take matters into my own hands, I believe in God, but now I'm going to be the matchmaker of my own devices.

I'm going to take matters into my own hands, and it's going to come maybe at a cost.

Good motives, she needs a husband, bad methodology. Verse 2, is not

Boaz our relative? Remember, you have to have a kinsman redeemer, a blood relative to intervene.

With whose young women you were, he's a generous, kind, humble man.

See, he's winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. Ruth, you don't have any children, you don't have any land, you don't have a protector.

And through the Leverite vows of Old Testament language, he can provide everything you need.

Now think big picture. God has

Israel as a son, as a family member. God redeems Israel, and he's a provider.

And God the Father provides for his children, not just Israel, but for us as well. And if you're ever in trouble, family members should help you first.

And so God sets it up in Mosaic law, in Deuteronomy, in Leviticus, that a blood relative can intervene.

You've got to avenge a death, you've got to get property back into your inheritance, you need to have a brother -in -law marry a widow.

God has it set up so that when you're in trouble, family members intervene. Same with God. When you're in trouble,

God intervenes. Naomi knew this, and she knew that a blood relative could step up.

And she knew Boaz was generous and kind. And in Scripture regularly and often you read the

Old Testament, and there's all kinds of pointers pointing to the New Testament. You see the lambs slain at Passover all pointing to the

Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Pointers that would make you identify, something's going on here that makes me think of the

Redeemer Jesus, and so too does this section. The provision of God through a blood relative.

Isn't that Boaz, our relative? And what's he doing? The NAS says, behold he winnows barley.

NAS, I don't think it has behold there. It should. Behold! Look, this guy's gonna be the solution to our problems.

And so he's down at the threshing floor, and so what do you do to get the grain out of the little stalk?

And oh, you can throw it up and hit it with some kind of winnowing fork. You can put it on the ground and and have cattle step on it with their hooves and oxen with their hooves.

You can have cattle and oxen draw a cart to run over it so it crushes it.

And he's gonna be down there at the threshing floor at night, and that's when the wind comes up. And by the way, threshing floors were kind of like a mound.

So if you're a baseball fan, like a pitcher's mound is higher. Except this is bigger. And so the wind from the

Mediterranean would come along at night, and it would kind of come up on the mound, and it would kind of zoom off of that.

And so you could throw up some chaff with seeds in the air, and the chaff blows away. And that's where Boaz will be.

After all, he's gonna have to sleep down there by his grain because there could be beasts and animals.

And I suppose the same thing, aren't they? Beasts, animals, wildebeests, robbers.

So of course the owner sleeps down there. It's the end of the harvest season, and you just don't say, we've worked for three months and then just hope it's there in the morning.

No, he'll be down there at night. Except here's a problem.

What do you think Near Eastern people did at the end of the harvest season?

If they were ungodly, I'll tell you what they did. They would say, the gods and goddesses have given us fertile soil and fertile crops.

And therefore, let's continue that on, and there will be ritual fertility prostitution on the threshing floors.

Hosea 9 .1, you have loved harlots earnings on every threshing floor.

You don't go to threshing floors at night if you're a lady. You don't send your daughter -in -law to the threshing floor at night.

She might not even make it there, let alone when she gets there. That's where the whoredom happens.

That's where the debauchery happens. They still have threshing floors in the

Middle East now. A lot of risk there. Every Old Testament reader would say, not too good of an idea,

Naomi, to send her there. But Naomi's a situational ethicist and she thinks the ends justify the means.

It's good to get a husband. Get him while you can. Verse 3 and verse 4.

When I became a pastor 18 years ago, I never thought I'd have to read such verses. Maybe we're all like Naomi in some degree, half trusting

God, half doing things on our own. Wash, therefore, after all you've been working for months out there in the field.

Wash, clean up, anoint yourself, put on a little perfume. Stop acting like a widow.

Put on your cloak. She had normal clothes on, and then you have a cloak. We'll see that cloak come into play later.

And go down to the threshing floor, but do it secretly.

Do not make yourself known to the man. You know she's talking about Boaz. Until he's finished eating and drinking, don't let him know you're there until he's got a full stomach and...

He's not talking about water here. A couple glasses of wine and a full belly.

That's when verse 4 comes into play. When he lies down, observe the place where he lies.

Then go, uncover his feet, and lie down.

I have three daughters. I'd never say this next line. Go at night, go down there, uncover his feet, lie down.

He'll tell you what to do. I mean, Naomi! Can God work through this?

Is God still sovereign on threshing floors? Is Boaz going to do the right thing?

And remember, the Old Testament is trying to teach us this lesson, that when God redeems Israel from Egypt, He's a powerful

Redeemer. But is He close? Is He personal? He's transcendent, holy, and above, but is

He near? Is there a friend who sticks closer than a brother? And when you read

Boaz, Boaz is trying to tell you, He is near, but I wonder if He will do the right thing. The reader is supposed to do this.

What's going to happen? That's why we'll learn next week. Let's just close in prayer.

What is going to happen here? It's in the middle of the night. Bad things happen at night.

Actually, bad things happen at night even between godly people. Sexual overtones abound in this passage, and if you're

Sinclair Ferguson, you call them sexual undertones. Are you really saying, wash yourself, perfume yourself, sneak down there, and when he has eaten and drunk some wine, then you go lay down by his feet, and he'll tell you what to do.

Is this how God does things? Ferguson said, if we share this sense of anxiety, then the author of the book of Ruth has got us into precisely the frame of mind he wants to create.

This is exactly what he intends us to feel. I like this next line. He wants us to feel our toes curling with anticipation.

What is going on here? Is this story going to end in disaster? We must read on.

I mean, what's going to happen? Is he going to see her and, like, get mad, angry, take advantage of her?

How do you get a husband back in those days, especially when the person who needs the husband is a

Moabite? And furthermore, what's going to happen with a

Moabite and wine and nighttime? Not that long ago, we remember in Genesis chapter 19,

Lot's daughters. How do you get a husband? How do you get a wife?

What she's going to do is, this is a proposal for marriage. Now, let's see,

Naomi says, I want you to go down there, Ruth, and I want you to propose to your boss for marriage.

Here's how you do it. One writer said, well, you could do this instead.

You could write a personal column in the Bethlehem Star newspaper. Single Moabite woman, widowed, childless, with mother -in -law, seeks well -to -do

Bethlehem businessman, with view to marriage, must love mother -in -law.

Now, the author is purposely making this text ambiguous, lacing it with words that make you just go, really?

I want you to go down to the threshing floor, and what does it say in verse 4, and lie down?

Lie down, skabob, is the Hebrew word. It could mean to lie down in death, but most oftenly, it means to lie down for sexual relations.

Exodus 22, if a man seduce a virgin who is not betrothed and lies with her, he shall pay the price, her price.

Deuteronomy 22, death penalty for those caught in adultery.

If a man is caught lying with another man's wife, both must die. Leviticus 18 and 20, this word is used for the sinful relationship of two men together sexually.

The man who lies with another man must die. That's the word lies here.

I don't know if Naomi was thinking, you know, if he does the wrong thing, he'll still marry anyway. Or if Boaz is such a generous guy and such a godly guy, either way, this is bad advice.

When you look at the word there, his feet, it either means his feet with five toes, or it means as we would teach our children to call it the private area.

It's either a euphemism for that, or it means feet. Now this is a weird way to do a marriage proposal.

For those of you that are really crazy and want to use the Bible for every little detail of marriage and schooling and dating and courtship and all that stuff, this is biblical.

Just saying. See, we need a little laugh, don't we? Lie down, uncover his feet, he'll tell you what to do.

Now this is an overture that says you're basically asking him to marry you, but whether he sleeps with you or not,

I mean, the audience doesn't know. Maybe Naomi is saying, you know,

Boaz is old, or remember he calls Ruth his daughter, so maybe he would never even think of proposing to you.

And so we've got to take matters into our own hands. This was the way to propose in the ancient

Near East. One writer said, whatever motives

Naomi had, the situation is one that could lead us into a passionate and illicit scene of sex, or into a stunning scene of purity, integrity, and self -control.

Everybody else celebrates that time of year. Maybe this rash idea that Naomi had is the same kind of rash idea that Naomi and her husband had when they said, let's get out of Bethlehem, the house of bread, and go down to Moab because there's a famine up here.

I do know this, so there's a lot of tension. Verse 5, she replied,

Ruth replied to Naomi, taking these as commands, all that you say I will do.

And you're reading it thinking, what will God have happen? She's going to go down there and Ruth's going to be fired by Boaz for being so forward.

Prostitution happens down to the threshing floor. She sneaks down there at night hiding, and she's going to get arrested for prostitution.

Thankfully, the mind of man plans his ways, but the Lord directs his steps. Let me put

Proverbs 16 .9 in context. Naomi plans Ruth's way, but the Lord directs

Ruth's steps. This is doomed to fail.

So, verse 6, she went down to the threshing floor, suspense is killing me, and did just as her mother -in -law had commanded her.

Smell the perfume? Hear the breathing of Boaz?

Feel your feet getting cold? I'm getting cold feet just reading it. And verse 7, when

Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, literally his heart was good, he's in good spirits,

NEB says, peace with the world, JB says, in a happy mood, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of the grain.

Then she came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down.

Same word used as David snuck up to cut Saul's robe, she sneaks up, uncovers his legs.

I think it was his legs by the way. As one guy said,

I'm getting some deja vu, some Moab deja vu. Moabites laying down next to men who have drunk wine?

Verse 8, at midnight of all times, in the half of the night literally, the man, the writer doesn't even tell us it's

Boaz right now, even though we know it is because we know what Boaz would do, but what about the man who was startled?

I think he was, his feet got cold, right? That was the idea.

Turned over and behold, say what? A woman laying his feet.

Now you know exactly what would happen if Boaz is a bad guy, you know exactly, and they don't live happily ever after.

Some people say, well he had a nightmare and then he woke up. He startled and turned over, literally he like twisted over.

It was like he was sleeping on his side and now your legs are cold and then you try to flip the blanket which is normally just your outer cloak.

One commentator said, Ruth's act was an example of sacred prostitution at the high place in Bethlehem. After all, it's during the period of judges when everybody does what is right in their own eyes.

And now thankfully Ruth does something that Naomi didn't say, but Ruth makes sure she says it so we all just together go, great, she did the right thing.

Verse 9, he said, who are you? It's feminine by the way, he knows it's a woman. I don't know by what means he determined that, maybe the perfume.

She answered, I'm Ruth, your servant. Instead of then saying whatever you tell me to do,

I'll do. She now makes the implicit explicit by saying basically marry me.

Spread your wings over your servant for you are a redeemer. My intentions now are clear.

Instead of just taking your cloak and covering up your feet, cover me too while you're at it.

Except not just with a blanket, but with the protection and the figurative language of marriage.

You're family after all. This expression, spread the corner of your garment over me, is a pledge for marriage.

It comes right out of Ezekiel 16. God speaking of Israel, when I passed by you

Israel again and saw you, behold you are at the age for love. I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness.

I'm not saying Ruth was naked, but this is just the language of covering. Verse 8 of Ezekiel 16,

I made my vow to you and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord God and you became mine.

This act of covering was the marriage proposal.

Still used I've read in some Arabs today, by some Arabs today, they throw the garment over a woman he's decided to take as his wife.

Maybe we'll bring that biblical practice back, I'm not sure. I have all kinds of comments about dating and courtship and marriage, but I'm just trying to stay on track.

Okay, I'll say one. If you find a wife, you find a good thing, man.

You're a leader for a reason. Go out and win yourself a wife. Okay.

And ladies, be the kind of lady some guy would like to win, by the grace of God.

Spread the corner of your garment over me, cover your feet physically, but while you're at it, metaphorically, figuratively, cover me with your protection of marriage.

That's the idea. Maybe Naomi thought of other things.

Certainly the writer Samuel of Ruth wants us to think everything bad that could go bad could possibly, but God, give me a long -term covering, cover me with warmth and protection and fellowship.

What a great picture of marriage. Boaz doesn't rebuke. Verse 10, and he said, we see

Ruth's true intentions, now we see Boaz's true intentions, and they're godly and pure and right.

Will he act like the Redeemer Kinsman? Will he act like Jesus? Can we have Boaz as a picture, please, of our

Redeemer? May you be blessed by the Lord, my daughter. You don't call a temple prostitute a daughter, friends.

She made herself no longer ambiguous. Marry me. He now makes sure we don't understand any ambiguity with all these entendres.

He's willing to pay the price for a Moabite. You have made this last kindness greater than the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich.

And now, my daughter, do not fear. It's going to cost me, by the way. I will do for you all that you ask for.

All my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman.

Is he worthy? Is she worthy? Will he redeem?

Can Boaz be trusted? One writer said, at the darkest hour of the night, with the sensuous aroma of the sweet perfume, and this author said, perhaps she's wearing the perfume called midnight.

Is that really real perfume, midnight? When physical attraction is awakened and opportunity is near, would a man not find himself tempted?

And is that not the central part of the plan? So writes

Sinclair Ferguson. But Boaz is humble, godly, self -sacrificial, and he's a redeemer at a cost to himself to redeem a

Moabitess. Now, if you would, please turn to Mark chapter 10 as we tie this together with Jesus Christ, who loves at a cost, who's godly like Boaz but better, humble like Boaz but better, self -sacrificial like Boaz but better, and as like Boaz is a kinsman, redeemer, the language of redemption, not just for protection physically and temporal provision, but spiritual and ultimate and eternal protection.

The language of Mark 10 screams to me, yeah, he's like Boaz but better.

Mark chapter 10 verse 43 and following. I pick it up in 43 because they've been arguing the disciples about who's great, who's the greatest among us.

Mark 10 43, but it says it shall not be so among you, Jesus said, but whoever would be great among you must be your servant.

Whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. And then we come into maybe the key verse in all of Mark, maybe a verse that reminds us that Jesus is like Boaz but better.

For even the Son of Man, he loved to call himself that, came not to be served but to serve, at a cost by the way, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Now that is servant leadership. What's ransom mean, friends? Ransom is the price paid to free a slave or a prisoner.

Ransom paid to God. Don't ever think it was paid to Satan like Origen said. Jesus pays the ransom price for our sins to God, the great exchange satisfying the justice of God.

Jesus as a guilt offering, Isaiah 53 10, redeeming us.

And the language of Mark 10 45 is substitutionary language. Do you see it? To give his life as a ransom for many, in the place of, instead of, that's substitutionary atonement, laying down his life for us.

And then he gives an illustration and here's where it's important. Draw a line from the end of verse 45 to the beginning of verse 46 because now we see an example of that very thing.

There's a reason why these are connected. Blind Bart. Now when I was growing up, my idol,

I wish this wasn't true but it's true, my idol growing up was Brian Bartlett star,

Bart star. If you want to know who he is, Google it.

Alabama graduate, Green Bay Packer, quarterback, class act,

Bart star. I love the word Bart. If I had another kid, I'd name him Ruth. If I had one more, name him

Boaz. If I had one more, I'd name him Bart. I can't even talk.

I meant to say if I had another son, I'd name him, I'd never name him Ruth. Black Bart.

Bart. Here's the Bart who's the recipient of the love of God. It is not earned and it comes at the hands of the

Redeemer kinsman when he's on his way for Passover and to the cross.

Verse 46. The example of verse 45 is verse 46, blind Bartimaeus.

And they came to Jericho. It's the only time I know of that Jesus is at Jericho. It's 20 miles away outside of Jerusalem.

Go there now, you see a casino run by the Arafat group. Palm trees and figs and it's nice there.

He was going out from Jericho with his disciples and a great multitude. A blind beggar named Bartimaeus and with Mark -like fashion, he loves to name names, son of Timaeus was sitting by the road.

And he's begging and we don't know why he's blind. Diseases of the eye were super common back in those days from birth canal infections and other things.

Mark says there's one guy. Matthew includes the other guy, two blind men sitting by the road hearing that Jesus was passing by.

They were crying out. What were they crying out? Verse 47. And when he heard it was Jesus, the Nazarene, he began to cry out.

And by the way, that word cry out means to shout and to scream. When you see someone in a mental institution, an insane asylum, and they're screaming, that's the word.

When you listen to your wife give birth to someone and you go, they're screaming with agony, that's the word.

When Jesus is on the cross crying out, that's the word. And they began to cry out. He began, verse 47, and Mark says,

Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. I know I'm a sinner, but you are able and willing to help.

Probably thinking of the Psalms. God, please be good to me. And many were sternly telling him with his cries, telling him to be quiet.

He kept crying out all the more, son of David, have mercy on me. I mean, here we have this smelly, probably stinky beggar.

Can't you see that the presidential motorcade on Pennsylvania Avenue is not going to stop for a guy on the corner asking for change?

Just be quiet. Verse 49, and Jesus stopped and said,

R. Ken Hughes said right here, the son stood still. Call him here.

And they called the blind man and said to him, take courage, arise, he's calling for you.

And Jesus didn't, by the way, say, I'm not the son of David, don't call me that. He's calling for you and casting aside his cloak.

This is eager. This is jumping and leaping.

He jumped up and came to Jesus. Answering him,

Jesus said, what do you want me to do for you? The blind man said to him with an intense form of rabbi,

Rabboni, I want to regain my sight. And the son of man has come to seek and save those that were lost.

Here's one of them on the way to the cross. Jesus said to him, go your way.

By the way, you can choose your own way now. You can actually see your own way. You don't have to have somebody else bring you along and lead you.

You go your own way. Boy, even that right there, your faith has made you well.

I think there's a double meaning. Your faith has made you well. You can see your faith has made you well because you're believing in the son of David.

You're free. You're forgiven. The son of man has come to seek and save those that are lost and give his life a ransom for many.

You're one of those many. Matthew 20 says, I mean, what a wonderful savior.

You want to know if Jesus is a personal redeemer kinsman and moved with compassion.

Jesus touched their eyes and immediately they regained their sight and followed him.

My guess, they'll follow him all the way to the temple to give a praise offering for their sight.

And immediately Luke 18 says he regained his sight and began following him, glorifying God. And when all the people saw it, they gave praise to God.

The kinsman redeemer who's good and beneficent.

No wonder Jesus is called the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me just as my father knows me and I know the father and I laid down my life for the sheep.

Boaz is a redeemer. But Jesus is better.

Boaz is willing to redeem, but Jesus is better. Boaz was willing at his own cost to redeem

Ruth. But Jesus is better. I asked myself this question sitting here three hours ago.

And it's a hypothetical question, so don't make it walk on all fours. If Jesus Christ walked into this room and stood right there, what would be my response for him redeeming me?

And it would be an attitude of love and honor and on my face to God be the glory.

Thank you, my kinsman redeemer. I wonder what your response would be. Let's pray.

Father, thank you that through your good providence you kept

Ruth and Boaz pure, that he acted with integrity and so did she.

Thank you that even through our own scheming ways like Naomi, except for me and most likely these folks, even worse, you cause everything to work together for good.

And if Boaz is pure and good and a sacrificial redeemer, how much greater is Christ Jesus?

Our sins are many. Christ's righteousness is enough.

I pray for Bethlehem Bible Church that you'd help us to live in light of our free forgiveness, full and free.

Thank you that through Ruth and David, excuse me, through Ruth and Boaz, they were married and then through them would come

David and the ultimate David, the David that Blind Bart cried out to and that we, by your grace, have cried out to as well.