Ruth is an unlikely character to introduce into a season belonging to shepherds and wise men. And yet, her story is one of waiting making it totally appropriate to the advent season. Her story has a place among the prophets and signs from heaven guiding us in how to prepare our hearts to receive the gifts of Christmas.
Ruth is mentioned in Jesus’ family tree. In the list of names outlining numerous generations, the first chapter of Matthew includes Ruth as the great-grandmother of King David. A woman and foreigner, Ruth the Moabite hints at God’s great plan to make salvation available to everyone. The story of Ruth and her mother-in-law is filled with tragedy and sorrow. For whatever reason the Bible doesn’t mention, the men in the family died. A shortage of food forces the women from their home. Naomi has nowhere else to go except her hometown in Israel, in the land of Judah, which happens to be Bethlehem, the town in which Jesus will be born.
A time of waiting has begun. In their effort to survive, Naomi and Ruth probably did not recognize the work God was doing in their lives, but he was there and active,using them to bring about his expansive and marvelous plan.
Anytime the Lord has designs on a person’s life, a joyously happy ending is in store,as we see in the last chapter of the book of Ruth. But first comes long stretches of waiting. These are times when God calls a person on a journey,introduces them to new people, and orchestrates events and opportunities.
In the book of Ruth, I detect three different ways Ruth is led into waiting on God.The first wait Ruth must endure is for reward. After arriving in Bethlehem,Ruth meets Boaz, a landowner beginning his barley harvest. Ruth’s reputation has preceded her, and Boaz commends her for the steps of faith she has taken.He says, “May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge” (Ruth 2:12).
This wait for a reward required Ruth to leave behind everything she knew. Although she’d arrived in this new place, she was still the foreigner, the stranger who must make new friends and find a new purpose. Boaz helped her by including her in his harvest. He looked out for her and showed her favor.
The daily work in the fields eased Ruth’s situation as she waited for a residence. She and Naomi needed a home. As unmarried women, they had little standing in the community and no protection. A permanent home with a man as a head of their household would solve their problem.
Naomi is well aware of this predicament so coaches Ruth on how best to honor Boaz. Her interaction with Boaz requires more waiting. She must wait for him to finish his meal and go to sleep. When Ruth got the opportunity to make her request and receive Boaz’s approval, she still had to wait through the night with the matter of her need for a home unresolved.
In the morning, she returned home and waited some more. Wondering, removed from the action uninvolved, and apparently forgotten. Naomi encouraged her with the words from Ruth 3:18. “Wait, my daughter, until you find out what happens. For the man will not rest until the matter is settled today.”
The men are gathered at the town gate to negotiate a solution for Ruth’s ultimate wait,the one for redemption. Boaz, as the relative of Naomi’s late husband, satisfied the role known as the kinsman-redeemer. This man was the one with the right to redeem. He was a close relative who took responsibility for protecting the rights of a family in the absence of the head of the household. Because of his willingness to marry Ruth, the family name of Naomi’s husband and sons would live on preserved and honored.
The dictionary says the act of redeeming is to get something back, to recover it.Other words associated with redemption are ransom, deliver, fulfill, and restore. This is what Boaz did for Ruth and her family. Naomi’s life, full when she left and empty when she returned, has once again been filled. All the bitterness and grief she carried from her affliction and misfortune is swallowed up in joy. The Lord gave her new meaning and a fresh start.
This is what he does for us too. Have you been waiting, maybe for a long time? Have you been praying prayers that haven’t yet received any answers? Do you feel like Naomi, empty, afflicted, or grieving? The Lord as our kinsman-redeemer takes the responsibility to protect and to restore.
Christmas is the time when he breaks into our world with a fulfillment to the promises he has made. Joy swallows up the sorrow. Hope gives us a new purpose. Christ the Savior is about to be born. In Bethlehem, and in us.
