Ruth 3:1-18

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Ruth 3:1-18

“Then Naomi her mother in law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee? 2 And now is not Boaz our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night in the threshingfloor. 3 Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. 4 And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do. 5 And she said unto her, All that thou sayest unto me I will do. 6 And she went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother in law bade her. 7 And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down. 8 And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. 9 And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman. 10 And he said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich. 11 And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou requirest: for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman. 12 And now it is true that I am thy near kinsman: howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I. 13 Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman’s part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then I will do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth: lie down until morning. 14 And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another. And he said, Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor. 15 And he said, Bring the veil that thou hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and she went into the city. 16 And when she came to her mother in law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to her. 17 And she said, These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother in law. 18 Then said she, Sit still my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day.”

Introduction

[Audio version: https://resources.ccphilly.org/detail.asp?TopicID=&Teaching=WED644]

“The chapter starts “Then Naomi” when that is, if you have been with us, the first two chapters have covered two major themes, one is a decision made in the first chapter, and that decision Ruth made relative to higher things, not things of the earth, to grander things, to change her God and change her destiny, and to commit her life to someone who she has been witness to go through incredible things [talking of Naomi], and not forsake her God, even though she doesn’t understand what her God was doing. A decision is made. Sometimes we think, when we make the decision that things are going to go easy, but the second chapter is about labour. She made the decision, but things were not handed to her on a silver platter, she had to go into the field, work with her hands, she may never have done that. And in that process God in his providences is ruling, his sovereignty is there, again, ‘Providence assists not the idle,’ a Latin proverb, ‘Providence assists not the idle.’ And you watch Ruth encountering Boaz, just so happened to end up in the part of the field that belonged to Boaz, a kinsman-redeemer. And as we come to the end of the chapter, Noami has regained hope again, because she realizes Boaz has taken notice of Ruth. No doubt Naomi realizes Boaz’s mother is Rahab, the harlot, the Canaanite, and that Boaz has no prejudice against this beautiful Moabite girl, who has sought shelter, he says, under the wings of Jehovah [the LORD], he’s blessed her, because of that, in verse 12. And he’s allowed her to continue with the women that were gleaning after his workmen, through the barley harvest in the last verse of chapter 2, and then through the wheat harvest, and several months are passing by. And no doubt, Naomi all the time is scheming and planning. She knows something’s afoot, and she is planning, knowing that the gleanings will come to an end, and then of course Ruth and she herself will have no real sustenance at that point.

Naomi The Matchmaker Seeks
“Rest” For Ruth

And that brings us to the word “Then,” it is at that point when the harvest of the barley and of the wheat had come to an end, it says “Then Naomi her mother in law said unto her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?” (verse 1) She’s going to be a match-maker here. We have gone from the decision to the labour, and in this chapter, we come to rest. Four times we find her resting at the feet of the Redeemer, and of course there’s an incredible picture here. Naomi’s meddling to you and I, have many of you wanted your mom setting you up with the guy, the girl she thought that you should be with? I see heads shaking. Well it was a different culture, it was normal for parents to make those “arrangements,” and Naomi here, older, realizing that Boaz is smitten with Ruth, is now putting pieces together, she’s being God’s little helper, you know how he needs that sometimes. But I would recommend to you guys, please don’t play cupid, don’t be match-makers. You know, I hear people say ‘Wouldn’t that person be good with this person,’ I don’t know. What if you messed with that, they end up together and they kill each other, just leave that stuff alone. Somebody else does that, we’re not in charge of that. But Naomi here says, “shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?” The word “rest” there is a very interesting word, nenoach, and it has the idea of not rest from labour, but resting in the sense of finding a resting place, being in the condition of resting, the idea is, you’re free from the anxieties of life, ‘shouldn’t I find that place for you, where you fit in, and where you’re free from the anxieties of life? that you have found rest as it were for your soul,’ it’s a broader idea. The gleaning is over, and she says this in verse 2, “And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night in the threshingfloor.” Now, you have to understand, there’s a beautiful picture here, winnowing the barley on the threshingfloor. In this community of Bethlehem, the House of Bread, famous no doubt in some ways for grain, for barley, there’s bread again in Bethlehem, that’s why they returned. And the end of the harvest has come, and then what they would do is they shared a threshingfloor in the community. Because the wind would come up in the evening. During the day they would thresh the grain, sometimes it would be beaten out to try to separate the wheat from the chaff, the grain from the chaff. Sometimes they would actually drag a sled over it with oxen, to crush it and separate the wheat from the chaff. Interesting, in Latin the word is Tribulum, we get tribulation from it, interesting picture of how in our own lives sometimes there’s tribulation that separates the wheat from the chaff in our own lives. But during the day the wheat would be separated from the chaff, and then in the evening, if you’ve noticed, if you’ve lived near the sea or lived in a mountainous area, often at the evening the wind comes up that’s changing from the sun to the cool of the night. And when that wind would come up, they would find the best place in the area, and then they would winnow the grain, throw up the chaff and the wheat, the wheat being heavier would fall to the ground, and the chaff would blow free from it, it would blow away, they would burn that. And there’s a picture here of that taking place. Now, here’s the interesting thing, is that, you shared that threshingfloor, so you’re kind of on a schedule. So Naomi’s being the little researcher, and she’s found out when Boaz is threshing, when he’s on the schedule, she went online, she Googled Boaz, and she found out what the schedule was and when he was going to be at the threshingfloor. So she’s got a plan. So says to her daughter-in-law, she calls her daughter, she’s taking the place of the parent, and she says “And now is not Boaz of our kindred…Behold,” ‘consider this,’ he winnoweth barley to night in the threshingfloor.” tonight, she knows, she found out. “Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.” (verses 3-4) We’re going to hear about his feet here, in verse 4, verse 7, verse 8 and verse 14. And look what she says to her mother-in-law, “And she said unto her, All that thou sayest unto me I will do.” (verse 5) ‘Sure, you want me to sneak down there, and just stay in the distance, watch what’s going on, and then watch as he eats and drinks, where he lays down, and then when it’s dark I’ll sneak in there, get up next to him, and take the cover off his feet and slide in there, sure mom.’ It’s really a remarkable picture in some ways, ok. Ah, this is going to be, in their tradition, a proposal of marriage that she’s making, is what really it is. She says, and by the way gals, if you’re involved in a man-hunt, this is not bad advice, wash yourself [laughter], anoint yourself, put on some perfume [not too much] that masks other things, that’s why you do that, and put your raiment upon thee, this is a different picture here. What she’s saying is, ‘Take off the garb of your widowhood, it’s time, I want you to wash yourself, to anoint yourself, to perfume yourself, and to put on raiment. It’s time to take off the garments of your widowhood. And I want you to go down to that threshingfloor, and I want you to watch, and as it gets dark, I want you to note the place where Boaz then will lie down, but wait till he eats and drinks, you don’t want to mess with a hungry man, wait till he’s settled down, and when he lieth down, then you mark that place where he shall lie down,’ because when it gets dark, they didn’t have flashlights, she’s not going to go in there with a torch, ‘you mark the place where he lays down, and then you go there, you uncover his feet,’ his long robe would cover them, keeping his feet warm, ‘and then lay down by his feet,’ “and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.” and she says to her mother-in-law, ‘whatever you say,’ this is a remarkable, remarkable picture. Now look, it's a picture of Christ, ‘Get you down to the threshingfloor,’ do you want to find rest, really? ‘Get down to the place where the wheat is separated from the chaff, get down to the feet of the Lord of the harvest.’ Because it is his business to separate the wheat from the chaff, ‘Behold,’ John the Baptist said, ‘the one that’s coming after me, the latch of whose sandal I’m not worthy to unloose, his winnowing fork is in his hand, he shall separate the wheat from the chaff, and shall gather the wheat into his granary and burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.’ It’s an interesting picture here, certainly, of the Redeemer, that’s the role that we have here in Boaz. Get down to the place, look, even you and I, saved tonight, born-again. You know, the thing that interferes, John says, with our fellowship with him, is sin. If we walk in the light as he is in the light, that’s not how we walk, it’s where we walk, if we walk in the light, John says, if we say we don’t have that sin, the truth is not in us, if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. He says if we confess our sins the blood of Christ continually cleanseth, is in the process of cleansing, continually cleanses us from all sin, for even you and I. I find tonight, that if I want sweet fellowship with him at the end of the day or early in the morning, there’s a process where I sit alone and say ‘Lord, I’m a sinful man, my attitudes sometimes, my selfishness, Lord let me sit at your feet here today, and let you separate the wheat from the chaff, Lord, your Word is sharper than any two-edged sword, it’s alive and powerful, it divideth down, it says, between the soul and the spirit, it divides what’s soulish or carnal and what’s spiritual.’ There’s a wonderful ability to do that, so this is a wonderful amazing picture. And look, Ruth just says ‘ok,’ there’s faith in obedience. It’s almost absurd, isn’t it? Paul tells us that God has chosen the foolishness of preaching the Gospel over the wisdom of this world. Because what do we tell people? We tell people, look, there is a Redeemer, he doesn’t care what you’ve done, he doesn’t care what your background is, he’s accepting. But you need to get to him, you need to sit at his feet, you need to ask forgiveness, because he separates the wheat from the chaff. And he’ll forgive you, redeem you, he’ll make you…there’s almost an absurdity to that in the world that we live in. Look, the foolishness of the Gospel, it says, God has chosen over the wisdom of this world, where have the politicians brought us? (and we should pray for them), where have the economists brought us, where have the military geniuses brought us? where we sit tonight on the verge of terrorism, on the verge of weapons of mass destruction, [answer? see https://unityinchrist.com/topical%20studies/America-ModernRomans5.htm] on the verge of an economic who knows what, on the verge of immorality, look at our culture, where have all the great minds brough us? But there’s a foolishness amongst men that is the wisdom of God, and that is the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ [what is that Gospel? see https://unityinchrist.com/misc/WhatIsTheGospel%20.htm] There’s still kind of an absurdity to that, we tell people ‘This happens by faith, get yourself to him, believe that he’s there, trust him.’ And Ruth says ‘Whatever you say, that’s what I’ll do.’ It’s a very interesting picture. “And she went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother in law bade her.” (verse 6) There’s hardly any women that listen to their mother-in-laws, this is miraculous in all kinds of ways. Just a joke.

Ruth Carries Out Naomi’s Plan

“And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down.” (verse 7) he’s not getting drunk, that’s not the picture here. Resting at the feet of the redeemer. Look, this is the end of harvest, it’s the end of a long season. You know, we go to Superfresh, we go somewhere to buy our groceries, this is a different environment, to where even the man, who was the mighty man of valour, who owns the field, he’s labouring with his servants, his labourers, to the point where he’s on the threshingfloor with them, working with them, and at the end of the day he goes and lays himself down by the pile of grain that’s already threshed out, just to keep it safe. She takes note of that, she sees where he lays down. Evidently other guys may have been at the other end of the floor, with the chaff, there might have been a small fire there, where chaff was still being burned. But Boaz has laid down right by the grain there. And it says ‘She goes, and she lays down at his feet, and is resting there.’ Now look, this all has to be done very carefully. If Naomi had picked the wrong night, when somebody else was threshing, she’d have ended up in a very strange position at somebody else’s feet. Now this has all got to happen in a very particular way, or it could be a very bad situation. I’ve shared this before, Randy who pastors the Calvary Chapel in Boston once told me when he and his wife were dating, before they were married, they were double-dating with this other couple, his best friend, and had done that several times, they had fun together. And one night they were going to the drive-in movies, so him and Sherryl, before they were married, they went to pick up his other friend, then went to get his girlfriend, but she was sick. So he said “We don’t want to throw my friend out, it ended up with the three of us at the drive-in movie.” He said “Sherryl and I were sitting in the front seat, and he was sitting on the back seat.” So he said “between movies, I said, ‘Do you guys want popcorn, hamburger, they said no, no,” so he said “Well I’m going to get Sherryl something, I’ll get something for you.” So he goes to the snack stand, and he says “When I come back,” he said “I see that my friend had jumped in the front with Sherryl, and he’s got his arm around her, so I think ‘They think this is going to get under my skin and bug me,’ so he says “I determined I’m not going to give the slightest indication that any of this bothers me,” and he says “I opened the back door and I slide in with the popcorn, I got a couple cokes and hamburgers, I started eating, I can see them staring around, looking at me,” and he said “I determined, I’m not going to make eye contact.” and he said, “They’re just quiet, they can’t take their eyes off me,” and he said “Finally I smiled and look up,” and he said “I was in the wrong car.” [loud laughter] He said “they’re both two young kids with their mouths open, big guy with a beard in the back seat” and he said “Oh, excuse me,” “and I just got out and walked away with all my stuff.” So you don’t want to get to the wrong place on the threshingfloor, it’s a story you have to fit in when you can 😊. So she’s there, in the right place, with the right guy, this is all worked out. “And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet. And he said, Who art thou?” (verse 9a) that’s probably not exactly what he said, so you could imagine, you’re asleep, we don’t know if he’s dreaming, you start to feel something at your feet, furry, that’s bad in the dark, especially if you saw the Godfather movie, some of you are right with me. When I was 13, 14 years old I hiked over a hundred miles on the Appalachian Trail through the Blue Ridge Mountains and they have like lean-to’s along the way, and we’d get there during the day, spend a day or two at a certain area, and my sleeping bag was in the top there, just bunks, an open lean-to, you build a fire up front, cooking. And I rolled my sleeping bag out, well during the day when we were out goofing around a snake decided to go in my sleeping bag. I don’t blame him, it was a nice bag, but you know, you kind of maneuver yourself into a sleeping bag, if you’ve ever done that, most of you would rather sleep in a motel, so would I these days. But in those days, and you’re getting down there, my bare feet of course, when I touched that thing, and he wasn’t resting, he was moving violently by then, there’s really only one thing in the world that feels like a snake, a snake. Ah, it took me several seconds to maneuver into that bag, but getting out of that bag in one motion [laughter], I’m not kidding, in one motion I came out of the bag and landed on the floor, [laughter] which I could never reproduce if I trained to do it, it’s relative to the amount of adrenalin that’s happening right there. It was only a corn snake, he wasn’t poisonous, he may have chomped on me, of course you don’t know that when touch it, you think it’s a cobra that somehow got lost in the Blue Ridge Mountains. But you know here’s Boaz asleep, there’s no lights, it’s dark, he’s sleeping there to guard the grain, you know, what kind of furry animal likes to come up at night and get the grain, all of a sudden he feels something at his feet, and he’s startled, he’s terrified, he’s afraid, it says. I think it’s being kind. And then he says ‘Who are you?’ “And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for thou art a near kinsman.” (verse 9b) There’s a few guys in the Bible that had kind of rude awakenings, in a sense, Adam, God put him to sleep, and when he woke up, he woke up from surgery he was married. [loud laughter] That could be good or bad, you know. Some of these single guys, we wish God would do that to you, put you to sleep until he brings your bride, and then wake you up. Ah, Jacob, woke up with the wrong bride, that’s worse. And here’s one, he wakes up startled, they must have talked about this for years after they were married, ‘I remember that,’ ‘stop talking about that,’ ‘you made that noise Eee!’ ‘No Honey, I did not,’ ‘Yes you did, I remember that.’ “he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid;” which is a means of proposal “for thou art a near kinsman.” (verse 9b) ‘you are the kinsman-redeemer, this is your right, not only your right, it is your responsibility.’ There’s a very beautiful picture here. Of course you remember Jesus in his day, they understood and knew about this, he talks about the man who got married, and he died without any children, his brother took the wife to bear children, when he died, she went through several brothers, you get suspicious by the time you get up to number seven. Ah, the LORD, talking to the nation of Israel in the Book of Ezekiel says “Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold thy time was the time of love, and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness, yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, sayeth the LORD God, and thou becamest mine.” He used that imagery that they understood. She’s saying to Boaz, ‘Spread your skirt over me,’ she does something very beautiful here, your kenaf, it’s the same word, if you go back there in verse 12 of chapter 2, he says ‘The LORD recompense thy work, Ruth I’ve heard about you, and give you a full reward, of the LORD God of Israel,’ notice what he says ‘under whose kenaf, under whose skirt,’ it’s most often translated “wings,” ‘thou art coming to trust.’ He pronounces a blessing or a benediction upon her, because she had come to trust “under the wings of the LORD.” Now she says to him, “I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt, wings,” ‘fulfill the benediction you pronounced upon me, it is the tradition of your Law for the kinsman-redeemer to take the wife of one who has passed away, spread forth thy wing over thy handmaid, for thou are a near kinsman.’ Now by the way, amongst some of the Arab tribes today, that is still a means of proposal, the man would take the corner of his robe and put it over the woman. In some of the Orthodox Jewish weddings, the talith, the corner of the garment is placed over the bride. So it’s something, it gives us a beautiful picture here, that’s what she requests, it’s a proposal. “And he said,” verse 10, “Blessed be thou of the LORD, my daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich.” Evidently he’s older than she is. He says ‘You’re demonstrating more character, wanting to raise up, married to Mahlon for ten years, no children, to honour him, to undertake the law of the kinsman-redeemer, and it’s not bothering you that I’m older,’ this and that. And of course, it’s a beautiful picture of, again, ‘you’ve chosen the Ancient of Days over the thing that’s young, the thing that’s cool, that things that are savvy, blessed are you, you haven’t followed after young men, whether poor or rich.’ “And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to thee all that thou requirest: for all the city of my people doth know that thou art a virtuous woman.” (verse 11) A beautiful verse, he says this ‘Now my daughter, fear not.’ Now listen, this is in the dark, she can’t see him, she can only hear his voice. And that’s the condition we’re in with our the Kinsman-Redeemer, we can’t see him, but we can hear him, as he says to us ‘Fear thou not, I will do all that thou hast requested,’ we come to him for forgiveness, for salvation. “for all the city of my people” literally it’s “the people of the gate,” those were the elders, those were the people that sat there and understood what was going on, he said ‘all of the elders of the city, the people of the gate,’ “doth know that thou art a virtuous woman.” He calls her a “virtuous woman,” it’s the exact same phrase which is used in Proverbs chapter 31, verse 10, “a virtuous woman, who can find, her price is far above rubies,” “a woman of excellence,” isn’t it interesting? The fact that she’s a Moabite means nothing to him. ‘All of the elders of the city know of your character, you are a woman of excellence, a virtuous woman.’ “And now it is true that I am thy near kinsman: howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I.” ‘Yes, I am your kinsman-redeemer,’ but Boaz, the little researcher, Googled “kinsman” and found out that there’s someone else that’s nearer than he is, who has the right to exercise the right of the kinsman first. Now, possibly, historically here, culturally that’s why he hasn’t been more forward. He has helped her, but not overly, you know, it seems he is a man of great character. He says ‘What you’re saying is true, I’m your kinsman, but I found out there is a kinsman that is nearer to you than I am.’ “Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman’s part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee,” and he takes an oath, “as the LORD liveth: lie down until the morning.” (verse 13)

Boaz Is Protecting Ruth’s Reputation

Now, there are those who try to insinuate that there’s something immoral that takes place here, there is not, there is no indication “lay down until the morning” simply has the inference of sleep, of lying down to rest. It brings nothing else in, Naomi was completely comfortable to send her to the field of Boaz, knowing his character. There’s beauty here, there’s no immorality in this at all. In fact, more than that, he seeks to protect her reputation, the other kinsman, look at verse 14, “And she lay at his feet until the morning: and she rose up before one could know another.” while it was still dark, “And he said, Let it not be known that a woman came into the floor.” Look, he does that out of respect for the other kinsman, whose a redeemer, that is closer. He does two things here, he says ‘stay here till morning,’ he does not send her out into the night, he wants to protect her, he cares for her wellbeing. But more than caring for her wellbeing, he cares for her reputation, ‘Don’t let anybody know,’ as she gets up before it’s light and goes. He’s caring for the reputation of his future wife. Please take note of that, gals, please take note, he respects his future wife. Please, if you’re dating a “quote-unquote” Christian guy, and he’s asking you to compromise before the wedding day, just write him a good-bye jerk letter, because he doesn’t care about you, he cares about his own physical fulfillment and his own pleasure. Boaz is a picture of the Lord, cares for her reputation to the point where he doesn’t want even any fodder to be given to the gossips that live in the area. He cares not only for her wellbeing, but for her reputation. Very important. And that goes both ways. I think you need to think about that, if we honour the Lord, the Bible says he will honour us. If we enter into a relationship the way he prescribes, we can then seek him for his guidance, his wisdom, his strength. And be careful, look, gossips don’t necessarily need anything factual to function [oh boy do I know that! No, they don’t] They can take bits and pieces and fly with that. [Comment: so called “venting” to others about a grievance or so-called wrong is a form of gossip. Here’s an interesting article showing the negative side-effects of “venting.”]

I heard Charles Swindoll tell a story, I’m not sure it was a true story, but it was somebody in the church, and he said the matron of gossip in the church, this old bitty, who just got in everybody’s business, he had gone to do something, and there was no parking, and he parked his pickup truck where there was a tavern, a bar, and the next week in church, she confronted him and started all this gossip, ‘I see his truck is parked outside the bar at night,’ so the guy just looked at her and said ‘Oh really,’ and she said ‘Ya, and you can’t deny it, I saw it.’ And he didn’t say anything to her. What he did was the next night he went and parked his truck in front of her house, and he walked home. [loud laughter] That’s a great story. I like that. I hope it was true. Boaz says ‘Look, don’t let this turn into anything, wait till morning, I need to know that you’re safe, and then as the morning comes,’ he says ‘slip out of here before anyone knows, and just don’t let it be known that a woman even came to the threshingfloor.’

We Need To Find Rest At The Feet Of The Redeemer

And she finds rest at the feet of the redeemer, of the lord of the harvest. What was it like for her laying there that night? Did she think, ‘I don’t know who this other kinsman is, I hope he’s out of town.’ was it ‘Lord, how are you going to fulfill all of this?’ ‘Will Naomi be taken care of?’ ‘What’s going to happen?’ finding her rest at the feet of the Redeemer. There is a famous sculpture of Thors Walden, and it’s of Jesus Christ, kind of bent over, and his hair is hanging down. No matter where you walk around, you can’t see his face. But there’s a little sign next to the sculpture that says “To see his face, you must sit at his feet.” And he’s made the sculpture so that if you sit down at the feet of Christ you can look up and see his face, under his hair. To see his face, you must sit at his feet. Look, I find myself busy, distracted, self-indulgent, in need, growing and maturing, when I need to just spend that time at his feet, to see his face. And whenever I do it, I come away and go ‘Duh, how stupid can I be? This is so great, why don’t I do this all the time.’ ‘The Philly’s what?’ You know, I get so distracted, the news…so many things that take my attention in so many directions. But we are living in a day, we are living in a day, like never before, the battlelines are being drawn, I’m convinced, and we need to live like we know this is his Word, eternal, supernatural. [Comment: And we are living in a day where the Russian Federation under Vladimir Putin just declared war against the Ukraine on the 24^th of February 2022, thirteen years after pastor Joe gave this sermon, and this war is giving the European Union the impetus to federalize and become The United States of Europe, something prophecied thousands of years ago in the Book of Daniel and the Book of Revelation, the coming of the Beast Power in Europe. For more about this event that’s unfolding before us right now, see and read https://unityinchrist.com/topical%20studies/America-ModernRomans5.htm] We need to find communion with him like we have never found communion with him before, to sit at his feet, and to look into his face. We need to get down to the threshingfloor, and let him wonderfully separate the wheat from the chaff in our lives. I do. If you don’t, just say ‘All that stuff, Lord, do it for pastor Joe,’ I’m fine, all take all the prayers that I can get. He says to her ‘Don’t let it be known that this happened this evening, that you were here.’ “Also he said, Bring the veil that thou hast upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of barley, and laid it on her: and she went into the city.” (verse 15) there’s nothing specific here about what kind of measure it is, by the way, “and he laid it on her,” that’s probably where that phrase came from, he laid it on her, ‘lay it on me baby.’ It seems that this is at least sixty pounds of barley, so what he does for her, he either placed it on her head or puts it over her shoulder for her, so she doesn’t have to pick it up and put it on herself, he balanced the load on her, and he sends her off with this huge blessing, and it says down in verse 17 “These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother in law.” because he knows Naomi sent Ruth to him, and he figures ‘Man, I owe Naomi more than six measure of barley, but this is all she can carry tonight, but this will send a message,’ there’s a code here, and she knows how to break it. So, interesting, in verse 15 by the way, she leaves with these six measures of barley, he laid it on her, “and she went into the city.” Your translation might say “he went into the city.” Scholars argue, in 1611, when the first, very first printing of the King James Bible came out, it said “he went into the city.” Within that year, they had a print-war, and they had come into contact by then with other texts, and then the 2^nd printing it said “she went into the city.” So in 1611, the first printing of the King James Bible was called the “he Bible,” and the 2^nd printing in the same year was called the “she Bible.” That’s just free information, it’s free information. The Hebrew manuscripts can be argued either way, the truth is, they both went into the city, so it really doesn’t matter. With different intensions, she went back to Naomi, her mother-in-law, and he went to do business, we’re going to see that. ‘So he laid it on her.’

Sit Still, For He Will Not Rest Until This Business Is Finished

“and she went into the city. And when she came to her mother in law, she said, Who art thou, my daughter?” and Ruth is thinking ‘Nobody knows who I am tonight, what’s the problem here.’ “And she told her all that the man had done to her.” (verse 16) Now by the way, what it literally says is ‘what was accomplished?’ It’s not “who are you, my daughter, I don’t know who you are,” she’s saying ‘What’s changed? what condition are you in now? What took place? Are you engaged? What’s up?’ That’s the idea of it, ‘Tell me! what happened? What’s changed, what condition are you in, my daughter?’ Not ‘Who are you?’ but it’s kind of like ‘Who are you now? Are you Ruth the Moabite or Ruth the Bethlehemite? Are you Ruth the stranger, or are you Ruth the family of the Messiah? What’s up?’ Very interesting in the language, the way it communicates. Then it says, then answering, “she told her all that the man had done to her.” (verse 16c) “And she said, These six measures of barley gave he me; for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother in law.” (verse 17) And Naomi, “Then said she, Sit still my daughter, until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this day.” (verse 18) Naomi knows exactly what’s up, these six measure of barley are a thank-you note, and they say ‘I’m busy, just hold on.’ She says to Ruth ‘I know what the message is here, Honey. Now you sit still.’ Now, I don’t like somebody to tell me to sit still at one of the most exciting points of my life. I don’t know about you guys, ‘Sit still.’ A girl, ‘your wedding could be around the corner, but sit still dear, just wait,’ it’ll make you jump out of your skin. Naomi knows the deal, ‘he ain’t gonna rest until he gets this nailed down, the only reason he sent me six measures of barley.’ Exodus chapter 14, Moses was told to “stand still, and say to the people Behold, the glory of God.” I don’t do good at that either. A circumstance where there’s no escape, where everything looks like it’s disintegrating, your life is falling apart for you, and it seems like the Lord has forsaken you, and there’s no hope in any direction, sometimes he would say to us, he’s the same yesterday, today and forever, ‘Stand still, and behold the glory of the Lord.’ I’m not good at that. Psalm 46, we’re told there “Be still,” now this is getting better for me, “Be still, and know that I am God,” and the Hebrew is literally “Hands off, and know that I am God,” ‘Don’t be my little helper.’ A circumstance has evolved around your life, and I don’t know how many of you feel that way this evening [I do!], and you feel like you need to do something, you feel like you need to do something, and you know in your heart there isn’t anything you can do, and you don’t even like to read Psalm 46, because you might get to that verse, and the Lord might be saying to you ‘Hands off, be still, and know that I am God, and you are not.’ And this is one where this person wants everything to work out, this is a relationship, she’s no doubt filled with anticipation, some level of anxiety, and Naomi’s wise enough to say ‘Sit still, do not follow Boaz around Bethlehem, you’ll drive him out of his mind and he won’t get anything done. Let him do what he does, men are different, he ain’t gonna rest till he gets done, just trust me.’ Guys, don’t you hate it that we’re that predictable? It just drives me crazy sometime, my wife knows before I do what I’m going to do, or what I’m going to say. And she had to remind me, ‘I knew you were going to do that.’ ‘I didn’t, how did you know!?’ Men are so predictable and Naomi says ‘Wait till you see this, you just sit still. For a man to give us this much barley, he’s lost his mind, he ain’t gonna rest until he gets this situation nailed down.’ Isn’t it interesting? The first verse in the chapter she says ‘Is it wrong for me to seek rest for you?’ that is, a place of rest, an environment, a condition of rest, free from anxiety, an environment. The last verse of the chapter says ‘The man’s not gonna rest, he’s not gonna cease, he’s not going to rest from his work and his labour until he has this whole issue nailed down, he will not be in rest until he hath finished the thing this day.’

Jesus Will Not Rest Until We’re In His Kingdom

Listen, our rest, you know, what is your rest? Is it getting your retirement account nailed down, is it salvaging your 10-40K [now 401K], believe in miracles, huh. Is it getting this or arranging that, or having this relationship, or having that thing? What really is your rest? Because none of those things produce rest, none of those things produce rest. The picture, interesting here, of Ruth, she’s at the feet of the redeemer, that’s where she finds rest. You know, you look at Jesus, remember the woman at the well? When he talked with her, he said ‘If you’ll come to me, I’m going to give you water to drink where you’ll finally be satisfied,’ she said to him, ‘How? How is that gonna happen?’ ‘Go get your husband and we’ll talk about it.’ ‘I don’t have one.’ ‘You’re right, you had five and the guy you’re living with now ain’t your husband.’ ‘Sir, you must be a prophet.’ What he was saying to her is, and to every wife and to every husband, ‘You’re not gonna find rest in your husband, he was never made by God to replace Jesus Christ in your life.’ He said to this woman, ‘You go from husband to husband to husband, and you ain’t satisfied, not until you come to me, and drink of me will you find satisfaction and rest from this insanity for your soul.’ It’s a blessing for a husband and a wife to be together, but the wife is not the perfect contributor, the husband’s not the perfect contributor, Jesus Christ is the perfect contributor. The husband never finds rest in the wife, she was not made to bear that load. We find rest in him. And let me tell you the rest that we find in him, the rest that we find in him is this, that he won’t rest. We can rest in Jesus Christ, because we know this, he won’t rest till he’s got the whole program nailed down, that’s how it ends here. That he is not going to rest until he has finished the thing, he’s not gonna rest. We’re told in Zephaniah, that’s one of my favorite verses, you’re all familiar with Zephaniah? It says “The LORD my God in the midst of thee is mighty, he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy, he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.” What it says is, ‘He will rest in his love when he gets us all home.’ You remember John chapter 17, he says “Father, I will that those you give me be with me where I am, that they might behold the glory I had with you before the world was formed.” The only time in the Gospels you find Jesus saying to the Father “I will,” exerting his will. Before that he says “Not my will, but thine be done,” ‘I don’t say anything unless the Father says it, I don’t do anything unless the father does it, if you’ve seen me you’ve seen the Father,’ the only place he raises his will, and is the only One who could raise his will to God the Father, he says ‘I will, this is my will, that those whom you’ve given me be with me where I am, that they might behold the glory that I had with you before the world was formed.’ The rest you and I have is this, as we look into his face, we learn who he is, we enjoy sweet communion with him, and that he will not rest until he has us home, that’s our rest. He will not rest until his redeemed possession is gathered in his presence. He will then rest in his love. Now we’re like kids with pictures on the milk cartons now, he knows we’re in a world where there’s warfare, there’s difficulty, struggle, he’s longing to have us in his presence where we can stand, where ‘this corruption puts on incorruption, this mortal puts on immortality,’ and we leave our sinful natures behind, we stand full-face, looking into the face of the Saviour, and we behold the glory that belongs to him, without shame [When does this occur for us believers? see https://unityinchrist.com/corinthians/cor15-16.htm]. And it says, he will rest in his love. Well he loves us now, but he doesn’t rest in it. He loves us much too much to rest in it. But when he finally gets us home, he’s going to rest in his love. And he’s going to joy over us with singing. I often wonder, what will that be like, it says the voice of the LORD shakes the mountains, the voice of the LORD causes the hinds to calf, the voice of the LORD, you know, it shakes the wilderness, the voice of the LORD, you know. What’s it gonna be like when he lets loose? Mario Alonzo’s got nothing. That day’s gonna come where we’re in his presence, what will it be like when he opens his mouth, he rests in his love, and he rejoices over us with singing? Naomi says ‘Honey, sit still, because he ain’t gonna rest until the job is done.’ I say that to you tonight. I’m not gonna say “Honey,” there’s too many guys here. All of you, just sit still, in the sense, you know, trying to do this on your own, you trust him, he’s paid the price, he’s the Kinsman-Redeemer, he is a good steward over his purchased possession, he is longing for the day that he has us in his presence. That we can stand there and understand what we were made for, in the first place. That’s when we’ll know what eyeballs were for, when we see him and when we see glory. It would incinerate our sockets now, but that’s when we’ll know. When we hear him sing, and the angels, then we’ll know what ears are for, you only think you know. And it ain’t listening to some of the stupid stuff we listen to either. Smell, what wondrous fragrance of incense will be wafting through heaven, what will it be like? [And, to be Biblical, heaven will end up on earth, as shown in Revelation 21:1-23, where the New Jerusalem will come to reside, so in that sense, heaven is wherever we and the Lord are residing, it is more of a state of being than where, which has always been a misconception within the Christian churches.] And I always tell my wife, one of the best things about heaven is Jesus will control the thermostat, even the temperature will be perfect there, we won’t be pushing it up and down anymore. Read ahead, chapter 4, remarkable, remarkable, remarkable conclusion and picture. Remember, this is happening in the days of the judges, when every man is doing what is right in his own eyes, and those things are evil in the sight of the LORD, that there is this island of redemption, there is this promise that God made to Adam and Eve that through the seed of a woman the Messiah would come. And that seed is passing through Rahab the harlot into the tribe of Judah, through Boaz and Ruth, through Obed, through Jesse, to king David. Just this is a remarkable picture of his love and redemption…[transcript of a connective expository sermon on Ruth 3:1-18, given by Pastor Joe Focht, Calvary Chapel of Philadelphia, 13500 Philmont Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19116]