And Boaz ate and drank, and his heart was merry, and he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn. Then she went softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid herself down.
A foreign widow slips onto a threshing floor at night. She lies down at the feet of the one man who can redeem her family's land. Commentators read the scene as village custom, and as a picture of how faith comes to Christ.
Boaz was not camping out by accident. Village custom explains what he was doing there.
Winnowing means separating the grain from the chaff after threshing. It usually happened in the evening, because the winds that blow the light husks away sprang up at that time of day. Thieves love darkness rather than light, so the owner himself normally slept out in the open on the threshing floor to guard the winnowed grain. He kept his ordinary clothes on, with a cloak over his feet for extra covering. Everyone in Bethlehem seems to have known that Boaz would do this that night.
That explains the verse's wording: a cloak lay over his feet, and Ruth lifted it.
Some have read this as drunkenness. One writer traces it to a good harvest instead.
At the close of the day, Boaz ate his food with a "merry" heart. That is, he had the "joy at the harvest" of Isaiah 9:3, because God had blessed his ploughing and sowing so richly. "Merry" does not, either here or in Luke 15:24, imply excessive partying.
Ruth was not improvising. Israel had two laws of redemption, and one writer explains the second.
The other law concerned a man of Israel who had died without children (Deuteronomy 25:5-12). His brother was to marry the wife of the deceased to raise up children for him. The word "brother" covered any close male relative. Ruth's husband had been an Israelite, and he had died. So although Ruth was a Gentile — not an Israelite herself — a relative with the right of redemption could bring her into the congregation. Ruth did as Naomi told her, and so lay down at the feet of Boaz. This is a picture of the godly few left in Israel in the last days. They as good as creep to the feet of the Lord Jesus, in total submission to Him, yet boldly claiming His protection.
The move could have gone wrong. Commentators see this chapter as a study in daring trust.
It might have seemed bold to some; it was really a believing course, with love to Ruth as well. When God is with us, there may be on one hand the attractive grace of pure behaviour joined with reverence; on the other hand there is also the boldness of faith, which God blesses just as remarkably. Chapter 2 shows us the one, chapter 3 the other. The path Naomi told her daughter-in-law to take might have turned the great man's heart away from the Moabite woman completely. But God ordered it otherwise according to faith, and so the difficulties disappeared one after another. God would have us trust Him... Let no one doubt where His blessing is found: in the path of duty, which some despise without knowing better.
The instructions began with washing, then anointing. One writer links the washing to Jesus washing His disciples' feet.
The first requirement, to "wash yourself," carries our thoughts to the feet washing of John 13. John must first have his feet washed before he can lean on Jesus' bosom. Feet washing must come before heart resting... We allow the defiling influences of the world to creep in and drag our affections down to earthly things. If we neglect feet washing, the defilement grows. Our minds get clogged and our affections dulled, until fellowship with Christ becomes rare or unknown... Washing is negative; it removes defilement. Anointing is positive; it leaves a sweet smell.
Where Ruth lay down is the point of the chapter.
There is no real rest for the soul until it is in the place Ruth pictures in this chapter. And where is that? Where does Ruth find rest? At the feet of Boaz. And where does a soul find rest? At the feet of Jesus! Ruth feels Boaz is the only one she can completely trust, and she goes and places herself under his wing.
One writer draws out what she learned there.
At his feet she learned not only that she longed for Boaz, but that Boaz longed for her. And having learned this, she can "sit still" and wait for Boaz to finish the matter.
- Custom — Boaz slept by the grain heap to guard it, a cloak over his feet. His good mood came from a harvest God had blessed, not from drink.
- Ground — Ruth stood on Israel's laws of redemption. She was claiming a right, not gambling on charm.
- Preparation — she washed and anointed herself first. Washing comes before resting, cleansing before closeness.
- Boldness — the move looked risky. Commentators call it the boldness of faith, and God honoured it as the difficulties fell away one by one.
- Rest — the feet are the destination. There she found rest. There she learned that the one she wanted wanted her too, so she could sit still and let him finish it.
And it came to pass at midnight, that the man was startled, and turned himself; and behold, a woman lay at his feet.
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
And he said, Who art thou? And she answered, I am Ruth, thy handmaid spread thy skirt over thy handmaid; for thou hast the right of redemption.
At midnight on the threshing floor Boaz wakes to find someone at his feet, and asks who she is. Her answer is not a plea for pity. It is a claim. She names herself his servant, asks for the covering of his wing, and rests it all on his right to redeem.
Ruth is not improvising. Her words appeal to two laws of Israel. Together they placed a double duty on the nearest male relative of a man who had died.
All land went back every fiftieth year to the family it had belonged to. Before that time any of the family or their relatives could buy it back, or redeem it. See Leviticus 25:23-28. Naomi had to sell, so she hoped one of her kinsmen would redeem it… There was another question too. The law said that if a man died childless, his nearest relative or "brother" should marry his widow. The firstborn son of that marriage was to carry the dead man's name, so that his name should not perish in Israel. See Deuteronomy 25:5-10. So the near kinsman had a double duty. If he was able, he was to redeem the land, and he was also to marry Mahlon's widow.
Where the ESV has "wings" and "servant", older translations read "skirt" and "handmaid". The picture is shelter, not clothing. Boaz had already used it about her.
"Spread your skirt (wing) over your handmaid" is not meant literally but as a picture. Ruth wanted his protection. When danger comes near, the hen gathers her helpless chicks under her wings (Matt. 23:37). When David fled from Saul, he took refuge in the shadow of the wings of his God (Ps. 57:1)… In the harvest field Boaz had already used this picture to welcome Ruth as a gleaner: "Jehovah repay your work, and let your reward be full from Jehovah the God of Israel, under Whose wings you have come to take refuge" (2:12). Was Ruth pointing back to these words of Boaz when she asked, "Spread your wing over your handmaid"? It may well be so. The words of her lips expressed the faith of her heart: the "wing" of Boaz might be the agent of the sheltering "wings" of Jehovah.
The gesture had a settled meaning in that time and place.
Ruth's conduct may look strange and improper to us, but in the days when the judges ruled it was thought perfectly proper. Her asking Boaz to spread his skirt over her showed him that she was willing to become his wife (see Ezekiel 16:8). And though she is only a poor widow, and not an Israelite by birth, Boaz is quite agreeable to the proposal.
Boaz asks who she is. Redemption waits on her answer — and the answer that works admits she has nothing of her own.
At midnight, just at the darkest, His voice comes with a question. How necessary a question, when redemption is the thing at stake: "Who are you?" How blessed to know that the right answer is simply to own, "I am Ruth, your servant," for this is the name of the barren woman whose natural hopes are dead. The law applies to such a one and pledges itself to her: no other has any claim. "Spread, then, your wing over your servant" — this soul with its need of shelter — "for you are a redeemer."
Her approach is daring. It is also carefully measured — she asks only what his position as kinsman entitles her to ask.
There she seeks a pledge from Boaz. She comes to trust in the shadow of his wing. She would have him spread his skirt over her, doing for her the full services of her near kinsman. She goes as far as faith warrants her, but no farther; for Boaz, as they judged, was the nearest kinsman whose duty it was to repair the ruins of Elimelech's house; and so Ruth is strong in faith, and seeks the blessing confidently, but also humbly and graciously. And her faith is rewarded; it is done to her according to it.
Commentators read Boaz as a picture of Christ. What has changed since chapter 2 is the point.
She has done nothing but place herself under his protection… "You have showed more kindness at the latter end than at the beginning." What does he mean by that? In chapter 2 she had gone into the field merely as a gleaner, and there had met Boaz. Now she had gone straight to him, confided in him, put her case entirely into his hands. "Take charge of all my affairs, I claim your care," she seems to say, "you are a near kinsman" — that is, the heart claims Christ, and cannot do without Christ.
One writer sees here the turning round of an earlier moment in Israel's history. Then God acted first, unasked.
Long ago He sought them… No one asked Him for it, yet He took Israel for His inheritance and spread His wings over them. "When I passed by you and saw you, behold, your time was the time of love; and I spread My skirt over you and covered your nakedness; yes, I swore to you, and entered into a covenant with you" (Ezek. 16:8). But in the latter day, Israel must seek the Lord, as Ruth now seeks Boaz… Then Israel, like Ruth and Naomi, shall seek the shelter of His wing again, and the covering of His skirt again.
- Ground. She stands on law, not feeling. The near kinsman had to buy back the family land and to marry the widow.
- Wing. The wing means shelter. Boaz had told Ruth she came to take refuge under God's wings; now she asks him to be that shelter for her.
- Name. She must answer "Who are you?" before redemption can start. What qualifies her is the confession that her own hopes are dead.
- Ask. Spreading his skirt over her meant marriage — a strange scene to us, but proper in its day, and Boaz was quite willing.
- Result. She stops gleaning leftovers and puts her whole case in his hands. That is a heart claiming Christ — and the road back for Israel too, seeking the shelter of His wing again.
And he said, Blessed be thou of Jehovah, my daughter! Thou hast shewn more kindness at the end than at the first, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich.
Boaz wakes in the night to find Ruth at his feet. She has put herself under his protection and asked him, as her near kinsman, to act for her. His first word is not alarm but blessing. Then comes praise: this last kindness of hers is greater than the first.
The way Boaz speaks to her is friendly, not a claim of family ties. He had already used the same words to her earlier.
Also, the term "my daughter" was a friendly greeting rather than an actual relationship. Note that Boaz used the same form of address to Ruth (2:8; 3:10).
By birth Ruth stood outside Israel's promises. What Boaz asks for her is the very thing her birth seemed to shut her out of.
Ruth was by birth a stranger to "the covenants of promise." Yet she received the promise of an inheritance in Immanuel's land, the glory of all lands. From that land the generous blessings of God will one day flow to the whole earth. When this promise came true she would be blessed by the LORD and accepted as a daughter of Israel, just as Boaz asked for her (v. 10).
Commentators explain this greater kindness in two ways. The first is that her love had moved from Naomi to Boaz himself.
Boaz praises Ruth because she had made this last kindness greater than the first. She had first shown love toward her mother-in-law. Naomi stood for the people of God to her. Now Ruth was acting out of love for Boaz. She had not gone after young men, poor or rich. She had not looked for companions to suit her own natural likes. She had come to the man whose rights she recognised.
The second reading compares chapter two with chapter three. There she took his gifts; here she comes to the man himself.
How the Lord delights to have a soul in living contact with Himself! He says she has made this last kindness greater than the first. What does he mean by that? In the second chapter she had gone into the field only as a gleaner, and there had met Boaz. Now she had gone straight to him, trusted him, and put her case fully into his hands. "Take charge of all my affairs. I claim your care," she says in effect, "you are a near kinsman." That is, the heart claims Christ, and cannot do without Christ.
Boaz praises Ruth for a refusal. She turned down every other option, and one writer sees the same choice facing readers now.
How it must have moved the heart of Ruth to hear Boaz answer, "May you be blessed by the LORD, my daughter" (v. 10). The Lord Jesus values the faith and love of those who have a single eye for Him. Boaz was a wise man. He loved Ruth, yet he did not press his love upon her. He waited to find out if she loved him, and now the answer was in plain sight. Ruth did not go after young men, whether poor or rich. Popular movements attract many people who fail to see in Christ the real answer to their needs. Some favour the poor and champion a cause that seems praiseworthy, but leave out the Lord Jesus. Others are rich, promising wealth and ease to those who follow, but again do not recognise Christ.
The blessing of verse 10 opens a sequence. Boaz meets each of Ruth's needs in turn.
She had refused all others and followed Boaz. So first he assures her of blessing: "May you be blessed by the LORD" (v. 10). Second, he removes every trace of fear from her heart, saying, "Fear not" (v. 11). Then he assures her that he will overcome every hindrance to the fulfilment of all his purpose (vv. 12, 13). In the meantime he richly supplies all her need.
Ruth's story sets two things side by side: honest work, and wholehearted attachment. The second draws a return the first never could.
Ruth receives more because of her devotion to Naomi than she gets by her honest, steady work. In moral terms this is always the case. Faithful service brings a great reward, but the reward of devotion added to it goes far beyond measure. The fruit only matches the labour spent, unless that labour has sprung from true devotion.
- Claim. Ruth stopped gleaning gifts and went straight to the giver. She put her whole case into his hands. Boaz calls this a greater kindness than the first.
- Refusal. She did not go after young men, poor or rich. Boaz had waited to see whether she loved him, and now he had his answer.
- Blessing. A woman born outside the covenants of promise is blessed by the LORD and welcomed as a daughter of Israel. Boaz gives her more than she asked for.
- Sequence. Blessing first. Then "fear not." Then the promise to clear every obstacle. Then full provision in the meantime.
- Return. Faithful work brings reward. Devotion added to it brings reward beyond measure. Ruth gained more by loving than by labouring.
And now, my daughter, fear not all that thou sayest will I do to thee; for all the gate of my people knows that thou art a woman of worth.
Boaz answers Ruth at midnight, and his reply is immediate and total: no fear, no conditions, no delay. Two questions follow. Why does he bind himself so fast to a woman from outside Israel? And what does he mean by calling her a worthy woman?
Boaz's words come in a set order, and each one answers something in Ruth.
First, she has refused all others and followed Boaz, so he assures her of blessing: "May you be blessed by the LORD" (v. 10). Second, he removes every trace of fear from her heart, saying, "Do not fear" (v. 11). Then he assures her that nothing will hinder the fulfilment of all his purpose (vv. 12, 13)… This is how the Lord acts with His own today. Knowing that the Lord wants us for Himself removes all fear and assures our hearts that no hindrance can stand in the way of His purpose for us.
Ruth had done nothing but place her case in his hands. Boaz treats that trust as something valuable — he calls it kindness.
"You have made this last kindness greater than the first." That is, he says, "You did not use to trust me, but now you do." What a lovely picture of the heart of Jesus! Satan says, "Don't trust Him; He will not have you; you are not good enough" — but do not believe Satan. Trust Jesus. There is nothing He values like confidence. He even calls it "kindness."… See the rich fruit of this confidence: "I will do for you all that you ask." He says, I will meet every need of your heart. He owns Himself your kinsman. He owns you. He saves you entirely. He does all you ask. You have nothing to do but be still and trust Him.
The phrase is not a compliment Boaz invents on the spot. The men at the town gate had already settled that verdict, and the same phrase turns up in Proverbs.
Her godly living and daily manner showed her faith in the LORD clearly. As Boaz testified, the wise and upright men who sat in the gate of Bethlehem knew she was "a worthy woman" (v. 11). The ruling elders had already recognised her as one who excelled in the qualities that gave worthiness, or "virtue," to a wife in Israel. Solomon describes such a woman as the crown of her husband (Prov. 12:4). The last twenty-two verses of that book of moral wisdom praise the same woman, "an excellent wife" (Prov. 31:10-31). Ruth was justified before people by her works of "worth," because they sprang from her faith in the LORD, as Abraham's and Rahab's works did (James 2:21-25).
Ruth's night visit could easily have fed gossip. One writer notes what Boaz's words do for her.
She carries out Naomi's directions. Boaz recognises her at midnight, the darkest hour, and she makes her bold claim. He does not turn her away; he blesses her… He reassures her, promises to do all, and affirms what slander might have denied: "All my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman."
Ruth's earlier love went to Naomi. Here it turns toward Boaz, and Boaz rewards the turn.
Boaz praises Ruth because she had shown "more kindness at the end than at the first." She had first shown love toward her mother-in-law, who stood for the people of God to her. Now she was acting out of love for Boaz. She had not gone after young men, poor or rich. She had not chosen companions to suit her own taste. She had come to the one whose rights she acknowledged. He reassures her and promises to grant all she asks (v. 11). We receive everything from His grace, but He also gives according to the measure of our obedience and devotion to Him… As soon as Ruth knew Boaz she did everything with him in view. Now he is doing everything for her.
Her good name was real. But it was not what won her a place. One writer sets her beside Rahab, a woman with the opposite reputation.
By nature Ruth had a very different character from Rahab. Boaz said to her, "All my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman." But it took the same sovereign grace to bring the immoral Canaanite and the virtuous Moabite into the families of Israel and into the royal line. Neither had a natural claim to divine blessing; the law shut both of them out. It was divine grace that blessed them, and faith that enabled them to seek a place among God's people.
- All fear removed. Boaz answers her in order — blessing first, then "do not fear," then his word that nothing will hinder his purpose.
- All you ask. Confidence is the one thing he prizes. He calls it kindness, and answers it by meeting her every need.
- All the town. "Worthy woman" is the verdict of the elders at the gate. Spoken here, it guards her name against gossip.
- All for him. Her love moved from Naomi to Boaz. She did everything with him in view; now he does everything for her.
- All of grace. The law shut out both her and Rahab. Character did not earn the place — grace gave it, and faith reached for it.
And now, truly I am one that has the right of redemption, yet there is one that has the right of redemption who is nearer than I.
Boaz answers Ruth's appeal by owning what she has claimed. He does have the right of redemption. But he also names the one thing in the way: another man holds a closer claim. Commentators read that obstacle as the key to the whole book.
Boaz does not hesitate over Ruth, and he does not brush aside the man with the prior right either. Where the ESV says "redeemer," older translations say "kinsman," and the writers quoted here use that older word. One reads both halves of Boaz's answer together:
Boaz is perfectly willing to do the kinsman-redeemer's part, but the nearer kinsman has a prior claim, and Boaz, in righteousness, respects it. … Boaz is beyond doubt a picture of Christ. The nearest kinsman, with his prior claim, stands for the law. Jesus came to save and bless the sinner, but the law with its righteous claims was standing in the way.
One writer turns the picture on the reader. Many have already had dealings with this nearer kinsman and tried to satisfy him:
Yes, there is a kinsman very near, and some of you have had very close dealings with him. You have tried to please him, tried to satisfy his claims, tried to meet his requirements. "Yes," you say, "I have tried to keep the law." You are right, there is the nearer kinsman, but can the law redeem? Can the law do a kinsman's part? No; the law can only condemn, can only prove you guilty; it cannot redeem.
The order matters. Boaz must let the nearer man answer first. One writer explains why that sequence is no accident:
So we see the redeemer who is not Boaz, but the redeemer who cannot redeem. The law is indeed the nearest kinsman that man has. Apart from the teaching of divine grace, man naturally turns to it. One reason for the delay in Christ's coming was that the law should be tried first. That trial only tests man's righteousness. And so in the history of a saved soul, the law's claim must first be set aside. Then Christ is not to that soul "one of our redeemers," but the only Redeemer possible, the Boaz "in whom is strength."
Commentators differ on who the nearer kinsman pictures. Most read him as the law. One writer objects that a redeemer had to be related by birth, and reads the man as our fellow man instead:
Many teach that the kinsman nearest of kin to Naomi is a picture of the law, but this raises many difficulties. The main one is that a kinsman-redeemer had to be related by birth. How can the law be said to be related to man in that way? … The kinsman redeemer who could claim a closer relationship than Boaz was certainly willing to redeem (see ch. 4:4). But his willingness was limited by his ability. While he could say, "I will redeem it," he had to admit twice, "I cannot redeem it." … Since the nearer kinsman was more closely related to Naomi than Boaz, he seems to picture our fellow man rather than the law. Man has no nearer kinsman than those in his own family.
The nearer claim is real, and Boaz treats it as real. One writer sees the grace of Boaz most clearly here:
The grace of the Kinsman is a great sight to see as well. There were hindrances in the way. A nearer kinsman had his claims, and Boaz has to own them and answer them. Just so, in the reality this pictures, sin stands against the purposes of love — the guilt of man stands in the way of his blessing from One who is holy, as He is gracious. But He has found a way to vindicate righteousness and set aside sin. At the same time He satisfies His own love and answers every claim that faith makes upon grace.
Ruth cannot settle the question herself. Her place is to wait:
Ruth has the privilege of continuing to lie down at Boaz's feet until morning. This will be the portion of the remnant and it is also ours. As long as the night lasts we can rest at His feet.
- Claim owned. Boaz confirms he holds the right of redemption — the relationship Ruth appealed to is real, not imagined.
- Claim rivalled. A nearer kinsman has the prior right. Boaz respects it instead of pushing past it.
- Claim tried. The law is the nearest kinsman man has, and man naturally turns to it. Its claim must be settled first. Then Christ is not one redeemer among several, but the only one.
- Claim failed. The nearer kinsman was willing, but his ability failed him. His "I cannot" clears the way.
- Claim answered. Boaz owns the hindrance and answers it. In the same way God vindicates righteousness and still satisfies His love. Ruth's part is to rest at Boaz's feet until morning.
Stay over to-night, and it shall be in the morning, if he will redeem thee, well -- let him redeem; but if he like not to redeem thee, then will I redeem thee, [as] Jehovah liveth. Lie down until the morning.
Boaz answers Ruth's plea with a promise, not yet a wedding. Another man holds a prior claim, and the night must pass before Boaz can act.
Boaz does not hide the legal difficulty from Ruth. He binds himself with an oath — "as the LORD lives" — and he guards the good name her bold approach might have cost her.
Boaz appreciated her faith. Yet he was anxious about one thing. Her bold faith must not put at risk even the smallest part of what had won her the confidence of all who loved Jehovah's name. He was careful that no breath of suspicion should harm such a woman. So he gives her directions as carefully as her mother-in-law had. And he does not hide from her the difficulty the law placed in the way. So the woman rests with complete confidence in the Lord who had been at work in His servant Boaz.
The delay has nothing to do with Boaz's willingness.
Boaz is perfectly willing to do the kinsman-redeemer's part, but the nearer kinsman has a prior claim, and Boaz, in righteousness, respects it.
That order was not optional.
He was not the nearest kinsman, and so he could use his right to redeem only after the one who could claim a closer relationship had either refused, or proved unable, to fill that office.
Who is this nearer kinsman? Commentators see the law in him.
So we see the redeemer who is not Boaz — the redeemer who cannot redeem. The law is indeed the nearest kinsman a man has, and the one he naturally turns to unless divine grace teaches him otherwise. One reason for the delay in Christ's coming was that the law should first be tried, for that is simply the testing of man's righteousness. And so in the history of a saved soul, the law's claim must first be set aside. Then Christ is not one redeemer among others, but the only Redeemer possible — the Boaz "in whom is strength."
The night is not wasted time. Ruth spends it in the very place she came to — at the feet of the man who has pledged himself to her.
Ruth has the privilege of continuing to lie down at Boaz's feet until morning. This will be the portion of the remnant, and it is ours too. As long as the night lasts we can rest at His feet. Isn't this a blessed place — at His feet? There we enjoy His approval as to our walk. There we receive His promises. We are certain that He has heard us, and that all the toil of this miserable life will soon end. It will give place to the public showing of our relationship with Him, and to the possession of the glorious fruit of His work.
The pledge comes at night. The settlement comes with the morning.
It is night and dark when Ruth hears of the nearer kinsman's claim. And if law is to have its way, it is dark, dark, DARK for the sinner. But morning comes, and with it the full settlement of the difficulty.
Another writer names the morning our rest depends on.
Notice that the only way to find rest is to seek it at the feet of the Redeemer-kinsman, as we see in chapter 3. We must know Him as the Redeemer-Bridegroom. Ruth took that place at the feet of Boaz while he slept, a picture of the death of Christ. There was another relative ahead of Boaz, and Ruth had to wait until the morning. Yes, we must be brought to the death of the cross of Christ. But note that it is not there that we find rest — the rest of redemption. If the morning of the resurrection of Christ had never broken the silence of the tomb, we could never have found eternal rest. He must rise again, or there can be no redeemed bride.
- Night — Ruth's plea does not settle the case at once. The promise comes at night, and she waits it out at the redeemer's feet.
- Oath — Boaz swears by the living God. A legal obstacle stands, yet he leaves Ruth with a promise, not a doubt.
- Order — Boaz is willing, but he will not step over the man with a prior claim. Grace moves in step with righteousness.
- Obstacle — Commentators see the law in the nearer kinsman. Man turns to it first, and it must step aside before Christ becomes the only Redeemer possible.
- Morning — Ruth's rest came with the morning. Without the resurrection of Christ, a pledge never becomes a settled redemption.