When we ended our last look at Ruth, we were about to move into verse six of chapter 3. Please turn there in your copies of the Scriptures and follow along in your translation, because we are going to be proceeding as usual verse by verse. At the end of verse five, Ruth had told Naomi that she would do all that Naomi had told her to do.
Verse 6
וַתֵּרֶד הַגֹּרֶן וַתַּעַשׂ כְּכֹל אֲשֶׁר־צִוַּתָּה חֲמֹותָהּ׃
“And she descended to the threshing floor and she did according to all that you (Naomi) said I will do.”
Remember that the verbiage here is of “going down” to the threshing floor, because this area was situated below the main city and such that the chaff would blow off away from the city, due to the area getting hot, dry winds at that time of the year. It very rarely rained in the summer in Israel and that is still the same today. In 1 Samuel 12:16-18 the scene is during the wheat harvest, i.e. summer, and Samuel calls on the Lord to send thunder and rain. Well, if he had done that in the Deep South, where I live, it would not have been a miracle. But, the Lord did send thunder and rain, and the people were so amazed by this that they were filled with “fear”, that is, reverence for the Lord and amazement at the authority of this last Judge, Samuel. The last and the best. Well, I digress...Working summers on the threshing floor of Bethlehem would have played havoc with a person’s allergies, for many of us! Dry and very dusty!
Some of the sages make a distinction that Ruth first went down to the threshing floor and that it was after she had arrived and hidden herself that she “did what Naomi said”. In other words, it was after she had gotten down there that she changed into her finery and perfumery. Why would that have mattered? Because she did not want to be seen parading through town like a lady-of-the-night, that’s why! It’s entirely possible Ruth did not fully understand this plan, but she knew she was untaught in many of the ways of Jewish culture; and so, she relied on the wisdom of her MIL.
Verse 7
וַיֹּאכַל בֹּעַז וַיֵּשְׁתְּ וַיִּיטַב לִבֹּו וַיָּבֹא לִשְׁכַּב בִּקְצֵה הָעֲרֵמָה וַתָּבֹא בַלָּט וַתְּגַל מַרְגְּלֹתָיו וַתִּשְׁכָּב׃
And he ate (Boaz) and he drank and he “was in a fabulous mood” (was merry) in his heart, and he went to lie down at the end of the grain pile. And she went forth, stealthily (softly, “in the heart” literally) and she uncovered from his feet and she laid down.
Some have suggested that he had had some alcohol along with some good food, which had contributed to his good mood that night. Others have added that he was “merry” because of rejoicing that the harvest was bountiful, that the famine was over, and the famous sage, Rashi, commented that he was a merry because he studied Torah. (I can understand that!)
Verse 8
וַיְהִי בַּחֲצִי הַלַּיְלָה וַיֶּחֱרַד הָאִישׁ וַיִּלָּפֵת וְהִנֵּה אִשָּׁה שֹׁכֶבֶת מַרְגְּלֹתָיו׃
And he was in the middle of the night and he was startled (the man) and he twisted/turned himself and behold a woman lying at his feet!
Honestly, I am amazed that he did not reflexively kick her or perform some other maneuver for self-protection. I mean, put yourself in his place! Something, though, clued him in that this was a woman - - perhaps her scent, or the texture of her clothes … some of the commentators have suggested that she spoke softly to him, which caused him to recognize a woman’s voice. Some have postulated that he screamed out, being so thoroughly startled, and that she spoke to forestall that happening. This is conjecture, of course.
But, ladies, I want you to put yourself in his place. You know how deeply you sleep when you have had a day of physical exertion and you fall into bed SO tired...and you live alone. So, you anticipate waking up alone. But, instead, in the middle of the night, you wake up to discover that there is a PERSON in your bed, and that person is a MAN! I mean, really, what would you do?
Let’s see what Boaz actually does. His response is tame, to say the least!
Verse 9
וַיֹּאמֶר מִי־אָתּ וַתֹּאמֶר אָנֹכִי רוּת אֲמָתֶךָ וּפָרַשְׂתָּ כְנָפֶךָ עַל־אֲמָתְךָ כִּי גֹאֵל אָתָּה׃
And he said, “Who are you, girl?” And she said, “I am Ruth, your handmaiden, and you will spread your wing/edge/corner over/upon your handmaiden because you are a goel, a kinsman-redeemer.
(Aht is the feminine singular pronoun for “you” in Hebrew. So, it is best translated “you girl”.) The use of this pronoun shows he recognized she was a woman.
What was Ruth asking Boaz to do? She was not propositioning Boaz to “lie with her”, as the ungodly wife of Potiphar propositioned Joseph (Genesis 39). In the culture of that day, she was asking him to fulfill his obligation to the larger family as kinsman-redeemer. We’ve talked a little bit about this in earlier lessons. But, to review briefly, one of the obligations of this position in the family is to marry the widow of a brother or close relative, in order to sire children by the widow and to perpetuate the family name. Inherent in that action of marrying the widow is to take care of her economically, to cherish her as a full-fledged wife. For Boaz to have cast the corner of his shawl, his tallit, over Ruth would have been committing himself to fulfill this obligation. So, obviously, Ruth was making a “big ask” here.
The sages also contrast Boaz with other biblical figures, such as Ahasuerus, the Persian king, who according to Jewish sources augment the biblical record by commanding his then queen, Vashti, to appear before him and his banqueting guests unclothed. We’ll see that again, when we study the book of Esther together.
Ruth had certainly, by Naomi’s audacious plan, put Boaz into an awkward position and under normal circumstances, he would have been expected to retaliate on her, to curse her, even for her “unseemliness”. After all, he was an upright and righteous man. And, by laying herself at his feet while he was sleeping, she had jeopardized his good reputation. But, the Holy Spirit inspired him to not think primarily of himself and filled him with compassion for Ruth and, accordingly, he blessed her instead!
Verse 10
וַיֹּאמֶר בְּרוּכָה אַתְּ לַיהוָה בִּתִּי הֵיטַבְתְּ חַסְדֵּךְ הָאַחֲרֹון מִן־הָרִאשֹׁון לְבִלְתִּי־לֶכֶת אַחֲרֵי הַבַּחוּרִים אִם־דַּל וְאִם־עָשִׁיר׃
And he said, blessed are you from Yahweh, my daughter. You have made your lovingkindness (chesed), your latest to the first, greater, inasmuch as you have not followed after the young warriors/men, whether poor or rich.
For a woman of Ruth’s age to forego the opportunity to try to remarry a man her own age in favor of marrying a very old one was a great sacrifice, one which Boaz easily recognized. Yet, she was prepared to do this for the sole reason of perpetuating the name of her late husband. This act of Ruth’s, more than anything else, showed her devotion to her new religion, Judaism. It was an act of great faith. Boaz had been impressed by Ruth’s devotion to her MIL, Naomi, but that devotion paled in comparison to the devotion he was witnessing in this scene.
Verse 11 and 12
וְעַתָּה בִּתִּי אַל־תִּירְאִי כֹּל אֲשֶׁר־תֹּאמְרִי אֶעֱשֶׂה־לָּךְ כִּי יֹודֵעַ כָּל־שַׁעַר עַמִּי כִּי אֵשֶׁת חַיִל אָתְּ׃
And now, my daughter, do not fear. All that you say, I will do for you. Because all the gates of my people know that you are a woman of honor.
וְעַתָּה כִּי אָמְנָם כִּי אם גֹאֵל אָנֹכִי וְגַם יֵשׁ גֹּאֵל קָרֹוב מִמֶּנִּי׃
And now that truly IF a redeemer am I, and also there is a redeemer nearer than/from me.
The rabbis have expressed puzzlement over the years for why this “if” is in the text. Some say it is to be written but not read. Others believe it is there to express lingering doubt in Boaz’ mind that this idea “would work”. Regardless, it seems a strange phenomenon that the word is there, because a closer kinsman is a certainty. The sages are very emphatic on the fact that Boaz was a nephew of Elimelech’s, whereas the closer kinsman was Elimelech’s brother.
Boaz knew that he could not immediately grant Ruth’s request. This is why he did not immediately do the symbolic gesture of spreading his tallit over her. He knew that there was a closer kinsman to Elimilech’s family, a kinsman whose duty it was to perform this role. However, he reassured her because he did not want her to be discouraged. And, truly, Ruth was surely mortified! Talk about a miscalculation, a case of mistaken identity of the highest order! She had, essentially, flung herself at the “wrong kinsman”.
The seemingly strange language “gates of my people” referred to the older men who would sit just inside the gates of the small cities of Israel in those days. They were the city’s civil and religious leaders. They would sit there six days a week, to arbitrate matters large and small, matters that due to human nature would continually arise among the citizens. These men knew what was going on, what was “afoot” in their cities. Perhaps Boaz said what he did to address her fear that the men at the gate would try to dissuade him from marrying a Moabite woman. Because Boaz was a man learned in the scriptures, he knew there existed a little-used provision that would allow him to marry Ruth. He was banking on the closer kinsman not knowing that. Regardless, although Boaz did not believe the nearer kinsman would exercise his right, he knew he could not help Ruth unless and until he first met with him and gave him the opportunity to do so.
Vs. 13
לִינִי הַלַּיְלָה וְהָיָה בַבֹּקֶר אִם־יִגְאָלֵךְ טֹוב יִגְאָל וְאִם־לֹא יַחְפֹּץ לְגָאֳלֵךְ וּגְאַלְתִּיךְ אָנֹכִי חַי־יהְוָה שִׁכְבִי עַד־הַבֹּקֶר׃
Stay tonight and he (it) will be, in the morning, if he will redeem you, good, he will redeem. And if not he will take delight to redeem you, I will redeem you, as Yahweh lives. Lie down until the morning.
“Chai Yahweh” is a biblical form of an oath, translated “as Yahweh lives”. Boaz wanted Ruth to understand he was not just dismissing her request or at best paying lip service to it.
Now, something that occurred to me was this question, “Why did Boaz not send Ruth away immediately after their conversation?” Why did he instruct her to lie down until morning instead? Some of the Jewish sages comment that Boaz wrestled with his carnal nature (what Jews call the “evil inclination”) for the rest of the night until she left. Clearly, the scene is sexually loaded, but it is never explicitly stated in the text that the two of them had any kind of sexual relations. We may return to this point when we get to chapter 4...
Vs. 14
וַתִּשְׁכַּב מרגלתו עַד־הַבֹּקֶר וַתָּקָם בטרום יַכִּיר אִישׁ אֶת־רֵעֵהוּ וַיֹּאמֶר אַל־יִוָּדַע כִּי־בָאָה הָאִשָּׁה הַגֹּרֶן׃
And she lay at his feet until the morning and she rose up before that a man could see his friend. And he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.”
Why Boaz refers to Ruth as “the woman” is puzzling to me, when he could have just said “you came”. It would make more sense if the Hebrew said, “A woman came...” But, that is not what it says.
The phraseology about a man seeing another man has to do with the fact that she left before dawn, that is, when it was still too dark to see and recognize another individual.
Vs. 15
וַיֹּאמֶר הָבִי הַמִּטְפַּחַת אֲשֶׁר־עָלַיִךְ וְאֶחֳזִי־בָהּ וַתֹּאחֶז בָּהּ וַיָּמָד שֵׁשׁ־שְׂעֹרִים וַיָּשֶׁת עָלֶיהָ וַיָּבֹא הָעִיר׃
And he said, “Bring the cloak which is upon you and grasp her/it. And, she held her/it and he measured six (measures) of barley and laid it upon her; and he went to the city.
The exact measuring unit of “barleys” is not specified, which is why in my written notes of the translation I put “measures” in parentheses. What are “six barleys”, as it is written literally? Shaysh is the Hebrew word for “six”, but some of the sages believe that it was a standard measure in those days, namely 1/6 of a se’ah. Six se’ahs would be too large a quantity for a woman to carry on her own through the streets. A se’ah was in English measure just shy of two gallons (7 quarts). Six of them would have been 10.5 gallons. Too heavy for the average woman, even a young and strong one like Ruth. Some of the sages believe that he gave her enough for a meal for two people, the implication being that by the time that meal was finished she would be redeemed and not have to worry about where her next meal was coming from. Carrying the barley home would cause her to have the air of respectability, in that if anyone saw her leaving the threshing floor they would assume she was carrying home gleanings of grain. I choose to believe this interpretation over those scholars who mention that men typically gave prostitutes gifts after having received their services.
Why does the text tell us Boaz went into the city? Why, he was going to locate the nearer kinsman, of course, and get this settled. I have a feeling he was practically skipping happily all along the way! HAHA!
Vs. 16
וַתָּבֹוא אֶל־חֲמֹותָהּ וַתֹּאמֶר מִי־אַתְּ בִּתִּי וַתַּגֶּד־לָהּ אֵת כָּל־אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה־לָהּ הָאִישׁ׃
And she came to her mother-in-law and she said, “Who are you, my daughter?” And she told to her all that he said to her, the man.
Of course Naomi recognized Ruth. What do you think she meant, by asking things in this manner?
Yes, she was asking Ruth if her family situation, her family name, had changed. In other words, had she accomplished what Naomi sent her out to do. And, the text indicates that Ruth gave a complete report. Then, in the next verse, Ruth went on to explain where she got the grain, the barley.
Vs. 17
וַתֹּאמֶר שֵׁשׁ־הַשְּׂעֹרִים הָאֵלֶּה נָתַן לִי כִּי אָמַר אַל־תָּבֹואִי רֵיקָם אֶל־חֲמֹותֵךְ׃
And she said, six measures of barley these he gave me for he said to me do not go empty-handed to your mother-in-law.
You may notice in verse 17 that Boaz did not actually say this to Ruth, the part about her going empty-handed to her MIL. It’s believed that Ruth enhanced the story by assuming that the large amount of grain she was given (a cloak full) could not have been meant for only one person. It’s also probable that Ruth wanted Naomi to understand that the grain was NOT a gift intended to compensate Ruth for sexual favors on the threshing floor. Or, just as bad, that it was some sort of dismissive “farewell gift”, indicating that Boaz had brushed them off.
Vs. 18
וַתֹּאמֶר שְׁבִי בִתִּי עַד אֲשֶׁר תֵּדְעִין אֵיךְ יִפֹּל דָּבָר כִּי לֹא יִשְׁקֹט הָאִישׁ כִּי־אִם־כִּלָּה הַדָּבָר הַיֹּום׃
And she said, Sit patiently my daughter, until you know how the matter will turn out, for the man will not rest unless he settles the matter today.
Naomi was confident in Boaz, and even more confident in her God. If Boaz said he would take care of it right away, then he most certainly would do so. How hard it must have been for Ruth to wait patiently! Are you a patient person? I think most of us are not. We live in a society of “instant-ness”, where in every situation we “want it now”. Cue “It’s my money and I want it now!” or, that other one where the opera singers are singing, “I need cash now!”
What things are you waiting on the Lord patiently for right about now?
I recently went through a morning devotional series called “21 Days of Prayer and Fasting”.
It is so hard to pray and to wait on the Lord. By definition, any form of exercise is not easy. And, our faith, while a gift from God, is not easy to exercise either.
At the moment, my congregation is on the cusp of moving into its first facility. We have been an established congregation for nearly 7 years, but as a new start-up, with no established church sponsors to help us, and with the interference of the covid extravaganza, we have continued to meet in a local school building all this time. We are just a bunch of around 200 middle-class Americans. We are not wealthy. So, this has taken some time and patience, saving and sacrificing, to get to this place.
It seems that every step of the way there have been “exercise stations”. You know how, in some public parks, there are these exercise circuits where, along the route, you stop and perform some kind of exercise?
Sometimes the stations are anticipated, but often times they are a surprise. With each one, we are tasked with one of two responses - - the faith response or the fear response.
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