Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld (Saxon, 1794–1872) Ruth in Boaz's Field, 1828

While in Judah, God orchestrated a wondrous plan for a man named Boaz to take Ruth as his wife, give her a child, and provide for her and Naomi. What’s remarkable about this plan was that Boaz was suited as a “kinsman-redeemer” to take her as his wife.  According to God’s word, it just so happened that Boaz was a relative to Ruth’s husband who had passed away; so, he was fitted to marry her and continue his lineage. Therefore, even in the midst of Ruth and Naomi’s poor suffering, God still had a plan to take care of them.

Ruth 2: Ruth Gleans In The Fields, Then Meets Boaz And Finds Favor In His Eyes

1 Now Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side, a man of standing from the clan of Elimelek, whose name was Boaz.

2 And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor.”

Naomi said to her, “Go ahead, my daughter.” 

3 So she went out, entered a field and began to glean behind the harvesters. As it turned out, she was working in a field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelek.

4 Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters, “The Lord be with you!”

“The Lord bless you!” they answered.

5 Boaz asked the overseer of his harvesters, “Who does that young woman belong to?”

6 The overseer replied, “She is the Moabite who came back from Moab with Naomi. 

7 She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves behind the harvesters.’ She came into the field and has remained here from morning till now, except for a short rest in the shelter.”

8 So Boaz said to Ruth, “My daughter, listen to me. Don’t go and glean in another field and don’t go away from here. Stay here with the women who work for me. 

9 Watch the field where the men are harvesting, and follow along after the women. I have told the men not to lay a hand on you. And whenever you are thirsty, go and get a drink from the water jars the men have filled.”

10 At this, she bowed down with her face to the ground. She asked him, “Why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me—a foreigner?”

11 Boaz replied, “I’ve been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband—how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. 

12 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.”

13 “May I continue to find favor in your eyes, my lord,” she said. “You have put me at ease by speaking kindly to your servant—though I do not have the standing of one of your servants.”

14 At mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come over here. Have some bread and dip it in the wine vinegar.”

When she sat down with the harvesters, he offered her some roasted grain. She ate all she wanted and had some left over. 

15 As she got up to glean, Boaz gave orders to his men, “Let her gather among the sheaves and don’t reprimand her. 

16 Even pull out some stalks for her from the bundles and leave them for her to pick up, and don’t rebuke her.”

17 So Ruth gleaned in the field until evening. Then she threshed the barley she had gathered, and it amounted to about an ephah. 

18 She carried it back to town, and her mother-in-law saw how much she had gathered. Ruth also brought out and gave her what she had left over after she had eaten enough.

19 Her mother-in-law asked her, “Where did you glean today? Where did you work? Blessed be the man who took notice of you!”

Then Ruth told her mother-in-law about the one at whose place she had been working. “The name of the man I worked with today is Boaz,” she said.

20 “The Lord bless him!” Naomi said to her daughter-in-law. “He has not stopped showing his kindness to the living and the dead.” She added, “That man is our close relative; he is one of our guardian-redeemers.”

21 Then Ruth the Moabite said, “He even said to me, ‘Stay with my workers until they finish harvesting all my grain.’”

22 Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, “It will be good for you, my daughter, to go with the women who work for him, because in someone else’s field you might be harmed.”

23 So Ruth stayed close to the women of Boaz to glean until the barley and wheat harvests were finished. And she lived with her mother-in-law.

some more Biblical books that could be adapted into Good Omens minisodes:

Esther: it turns out that Queen Vashti was actually Crowley (explaining why in Jewish tradition she has a serpent's tale) and Aziraphale is one of the king's advisors trying to keep him from making terrible decisions (like killing Vashti-Crowley when she disobeys him)

Ruth: Aziraphale is one of Boaz's laborers and points out to him how virtuous and kind Ruth is, Crowley is one of Naomi's old lady friends who seeds the idea of Ruth trying to seduce Boaz, and Aziraphale maybe helps out because they HAVE to get together, King David is going to descend from them!

Song of Songs: Aziraphale and Crowley hang out and have sex in a field of lilies

The Book of Ruth is a short biblical book that tells the story of a Moabite woman named Ruth who, after her husband dies, follows her Israelite mother-in-law, Naomi. Ruth gleans in the fields of Boaz, a wealthy landowner who is a relative of Naomi's. Ruth and Boaz eventually marry and have a son, Obed, who is the grandfather of King David.

The Book of Ruth is read on Shavuot, the Jewish holiday that commemorates the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.

* The Book of Ruth is a story of redemption and hope. Ruth. who is a non-Jew, not only is welcomed by Jews but eventually becomes the ancestor of King David.

* The Book of Ruth is also a story of kindness and generosity. Ruth shows great kindness to Naomi, even though Naomi is not her biological mother. Boaz also shows great kindness to Ruth, by marrying her and providing for her and her son.

* The Book of Ruth is also a story of harvest. The story takes place during the barley harvest, and Ruth's act of gleaning is a reminder of the importance of agriculture and the land. Shavuot, is also a holiday that celebrates the first fruits of the harvest.

Unlike social media- Ruth was not out to get followers or fame. She simply loved genuinely and was loved in return. In her famous words... But Ruth said, "Don't force me to leave you; don't make me go home. Where you go, I go; and where you live, I'Il live. Your people are my people, your God is my god; where you die, I'Il die, and that's where l'll be buried, so help me GOD-not even death itself is going to come between us!"

Afshine Emrani

Coming to Take Refuge

1 And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband's, a mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his name was Boaz. 2 And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, Let me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall find grace. And she said to her, Go, my daughter. 3 And she went, and came, and gleaned in the field after the reapers: and her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech. 4 And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and said to the reapers, The LORD be with you. And they answered him, The LORD bless you. 5 Then said Boaz to his servant that was set over the reapers, Whose damsel is this? 6 And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of the country of Moab: 7 And she said, I pray you, let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves: so she came, and has continued even from the morning until now, that she tarried a little in the house.

8 Then said Boaz to Ruth, Hear you not, my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide here fast by my maidens: 9 Let your eyes be on the field that they do reap, and go you after them: have I not charged the young men that they shall not touch you? and when you are thirsty, go to the vessels, and drink of that which the young men have drawn. 10 Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself to the ground, and said to him, Why have I found grace in your eyes, that you should take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger? 11 And Boaz answered and said to her, It has fully been showed me, all that you have done to your mother in law since the death of your husband: and how you have left your father and your mother, and the land of your nativity, and are come to a people which you knew not heretofore. 12 The LORD recompense your work, and a full reward be given you of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings you are come to trust. 13 Then she said, Let me find favor in your sight, my lord; for that you have comforted me, and for that you have spoken friendly to your handmaid, though I be not like to one of your handmaidens. — Ruth 2:1-13 | American King James Version (KJVUS) The American King James Version is Produced by Stone Engelbrite. It is a simple word for modern word update from the King James English. Cross References: Genesis 33:15; Leviticus 19:9-10; Leviticus 23:22; Ruth 1:2; Ruth 1:16; Ruth 2:14; Ruth 4:15; 1 Samuel 1:18; 1 Samuel 25:23; Matthew 23:37; Luke 1:28; 2 Thessalonians 3:16

Ruth gleaning in the fields of Boaz, 1886 - by Alexandre Cabanel (1823 - 1889), French

In Ruth, the first thing Boaz says is, "The LORD be with you!" The second is asking who Ruth is.

He's looking at an entire field of workers and notices Ruth.

Ladies, a godly man will recognize you. You will stand out to him because the Spirit will direct him to you.

Ruth in Boaz's Field (1828) - Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld

Ruth, Naomi, and Boaz (from the bible)

Ruth is married to Naomi's son, then he dies. Naomi is living near Ruth's tribe and decides to go back home to her own, and tells Ruth to go back to her mother's house. Ruth says no, she wants to stay with Naomi. Then they go back to Naomi's people and are poor and Ruth is scavenging in this guy Boaz's field, and he takes a liking to her and marries her. When she has a baby, everyone says "Naomi has had a son." They are a vee and I'll die on this hill

Thank you for this submission; this is really cool. Just posting this so other people can see it!

Then Boaz said to Ruth, "Now listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. Keep your eyes on the field that is being reaped, and follow behind them. I have ordered the young men not to bother you. If you get thirsty, go to the vessels and drink from what the young men have drawn."

~Ruth 2:8-9

A big takeaway I personally see in the Boaz and Ruth story is that yes Ruth worked the field, yes do your part I guess but what I love is that Boaz 1) noticed her while she was working and valued her and 2) he didn’t see her and think, oooo hard worker, lemme crack that whip or manipulate her to work even harder for me. He got her the fuck out of that field, probably before another man could see her skill set. Y’all swear y’all Boaz to these women when you’re really just Cruellaz the SHARECROPPER.

Enough stupid dead end jobs I want to glean some fields of grain like Ruth and meet my own Boaz Amen

05/06/2022 DAB Transcript

Ruth 2:1-4:22, John 4:43-54, Psalms 105:16-36, Proverbs 14:26-27

Today is May 6th welcome to the Daily Audio Bible I am Brian it is awesome to be here with you today as we gather around the Global Campfire. We find a place and let it go and let the Scriptures speak for themselves into our lives. Around this Global Campfire is on my favorite places to be in the world. And, so, let's dive in for today. We finished the book of Judges yesterday and began the book of Ruth yesterday. We talked about the book of Ruth. Today we’ll read the rest of the story and complete the book of Ruth before moving ahead, and as confusing as it might be, moving ahead to meet the last judge of Israel as we move into the book of first Samuel tomorrow. But that's tomorrow and we’re here now and we have the rest of the story of Ruth out in front of us. We’re reading from the Modern English Version this week. Ruth, chapters to 3 and 4 today.

Commentary:

Okay. So, we concluded the book of Ruth today and it is a gorgeous story and such a story of hope and such an uplifting story in a season where we've been through all kinds of tragic stories in the Scriptures. But if we remember back to the beginning of the story it begins in a tragic sort of way. There’s famine in the land. Ruth and her husband and their sons leave and go to the land of Moab where they live for a decade and the sons grow up and so they get wives, Moabite wives, one of whom is Ruth, but everybody dies except for the ladies. The women remain alive Naomi, Orpah and Ruth. Naomi is in the depths. She's overwhelmed with sadness. She is leaving a land that she has come to know, a land that she's lived in for a decade to return back to her homeland now that the famine is over, but she's going home a widow. She's going home with nothing. And Orpah, one of the daughters-in-law goes back to Moab and disappears from the narrative. So, we don't know what happened t her. But Ruth will not leave Naomi. She clings to Naomi. She says, “wherever you go I will go. Wherever you die will be buried. Your God will be my God, your people will be my people.” This is…this is a loyalty that gains a reputation quickly when they get back to their homeland in Israel. And, so, Ruth's reputation is growing, and then she begins to do what is provided for in the Mosaic law. She goes into neighboring fields where she's able to glean whatever is left over. She is a widow Naomi is a widow and widows are provided for after this fashion. But she catches the attention of Boaz and then we know, we just read the story. Turns out he's a family redeemer and Naomi begins to see what's going on here and what's possible here for Ruth and she guides her through the process of allowing Boaz to know that she's available, but she doesn't have to give her dignity away to prove it. And, so, she ends up lying at the feet of Boaz, who wakes up and freaks out as anyone would, and, especially, there is a strange woman in my bed at my feet. That's…well…I don't know what that feels like, but I think that would be weird. Boaz thought it was weird, but he also knew what it meant, and he begins to also counsel about what needs to happen. And as Naomi told Ruth, he's not gonna rest until this matter is settled. And the matter is settled, and Ruth and Boaz are wed, and they have a child, a son, and they name him Obed and he brings great joy to a very bitter heart, the heart of Naomi. And Obed grows up and he is the grandfather of King David who we will meet soon enough. This story could have gone any number of ways. May we remember that this is happening at the time of the judges when there is no king in Israel and everybody does what was right in their own eyes. This story could have gone a number of ways. And Ruth could have had a very very different life and/or death being young and vital and foreign. But what we see is people going through hard times and holding on to their integrity, people going through disruption and hardship and being overwhelmed and grieving holding onto their character truly understanding what the message of the wilderness is, that they are utterly dependent upon God for everything. And they hold onto their integrity, and it is honored. May we take that lesson on board in our own lives because it's a very, very gray world where anything is situational and we can justify anything and any shortcut, but integrity and character are things that are cultivated by the way that we handle disruption and handle grief and handle anger and handle misfortune. Most of the time our character and our integrity is revealed in the extremes of life. In the extreme hardship of life our character is going to be revealed, but also in the extreme abundance of life our character will be revealed. We see integrity and true character in the story of Ruth, and it was honorable to God and God blessed it. And the story changes here. This integrity and character is leading to a king of Israel. So, it is very very easy for us to think about the wrong choices that we make and where those roads are leading and how we don't want to be on those roads but it's worth considering where our integrity and our character are leading us because we are being led somewhere good, somewhere righteous. That is the path we want to be on. And, so, let's give it some thought today.

Prayer:

Holy Spirit, we invite you into that thought. Thank you for the story of Ruth. We thank you for what we can glean from it. We thank you that it causes us to consider our own integrity and where that is leading us and for what price we will sell it out. And we need to know these things. We need to strengthen these things. Make us people of integrity and character we pray. In the mighty name of Jesus, we ask. Amen.

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And that's it for today. I’m Brian I love you and I'll be waiting for you here tomorrow.

Community Prayer and Praise:

Hi, it's Katie here from Nebraska. I wanted to give a shout out to Owen because I’m 18 as well and it's pretty scary and you don't know what you're gonna do with your life. You don't know how you're going to manage college and everything else. It's pretty scary to think about. And I just wanted to say God has a plan for you and I don't want you to be afraid. I'm slowly learning that and I'm pretty stubborn. So, it's been taking me awhile to figure out that I don't get to rule what I get to do. And, yeah, I just wanted to tell you that. Bye.

This is Kathy from Kentucky. I have an issue that has gone all the way back to my childhood and that issue is shame. That has followed me for most of my life. I know that I had a hard time overcoming shame when I was going through treatment for my depression. So, also, I realized now that I stayed in a job for 20 years where I was not treated with respect at all. And because I don't know if I just didn't think I deserved better or what. But anyways I'm in recovery from drugs and alcohol year 30 years clean and sober. But shame follows a lot of us who are recovering from addiction. So, I ask your prayers for that. Thank you. Kathy from Kentucky.

Happy Monday DAB family this is Jason from Louisiana. Today is may the 2nd. I'm catching up. I'm about a week behind and I'm calling today to encourage the lady who called on April 26th, the very last person who spoke. Your son is named Josh, he's 22 years old and he's facing some legal issues. First, I want to say I am praying with you in agreement for favor and a miracle regarding this but I also want to encourage you that regardless of the outcome of this next few weeks in the courtroom it's not the end of the world regardless of the outcome. I'm going to share my story. I was in a similar situation. At 26 I was arrested, and I was facing some really serious legal issues and we prayed for a miracle. Long story short the miracle for me ended up being sitting in prison for 3 1/2 years and finally surrendering my heart fully to Christ after two years in prison. And, so, I've been out for over eight years now and serving the Lord loving life and I am who I am today because of what I've been through. So, I just want to encourage you with your son Josh that no matter the outcome of the next few weeks God is in control. I'm reminded of two scriptures today. Isaiah 55, his thoughts are not our thoughts his ways are not our ways. And also, Romans 8:28. You know in my situation and even your sons I believe this and I will speak this over him, that what the enemy may have meant for evil regarding your son Josh the Lord is going to and is turning it around and using it for good. So, you be encouraged today. God bless you.

Good day DAB family I wanted to reach out today 18-year-old just turned 18 and now facing adulthood. And you are amazing and just even calling and asking. And God will guide you. Stand firm. And even as we get older, we are all faced with challenges. And Susan God's Yellow Flower, you touched me today for the words that I needed to hear. And maybe it is time I just stand on top of my pile and put the cross there as the only thing it's doing is creating anxiety and not trusting God for my future. And I need prayers for that, to just let it go. Never been this way until this past couple of years and it's just really hitting home. And I feel lost and alone. I know that's not true. I have a hard time talking to people about this. And I know that God is there, but I feel alone. Maybe He's carrying me now, but it just ask for prayers and it's just Humbled in California. Thank you, DAB family.

Hello DAB family this is Terry the Trucker today calling in and I've got a prayer request and a praise report. for it. The prayer request is my brother-in-law James passed out at work the other day. They carried him to the local hospital, and then they transferred him over to a bigger hospital in Waco. And come to find out he's got some kind of an infection in his lungs. He was…he had a rash for a long time and his local doctor was treating him with steroids. The local doctor overdid it and kept him on steroids so long that his immune system actually dropped to zero. He came down with pneumonia and passed out at work. Come to find out the infection that he's got is highly contagious. They did an MRI. We're waiting to find out if it's done any damage to any other parts of his body, his brain, veins, organs. They say he could be in their hospital all the way up to December. It's pretty serious. The CDC, the contagious disease center is working with the doctors to help treat him and figure out what to do but the infection is actually from soil, from dirt. He's __ welder. Yeah, but as I said his body is exposed, covered with galvanized particles. But it's pretty serious. I ask you to lift up James and my sister Tina…they…as they go through this. Thank you for your prayers. I want you to remember I always pray for you. God bless.

Come out of the corner

Word for Today written by Bob and Debby Gass

Thursday 2nd May 2024

'Do not harvest all the way to the corners of your field.' Leviticus 23:22 NCV

Under Old Testament law, God commanded Jewish farmers: 'When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field...leave them for the poor and for the stranger' (Leviticus 23:22 NKJV). Ruth was working in an obscure corner of a field owned by a wealthy man named Boaz, who is a likeness of Jesus. When Boaz saw Ruth, he called her out of the corner and into the midst of the harvest field. And he instructed the reapers to drop handfuls of wheat in her path so that she wouldn't have to work for it (see Ruth 2:16).

There's a lesson here. One moment of God's favour can change your life. And he can do it through someone he has already prepared, someone you haven't met yet. Ruth didn't know it, but because Boaz was related to her mother-in-law Naomi, that positioned him to be her 'kinsman-redeemer' (see Ruth 3:1-9), who was someone qualified to wipe out her debt, care for her and meet her needs. Jesus said, 'Your Father who sees in secret will himself reward you openly' (Matthew 6:4 NKJV).

Be assured, God has not overlooked you. Others may not notice your faithfulness, but he does, and he will reward you for it. 'God is not unjust to forget your work and labour of love which you have shown towards his name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister' (Hebrews 6:10 NKJV). One of these days God is going to say to you, 'Come out of that corner!'

Ruth 2:1-3

Now Naomi had a kinsman on her husband's side, a prominent rich man, of the family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain, behind someone in whose sight I may find favor.” She said to her, “Go, my daughter.” So she went. She came and gleaned in the field behind the reapers. As it happened, she came to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech. 

HARVESTERS RESTING (Ruth and Boaz), 1850 by JEAN-FRANÇOIS MILLET

Dirty and exhausted, harvesters and their tools are strewn around them as they rest before piles of golden grain. To the left of the group, a man introduces a woman.

Originally, MILLET'S inspiration for the piece came from the Bible's story of the Widow, RUTH, who encounters the landowner, BOAZ, a family friend and the man who would later become her husband, while out working in the fields. At his 1853 Salon, MILLET displayed the piece under the title "HARVESTERS RESTING."

The focus on the harvesters, and the grain piles behind them, allows for BOAZ and RUTH to be seen as secondary figures to the focal point. What we’ve seen here is not a romantic Old Testament narrative of faith connecting two people, but rather a modern group of hot, dusty field laborers resting after a day of work.

RUTH'S face is downcast shyly, and BOAZ, acting as intermediary, visually joining her figure with the group field workers. Thus, MILLET brings into focus the common laborer's centrality in history and scripture.