Judges 10

Chapter 10. Our Kinsman-Redeemer—Lessons From the Book of RuthFor your Maker is your husband— the Lord Almighty is his name— the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer;he is called the God of all the earth.(Isaiah 54:5)The book of Ruth can be considered as a part of Judges. It is a vignette inserted on the background of that mingled picture of the dark ages of the Old Testament. As such, it is a companion picture to the story of Micah. Both are incidents gathered out of the same period of Hebrew history, and they illustrate the life of the people—the one the dark side, the other the bright. But before we look at Ruth, we should briefly consider the shocking series of incidents recorded in the last three chapters of Judges—all of which grew out of a single unholy relationship. These chapters tell the story of a licentious woman destroyed by the wickedness she pursued, and of a sinful man who allowed her to draw him into her wicked life, and who, through her influence, became unfaithful to his high calling as a priest of the Lord. Out of their relationship grew a crime that involved all the tribes of Israel in a destructive civil war—a war that destroyed three armies and nearly one whole tribe. We see from this that even the smallest sin can produce the most disastrous results. How solemn and true is the verse in James: “Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death” (James 1:15). The Story of Ruth Now we come to the story of Ruth. It is like an oasis in the desert. The German poet Goethe has called it the finest poem in human language, and yet how few of us really understand its beautiful meaning and teaching. It is said that a literary man once read it in an English drawing-room to a select company of cultivated people. He slightly changed the principle names and the style of the story, but read it substantially as it is given in the Bible. His audience was delighted with this new and wonderful literary production and eagerly questioned him about its authorship and origin. They retired, with significant silence, when they learned that it was one of the books of their neglected Bible. We need only to recall briefly the incidents of the story: the famine in Bethlehem and the emigrant family, Elimelech and his wife Naomi, with their two boys, Mahlon and Kilion. Then came the death of the father and the marriage of the two sons to two women of Moab, Ruth and Orpah. Next, the two sons died, and the three widows were left alone in a foreign land. Naomi decided to return to her home in Judah, but she tried to dissuade her daughters-in-law from following her on a journey that promised so little for them. Orpah, the more demonstrative of the two, expressed great affection, and went home. But Ruth clung to Naomi, and expressed those ever memorable and noble words, which have been inscribed with the point of a diamond as the loftiest expression of loyal affection and devotion: Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me. (Rth 1:16-17) So the two lone widows went back to Bethlehem and began to seek a livelihood in the humblest way. Ruth took upon herself, as a loving daughter, the support of Naomi and went out like other Jewish young women to glean in the wheat and barley fields. It was there that she met Boaz, the rich farmer, who had heard of her kindness to her mother-in-law. He became attracted to her, showing her special kindness without sacrificing her independence. Naomi, meanwhile, watched the unfolding situation with motherly intuition, looking constantly to God, under whose wings they had come to trust. Soon Naomi recognized that Boaz, being her close relative, was their “kinsman-redeemer.” It was his duty to redeem her husband’s inheritance and take his widow to be his wife. Naomi advised Ruth to take the step by which she could claim her rights. The sequel, we all know. Boaz recognized the claim, but kindly told her that there was another who was before him. If, however, this man would refuse to do the kinsman’s part, Boaz would follow through. The other kinsman declined to do his part, and Boaz kept his word. He redeemed the inheritance of Elimelech and took Ruth as his bride. Out of this union came the birth of Obed, the father of Jesse, the father of David. And thus Ruth, a Moabite, became the great-grandmother of David, and the ancestress of Jesus Christ, the Son of man, and the King of kings! Domestic Virtue The first thing we notice in this story are the fine examples of virtuous character. How fine is the picture of Naomi, one of the much-abused class of mothers-in-law, who was, indeed, a true mother. She considered Ruth as her own child and sought her best interests, thereby gaining her confidence and love. Perhaps the sorest need of society today is true mothers. The guilt of many a lost girl lies heavily on the soul of selfish, ignorant and unholy motherhood. In Ruth we see a genuine love toward her mother-in-law. But we also see a woman of true modesty. What a perfect combination! Modesty is a woman’s finest jewel. It is her most attractive quality in the eyes of every true man. This was what drew Boaz to Ruth. She did not chase after the younger men, but stayed with Naomi and worked in the fields. The social freedom of our day is bound to bear its fruit in social corruption. “If she is a wall,” says Solomon, “we will build towers of silver on her. If she is a door, we will enclose her with panels of cedar” (SS 8:9). We see too that Ruth was an industrious woman. She was not afraid of hard work. It is not a bad suggestion for idle and pleasure-loving girls to know that it was in the harvest field that Boaz fell in love with Ruth. Even when he did desire her, he let her stay in the harvest field, only making her work a little easier, not for a moment wanting to destroy her independence by offering to provide for her without her own honest labor. Luther has well said, “The devil tempts men, but the idle man tempts the devil.” This is just as true of women as of men. But above all is the piety of Ruth. It was not only the love of Naomi that made her true, but it was the love of Naomi’s God. Very finely Boaz alludes to it when he said, “May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge” (Rth 2:12). Boaz exhibits some outstanding character attributes also. He was wealthy and influential, but he worked his fields alongside his men. Even in this, Boaz maintained his dignity and reserve, and held his position without pride on the one hand or undue freedom on the other. How fine was his chivalrous spirit and manly respect for Ruth! He recognized Ruth’s situation and acted in kindness toward her. He did just enough to encourage her, but not enough to damage her self-respect. And he acted justly in his relation to Naomi. Boaz was ready to carry through with his obligation as her kinsman-redeemer, yet at the same time he knew that another man had first rights. Boaz gave this man the chance to claim these rights, even though his own heart was interested in Ruth. Divine Providence The next thing we see in this story is a beautiful illustration of divine providence. We see God working in human affairs to carry out His divine purpose. We see Him overruling the sorrow of former days to bring about a greater blessing. We see Him leading this daughter of a Gentile race and making her a partner in the hopes of His people. We see Him fitting the times and seasons of our lives in bringing these wanderers back to Bethlehem just at the right time, the harvest season. We see His loving care for His children expressed in the beautiful figure of Boaz—“the wings of the Almighty.” The God of the widow and fatherless is not dead. Under His sheltering wings His children still lie. And through each perplexing path of life, He will guide their footsteps, providing for their need and safely leading them home. He that watched over the lone widows of Bethlehem will some day wipe our tears away and make us even thank Him for the trials that now we cannot understand. We see too a type of redemption. In the helpless condition of Ruth, we see our lost condition. Ruth was born of a Gentile race, the Moabites, a race that was under a curse. Moab literally means “son of his father,” and we know that the tribe was descended from the union of Lot and his daughter. As such, Ruth well represents the sinful state of God’s redeemed people under the curse of a fallen race. Not only was Ruth a Gentile and a stranger, but she was a widow. Her natural protector was gone, and her nearest kinsman, who had the right to redeem her, refused. How well she represents our helpless condition. Not only lost, but with none to help. And even the law, which came, as it seemed, to save, was unwilling and helpless to save the sinful soul. But in beautiful contrast to all this, how fine the picture of redemption unfolds in this book. Under Mosaic law, there is a statute providing for what are called Levirate marriages, under which provision is made so a family name was not allowed to perish from the tribe. When a man died, his brother was to take his wife, have children by her and redeem his inheritance. Now, under this provision, Elimelech and his sons having died, it was the right and duty of the nearest kin to step in and save the inheritance and family name, and through the widow raise up seed unto the dead husband. This, of course, involved the forfeiture of the kinsman’s own family name and marred his own inheritance. But it was recognized as a patriotic and social duty, overriding personal considerations. This is what Boaz did for Ruth and what the nearer kinsman refused to do. Boaz merged his own personality and family into Ruth’s family, making a real sacrifice, and thus he became her kinsman-redeemer, and then, also her husband. And this is what our Kinsman-Redeemer, Jesus Christ, did for us! He sacrificed His own divine rights: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:6-8) Christ gave up a place of dignity and position in heaven, where He was known as God and God alone. And now, He is forever known as man, still divine, yet not exclusively divine, but united to the person, flesh and form of a created being. His whole inheritance is merged in ours. He laid down His rights and honors and took up our wrongs and reproaches, our liabilities and disabilities, and henceforth He has nothing but His people. He is the merchant man seeking pearls, who, having found one pearl of great price, sold all that He had and bought that pearl. The Church, His Bride, is all He owns. He has invested everything in us. The Lord’s portion is His people. Therefore, let us make up to Him what He has laid down. Let us understand His sacrifice and love. And let Him find in us His sufficient and everlasting recompense. The redeemer not only sacrificed his own inheritance, but he bought back the forfeited inheritance of the dead husband. Likewise, our Kinsman-Redeemer has brought back for us all that we lost in Adam and has added to it infinitely more—all the fullness of His grace, all the riches of His glory, all that the ages to come are yet to unfold in His mighty plan, victory over death, the restoration of the divine image, sonship with God, triumph over Satan, a world restored to more than Eden’s blessedness and beauty, the crowns and thrones of the kingdom and all the exceeding riches of His grace and kindness. All this and more is the purchase of His redemption. In whom the tribes of Adam boast More blessings than our father lost. But the best of all the blessings brought by our Kinsman-Redeemer is Himself. Not only does He redeem the inheritance, but He purchases the bride and He becomes her Bridegroom. When Boaz bought the inheritance of Elimelech, he took Ruth also, and she became his bride. And so our Kinsman-Redeemer is also our Husband. Not only does He come down into our nature in the incarnation, but He takes us up into His person in the relationship that is to reach its consummation in the marriage supper of the Lamb. The Courage of Faith We see in Ruth’s example the pattern of faith that dares to claim and enter into all the possibilities of its inheritance. It was a bold move on Ruth’s part to claim her rights under the Levirate law. They would not have come to her as the snowflakes fall, but they had to be recognized and definitely claimed. And so her mother-in-law told her all about it, and showed her that it was not an unwomanly or immodest thing to put herself at the feet of Boaz, in the place to which she was entitled. It left upon him the responsibility of accepting or refusing her. Still it cost her many a struggle and many a tear before she robed herself in her wedding garments and, stealing through the night, lay down at the threshing floor of Boaz, putting herself and all that was dear to a woman’s honor at his mercy. Her act was the abandonment of faith. But faith must always abandon itself before it can claim its blessing. We see the same type of faith in Mary, the mother of Jesus. She risked her reputation on the angel’s message and believed for the blessing that was to bring the world its Redeemer. “I am the Lord’s servant…. May it be to me as you have said” (Luke 1:38). And the answer came back, “Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” (Luke 1:45). Likewise, faith must always claim its promised rights. Every victory costs a venture, and the blessing is in proportion to the cost. Faith must still see its inheritance under the promise and then step boldly forward and take what God has given. Salvation is not now bestowed as mercy to a pauper, but is claimed in Jesus’ name by a trusting child who inherits under his brother’s will. That is how we take His forgiveness and how we must take every blessing and answer to our prayer all along the way. God has given us the right to take this place of boldness. We are not presuming, but we are honoring His Word. We are not entering beyond our rights, but we are showing our confidence in our Father’s truth and love by daring to take all He has dared to give. Let us have boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus. And to its utmost fullness prove The power of Jesus’ name. The Recompense of FaithFinally, we see that the fruit of Boaz and Ruth’s marriage was the dynasty of David and the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of man, the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Ruth’s faith brought her into a family of princes and a kingdom of glory. And so for us, too, redemption means a crown and a throne at the Master’s glorious coming. But behind the throne and the crown lies the story of redemption and the bold appropriation of faith. We must learn to know the Bridegroom now, if we would sit with Him upon His throne then and share the glory of His millennial reign. Shall we take Him as our Redeemer, our Husband and our coming Lord, and have Him say to us, For your Maker is your husband— the Lord Almighty is his name— the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth. (Isaiah 54:5)