Boaz is an amazing character. These verses give us a glimpse of what kind of a man he truly was. The way he treated Ruth reveals him to be a man of great grace. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that he should be seen as a type of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he knew that Ruth was a Moabitess, yet he addressed her as “my daughter.” This is more than just because he was an older man but that he saw her as a member of the family. Remember he hailed from the same tribe as Elimelech, the late father-in-law of Ruth. In fact, he was one of the two relatives of Elimelech.
Boaz graciously invited Ruth to follow his women workers from field to field in the harvest. And he also warned his male workers to keep their hands off her. He even told his servants not to hinder her in her effort to pick the stalks of barley. He personally invited her to help herself to the water which his servants had drawn from the well nearby. Boaz’s graciousness toward Ruth reminds us of how Jesus our Lord has graciously dealt with us. Though we were His enemies, yet He commends His love towards us in that while we were yet sinners, He cares for us. He met us at the foot of His cross and made us His very own. As Boaz called Ruth his daughter, our heavenly Father through Calvary has made us His sons and daughters. What a privilege we have to address Him as Abba, Daddy. We are adopted as sons and daughters of God with the full right to the inheritance He so richly makes available to us.
Astonished by the way Boaz had treated her, Ruth respectfully asked him “Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me since I am a foreigner?” Boaz’s response to her shows us how much he knew about her. He had heard about the kind and respectful way she had shown to Naomi, her mother-in-law, after Elimelech’s death. What really impressed Boaz was her willingness to abandon everything, even her Moabite heritage, to follow Naomi to a strange land and to take care of her. Like Boaz’s knowledge of Ruth, Jesus also knows everything about us. He is the all-knowing, the all-seeing God. Remember the incidence recorded in John 1:47-49. When “Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael than said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” The personal question we need to ask ourselves is: “will we be willing to emulate Ruth and give up everything to pursue what’s truly matters?” In Ruth’s case, she left everything to follow the true God of Israel. In our case, we must abandon the world to follow Jesus, the Lord of lords. We must take up our own cross, deny ourselves and follow after Him.
Like Ruth, we will be richly blessed when we give up our all to follow Jesus. He will shower His favor on us, just as Boaz showered his on Ruth. In choosing to follow and worship the one true God, Ruth came under the protection of His wings. So overwhelmed by the love shown to her that Ruth told Boaz, “I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your servant, though I am not one of your servants.” Similarly, our choice to follow Jesus has ushered us into His protective hedge. Hence, like Ruth, we must realize that it’s the grace of God that really made us a member of His family. It behooves us to respond to God’s favor with gratitude and with humility, we must now worship and serve Him.
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