During the time of the winnowing of the grain, it was customary for the workers to sleep on the threshing-floor. Naomi's carefully formulated plan was designed to work precisely at this point. Her first piece of advice to Ruth is: "Wash and perfume yourself, and put on your best clothes" (v. 3). I am not sure that I know how to interpret her second piece of advice: "Don't let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking" (v. 3). We are all familiar with the saying: "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach." But this advice seems more in line with another proverb: "Never come between a man and his table." Her third piece of advice is this: "When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do" (v. 4). Naomi knew that according to the laws of Israel, a widow was entitled to approach the nearest male relative and remind him of his obligation to take care of her. What a delightful picture this gives us of the relationship that exists between each one of us and our Lord Jesus Christ. Just as Ruth was within her legal rights in approaching Boaz, so we, as God's children, have a legal right to approach the throne of grace and avail ourselves of God's obligation to meet our every need. We must be careful, however, that we do not mistake a need for a want. God is not under an obligation to give us everything we want, but He is under an obligation to give us everything we need.
Father, the thought that I have a legal right to approach Your throne and claim Your provision for my needs is awesome and breathtaking. Yet it is so. Help me to appropriate the rich inheritance I have in Christ. Amen.
Let a little light into your soul every day with this wonderful devotional from English pastor Selwyn Hughes.
Selwyn Hughes was a Welsh Christian minister best known for writing the daily devotional Every Day with Jesus. He founded the Christian ministry Crusade for World Revival and wrote over fifty Christian books. George Carey, the former archbishop of Canterbury, described Hughes as a "giant in the faith".
For Reading and Meditation: Ruth 3:2-5
During the time of the winnowing of the grain, it was customary for the workers to sleep on the threshing-floor. Naomi's carefully formulated plan was designed to work precisely at this point. Her first piece of advice to Ruth is: "Wash and perfume yourself, and put on your best clothes" (v. 3). I am not sure that I know how to interpret her second piece of advice: "Don't let him know you are there until he has finished eating and drinking" (v. 3). We are all familiar with the saying: "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach." But this advice seems more in line with another proverb: "Never come between a man and his table." Her third piece of advice is this: "When he lies down, note the place where he is lying. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down. He will tell you what to do" (v. 4). Naomi knew that according to the laws of Israel, a widow was entitled to approach the nearest male relative and remind him of his obligation to take care of her. What a delightful picture this gives us of the relationship that exists between each one of us and our Lord Jesus Christ. Just as Ruth was within her legal rights in approaching Boaz, so we, as God's children, have a legal right to approach the throne of grace and avail ourselves of God's obligation to meet our every need. We must be careful, however, that we do not mistake a need for a want. God is not under an obligation to give us everything we want, but He is under an obligation to give us everything we need.
Father, the thought that I have a legal right to approach Your throne and claim Your provision for my needs is awesome and breathtaking. Yet it is so. Help me to appropriate the rich inheritance I have in Christ. Amen.