Provision Of Grace Series

THE PROVISION OF GRACE

Text: Ruth 3:1-5

Introduction

1. “The way to have faith is to step out, forgetting about your fears and doubts, and to trust God that whatever happens, He will be there.” — Tanya Eavenson

2. The book of Ruth is one of the most beautiful love stories in Scripture—but it’s much more than romance. It’s a story of faith, loyalty, and God’s providence working through ordinary people who choose to trust Him even when they can’t see the outcome.

3. Read Ruth 3:1-5

Transition: Let’s go along as…

I. Ruth Steps Out in Faith

A. Life was difficult for widows in ancient Israel, especially if you were from another country. This plays a big role in our text today.

B. In v. 1 we read, “One day Naomi said to Ruth, “My daughter, it’s time that I found a permanent home for you, so that you will be provided for.”

1. As we discussed in earlier messages, Boaz was a close relative of Naomi’s husband Elimelech.

2. So, one day Naomi spoke to Ruth and told her it’s time that I find a “permanent home” for you.

3. The phrase “permanent home” comes from a Hebrew word that means “a place of tranquility, rest, and safety,” and it referred to the condition of safety and protection offered in Israelite society by marriage.

4. Naomi realized that she wasn’t going to live forever, and when she passed away, Ruth would be homeless.

5. It would be one thing to survive as a widow in a foreign land during Naomi’s lifetime, but quite another to do so after she was gone.

6. Naomi needs to provide a safe family relationship for Ruth’s future.

C. In v. 2, we begin to see Naomi’s plan unfold. She says to Ruth, “Boaz is a close relative of ours, and he’s been very kind by letting you gather grain with his young women. Tonight he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor.”

1. Naomi looks at Boaz’s kindness toward Ruth in allowing her to work alongside of his female workers as a sign that he had a special place in his heart for her.

2. She took this as a strong sign that Boaz would be willing to play the part of the family redeemer towards Ruth and take her as his wife.

3. This was more than Naomi being a “match maker,” she had obviously given this some serious thought.

4. Furthermore, she knew that Boaz would be winnowing barley at the threshing floor that night and saw this as a good opportunity to see if he was willing to marry Ruth.

5. The threshing floor was a level place made either of smooth rock or a hardened earth located on a hill where the grain would be separated from the chaff by tossing the threshed grain into the air, by using an implement similar to a pitchfork, and the wind would separate the chaff from the grain by blowing it away, and the heavier grain would drop back to the ground.

D. Next, Ruth had to get Ruth ready, so in v.3 she tells her, “Now do as I tell you—take a bath and put on perfume and dress in your nicest clothes. Then go to the threshing floor, but don’t let Boaz see you until he has finished eating and drinking.”

1. First, Naomi tells Ruth to go wash by taking a bath and to put on perfume.

2. Then she told Ruth to put on her best clothes. Now, take into consideration that Ruth’s best clothes were probably not very fancy since they were poor. But she was to put on the best she had available.

3. Then Naomi instructs Ruth not to let Boaz see her until he had finished having dinner and had something to drink.

4. Nothing makes a man more agreeable than after he’s had a full stomach!

E. Next, Naomi tells Ruth in v. 4, “Be sure to notice where he lies down; then go and uncover his feet and lie down there. He will tell you what to do.”

1. She told Ruth to look and see where Boaz lies down for the night, uncover his feet, and lie down.

2. Naomi believed that Boaz would see this as Ruth asking for him to marry her.

3. Now, the phrase “uncover his feet” is often used with sexual overtones, but not always.

4. It’s like when we use the word foot. It can mean the part of the body at the bottom of your leg, or it can be used as a measurement, like, five feet-six inches. The way you tell the difference is the context.

5. In this context, Ruth is depicted as a moral woman who wouldn’t use sex as means to get Boaz to marry her.