“Tarry this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman’s part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth: lie down until the morning.” (Ru 3:13 AV)
These words were spoken by Boaz to Ruth. A little background here. Ruth is a woman from Moab who married into a Jewish family. Her husband and father-in-law both died while living in Moab. Ruth returned to Israel with her mother-in-law, Naomi. Being without male leadership and provision for the home, Naomi asked Ruth to glean in the fields of a near relative, Boaz. Further, Naomi instructed Ruth to go to Boaz in the middle of the night and lay asleep at his feet. When he awoke, he would do the right thing by Ruth and Naomi. The law required a near kinsman to marry a widow and raise a son or daughter in the name of the deceased so the inheritance left vacant could return to whom it was given. So, when Boaz awoke and found Ruth at his feet, he knew what he had to do. He had to arrange the marriage of Ruth to a near relative of Naomi. There was one closer to Naomi than Boaz. The right of redemption belonged to him, first. Boaz promised that if the nearer relative declined or could not perform his duty as the nearest relative to Naomi, he would. This is the background of the statement above. What struck me is that God had this handled all along. It didn’t matter what one person or another did, Ruth would be taken care of. There was no reason to lose sleep over her situation. Within a matter of days or weeks, her situation would be resolved.
Over the course of decades of life, I can attest to the fact that it all works out in the end. One way or another, the LORD will lead us to where we need to be and we will be fine when we get there. That is not to say our journey in getting there is easy. It rarely is. There are always hardships that crop up. Life is difficult. It is not for the faint of heart. Yet, we have to remember that if there is a God, and there is, then all things are under His supervision and care. He knows the end from the beginning. He has a plan and that plan will work out exactly as He wishes it to. We are not a victim of circumstances. We are not subject to fate. We are not thrown into a hurricane of events that have no resolution. We are in the hand of Almighty God who knows just what is going on and has designed a way and goal through it all. Ruth was surviving. She worked the fields like a beggar. There was no future. All she could do was to survive on the charity and benevolence of others. There was no hope. She put herself last so that her mother-in-law would be cared for. Ruth had no reason to live outside of getting through today. She was in a sorry place.
What Ruth had on her side was the law. And, she had a sovereign God whom she trusted with her whole heart. The law demanded a husband be provided for her so that she might have a child to whom the inheritance would progress. The law would not allow Ruth to remain an unmarried and barren widow. The law did not command her to accept whatever offer came her way. She could refuse much like Naomi did. She refused to right of succession because she felt she was past childbearing years. Ruth, being a Moabite, could have used her lineage to ethically refuse the grace that would come her way. Rather, Ruth relied upon the truth of the word of God both in the letter of the law and the testimony of the God to whom she swore allegiance and did the only thing she could do. She went to Boaz. She sought a resolution with no immediate guarantee. Her actions were taken from the counsel of one wiser than her and the word of God which she was learning. The comfort given to Ruth came because she decided to trust what she learned.
We get very worried over life’s situations. We get very anxious, even to the point of forgetting what we already know. The LORD has it all figured out. He did so before He created anything. Whether it was a nearer relative or Boaz, Ruth would be taken care of. We may not know, as yet, the means or the manner in which our situation will be resolved, but by life or by death, it will be resolved. One way or another, the LORD has this handled and the best thing for us to do is lay our head down and rest on the person and promises of God. He has this handled. Truly, He does. Sleep well for your LORD has it taken care of.
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