Kinsman Redeemers

Ruth 3:8-12  -  In the middle of the night something startled the man, and he turned and discovered a woman lying at his feet.  "Who are you?" he asked. "I am your servant Ruth," she said. "Spread the corner of your garment over me, since you are a kinsman-redeemer."  "The LORD bless you, my daughter," he replied. "This kindness is greater than that which you showed earlier: You have not run after the younger men, whether rich or poor.  And now, my daughter, don't be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All my fellow townsmen know that you are a woman of noble character.  Although it is true that I am near of kin, there is a kinsman-redeemer nearer than I.

 

Naomi knew her scripture well.  She knew the Deuteronomy scriptures from chapter 25….where Moses told them God’s way of carrying on the family line of one who had been widowed.  So she sent Ruth to the threshing floor…to see if Boaz would fulfill his right to be the kinsman redeemer for Elimelech and his sons. It was a humble gesture of need that followed the rules set down by God…and passed on to the people of Israel through the laws recorded by Moses. Boaz is so overcome with Ruth’s continued kindness to Naomi…and her willingness to marry an older man…that he accepts this possibility as ordained by God.

 

It must have been hard for Boaz to tell Ruth that he was not the closest kinsman redeemer.  For even as Boaz blesses Ruth for her kindness….and professes to her that he would love to fulfill the role of kinsman redeemer…his own great knowledge of the law prompts  him quickly to tell Ruth that he would have to offer her to another closer relative first.  It shows Boaz’s great humble and kind character as well…for rarely would a woman be treated so compassionately and kindly in  the culture of the day.

 

He bid her sleep a bit more at his feet…then in the dawn light sent her home with the promise to see the relative who had the first rights to be the redeemer for Elimelech and his sons.  Then he filled her shawl with over a bushel of grain to take home to Naomi…as a gesture of his own respect and love for Naomi….with the added promise that he would settle the matter before the day ended.

 

This story reminds me how Christ became our kinsman redeemer when he died on the cross for our sins. His great humility and love for all mankind…allowed him to suffer and die a horrid death…experience the pain and separation of his father…and be raised in his perfection to sit at the right of the father in Heaven.  He fills each of us that have believed in this great act of love with his love and power and calls us to be the kinsman redeemers for all those that are still left without hope…because they have not believed in his great power to save them.

 

Father…thank you for this great story of love for you.  Thank you for Naomi…who studied and knew her scriptures.  Thank you for Ruth…who trusted the teachings of her mother-in-law. Thank you for Boaz…and his kind heart that modeled for us how to give our lives as servants for others.  Thank you for sending your son to be my kinsman redeemer and making it possible for me to live someday in Heaven with all the people who have gone before me.  Help me father to always study and know the scriptures as Naomi…. trust the mentors you place in my path like Ruth…and give my life to your service to help others like Boaz. Amen.