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For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.Eph 2:9 |
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Dear
Friend,
If you do not already have a habit of gathering daily manna the first thing in the morning (we can look at the example given to us in Exodus 16 and find the pattern for make it a habit. Establish your life and your schedule to allow you the necessary time to do your daily collection first thing every morning to give you the strength to make it through the day. And remember that today’s manna will not be sufficient for tomorrow; tomorrow’s manna must be collected tomorrow morning. Friday, May 5, 2023
Today's Passage : Today's Passage :The Story of Ruth (part 8) -- Ruth Marries Boaz Bible Verse:Ruth 4:1-12 (ESV) "Meanwhile Boaz went up to the town gate and sat there. When the kinsman-redeemer he had mentioned came along, Boaz said, “Come over here, my friend, and sit down.” So he went over and sat down. Boaz took ten of the elders of the town and said, “Sit here,” and they did so. Then he said to the kinsman-redeemer, “Naomi, who has come back from Moab, is selling the piece of land that belonged to our brother Elimelech. I thought I should bring the matter to your attention and suggest that you buy it in the presence of these seated here and in the presence of the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, do so. But if you will not, tell me, so I will know. For no one has the right to do it except you, and I am next in line.” “I will redeem it,” he said. Then Boaz said, “On the day you buy the land from Naomi and from Ruth the Moabitess, you acquire the dead man’s widow, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property.” At this, the kinsman-redeemer said, “Then I cannot redeem it because I might endanger my own estate. You redeem it yourself. I cannot do it.” (Now in earlier times in Israel, for the redemption and transfer of property to become final, one party took off his sandal and gave it to the other. This was the method of legalizing transactions in Israel.) So the kinsman-redeemer said to Boaz, “Buy it yourself.” And he removed his sandal. Ruth and Boaz Ruth at Boaz’ Feet, by Wm. de Brailles, ca. 1250. Then Boaz announced to the elders and all the people, “Today you are witnesses that I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelech, Kilion and Mahlon. I have also acquired Ruth the Moabitess, Mahlon’s widow, as my wife, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property, so that his name will not disappear from among his family or from the town records. Today you are witnesses!” Then the elders and all those at the gate said, “We are witnesses. May the Lord make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you have standing in Ephrathah and be famous in Bethlehem. Through the offspring the Lord gives you by this young woman, may your family be like that of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah.”" Message:
The complexities of ancient Hebrew land ownership and families are strange to us today, and I don’t really understand why the closest kinsman could not marry Ruth. Also, it is unclear if they are actually the uncles of Ruth’s deceased husband, or use the word “brother” in a more general sense. But the important thing is that he refused (and gave Boaz his sandal). So Ruth was married and was able to take care of her mother-in-law and herself, and got a good husband, to boot.
Boaz’ motivation is not told to us and so is not utterly clear. Most likely, he was an honest man of God and wanted to “do the right thing” by his brother. But I have to admit, I am a little invested in the romance; perhaps he fell in love with the young woman he found curled up at the foot of his blanket! Well, he got his reward, because (as we know) his new wife is a real peach.
And, as we will see tomorrow, Ruth and Boaz would create something much more important than anything they ever dreamed of.
Meditation : Prayer : Now all glory to you, mighty God, who is able to keep me from falling away and will bring me with great joy into your glorious presence without a single fault. All glory to you who alone are God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are yours before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time,.......Amen |
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