In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. Ephesians 2:21-22.

Ruth 2 is a chapter rich in examples of how living with God brings great reward that no money can buy.

We meet Boaz, a relative to Naomi on her husband’s side and a man of standing v. 1. Ruth and Naomi are now settled in Naomi’s hometown and Ruth offers to go to the fields to pick up leftover grain so they can have food to eat. Gleaning was a practice God instituted (Leviticus 19:9; 23-22, Deuteronomy 24:19) for the very purpose of providing food for the poor. Remember, Ruth is a foreigner and a widow. She’s not sure how she will be received but the field she entered into belonged to Boaz. When he arrives to his fields from Bethlehem how does he greet his harvesters? “The Lord be with you!” v. 4. Remember, too, this is the time of the Judges. Here is a man who loves God and in that love is a blessing to those who work for him, including now Ruth, a foreigner. So Boaz said to Ruth, “My daughter, listen to me. Don’t go and glean in another field and don’t go away from here. Stay here with the women who work for me. Watch the field where the men are harvesting, and follow along after the women. I have told the men not to lay a hand on you. And whenever you are thirsty, go and get a drink from the water jars the men have filled.” v. 8-9.

Can you imagine how Ruth feels? “Why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me – a foreigner?” Boaz replied, “I’ve been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband – how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. May the Lord repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.” v. 10-12.

How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings. Psalm 36:7.

Ruth gleaned until evening and returned to Naomi and told her all about her day and the experiences she lived with people who knew the Lord. She shared the gleanings from the fields and from the meal she had more than enough of with the harvesters. “The Lord bless him!” Naomi said to her daughter-in-law. “He has not stopped showing his kindness to the living and the dead.” She added, “That man is our close relative; he is one of our guardian-redeemers.” v. 20.

A guardian-redeemer. In the notes below: a legal term for one who has the obligation to redeem a relative in serious difficulty (Leviticus 25:25-55).

Gleaning…guardian-redeemer…I can’t help but see God’s goodness and mercy and love in those words. He provides abundantly treasures no man can buy. When I was in nursing school, my favorite instructor could usually be heard to say, “Put it all together, people!” I feel like that now when I learn from God about His love and mercy for all. We are reading about God’s loving instructions being lived out in the Book of Ruth. We are seeing the fruit of those choices.

How about us today? Are we gleaning all that God has for us? Treasures no money can buy: kindness, goodness, faithfulness, love, hope, mercy and all of that given by our Guardian-Redeemer, the Lord God Almighty! Can we take His hand and let Him lead us into His promises of provision so we can be built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit? The blessings lived in the Book of Ruth can be ours to be lived today. A walk of faith in God with Him beside us lights the way for understanding that is eternal. In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. Maureen…put it all together!