Ruth 2:8-12 (NIVUK)
8 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. 9 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.’
10 At this, she bowed down with her face to the ground. She asked him, ‘Why have I found such favour in your eyes that you notice me – a foreigner?’
11 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. 12 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.’
Seeing Ruth gleaning in his field, Boaz recognises her vulnerability and acts to make sure she is safe and provided for. In doing this he reflects God’s character, the God he describes as caring for her. Rather than trampling over everyone else in order to get to the top, why don’t we follow Boaz’s example and look out for those around us, not taking advantage of them but caring for them.
Thank you Lord for your compassion, may it be reflected in who we are in our thinking, speaking and acting today.
Leave a Reply