Harvest time is a good time to tell the story of Ruth. Ruth is one of two books in the Bible named after women, the other is Esther. One could argue that the book could be more accurately named for Ruth’s mother- in-law, Naomi. Our lesson for this morning gives the denouement, the happy ending, of Ruth’s saga. To get a true picture of how her story applies to us today we need to cover some of the background, some of what happened before Ruth went to the threshing room in her best dress.

In what Christians call the Old Testament, the book of Ruth follows the book of Judges. That’s the logical place for it. The book of Ruth begins, “In the days when the judges ruled…” Ruth 1:1 (NRSV). It is worth noting, however, that the Hebrew scriptures have a different sequence. In that version, the book of Ruth follows Proverbs. The last part of Proverbs is an ode to the Eshet Ḥayil. There is not a precise translation for this term. It can be rendered as “women of valor” or “capable wife.” The book of Ruth follows this poem in praise of the ideal woman. It is as though Ruth was the personification of all the attributes listed in the twenty verses that conclude the book of Proverbs. Back to the story of Ruth. Ruth and another woman named Orpah married two sons of Elimelech and Naomi. The story began in Moab, but Elimelech’s family was from Bethlehem. All three men died and Naomi decided to return to her home. Orpah and Ruth decided to go with her. Naomi advised them not to. Orpah heeded Naomi’s advice, but Ruth was determined to stay with Naomi. Some translations have Ruth saying something like, “Entreat me not to leave you.” Ruth 1:16 (NKJV). Those words are the name of a song that used to be commonly performed at weddings. There is a delightful irony of a song based on a daughter-in-law’s devotion to her mother-in-law being sung at weddings! A more faithful rendering of what Ruth said captures the young widow’s determination. Something like, “Don’t press me to leave you…. Your people… my people… your God, my God… your resting place, my resting place….” Ruth 1:16-17 (NRSV). Ruth’s passion was so strong Naomi stopped arguing.

Bethlehem was buzzing like a beehive when Naomi returned, but Naomi was a changed woman. She was a widow with her widowed daughter-in-law in tow and she told the community to call her “Mara” then. “Mara” means “bitter.” “Naomi” means something like “sweet” or “pleasant.” The Lord “has brought calamity on me,” Naomi said. Ruth 1:21 (NRSV). Ruth and Naomi returned to Bethlehem at the time of the barley harvest.

In the second chapter Ruth, the young foreign widow, went to work gleaning in a local field. This was a kind of welfare program in biblical times. After a field had been harvested, people were permitted to go through the field and pick up any grain that the harvesters left. The Torah instructed owners of fields to not harvest to the very edges of their fields.

Ruth got to work gleaning and her diligence was noticed by Boaz, a prominent man, the owner of the field. Boaz instructed his harvesting crew not to molest Ruth and to leave some choice bits of grain for her. At lunch time, he gave Ruth a large portion of food. She couldn’t finish it all, so she took some back to Naomi. Ruth’s diligent gleaning had been bountiful. When she brought her haul home to Naomi, Ruth learned that the field where she worked belonged to a relative of Naomi. This gets us up to today’s reading from Ruth.

As the reading begins, Naomi instructed Ruth to anoint herself and to put on her best clothes… she was not going to Bethlehem’s formal ball, but she was going to the place where Boaz was going to thresh his barley! Naomi told her to wait until the barley was threshed and Boaz had had enough to drink that he fell into a contented sleep. Then, Naomi instructed Ruth to uncover Boaz’s feet while he was asleep. “Feet” is a Hebrew scriptures euphemism for “naughty bits,” which is itself a euphemism. You know what I mean.

When Boaz was startled into wakefulness, he was probably feeling a little chilly, he was surprised that Ruth was there, asking him to spread his cloak over her. Ruth informed him that he was her next of kin. Ruth was seeking a kind of physical and societal protection from Boaz. He could cover her with his clothes, but there was another man who was a closer relative than he. Ruth didn’t know about that. Then, before anyone else was awake, Boaz loaded Ruth down with more grain. They both behaved honorably in the barley pile.

There was a little drama at the start of the fourth chapter of Ruth. Boaz went to the gate of the city and talked to the man who was a closer relative. The other man would have purchased the field if Ruth was not part of the deal. He chose not to buy the field and acquire Ruth as his wife. Boaz was scrupulous in following the legal customs of purchasing a field.

This scene is a lot like what Jesus said of the scribes in this morning’s gospel lesson. The scribes loved to walk around in their Guccis and tailor-made suits. They sat in the skybox at the synagogue, they orated lengthy eloquent prayers, but they preyed on widows like Ruth!

And speaking of widows, toward the end of this morning’s psalm reading we are reminded that, “The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow…” Psalm 146:9 (NRSV). Ruth was both a widow and a stranger.

The happy (and significant) ending of the book of Ruth is the last part of today’s passage. Note that it was Naomi who nursed the child. It was the women who were buzzing like a beehive (The Hebrew bah om is the word that described Bethlehem when Naomi returned. It is an onomatopoeia for the sound a beehive makes.) who named the child. Ruth was completely absent from the story after her son, Obed, was born.

Here’s why all this matters: Ruth was the first convert to Judaism. She was a Moabite who won acceptance, favor, and a family through her diligence and virtue. She was good to her mother-in-law; she was honorable with the man who covered and protected her. She followed Naomi’s instructions. She became the mother of Obed, the grandmother of Jesse and the great-grandmother of David. Remember David’s hometown? It was Bethlehem.

Ruth was one of three women before Mary named in the genealogy of Jesus at the start of the gospel of Matthew. She was a foreigner, a convert. Another woman mentioned in the genealogy was Rahab, the prostitute in Jericho who hid the two Israelite spies who had gone on a scouting mission into the Promised Land. The first of the three women mentioned was Tamar. Tamar’s right to Levirate marriage to one of Judah’s sons was thwarted by Judah, who decided she was cursed after his sons Er and Onan died, leaving her childless. Tamar acted as a prostitute and conceived twins with Judah. It’s a long story, best told at another time.

Ruth was among three woman, all of them outsiders or in other ways notorious, who were part of our Lord and Savior’s bloodline. Look what the Lord can do, even working through flawed, human people like us!

Amen.