ESOCS Devotional 14 September 2024 – Test at His Feet
MEMORY VERSE: “Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?” (Ruth 3:1 KJV)
TEXT: RUTH 3:1-16
Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, shall I not seek security for you, that it may be well with you? 2 Now Boaz, whose young women you were with, is he not our relative? In fact, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. 3 Therefore wash yourself and anoint yourself, put on your best garment and go down to the threshing floor; but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. 4 Then it shall be, when he lies down, that you shall notice the place where he lies; and you shall go in, uncover his feet, and lie down; and he will tell you what you should do.”
5 And she said to her, “All that you say to me I will do.”
6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law instructed her. 7 And after Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his heart was cheerful, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain; and she came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down.
8 Now it happened at midnight that the man was startled, and turned himself; and there, a woman was lying at his feet. 9 And he said, “Who are you?”
So she answered, “I am Ruth, your maidservant. Take your maidservant under your wing, for you are a close relative.”
10 Then he said, “Blessed are you of the Lord, my daughter! For you have shown more kindness at the end than at the beginning, in that you did not go after young men, whether poor or rich. 11 And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you request, for all the people of my town know that you are a virtuous woman. 12 Now it is true that I am a close relative; however, there is a relative closer than I. 13 Stay this night, and in the morning it shall be that if he will perform the duty of a close relative for you—good; let him do it. But if he does not want to perform the duty for you, then I will perform the duty for you, as the Lord lives! Lie down until morning.”
14 So she lay at his feet until morning, and she arose before one could recognize another. Then he said, “Do not let it be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” 15 Also he said, “Bring the shawl that is on you and hold it.” And when she held it, he measured six ephahs of barley, and laid it on her. Then she went into the city.
16 When she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “Is that you, my daughter?”
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If you read the entire book of Ruth, you will discover that as long as Ruth toiled, laboured and struggled, God was just watching. She was working like an elephant and eating like an ant. Ruth 2:17 says, “So she gleaned in the field until even, and beat out that she had gleaned; and it was about an ephah of barley.” That means, she started in the early morning, and toiled until evening; yet, she was only able to have one small bag and went home. For her, it was a bumper harvest but God had other ideas. Remember, what she was feeding on was barley, not wheat. Barley is the cheapest of the grains which poor people enjoy.
Some of us are too content with little. You hear statements like, “God, if you can just make people know that I am a woman, even if I get pregnant and it miscarries, it is enough for me.” Did God beg you to pity Him? Many of us are having problems because we try to pity God. God will do this but not this other one. Who told you? He is God and not man. According to Ruth 3:1, Naomi, Ruth’s mother-in-law, determined to seek rest for her “…that it may be well with her.” Thereafter, she gave her instructions concerning Boaz; “And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do” (Ruth 3:4 KJV).
Beloved, Boaz is a type of Christ. He is the kinsman redeemer. Your kinsman redeemer must be willing and able. He must be a person of wealth. Naomi told Ruth to go rest at the feet of her kinsman redeemer. In our case, that is Jesus. Rest at His feet. Notice that Ruth was not agitated nor wondering whether she will go home with or without a good blessing. Beloved, it’s time to rest at Jesus’ feet. As you do, no challenge will defeat you. It will end in praise!
- Are you weary and worn out by self struggles?
- Lord, help me to remember that the best place to find rest is at your feet!
Further Reading: Zechariah 5:1-11; Luke 11:45-54; 1 Corinthians 4:1-13
ESOCS Devotional 14 September 2024
