One of my favorite books in The Bible is Ruth. It’s a short book, only four chapters, yet it’s rich in teaching and experience with God. Through the lives of Naomi and Ruth, we see God’s redemptive power in even the worst seasons of our lives. God is able to take the worst thing that’s happened to Naomi and Ruth, the death of Naomi’s husband, Elimelek, and her sons Kilion and Mahlon, the husband of Ruth, and bring them somewhere they’d never imagined they could be. For Ruth that place is the genealogy of Jesus Christ. For you and me, it is the good, perfect, and pleasing will of God. What stands out most to me though is how Ruth waited. She didn’t know she was waiting for this miraculous beautiful plan that God would unfold in her life, Ruth just continued living, not in a self-defeated attitude but nobly and honorably. Ultimately it is her character, in maybe the most difficult time of her life, which leads to her greatest blessing. In this post, we’re going to take a closer look at Ruth's character and five characteristics of a noble woman of God.
“And now, my daughter, don’t be afraid. I will do for you all you ask. All the people of my town know that you are a woman of noble character (Ruth 3 vs. 11 NIV).”
5 Characteristic of a woman of noble character:
“But Ruth replied, ‘don’t
urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and
where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.
Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May The Lord deal with
me, be it ever so severely if even death separates you and me (Ruth 1 vs.16-17).”
Though
Naomi insisted her two-widowed daughters-in-law leave her as she prepared to
return to Israel, Ruth remained adamant that she would not, even after Naomi’s
other daughter in law, Orpah did. Ruth was from the land of Moab, she didn’t
know Israel but she was resolute in her vow to Naomi and she kept it. Her
loyalty inevitably leads her to the place she needed to be to experience
God’s redemptive power.
The moment Ruth decided that she would go back to Israel with Naomi she also decided that Naomi’s God will be her God. Ruth's proclamation is bold because she wouldn't only live in the promised land of God's chosen people, she would serve God too. Your commitment to The Lord is the most telling thing about a woman or a man. How many of us are courageous enough to declare a personal relationship with God? A person's commitment to Christ is the most commendable aspect of their personality.
3.
Hard
working. The first time Boaz sees Ruth she’s hard at work in his field
harvesting grain. In the ancient Far East culture, traditionally, a woman’s
financial security was dependent on her husband or sons. Ruth and Naomi
had neither. It fell on Ruth to provide for herself and her mother-in-law. Leviticus 23 vs. 22 commands
that the harvesters do not glean to the edge of their fields, they were to leave
behind sheaves for the poor and foreigners. Ruth was both poor and a foreigner, she was also unafraid to toil. If she had decided to stay home and wallow in self-pity about not having a financial provider she would not have ended up in Boaz's field.
“ . . . She came into the field
and has remained here from morning till now, except for a short rest in the
shelter (Ruth 2 vs. 6).”
4.
Humility
is one of those things that can’t be overstated! You will get a lot further
with humility than pride or arrogance. “God resists the proud, but gives grace
to the humble (1 Peter 5 vs. 5).” Ruth doesn’t just start gleaning wheat in
Boaz’s field she asks his foreman's permission. She could have applied to the
fact that the law entitled her to the leftover sheaves instead she asks with
great meekness. Boaz's foreman goes on to relay the humility Ruth expressed in her appeal to Boaz, which further endears her to him.
5.
The last characteristic of Ruth that recurs is that she is a woman of good
reputation.
“Boaz asked the overseer
of his harvesters, ‘who does that young woman belong to?’ The overseer replied,
‘She is the Moabite who came back from Moab with Naomi. She said, ‘please let
me glean and gather behind the harvesters.’ She came into the field and has
remained here from morning till now, except for a short rest in the shelter
(Ruth 2 vs.4-7).”
Before
Boaz ever had a conversation with Ruth he asked about her. Everything that
happens subsequently afterward between Ruth and Boaz is because of her good
reputation. Boaz is told by his foremen the things we’ve already observed about
Ruth’s character: she’s a loyal companion, committed to God, hard-working, and
humble. Ruth’s reputation preceded her, a reputation she lived up to in the
best way possible. In Ruth 3 vs. 11, Boaz even agrees to redeem Ruth as his
wife without hesitation because the townspeople all know she is a woman of
noble character.
We
don’t speak about reputation much nowadays but it still matters. A letter of
reference for a job is a statement of your reputation, so is a background
check, or even a meeting between the person you’re dating and your family and
close friends. I know when we’re young it’s not something we give much thought
to but you never know where your name is being discussed, and what doors your reputation will grant or deny you access to. Don’t worry if someone has
misrepresented you because, like Ruth, your actions ultimately either validate
or invalidate what’s been said about you.
In the
Bible names are usually a reflection of the person’s character or something
important about them. The name Ruth means companion and vision of beauty,
though she’s never described as such. We’re told Sarah was beautiful, Queen
Esther, Rachel, and Abigail to name a few but never Ruth. I believe it’s
because the essence of Ruth’s beauty is her character, she’s a woman of noble
character. In a world where a woman’s value is often defined by her beauty, Ruth
is a great reminder that true beauty radiates inwardly out.
I hope you enjoyed this post. If you did please like and share. Read more about me here. Let me know in the comments section below what other traits a noble woman of character possesses. Watch me dig deeper on YouTube with a co-hosted Bible study series with Chellbee, entitled, Blemished but Beautiful Notable women in The Bible.
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