In this book, Ruth 3, we will consider the entire chapter. Let us give careful attention to God's infallible and eternal Word. Ruth 3, verse 1, 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? Now Boaz, whose young women you are with, is he not our relative? In fact, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor. 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. 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, lie down, and he will tell you what you should do. And she said to her, all that you say to me I will do. So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law instructed her. And after Boaz had eaten and drunk and his heart was cheerful, he went to lie down at the end of a heap of grain. And she came softly. and covered his feet and lay down. Now it happened at midnight that the man was startled and turned himself, and there a woman was lying at his feet. 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. 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 rich or poor. 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. Now it is true that I am a close relative, however, there is a relative closer than I. 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. 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. 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. When she came to her mother-in-law, she said, is that you, my daughter? Then she told her all that the man had done for her. And she said, these six ephahs of barley he gave me. For he said to me, do not go empty-handed to your mother-in-law. Then she said, sit still, my daughter, until you know how the matter will turn out. For the man will not rest until he has concluded the matter this day. Amen. May the Lord bless to us the reading as well as the preaching of His Word. Well, I would begin this morning by speaking to the children. And adults, feel free to listen in. Our little Isaiah is now at the age where he's getting scared at bedtime. And just a few nights ago, when I was tucking him into his bed, he grabbed the blanket with both hands and pulled him up over his head. I said, what you doing, buddy? I'm scared, Daddy. Have you ever done that? Do you do that? Why do you do that? Well, it's to feel safe. It's to feel protected. It's to feel covered and cared for, isn't it? And did your parents ever teach you, did they say to you, now when you're scared, grab the blankets and pull them over your head? Of course not. You figured that out all on your own. to do that? Well, do you know that adults do the very same thing? Do you know that, in fact, Adam and Eve, our first parents, did something very similar to that? When they committed the first sin against God, what did they do? They ran. They hid themselves, not underneath blankets But in bushes and branches, they covered themselves with leaves. And ever since then, everyone has had this basic need, this feeling of needing to be covered, to be secure, to be protected, have things taken care of, so they can feel at rest and at peace. Some use blankets. Others turn to other things to cover themselves. It is for this same basic need of finding security, of finding rest and protection, that Naomi now seeks to find a husband for her poor, widowed daughter-in-law, Ruth. Verse 1, My daughter, shall I not seek rest, or the word there, security for you, that it may be well with you? All the events of the story of Ruth have led up to this one point And everything that happens in this story from here on out all centers on this concern, this need to rest secure. Having lost her husband and her sons in Moab for having left the Promised Land wrongly, Naomi and Ruth, who has returned with her now to Bethlehem, they are not at rest. They are not secure. Because of those deaths, the land inheritance of this family, because of the poverty that has come upon them for this, the land inheritance is gone and without a son or a grandson of Naomi, there is no male heir to take this land and to reclaim it for the family. And in order to make ends meet, day in and day out, to care for Naomi and for herself, Ruth has been weary and heavy laden, gleaning day by day in the fields along with the other poor of Israel, gleaning in the fields for their daily food and their daily needs. But in God's kind providence, a wealthy man named Boaz, as we noticed last time, has taken notice of Ruth and her plight. He's noticed her kindness and her covenant faithfulness and her commitment to the woman Naomi to care for her needs and so Boaz has opened up his fields to them that they might have provision from his fields during the harvest season. At the end of chapter 2, it dawns on Naomi that this man, Boaz, could be the one to reclaim that inheritance and to restore all their losses and make them secure. and able to rest, because God in His kindness, in God's kindness, in God's faithfulness, He has commanded that the closest relative of a dead husband was required to pay for to buy back a lost land inheritance, and if the case may be, to also marry the widow and raise up a son who would take the name of that dead man and restore that land to that family when he was grown and of age. In Ruth chapter 1 verse 9, Naomi sought to turn Ruth back to Moab saying to her, find rest, the same word, find security with a husband there in Moab. And now here in chapter 3, Naomi is actively seeking to find rest and security for Ruth in a marriage in Bethlehem to Boaz. But the way she goes about it, She comes up, she concocts a very risky and even risque, you might say, plan to secure this marriage. Now Boaz, he is, as we noticed, a very wealthy man, but he's also a very godly man. He's a God-fearer. He has great godly character. He's already demonstrated the kindness of God to them, the generosity of God to them, the faithfulness to them. As far as Naomi is concerned, this man is the one. He is the most eligible bachelor in Judah. And Naomi wants to have him for Ruth, but there is a problem here. There's no guarantee the marriage of Ruth to Boaz is anything certain. If it was a guarantee, Naomi would not have to play this role like a matchmaker and set up a situation to try to secure this marriage and come up with this elaborate plan that she comes up with in verses 2 to 4. Ruth could have simply gone up to Boaz in broad daylight and said, hey, you're the kinsman redeemer. Clock's ticking. Put a ring on it. It would have been that simple and he would have been required to do that. But you see, Boaz may not be so obligated in this case. Aside from some possible loopholes that he has in this particular situation to get out of having to fulfill this obligation, there is one major issue here. It's an issue that he brings up even and informs Ruth of. A detail that Naomi happened to leave out In verse 12, there is a closer relative than Boaz. And if Boaz knows that there is a relation that's closer to Naomi than himself, well certainly Naomi knows this as well, especially being in a little town of Bethlehem. I mean, don't you know who your in-laws are? Of course Naomi knows this. but she doesn't tell Ruth about this closer relative. Instead, she tells her what to do to try to get this marriage arranged. She says to her, now go, get all dolled up, and this is what I want you to do. After you're all pretty, then under the cover of darkness, find where Boaz goes and lies down after he's been eating, after he's had his fill of food and drink, You know, watch where he lays down, and then once he's asleep, go up to him, pull his clothes back a little bit, and lay down next to him. And then wait for him to wake up and decide what to do next. Would this not be a little awkward for Ruth? Can you imagine, you know, hiding? Is he down yet? Laying down there. Is he asleep? Is he going to wake up? Okay, understand this is not how engagements happened in the land of Israel. This was not the normal way people got engaged for marriage, okay? Women were not often breaking and entering into men's homes at 3 a.m. pulling their jammies back, lying down in their bed, and waiting for them to wake up to pop the question. Like, will you marry me? Yes. Hey, everyone, we're getting married. OK, this was entirely countercultural. Women were not. typically at the threshing floor, these threshing floor parties. And when Boaz wakes up, he is startled. He is shocked to find a woman there laying next to him. And in order to protect her good reputation, he sends her out in the morning when it is still dark enough so that she wouldn't be recognized. And he warns her in verse 14, don't let it be known that a woman has come to the threshing floor. And so what is happening here? See, Naomi is desiring to secure, to have a good thing, a marriage secured for Ruth, but she is seeking a good thing in a wrong way. Instead of waiting on God to meet those needs in the way that is consistent with His law and His direction for how we are to live, she takes matters into her own hands and she is relying on her own wisdom and the timing that she thinks is appropriate and necessary to secure what she desires, even though it would be a good thing. This is much like Abraham and Sarah, isn't it? In order to obtain that promised heir that God Himself even promised, instead of waiting and relying upon the Lord, they took their matters into their own hands and they took hold of the slave, Hagar, and they used her in this way to bring forth that promised son, although it did not turn out very well. You see, they're failing to trust in God's provision, God's way, according to what He determines is the need, and when His timetable determines that need should be met. You understand we do this all the time, don't we? In subtle ways, and in very overt ways, we do this. Instead of relying and resting upon the Lord's direction for our lives, we take matters into our own hands, We ignore, perhaps, some things that God's Word tells us. For instance, be reconciled to that brother. Be reconciled to that sister. And here are the steps about how you go about doing that in God's Word. Well, yeah, but if I do that, it might make things worse. Maybe it'll estrange us even more. I'll go about it my own way, or I'll just ignore it altogether, and I'll just let things continue on. Or, God wants me to get married. Marriage is a good thing. It's not good for a man to be alone. I need to get married, but so that person that I'm interested in, they might not be a believer. Well, they're moral, and they attend church, so yeah, it might work out. or I'm supposed to work. God commands me to work. But if I say I'm not available to work on the Lord's Day, if I say I can't do that, I might lose the job or I might not get the job. So I'll just be quiet about it. Or God wants my children to be obedient, so I should teach them how to be obedient. And God gives His instruction for how we are to do that as parents, but that's difficult. It's hard. It takes sacrifice and much time. So maybe I'll invent my own schemes about training my children. And if needs be, I'll just be harsh with them and get obedience out of them because that's what's necessary. You see, we fail at many points to trust the Lord. Oftentimes when this is the case, it's because we really, though it's something that in a formal sense is a good thing to have, a good thing to pursue, a good thing to do, we have our own wants and our own desires infused into it. And that's why we're pursuing this. And that's why we're willing to bend. And that's why we're willing to alter or not completely follow the pattern God gives us in His Word to follow. As though God Himself, as though He is opposed to Himself and His own laws to direct us for how we are to live is in opposition to His provision for our needs. Instead of simply resting and waiting on Him to care for us and serving Him the way He calls us to serve Him day by day. Well, unaware of whether or not this is culturally acceptable or not, new to Israel, Ruth, out of faithfulness and out of love and concern for Naomi, for Naomi's need, and this need to provide an heir, Ruth goes out and she obeys Naomi's word and instruction. Almost. You see, Ruth here, she is trusting in the Lord. She is trusting that the Lord will provide for her needs. And she is not willing to compromise and she is not willing to bend. And she waits upon the Lord. And she goes about it the right way. Unlike, unlike the unchaste and the sexually immoral way that Lot, her great, great, great, great, great, great grandfather, Unlike the sexually immoral way that Lot's lineage, the lineage of the Moabites themselves, began after a night of drinking a little too much. Ruth here proves herself to be very much unlike the daughter of Lot, but a daughter of God. Boaz, as soon as he wakes up, Ruth goes beyond the instruction of Naomi. She does more than what Naomi said. She immediately identifies herself and she gives a clear intentions for why she is there at the middle of the night laying next to him. Who are you? What's going on? Ruth says, I am Ruth. She says, I'm your maidservant. And here, this term maidservant is a little bit different than she's used in the past. This term maidservant here in this case, she has now elevated herself a little bit. It still means I'm your slave, but a slave that is eligible for marriage. And then she immediately adds to it, take me under your wing. She says, literally, spread your wing over me. And though everything else that's happened in this scenario up to this point is not customary marital action, this language of her request, spread Your wing over me. This is customary marriage language. God Himself in describing His relationship with His people, He used this in Ezekiel 16, verse 8. He says, When I passed by you again and looked upon you, indeed, your time was the time of love. So I spread My wing over you and covered your nakedness. Yes, I swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you and you became Mine. says the Lord God. God's relationship to His people like a marriage pictured as one spreading the wings over the other. You see, to take a woman under the wing was a word picture for how marriage as God intended it, as God designed it, is to look. Just as a mother hen would spread her wings over her baby chicks and they would scurry underneath. And they're there to find protection. They're there to find security and to be at rest and ease. So a husband is to spread his wing, to stretch out his wing over his wife to meet her needs. To meet her physical needs. To meet her spiritual needs. To meet her emotional needs. And safety. Husbands. Does your wife find security under your wing? Is your wife at rest under the shadow of your wing? Are the feathers of your wing stretched out over her knees? Or have you, in the way you've treated her, drawn your wing back and exposed her somewhat? and left her to look elsewhere to find that rest and to find that security. Wives, are you seeking your rest and your security under the wing of your husband? Or are you looking elsewhere? Are you praying this for your marriages? Young men, understand that marriage as God designs it, as God whom you will answer to for your marriage. Your marriage, it will not be to meet your needs, to meet your desires, but your wife's. Christ commands husbands, love your wives as I have loved the church, giving myself up for her. Young men, how are you preparing yourself now, even now, as young men, to spread a wing over that young woman that God will bring your way someday? How are you going to be ready to care for her physical needs and for her spiritual and her emotional needs? This is what God requires. Young woman, are you looking for a man who can and who will do this for you. Based on his position as a close relative, Ruth seeks this very thing from Boaz, and Boaz marvels. He marvels at this display of covenant faithfulness. If Ruth had not already demonstrated great covenant faithfulness to God and to Naomi already, having left her family, having left all that was familiar to her, and having committed herself to a life of poverty to care for Naomi's need. If that wasn't enough, now Ruth continues to be even further selfless, willing to marry herself to an old man instead of pursuing her own interests, and running off with some rock star, some young guy, marrying herself to an old man for the sake of a dead man. and his wife. This is a great display of selflessness. And for this selflessness and this covenant faithfulness that Boaz sees in her and for this virtue that he notes there in the passage, Boaz commits himself to her needs and to her concern. He says to her, don't worry, I've got you covered. Leave your concern, leave this concern of redemption, leave it in my hands. You no longer have to worry about it. I will take care of it. It is my concern now, he says. My daughter, verse 11, I will do for you all that you request, whether it is the closer relative or me. Either way, it doesn't matter. The problem's solved. Your redemption is coming. And he guarantees it, vowing, as the Lord lives, you will be taken care of. Having protected her physically, not taking advantage of her, having taken care of her and protected her in this awkward situation, he then goes on to protect her again, sending her out so that no accusation could come against her virtuous character of any wrongdoing as none was done. Sends her out, but not only does he protect her in this way, he also provides and gives provision for her needs. Barley seed, 60 to 100 pounds worth that she hauls back to Bethlehem again. Hearing the report from Ruth and seeing Ruth, carrying Boaz's seed to her, the once empty-handed Naomi, now realizes and recognizes that a full and a future provision is on its way, and so she instructs Ruth to sit, to be still, and to wait, as this man will waste no time in securing our needs. And so Ruth seeks security and provision and protection under the man Boaz. Where are you looking for your security today? What covers are you pulling up over your head today? Understand that you do have the need to be covered. But you do not need to be covered from a monster in the closet. You need to be covered from the searching gaze of the living God. Paul says, no fornicator. unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Hebrews 4, verse 11, Let us then be diligent to enter that rest. For all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must and we will give an account. There is no creature hid from His sight. You see, no degree, no amount of money, no popularity or social standing, no certificate of baptism, no church membership, no amount of church attendance, no amount of supposed good deeds will be able to withstand the tidal wave of God when He comes down in judgment on that final day. when as Revelation says, the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains and said to the mountains, and the rocks fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of His wrath has come and who is able to stand? Will you be able to stand on that great day? There's only one way to be able to stand on that day, and it is if you flee today for refuge. And the only refuge that you have from the wrath of God is found in God. Psalm 91, 2 and 4 declares, I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress. My God in whom I will trust, surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge. Here when Ruth asks Boaz to spread his wing over her, this is a play on words. There's a play on Boaz's words, actually. You recall in Ruth 2.12, when Boaz commended her faith, he said, "...the Lord repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge." Ruth has sought her refuge under the wings of Boaz. Redeemer, have you sought refuge under the wings of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is your only hope. Matthew 23, 37, To those who are unwilling to flee to Him for refuge, the words of Christ apply. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Christ said, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing. See, your house is left to you desolate. To have true rest for your body and for your soul, you must seek that refuge which is Christ Himself. In Matthew 28, Christ says, Come unto Me, all who are weary, all who are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. The same word translated for what Naomi seeks out for Ruth. Christ says, I will give you that rest and that security that you need. And just as Boaz receives Ruth freely and willingly, this poor foreign widow receives her and receives her request, so the Lord Jesus Christ says in John 6.37, the one who comes to Me, I will in no way cast out. If you have sought the Lord Jesus Christ for your refuge, Christ has taken up your concern and He has you covered and He will not fail to bring your redemption to its completion Just as Boaz gives Ruth his word and gives her seed to guarantee, to be a guarantee to her, to be a pledge that he will see to the completion of her redemption. So the Lord Jesus Christ gives us his word and gives us his spirit. to encourage us and to come for us so that while we do not yet possess that redemption in our hands, like Ruth doesn't yet at the end of chapter 3, though she sought it, she doesn't quite have it yet, she has His promise and guarantee. So do you have that guarantee from the Lord Jesus Christ. And if He has given you His Word, if He has given you His Spirit, it's just as good as though you have it in possession now, though you wait upon it. And so you can then with Ruth sit and be at peace and wait for him to return with that redemption in his wings. Just as the Lord lives, your redemption is good in him. He who started a good work, he will not be faithful. He will be faithful to complete it. And just as Boaz left to secure that concern for Ruth, Christ has gone to prepare that place for us. And He will not rest. He will not rest until we have our rest won. Isaiah 62.1 says, God says, for Zion's sake, I will not hold My peace. And for Jerusalem's sake, I will not rest until her righteousness goes forth as brightness and her salvation as a lamp that burns. Judgment is coming. And the only refuge is to be found covered in the place where God's judgment has already come, when it has come upon the Lord Jesus Christ. And if you sought for refuge in Him, as Colossians 3 says, your life is hid with Christ in God. the Son has taken up your cause, you can say full assurance with Paul that I know whom I have believed. And I am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed to Him against that day. And so it's not under blankets, or under our own good works, or under our own efforts, and our conniving, and under our possessions and all these things. It's not under these things. that we are to seek our cover. Rest securely into the wings of your Redeemer. Amen.