04 The Threshing Floor (Ruth 2:18-Ruth 3:18)

CHAPTER IV THE THRESHING-FLOOR Ruth 2:18-23; Ruth 3:1-18

Naomi had probably an anxious day of it, as she sat at home, wondering how her daughter-in-law was faring among strangers in the harvest-field. But when she saw Ruth return at even-tide with an epha of barley in her mantle and a look of satisfaction on her face, she did not need to ask how she had got on, for she knew at once that "the lines had fallen unto her in pleasant places." We can easily imagine with what pride the daughter laid her burden down at the mother’s feet, and with what delight she brought forth the surplus of the parched corn which Boaz had given her at noon, and which she had so thoughtfully reserved as a treat for the solitary one whom she had left at home. We can easily, also, fill in the outline which the sacred writer has given us of the mother’s joy as, looking at the result of her daughter’s exertions, she broke out into ejaculations of pleased surprise, and ran on into a series of questions without waiting for an answer to any one of them; finding at length the fitting climax to her feelings in a benediction of her benefactor. It was as if she had said: "Well done, my daughter! Who could have expected anything like this? Where did you get all that barley? And the parched corn, too---how good it is! Surely, they must have been particularly kind to you. Whose part of the-field were you in? who did you glean with? He must have taken special notice of you, and, whoever he was, may a blessing rest on him for his goodness. It may have been a little thing to him, but it has been a great deal to you and to me."

Then, when Ruth had rested a little, and Naomi’s effusiveness gave her an opportunity to speak, she told that the man on whose part of the field she had gleaned was Boaz. In a moment it flashed upon Naomi’s memory that Boaz was a kinsman of Elimelech --was, in fact, one of the Goelim, or redeemers, on whom it might devolve, according to the law of Moses, to buy the land which had belonged to her deceased husband, and which, under the pressure of circumstances, she would now have to sell in order to get the means of support. This being the case, Naomi thought she saw the motive of Boaz in showing such kindness to Ruth, and so the benediction, which had before been general and impersonal, is repeated by her with definite reference to him, for she says: "Blessed of Jehovah be he, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and to the dead ;" that is, who hath shown his generosity to the living, and through that hath made manifest his continued respect for the memory of the dead. She recognized the providence which had conducted Ruth to his part of the field; and hearing of his treatment of Ruth, and of his request that she should keep fast by his young men until the close of his harvest, she probably discerned in this the beginning of the end of all their troubles, though it is hardly likely that as yet she had any definite conception of the precise manner in which they were to be terminated. But whatever were her motives, she heartily urged Ruth to accept the invitation of Boaz, and thus it came about that all through the time of harvest, which lasted for at least two or three weeks, Ruth kept close by the maidens of Boaz to glean by day, and returned at evening to the abode of Naomi, to cheer her by her nightly reports of the day’s doings, given by the one in the open frankness of affection, and commented on by the other with the wisdom of experience. But when the harvest was finished, the old question of "What shall we do now?" had to be confronted; and this time Naomi took the initiative, for now she thought she saw the prospect of a life settlement for Ruth. It is beautiful to mark the unselfishness of each of these women, or rather their unselfish consideration of each by the other. As Cassell has said: "While the women are in distress it is Ruth that takes the initiative; now when hope grows large it is Naomi. When hardship was to be endured, the mother submitted her will to the daughter, for Ruth was not sent to glean but went of her own accord; now, when the endeavor is to secure the joy and happiness held out in prospect, the daughter yields in all things to the direction of the mother. The thought of labor for the mother originates with the daughter, but it is the mother who forms plans for the happiness of the daughter.’’ (Lange, in Iaea.) Naomi had set her heart on finding rest for Ruth in the house of a husband, and that husband no other than Boaz. With this object in view, she unfolds a plan which she desires Ruth to follow in every particular. In the simple narrative it is given thus: "And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to-night in the threshing-floor. Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall tie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down, and he will tell thee what thou shalt do."

Now all this, it must be confessed, seems to us, with our modern ideas, not only exceedingly improper, but also terribly hazardous. It must be admitted, too, that, judged even by the conventionality of those almost patriarchal times, it was unusual, and, as the words of Boaz himself make evident, would have been compromising to the reputation of both if it had been known. But in order to a right estimate of its nature we must take in all that can be said upon the other side.

We must remember, in the first place, that the proposal was made by Naomi, whose whole character, as it comes out in this book, was marked by devout reverence towards God and purity towards man, and to whom the honor of Ruth was as dear as her own. We cannot, therefore, believe that she would willfully do that which would endanger her reputation. That would have been but a poor return for all the self-sacrifice that Ruth had manifested on her behalf.

Again, we must take it for granted that she knew the sort of man Boaz was. Probably in the years gone by he had been the companion and friend of her husband, and she had then had means of judging of his character. Then, since her return she had been watching him, and perhaps she felt that she could trust Ruth in his hands. Furthermore, we must believe that there had been lying behind all this an interesting history which is here unwritten, and which had come out during these harvest weeks in the evening talks of Ruth after her return from the field, and, perhaps, also, in the visits of Boaz, on occasions, at her humble home. She had been taking notes very diligently all the time, and it may be that the pensive absent-mindedness of her daughter, now that the gleaning season was over, had revealed to her that she was something else than indifferent to her benefactor; while, perhaps, there were indications also on the part of Boaz that his interest in Ruth was more tender than that of mere kindness and compassion. But more than all, we must give full weight to the fact that Boaz was one of Elimelech’s Goelim, and to the claim which law and custom gave to her on him in that capacity. There were three duties which devolved upon the Goel, or kinsman redeemer. These may be succinctly described as follows: When an Israelite, through poverty, sold his inheritance and was unable to redeem it, it devolved upon his Goel to purchase it. Again, when an Israelite had wronged any one and sought to make restitution, but found that the party whom he had wronged was dead without leaving a son, it fell to the next of kin of the injured party to represent him and receive the reparation. Finally, when a man was foully murdered, it fell to the Goel or next of kin, subject to the provisions laid down in connection with the Cities of Refuge, to execute justice on the murderer, and hence he was called the Avenger of Blood. But along with these duties devolved on the Goel by law, others seemed to have been required of him by custom; for, when there was no one else to do it, he came to be looked to for the carrying out of the provisions of what is called the Levirate law. That statute enjoined that when a man died without leaving children, his brother should marry the widow, and the first-born of that marriage should be accounted the child of the deceased. But when there was no brother-in-law, custom looked to the Goel to take his place. The law did not absolutely require it, but public opinion did--though it did not put the repudiation of the widow’s claim by the Goel upon the same plane of dishonor as it did that of the brother-in-law. If the brother-in-law refused to marry his sister-in-law, he was subjected to insult at her hands by her plucking off his shoe and spitting in his face in the gate of the city--acts which were equivalent among us Western people to the knocking of a man’s hat over his eyes on the Ex-change--and the subjecting of him, besides, to the vilest indignity. In the case of a kinsman not so near as the brother, there was indeed no specific statute on the subject, but custom had sanctioned a kind of amalgamation of the law relating to the Levirate marriage, with that concerning the Goel, or redeemer; so that, as Alexander has said, "The Goel had a right to purchase the land, but in so doing came under an obligation from custom to marry the widow of the deceased owner; and the brother-in-law (Levir) was bound to marry the widow of his deceased brother, which involved, as a matter of course, the redemption of his property if he had sold it." (Lange, in Iaea.)

Now, if I have succeeded in making the matter plain to you, it will be apparent that Boaz, as a Goel of Elimelech, had a right by law to redeem his property, and that, according to the custom, the exercise of that right involved on his part, also, the marriage of Naomi. But Naomi transferred her claim to Ruth, and the question she had to solve was how to bring that before the notice of Boaz. It was not his part in such a case to offer. He had to wait until he was requested to act; and this plan was formed by Naomi for the purpose of bringing him to prompt and decisive action in the case. But when all is said that can be said on her behalf, I fully appreciate and indorse the words of Kitto, when he thus writes, "We still think, however, that the occasion for making this demand was unusual, and, to a certain degree, indiscreet. This may be gathered from the anxiety which Boaz himself eventually expressed, while doing the utmost honor to her character and motives, that it should not be known that a woman had been there. He must have feared that evil tongues might misconstrue, to his and her discredit, a proceeding far from evil when rightly understood. It is not unlikely that when this matter had been first suggested by Naomi, Ruth, as a stranger, had shrunk from making this claim publicly in the harvest-field, and that Naomi had, therefore, to spare her in that respect, devised this mode of enabling her to do so in private, in which she would find less difficulty, seeing that Boaz had already won her confidence by his fatherly consideration for her. It may be that desire to evade one difficulty somewhat blinded this good woman to the danger that may have lurked in the other alternative." (Daily Bible Illustrations, vol. iii., p. 4o) Keeping, then, these considerations in mind, we may without any difficulty thread our way through the rest of the story. The threshing-floor in those times, as, indeed, still in the East, was in the immediate neighborhood of the harvest-field. It was a level area, the ground of which was trodden into hardness, and the grain was threshed, either by the dragging over it of a heavy slab called mowref, or by the trampling of cattle. Then the winnowing was accomplished by throwing up the grain with a fork against the wind; and that operation was frequently performed at night to get the benefit of the evening breeze. At such times, also, it was usual either for the owner of the field or some of his men to sleep on the floor, in order that he might be ready to give the alarm if any robbers should come to steal from him the product of his industry. Thus Dr. Edward Robinson, speaking of Hebron, says, "Here we needed no guard around our tent. The mowers of the crops came every night and slept upon their threshing-floors to guard them, and this we had found to be universal in all the region of Gaza. We were in the midst of scenes precisely like those of the Book of Ruth, when Boaz winnowed barley in his threshing-floor, and laid himself down at night to guard the heap of corn." (Biblical Researches, vol. ii., p. 446) And Dr. Thomson tells us that he has "on various occasions seen the mowers sleeping on the summer threshing-floors to prevent stealing, just as the wealthy Boaz did when Ruth came to him." He adds that "though it is not customary for women to sleep at those floors, and to do so would produce the same unfavorable impression which Boaz apprehended, yet it is not unusual for husband, wife, and all the family to encamp at the threshing-floor and remain until the harvest is over." (The Land and the Book, as before, pp. 648, 649).

These particulars will enable us to realize the whole circumstances, as Ruth followed implicitly the instructions of her mother-in-law. Watching until Boaz was fast asleep, she went and lay down at his feet. But when he became aware of her presence he started up, and said, "Who art thou?" Whereupon she answered, "I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread thy skirt," or rather spread thy wings --for there is no reference to the cover which she had taken from his feet but rather she uses the figure of the bird which Boaz had already employed in speaking to her of Jehovah--spread thy wings over thine handmaid for thou art a Goel, or kinsman redeemer. "Take me under thy protection as thy wife." That was the formal claim of her words, and Boaz at once understood them in that sense, for he said, "Blessed be thou of Jehovah my daughter: for thou hast showed more kindness in the latter end than at the beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men whether poor or rich." That is to say, "This act of thine is a greater kindness to Naomi than was even thy leaving of Moab for her sake; for thou hast deliberately preferred to stand in Naomi’s place, and to claim from the Goel thy right at his hands, in order that ’the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place,’ and because thou hast thus merged thyself in the house and lineage of Elimelech, blessed be thou of Jehovah." Then he pledged himself to do all that she required, because all the gate of his people knew that she was a worthy woman. But there was still one obstacle in the way, for though he was a Goel he was not the Goel. There was a kinsman nearer to Elimelech than he, and nothing could be done by Boaz until that relative had repudiated. He promised, therefore, that in the morning he would bring the matter before that other, and if he would perform the kinsman’s part, well and good, let him do it; but if he would not, then Boaz would take his place, and this assurance he confirmed with an oath, "as Jehovah liveth." Then in the morning, before one could discern another, he sent her away to Naomi, and that her mother might have the assurance of his goodwill, even although her plan had not gone altogether as she had expected, he sent with her six measures of barley, which he scooped into her mantle. On her return, Naomi met her with the singular yet suggestive question, "Who art thou, my daughter?" as if she had said, Art thou still the widow of Mahlon, (See Ruth 4:10.) or art thou now the betrothed of Boaz? and in answer Ruth told her all she had to tell, which, when Naomi heard, she knew how to interpret, for she said," Sit still my daughter until thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not rest until he have finished the thing this day." How true this forecast was, and what came out of the intervention of Boaz, we shall see in our next discourse; meanwhile let us ourselves become gleaners, and gather up a few suggestive lessons from this fruitful field.

And, in the first place, let me draw your attention to the general wholesomeness and helpfulness of evening confidences among the members of the same household when the labors of the day are done. Few things in this most interesting story are more beautiful than the frank and simple talks between Naomi and Ruth, in the confidence of domestic abandon, before they retired for the night. The daughter then made the mother sharer in all her experiences throughout the day, and the mother followed up the communication with practical suggestions for the morrow. One needs not to approve in every particular the counsels which Naomi gave, before he can see the value of such a household custom; and if I may speak alike from observation and experience, I would say that the happiest hours of home life are those in which parents and grown-up children sit together in winter by the cheerful fire, and in summer in the cool, dim twilight, and tell each other where they have gleaned, and with whom, and with what success they have labored throughout the day. Nor is the happiness of such fellowship all the good that there is in it. It unifies the household, giving to all a deep and living interest in the labors and success of each, and so helping to counteract that tendency to utter individualism which is one of the greatest evils of our modern life. Too often the members of the same household are nothing more to each other than sharers of the same abode. They go outside to have their confidences with strangers, and frequently parents and brothers and sisters are among the last to know of any unusual experience through which they have been brought. Thus the home becomes little more than a small hotel, and the helpful counsel of the parents and the other members of the family is entirely lost. Sure I am that many of the young people who go astray in modern business or society might have been kept from evil courses if only they had utilized the blessing of this home cabinet; while, on the other hand, the hearts of parents would have been kept fresh and healthy if their children had but made them partakers of the details of their day’s doings. The most natural thing in the world for a little child is to tell where he has been, and what he has been about; and when he grows up into manhood there is something wrong with him, or something wrong at home, if that healthy custom is abandoned. Either he has begun to go to places of which he is ashamed to speak, or his parents and the other members of the household have not been careful to maintain the happiness of home to such a degree that it will be in his estimation more attractive than all other localities. Let me urge, therefore, upon those who, like Ruth, must be away all the day, to engage in nothing and to go to no place of which they would be ashamed to speak in the evening to father or mother or sisters; and let me entreat the parents and members of families generally to vie with each other in their efforts to make home happy for those who are pulling at the business oar, and "toiling in rowing" all the day. Sisters, why should you reserve your winning smiles and patient attention and willing practice of accomplishments for the party outside, or for the casual visitors who come to call upon you, and show yourselves petulant, discourteous, disobliging, and generally unamiable to your own brothers? Do you not realize that much of the molding of their characters is in your hands? and if they fall into evil courses, what will you have to say at last when the Lord asks you, "Where are your brothers?" Perhaps if you had cared to make yourself attractive to them, they might not now have been wanderers from their fathers’ houses. And you, young men, who are living at home, be thankful that you have still a father and a mother to whom you can go with all your concerns, and who are still able and willing to be your advisers. Do not despise their wisdom; do not trample upon their love. You will never know the worth of them until you lose them; and then O what a misery it will be to you to reflect that you slighted their counsel and made light of their affection while they lived.

Parents, you, too, have a solemn responsibility here. Do not allow yourselves even to seem to be troubled when your young people come to you for advice. Do not account their affairs as too insignificant for you to be interested in; hear them with patient, real, loving, attention, and give them the best wisdom you can command. Encourage them to come to you with their concerns, and beware of drawing the cord of authority so tight that it will snap, and leave you without so much as influence. Remember that as young people grow up to manhood and womanhood they must be guided rather than governed by you; and if you would gain their confidences and keep them, you will succeed best when you seem least eager to demand them as of right. As one has very wisely said: "Young men and women, conscious of growing personal responsibility, will not tolerate being treated as mere children, and will fret against what appear to them as unnecessary restraints. But it is possible by wise management to obtain all desirable information without a display of authority, and without arousing antagonism. Knowing the tender interest of their parents’ hearts in all their experiences, sons and daughters will love to return home and voluntarily tell all the story of the day, incidents humorous vexing, or encouraging, and those fireside reviews of life will be the most delightful part of their time." (Braden. The Beautiful Gleaner, p. 478.).

Let me point out to you now, in the second place, the true ideal of marriage. Naomi put it precisely right when she said to Ruth: "Shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?" The rest of the wife should be in the affection of the husband, and the rest of the husband should be in the love of the wife. Each should have comfort in the support and confidence of the other. The husband should be always sure of the sympathy and co-operation of the wife; and the wife should be able to rely implicitly on being understood and trusted--and, if need be, defended--by the husband. They should be so identified--or, to take the smaller and better word, so one with each other--that whatever comes to one comes to both; that neither should add to the affliction of the other by putting his or her own weight on to the load that has to be borne; that, in short, they should divide each other’s burdens and double each other’s joys. The confidence of each in the other should be so absolute and entire as to give rest to the heart of each, whether in the trials of business, or in the "many things" that are so troublous and distracting in household management. Unless this be the case a marriage is shorn of its highest glory, its greatest helpfulness, and its holiest influence. And yet, alas! how often it is far below this beautiful ideal! It is entered upon too frequently without knowledge of each other’s characters, aptitudes, and idiosyncrasies, and from merely secular motives, because of the position which it will command or the advantages which it will bring, and without any idea of mutual helpfulness. And then after a time the illusion is dispelled; disappointment leads to alienation, alienation to unhappiness, unhappiness to divorce, and that, again, sometimes--so little valued are the lessons of experience--to a repetition of the same miserable circle with other parties. I say nothing now of the evil of the short and easy method of obtaining divorces which is the shame of our country, and which is twin-sister to Mormonism itself; but I do cry out with all my might against those thoughtless alliances and mercantile marriages which end so frequently in divorce, and I implore young people to view this matter, "not lightly or unadvisedly, but reverently, discreetly, soberly, and in the fear of the Lord." I am old-fashioned enough to believe in love, and I am Christian enough to believe that no Christian can be truly happy in an alliance in which Christ is not supreme. Therefore I would lay down two principles: to all alike I say, do not marry one whom you do not love--that is the law of nature; then to the Christian I add this other: do not marry one who has no love to Christ--that is the law of grace. Comply with these two precepts, and other things will soon naturally and easily adjust themselves; but without these essentials nothing will go right for any length of time. Above all, young woman, never marry an infidel to convert him, or a drunkard to steady him, or a rake to reform him; for if you do, you sacrifice yourself for nothing, inasmuch as you will entail misery on yourself without any certainty of benefiting him. Let the reformation come first, and then there will be more assurance of happiness. But now just a word, in conclusion, on the value of character. Boaz said to Ruth, "All the city of my people doth know that thou art a worthy woman ;" and his conviction that she was indeed a noble woman led to his interest in her welfare, and ultimately to his making her his wife. But Ruth had not been very long in Bethlehem, and the fact that so soon she had gained such a reputation speaks volumes for her deportment. Character cannot long be hid. If it be good, it will reveal itself in worthy conduct; but if it be bad, it will let itself out, in spite of any hypocritical efforts to hide itself. Through some little chink of unconscious and, therefore, unwatched evil, it will surely come to light. The daily life of Ruth in the field was enough to let all know the sort of woman that she was. Thus character and reputation are closely interlinked. The one is the flower, the other is the fragrance: but to have the fragrance rich, you must have the flower perfect. So, to have the reputation good, you must not look to that first, but to the character, and then the reputation will take care of itself--nay, even in apparently questionable circumstances, as here the character will come to the rescue of the reputation. How important, then, it is to have a good character! It is not only the highway to success in life, it is in itself the highest success. Cultivate good character, therefore; and that you may do that in the right way, unite yourself to Jesus by living faith; then go on after the plan of Peter, "add to your faith courage, to your courage knowledge, to your knowledge temperance, to your temperance patience, and to your patience godliness, to your godliness brotherly kindness, and to your brotherly kindness love ;" and then you will be living epistles of Christ, known and read of all men, carrying in your deportment the infallible endorsement of the genuineness of your piety.