BOAZ WAS A GOOD CATCH

March 5th, 2012 | By admin

by Katt Anderson

A husband like Boaz should be every girls dream. He was a catch and a half, and poor Ruth did not realize it. She knew he was wealthy and next of kin, but I wonder if she realized what a catch she was getting.

We read very little about Boaz, but we needed both him and Ruth. They are in the genealogy of Christ. He and Ruth are mentioned in Matthew 1:5. The real story begins in the book of Ruth.

The story has been told hundreds of times about Naomi and her husband Elimelech going to Moab because of a drought in their home city of Bethlehem. While in Moab, Elimelech dies and his sons marry Moabite women. One is Ruth. Naomi decides to return to Bethlehem, and Ruth refuses to leave her. She accompanies Naomi to her home city.

When they arrived there, they had nothing except what they had brought with them. It would have been very little since they could not carry much as they walked. They were destitute. They were more than poor. They had zip.

Naomi knew about a distant relative. She knew he could be next in line to marry Ruth since Ruth and her first husband had no children. I’m sure there was a helpless feeling for both Naomi and Ruth.

So they could have food, Ruth goes to a field to gather grain. At least they could have a little bread. She went to the field that Boaz owned. Boaz noticed her and realized the danger she could be in. Reapers apparently had a reputation and not a good one.

I’ve always thought Ruth had to be beautiful. Boaz had a kind heart and asked her to glean in his fields. He also told his men to not bother her and to leave a little more grain than usual when she was there. He protected her.

Boaz knew who she was, but she had no idea at firswho he was. When Naomi asked her where she gleaned, Ruth told her. Naomi thanked God that she had been taken care of by Boaz, and she told Ruth that Boaz was a near kinsman.

The custom at that time was a little different from ours. If a man died and had no children, then his widow was to marry a close relative and bear children for her first husband. It doesn’t sound right to us today, but that was the way it was. Boaz was a near kinsman of Naomi, but he had not fulfilled his duty yet.

Naomi and Ruth had to take matters into their own hands. Ruth did what she was supposed to do if Boaz had not married her. She uncovered his feet when he went to sleep and, she laid down. I’m sure he was shocked to find a woman sleeping when he woke up. He knew then what he had to do. He had to approach the next of kin. If that man did not wan to fulfill his obligation by marrying Ruth, then Boaz was next in line.

To make a long story short, Boaz married Ruth. Ruth had already decided to worship God and not idols. Boaz was apparently willing to accept that. Why was it easy for him? His mother was Rahab of Jericho! Boaz had learned forgiveness and acceptance from the beginning of his life. His mother had been a harlot, but she had helped the spies in Jericho. What a story!

Why do I think Boaz was a good catch? He loved God and obeyed His commands. He was kind and generous. He was willing to forgive Ruth for her previous life. He showed God’s love, and he took the responsibility he knew he had to take.

Ruth is one of two women mentioned in the genealogy of Christ. The other is her mother-in-law, Rahab. Both were not born Jews. God’s amazing love.