Ruth Gleans in Boaz’ Field
2 Now Naomi had [a]a kinsman of her husband, a [b]man of great wealth, of the family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. 2 And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one in whose sight I may find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” 3 So she departed and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers; and [c]she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech. 4 Now behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the reapers, “May the Lord be with you.” And they said to him, “May the Lord bless you.” 5 Then Boaz said to his servant who was [d]in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?” 6 The servant [e]in charge of the reapers replied, “She is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi from the land of Moab. 7 And she said, ‘Please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ Thus she came and has remained from the morning until now; she has been sitting in the house for a little while.”
8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, “[f]Listen carefully, my daughter. Do not go to glean in another field; furthermore, do not go on from this one, but stay here with my maids. 9 Let your eyes be on the field which they reap, and go after them. Indeed, I have commanded the servants not to touch you. When you are thirsty, go to the [g]water jars and drink from what the servants draw.” 10 Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” 11 Boaz replied to her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me, and how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and came to a people that you did not previously know. 12 May the Lord reward your work, and your wages be full from the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge.” 13 Then she said, “I have found favor in your sight, my lord, for you have comforted me and indeed have spoken [h]kindly to your maidservant, though I am not like one of your maidservants.”
In the very first verse we find that Boaz was very wealthy. Boaz understood something very important about those blessings. They were not meant to be hoarded, but to be shared.
When we are blessed, it is not for us alone. God created us to have relationships, and part of that relational nature includes sharing our sorrow and our blessings.
A hoarded blessing ceases to be a blessing and will instead become a curse. Elsewhere we see the idea of a cup of blessing running over. For what purpose does it run over? To spill on the ground and be wasted?
No, the cup runs over to be shared with those who do not have full cups (or perhaps empty cups). When you are blessed, look first at how you can share it. Only then can you safely look at how to benefit from it yourself.