by John O’Malley
“And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the Lord, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel” (Ruth 4:14).
The community of Bethlehem-judah learned of the birth of a child to Boaz and Ruth. The women in the city, who had known Naomi, came to her house to rejoice in the wonderful news. It would seem their rejoicing should be toward Boaz and Ruth. After all, Boaz and Ruth were the parents. However, their praise is directed toward the child’s grandmother. Their rejoicing in this way reveals the impact of the kinsman-redemption on the community.
Memories of Bethlehem-judah’s famine a decade ago and the accompanying sorrows found little grasp on their hearts in the birth of this little lad. A son had been born. God had remembered Naomi. Yes, Naomi! Although Ruth was the mother, Naomi represented her deceased husband Elimelech. It was Elimelech’s line that had been remembered, redeemed, and rewarded by the redemption of Boaz.
The redemption by Boaz was comprehensive. He purchased to himself all that belonged to Mahlon, Chilion, and Elimelech. Naomi, as the child’s grandmother, was burdened by all that had taken place. Naomi’s past, with her husband’s departure, which brought his death, was nullified because of Boaz’s redemption. Naomi’s pain in her heart was lifted as she saw the Almighty had blessed her and had not dealt bitterly with her as she had accused Him. Naomi’s potential, because of Boaz’s redemption, was before her. His redemption restored hope and renewed her happiness.
God had been gracious to Naomi; she and her neighbors knew it. These same neighbors who had heard her bemoan God’s forgetting, forsaking, and fierceness now arrive to raise the banner of rejoicing over the heart and home of Naomi. They rejoiced in God’s remembrance, redemption, and reward toward Naomi.
The word of the neighbors must have struck a chord of remembrance in Naomi’s hearing. Long gone were the days where she in desperation accused God in the presence of her neighbors upon her return from Moab. You remember she said, “Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full, and the Lord hath brought me home again empty: why then call ye me Naomi, seeing the Lord hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?”
The Eternal Boaz reminded Naomi, through the visit of the women, of His grace and goodness. She was reminded of the Father and Friend she had in Heaven. She was not alone. She had been remembered, not forgotten. She had been redeemed, not forsaken. She had been rewarded, not fined by the fierceness of God.
You know, the redemption that the Eternal Boaz offers is the same today. It is the bemoaning of believers that isolates them from recalling that the mercies of the Lord endure forever. As Naomi had a Friend in Heaven that remembered, redeemed, and rewarded her, so do believers today. His redemption erases our painful past and gives us potential we never knew. When the events of a million yesterdays seek to restrain you, remember it is His redemption that makes us worth something at all. “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:14).
Think about it...