God Working
Naomi comes back into the picture in our passage today. Ruth returns to their modest home carrying a bountiful harvest—far more than a normal day of gleaning would provide. It is the result of the gracious hand of Boaz.
Naomi immediately senses that something unusual has happened.
“Where have you gleaned today? Where did you work?”
Ruth answers simply, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.”
And with that name, everything begins to change.
For the first time since her return to Bethlehem, Naomi begins to see. The hand of God, which once felt heavy against her, is now revealed to have been working for her all along:
“Blessed be he of the LORD, who has not forsaken His kindness to the living and the dead.”
But Naomi sees more than kindness—she recognizes provision.
“This man is a relation of ours, one of our close relatives.”
In other words, Boaz is not just generous. He is a kinsman-redeemer.
He is a man who has both the right and the ability to step into their loss and restore what has been taken. Their emptiness is no longer final. Their future is no longer closed off. Redemption has quietly entered the story.
But the truth is, God had not just started working.
He had been working the entire time.
When they were empty, God was working.
When they were grieving, God was working.
When Naomi believed the Lord had dealt bitterly with her, He was quietly preparing her redemption.
This is the way of God.
We often try to measure His faithfulness by our present circumstances. If life feels full, we assume He is near. If life feels bitter, we wonder if He has withdrawn.
But the cross of Christ settles that question once and for all.
At the very moment when everything appeared lost—when hope seemed crucified and buried—God was accomplishing His greatest work. What looked like defeat was, in truth, redemption.
And like Boaz, Jesus is not merely kind toward us—He is our Redeemer.
He has the right to redeem us, having taken on our flesh.
He has the power to redeem us, having conquered sin and death.
And He has the willingness to redeem us, demonstrated at the cross.
So we do not interpret God’s work by what we see in the moment. We interpret what we see in light of what God has already done in Christ.
And in time, like Naomi, we begin to recognize it:
Our Boaz, Jesus, has not forsaken His kindness toward us.
