Kindness on Purpose

Ruth 2:15-16 (KJV) And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz commanded his young men, saying, Let her glean even among the sheaves, and reproach her not: And let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her, and leave them, that she may glean them, and rebuke her not.

            I was looking for the word “purpose” in the Bible when I came across these verses in Ruth.  They made me stop and think about how kind Boaz was to Ruth.  Then I realized that there’s a trail of kindness throughout the book of Ruth.  I’m going to take for granted you know the story of Ruth, but if you do not, please take a few moments to read it.  Ruth is a short book in the Old Testament, but it’s one of my favorites.  

             Naomi showed kindness to Ruth first by accepting her and loving her as a daughter.  Even more important, Naomi taught Ruth about the one true God, probably not just with words, but by the way she lived too.  Eventually, Ruth chose Naomi’s God to be her own.  Naomi didn’t have to be kind to Ruth. Ruth was her daughter-in-law, a Gentile, an idolatress. But Naomi chose to be kind because she knew she could impact Ruth’s eternity.

             Unfortunately, after Naomi’s husband and sons died, she became bitter and depressed.  She announced to her daughters-in-law that she was returning to Bethlehem, and they needed to return to their parents.  She had nothing to give them.  But Ruth would not leave Naomi alone; it was now her turn to show kindness.  Ruth left everything she knew – her parents, her homeland, even the grave of her husband – to accompany a bitter old woman to a place she’d never been.  As far as Ruth could see, there would be no reward for her kindness.  She and Naomi would live as impoverished widows for the rest of their lives.  Can you imagine their journey?  Ruth 1:18 says Naomi left speaking unto Ruth.  Maybe she gave her the silent treatment all the way back to Bethlehem.  Yet Ruth never faltered.  She would be there for Naomi until the end, taking care of her and loving her.  Ruth’s kindness was Christ-like and, I believe, was a result of her newfound faith in God.  Ruth may have felt that her kindness would have no reward, God would make sure that it did.  

             Life in those days was not easy for widows, but God had made provision for them in Leviticus 19.  Reapers were to leave the dropped grains and the corners of the fields for the poor.  That’s how Ruth found herself in the field of Boaz, gleaning behind his reapers.  Then Boaz did something that surprised Ruth: he invited her to eat lunch with him.  After lunch, he told his reapers to let Ruth glean anywhere (not just the corners).  And not only that, he also told them to let extra grain fall to the ground for her to gather.  “Let fall also some of the handfuls of purpose for her.”  Ruth must have brought a lot of food home that day because Naomi exclaimed, “Where hast thou gleaned today?  Blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee.”  When Ruth asked Boaz why he would show favor to her, he replied in Ruth 2:11, “It hath fully been showed to me all that thou hast done unto thy mother-in-law since the death of thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest not heretofore.”  Ruth’s testimony was that she had left all to be with Naomi, even during her darkest moments.  And Ruth was willing to go out to glean in the fields so that Naomi didn’t have to.  Boaz knew this, and he chose to be kind to her because of her kindness to Naomi.  It did not matter where she was from or what her previous religion had been or what her past looked like.  In the end, they were married and became the great-grandparents of King David.  They are part of the lineage of Jesus.  What an honor!

             Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz chose to show kindness on purpose, even when it wasn’t easy.  God still wants His people to show kindness on purpose.  Who do I need to be kind to today?  What impact can my kindness have on their lives?  It may be that my kindness can open the door for me to witness to a lost soul.  Then I can tell them about the greatest kindness ever shown: Jesus Christ, who died for the sins of the whole world, who loved us even when we were unlovable.  As we go about our day, let us choose to be kind on purpose.