Ruth: I Pleased Naomi

By Mary Vee
Ruth 2

From Ruth's Journal

At the end of my first day of work, I took the grain I'd gathered, beat it, and had it weighed then carried it home to show Naomi.


I felt like a little kid bringing home a prize.


Naomi smiled in a special, proud way. I hadn't seen her this happy since her husband was alive. I handed her the grain, and the extra food from my lunch.


She put her hands on her cheeks and laughed. "Ruth! What blessings you've brought to our home. Tell me, at what field did you work? The landowner must have thought well of you to let you gather all of this grain."


She always knew how to encourage me. I led her away from the kitchen to rest. "Here, sit down." I helped her to her favorite chair. "I have great news. I went down the road to the first field and asked if I could glean there. The head servant refused to allow me to work in his field. The same thing happened at the second field. The head servants obviously realized I looked like a Moabitess and decided they didn't want me to work in their fields." 


"I went to a third field and asked if I could glean. The head servant seemed to be a kind man. He had a lot of work to do but spoke with me for a moment. When I said I was staying with you he gave me permission to glean. Some time later in the morning, the landowner came to me--imagine, he spoke to me! 


He said, "Please stay close to the young women and work only in my fields." I think he must have told his workers to purposely drop grain for me because I found much more than other poor people working next to me. He showed me where to find water and gave me permission to drink from the vessels instead of drawing my own water.


"At meal time, he invited me to eat at the table for paid workers. Can you imagine? He spoke to me again and had a servant bring me food." I took out the portion of extra food I'd saved for her from my pocket. "Here, this is for you."


Naomi picked up the bread, held it close to her face, inhaled the delicious scent, and smiled. "What was the landowner's name?


I thought for a moment. "Oh yes, his name was Boaz."


With the smile still wide on her face, Naomi closed her eyes and shook her head the way people do when something amazes them. "This bread smells good. We are blessed beyond my understanding, Ruth. Look how God guided you to this man who you thought was a stranger. Boaz has taken care of us in our time of great need." She opened her eyes and clapped her hands once. "I have great news, Boaz is a relative. A close relative which means he would want to take care of us."


I hugged her. "He also said 'Work only in my field with my workers until the harvest is finished."


Naomi clapped her hands and spun around. For the first time she could hardly find words to say. "It's good, my daughter, that you worked only in his field. Since he has shown kindness today, I think you would be wise to do continue working in his field as he said."


The next day I obeyed Naomi suggestion and stayed close to the young women working in Boaz's field and gleaned the pieces his workers dropped. I returned to work there everyday throughout the barley and wheat harvests. Each day I had gathered plenty of food for us to eat. 


God took care of us in our time of need. I'm so glad I met Naomi and her God.


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1. What did Ruth bring Naomi?
2. In who's field did Ruth work?
3. What did Boaz tell Ruth to do?
4. What did Naomi think?
5. Why was Naomi so happy?
6. What did God do for Ruth and Naomi?
7. What helped you in this story?