The Sovereignty of Small Things Text: Ruth 2:1-7
Introduction: God's Appointed Happenstance
We live in an age that has lost its nerve. We want God to show up in ways that would make a fine Hollywood movie. We want thunderclaps, parting seas, and writing on the wall. But the way God ordinarily governs the affairs of men is through what we might call sanctified happenstance. He is the master weaver, and the threads He uses are the ten thousand ordinary, mundane, and seemingly coincidental events of our daily lives. Our choices, our steps, our "bad luck" and our "good fortune" are all threads in His sovereign hand.
The book of Ruth is a master class in this kind of providence. It is a story of profound loss, fierce loyalty, and ultimately, glorious redemption. But the hinge upon which the entire story turns is a phrase in our text that is easy to skim over: "And it so happened." This is the language of divine appointment dressed in the overalls of a common weekday. God's great redemptive purposes are not always announced with a trumpet blast. More often, they arrive quietly, like a foreign widow looking for leftover grain in a dusty field.
If we do not learn to see the hand of God in the small things, we will miss Him entirely. If we do not believe that He is meticulously governing the flight of a sparrow, the roll of the dice, and the precise path a young woman takes to a barley field, then our doctrine of sovereignty is a hollow thing. This is not deism, where God winds up the clock and lets it run. This is the intimate, personal, and exhaustive governance of a loving Father. In these seven verses, we are introduced to the key players and the key principle of the story: God's providence works through the faithful, ordinary actions of His people.
The Text
Now Naomi had a kinsman of her husband, a mighty man of excellence, of the family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, "Please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one whom I may find favor in his eyes." And she said to her, "Go, my daughter." So she went. And she came and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And it so happened that she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech. Now behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the reapers, "May Yahweh be with you." And they said to him, "May Yahweh bless you." Then Boaz said to his young man who was in charge of the reapers, "Whose young woman is this?" The young man in charge of the reapers replied, "She is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi from the fields of Moab. 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."
(Ruth 2:1-7 LSB)
A Mighty Man of Excellence (v. 1)
The chapter opens by introducing the man who will be God's instrument of redemption.
"Now Naomi had a kinsman of her husband, a mighty man of excellence, of the family of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz." (Ruth 2:1)
Before we even meet Ruth in the field, the narrator pulls back the curtain and shows us that God has already set the stage. There is a man named Boaz. He is not just any man. First, he is a "kinsman," a go'el. This is a crucial, technical term. The kinsman-redeemer had a legal and familial obligation to care for a widowed relative, to redeem her land, and, if necessary, to marry her to raise up an heir for the deceased. This entire institution was a picture, a type, pointing forward to the Lord Jesus Christ, our ultimate Go'el, who would redeem His bride from the destitution of sin.
Second, Boaz is described as a "mighty man of excellence." The Hebrew is gibbor hayil. This is the same phrase used to describe valiant warriors. It speaks not just of wealth, but of character, strength, reputation, and influence. Boaz is a man of substance, a pillar in the gate of Bethlehem. God does not choose flimsy men for weighty tasks. He raises up men of character to be instruments of His grace. Boaz is a preview of the kind of man God delights in, a man who is strong, honorable, and ready to fulfill his covenantal duties.
The Piety of a Pagan Convert (v. 2)
While God has His man in place, the human initiative in the story comes from Ruth, the Moabitess.
"And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, 'Please let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after one whom I may find favor in his eyes.' And she said to her, 'Go, my daughter.'" (Ruth 2:2)
Notice the character of this woman. She is not sitting idly by, waiting for a miracle or a government handout. She is a woman of action. True faith is never passive. It does not sit on the couch and pray for groceries. It gets up and goes to work, trusting that God will provide. Ruth's plan is to avail herself of the provision God had already made in His law. The law of gleaning (Lev. 19:9-10) was God's welfare system. It was not a system of entitlement, but an opportunity for the poor to work with dignity. It required the landowner's generosity and the poor person's industry.
But her posture is one of profound humility. She does not say, "I am going to demand my rights." She says, "let me go... after one whom I may find favor in his eyes." She is seeking grace. She understands that as a foreigner, a Moabitess, she is utterly dependent on the kindness of another. This is the posture of every sinner who comes to God. We do not come demanding justice; we come pleading for favor, for grace. And Naomi's response is simple and beautiful: "Go, my daughter." She blesses Ruth's faithful initiative.
A Providential Stumble (v. 3)
Here we find the very heart of the matter, the quiet turning of the divine gears.
"So she went. And she came and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And it so happened that she happened to come to the portion of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech." (Genesis 2:3)
Ruth acts. She went. She came. She gleaned. She is doing her part. And then God does His. The text says, "it so happened that she happened." The Hebrew literally says, "her chance chanced upon" the field of Boaz. From a human perspective, it was a complete coincidence. She could have turned left instead of right. She could have chosen any of a dozen other fields. But her "chance" was God's unchangeable decree. This is the beautiful mystery of divine sovereignty and human responsibility. We make our choices, we walk our paths, and the living God directs our steps to the exact place He has ordained for us from before the foundation of the world. There are no accidents for the child of God. Your "happenings" are His appointments.
The Culture of a Godly Workplace (v. 4)
Just as Ruth arrives, the owner of the field appears, and we get a glimpse into the culture he has cultivated.
"Now behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem and said to the reapers, 'May Yahweh be with you.' And they said to him, 'May Yahweh bless you.'" (Ruth 2:4)
This is not your typical interaction between a boss and his employees. This is a covenantal greeting. The sacred name of God, Yahweh, is on their lips in the middle of a workday, in the middle of a field. Boaz blesses his workers in the name of the Lord, and they bless him right back. This reveals a community where faith is not compartmentalized. God is not just for the Sabbath; He is the Lord of the harvest, the Lord of business, the Lord of daily bread. This is what a healthy Christian culture looks like. It is a culture of mutual respect, piety, and shared blessing, all grounded in the reality of God's presence in every area of life.
In verses 5 through 7, we see the character of both Boaz and Ruth further revealed.
"Then Boaz said to his young man who was in charge of the reapers, 'Whose young woman is this?' The young man... replied, 'She is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi... she said, "Please let me glean"... she has remained from the morning until now...'" (Ruth 2:5-7)
Boaz notices. A man of his stature could have easily overlooked a poor foreign woman gleaning at the edge of his operation. But he sees her. He is an attentive and caring master. He asks about her, and the foreman's report is a glowing character reference. First, her identity is known: she is the Moabitess who showed loyalty to Naomi. Her reputation for covenant faithfulness has preceded her. Second, her humility is noted: she asked permission to glean. Third, her industry is praised: she has been working relentlessly from morning until this moment. Her character shines. She is not lazy, she is not demanding, and she is loyal. Grace is about to be shown to her, not because she earned it, but her character, which is itself a fruit of prior grace, makes her a fitting recipient of further grace.
Gleaning for the Gospel
This entire scene is a beautiful illustration of the gospel. We, like Ruth, are outsiders. We are spiritual Moabites, foreigners from the covenant of promise, with no claim on God. We are destitute, widowed, and without hope in the world.
But in our desperation, by a grace we did not engineer, our "chance chances upon" the field of our great Kinsman-Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. We come, like Ruth, intending only to glean, to pick up the scraps of mercy at the edges of His kingdom. We come asking only for "favor in his eyes."
And what do we find? We find that the Lord of the harvest sees us. He knows who we are. He asks after us. And He doesn't just grant us permission to glean. As we will see, He invites us to the table, provides for us out of His abundance, commands His servants to protect us, and ultimately, takes us as His own bride. The story of Ruth is our story. It is the story of how God's sovereign plan, working through the faithful obedience and "chance" encounters of ordinary life, brings helpless sinners into the loving and secure arms of their mighty Redeemer.