Rut 3:3 | KingComments | STEP | Before Ruth can go to Boaz, she has to do a few things: she has to wash herself, anoint herself and put on her best clothes. Someone washes himself to become clean or pure. This is also the case spiritually. In spiritual terms, washing means that one is cleansed in one’s heart and mind by reading God’s Word ( ; ; ). Only when someone is cleansed, he can have part with the Lord Jesus ( ). Ruth must wash herself to be clean and then have part with Boaz. Then she has to anoint herself. Ointments are made with anointing oil. Ointment with oil is a picture of the anointing with the Holy Spirit. God’s children are anointed with the Holy Spirit ( ). He who is anointed with the Holy Spirit – and every child of God is! – will also show this in his life by showing the fruit of the Spirit. It is about being filled with the Spirit ( ). This is a command. It is our responsibility to give the Holy Spirit room in our lives. That is, our whole life is to be permeated by Him, that we live and walk through the Spirit ( ). As a result, our lives will spread a pleasant aroma (cf. ). With Ruth it means that it is no longer the smell of Moab that hangs around her ( ), but the smell of the new relationship she wants to enter into. We can ask ourselves the question: ‘What smell do we spread?’ She is putting on the best clothes she has. Clothes indicate behavior. What the people see of us is our behavior and actions, just as they see our clothes. It is God’s purpose that through our actions we should “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect” ( ). What the Word of God and the Holy Spirit do with us becomes visible in our appearance, our way of speaking and acting. Our contact with the Lord, our desire to be with Him and to live with Him and for Him, will have a cleansing effect on our lives ( ; cf. ). Do the people around us see that we are clothed with the Lord Jesus? God has made us pleasant “in the Beloved” ( ). His purpose is that we show this. We are urged to show the features of the new man ( ; ). Externally, this happens when we are baptized ( ). After these three actions she can go to Boaz. But she is not allowed to make herself known to Boaz until he has eaten and drunk. This shows that we could only come into contact with the Lord Jesus after He had completely fulfilled the Father’s will. The Father’s will was His food ( ), His ‘eating and drinking’. This advice also infers that she must not behave conspicuously in order to be seen by him. Everything speaks of humility and modesty. Naomi has given Ruth advice for her ‘personal care’. She also pointed out to Ruth that she should be modest and not impose herself. That’s not necessary with Boaz. Even when she now tells Ruth how to approach Boaz, it speaks of modesty. Ruth must first find out where Boaz will spend the night. That means she has to pay close attention to where Boaz is and where he is going. She has to follow him with her eyes, she has to keep an eye on him constantly. This also applies to our connection with the Lord Jesus. The contact with Him, every word we read about Him in His Word, makes us familiar with His ways. When she has ‘localized’ him, as it were, she has to go to him. What she then has to do – uncover his feet and lie down – means as much as asking him if he wants to marry her. By lying under the same blanket she offers herself to become his wife. However, she does not lie at his side, she does not (yet) have the right to do so, but at his feet. She wants to be his maidservant. This is where the sense of grace leads her to. She is dependent on grace. Naomi has already gained so much insight into Boaz that she knows how he will react. She tells Ruth that Boaz will tell her everything she must do. Ruth has the right mind for that and Boaz has the wisdom to notice it. From a spiritual point of view, what Ruth is doing here is to unite herself with the death of the Lord Jesus. Here it is not the sinner who comes to Christ to get new life, but the believer who sees more and more of the truth about what Christ has done and wants to experience it in his own life. Thus, from a spiritual point of view, the result of all her previous actions – which show the believer’s mind – is that the Lord Jesus will show what His will is (cf. ).

‏ Ruth 3:3

Instructions From Naomi for Ruth

Before Ruth can go to Boaz, she has to do a few things: she has to wash herself, anoint herself and put on her best clothes. Someone washes himself to become clean or pure. This is also the case spiritually. In spiritual terms, washing means that one is cleansed in one’s heart and mind by reading God’s Word (Jn 15:3; Eph 5:26; 1Pet 1:22). Only when someone is cleansed, he can have part with the Lord Jesus (Jn 13:8b). Ruth must wash herself to be clean and then have part with Boaz.

Then she has to anoint herself. Ointments are made with anointing oil. Ointment with oil is a picture of the anointing with the Holy Spirit. God’s children are anointed with the Holy Spirit (1Jn 2:20 ; 27). He who is anointed with the Holy Spirit – and every child of God is! – will also show this in his life by showing the fruit of the Spirit.

It is about being filled with the Spirit (Eph 5:18b). This is a command. It is our responsibility to give the Holy Spirit room in our lives. That is, our whole life is to be permeated by Him, that we live and walk through the Spirit (Gal 5:16). As a result, our lives will spread a pleasant aroma (cf. Jn 12:3). With Ruth it means that it is no longer the smell of Moab that hangs around her (Jer 48:11), but the smell of the new relationship she wants to enter into. We can ask ourselves the question: ‘What smell do we spread?’

She is putting on the best clothes she has. Clothes indicate behavior. What the people see of us is our behavior and actions, just as they see our clothes. It is God’s purpose that through our actions we should “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in every respect” (Tit 2:10). What the Word of God and the Holy Spirit do with us becomes visible in our appearance, our way of speaking and acting.

Our contact with the Lord, our desire to be with Him and to live with Him and for Him, will have a cleansing effect on our lives (1Jn 3:3; cf. Rev 22:11-12). Do the people around us see that we are clothed with the Lord Jesus? God has made us pleasant “in the Beloved” (Eph 1:6). His purpose is that we show this. We are urged to show the features of the new man (Col 3:12; Rom 13:14). Externally, this happens when we are baptized (Gal 3:27).

After these three actions she can go to Boaz. But she is not allowed to make herself known to Boaz until he has eaten and drunk. This shows that we could only come into contact with the Lord Jesus after He had completely fulfilled the Father’s will. The Father’s will was His food (Jn 4:34), His ‘eating and drinking’. This advice also infers that she must not behave conspicuously in order to be seen by him. Everything speaks of humility and modesty.

Naomi has given Ruth advice for her ‘personal care’. She also pointed out to Ruth that she should be modest and not impose herself. That’s not necessary with Boaz. Even when she now tells Ruth how to approach Boaz, it speaks of modesty. Ruth must first find out where Boaz will spend the night. That means she has to pay close attention to where Boaz is and where he is going. She has to follow him with her eyes, she has to keep an eye on him constantly. This also applies to our connection with the Lord Jesus. The contact with Him, every word we read about Him in His Word, makes us familiar with His ways.

When she has ‘localized’ him, as it were, she has to go to him. What she then has to do – uncover his feet and lie down – means as much as asking him if he wants to marry her. By lying under the same blanket she offers herself to become his wife. However, she does not lie at his side, she does not (yet) have the right to do so, but at his feet. She wants to be his maidservant. This is where the sense of grace leads her to. She is dependent on grace.

Naomi has already gained so much insight into Boaz that she knows how he will react. She tells Ruth that Boaz will tell her everything she must do. Ruth has the right mind for that and Boaz has the wisdom to notice it.

From a spiritual point of view, what Ruth is doing here is to unite herself with the death of the Lord Jesus. Here it is not the sinner who comes to Christ to get new life, but the believer who sees more and more of the truth about what Christ has done and wants to experience it in his own life. Thus, from a spiritual point of view, the result of all her previous actions – which show the believer’s mind – is that the Lord Jesus will show what His will is (cf. Jn 7:17).