“8 Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. 9 Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping, and go after them. Have I not charged the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn.” Ruth 2:8 (ESV).
Psychology Today says this, “As a self-conscious emotion, shame informs us of an internal state of inadequacy, unworthiness, dishonor, regret, or disconnection. Given that shame can lead us to feel as though our whole self is flawed, bad, or subject to exclusion, it motivates us to hide or to do something to save face. So it is no wonder that shame avoidance can lead to withdrawal or to addictions that attempt to mask its impact.”
What does this have to do with Ruth? Sometimes, when we read the stories in the Bible, we fail to see the characters in their humanity. What is interesting about Ruth is that God had forbidden the Israelites to accept any Moabite into their assembly because of their mistreatment of Israel. Our protagonist was not just any foreigner who showed kindness to her mother-in-law. Ruth was from Moab.
“3 No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even to the tenth generation. 4 For they did not meet you with food and water on your way out of Egypt, and they hired Balaam son of Beor from Pethor in Aram-naharaim to curse you.…” Deut 23:3 (Berean Study Bible).
It must have been shocking for the Israelite clan as Naomi (Ruth’s mother-in-law) returned to her people in her state of loss. She had left with her husband and two sons, only to return after all three had died, with no way to redeem her family’s land, and accompanied by a dependent from Moab.
But it must have been even more difficult for Ruth to live among the Israelites as she was considered cursed by God in a day when national purity was highly valued. She must have felt a deep sense of shame as she ventured out among the Israelite people while they struggled to determine what their response should be toward her. On the one hand, they knew what God had said and it had created a strong conviction in their mindset against such people. On the other, her kindness toward her mother-in-law could not be denied.
Interestingly enough, the crime of Moab had been that they did not provide food and water for the Israelites as they journeyed in the wilderness, yet when Ruth is discovered gleaning in the field of Boaz, that is exactly what he does for her – provides her with food, water, and protection. He didn’t adhere to the eye for eye justice system that Israel lived by, Boaz showed mercy and the compassionate nature of the God he served.
Why? Because Boaz is a picture of Israel’s Messiah that would come to redeem all of mankind – no matter what had marked them as unredeemable in the eyes of others.
What Jesus did on the cross is beyond our human understanding when it comes to dispensing justice and mercy. It perfectly satisfied the wrath of God toward sin and allows us to enter boldly into the presence of our holy God with joy. Jesus took our shame into himself as he died a humiliating death so that we might have life and live in abundant peace.
It takes time to undo the effects of shame in your life, however, if you know Jesus, it truly has been undone. Today is the perfect day to ask Father to give you a deeper revelation of how he sees you and what is needed to walk in the mercy and peace that only he can give.
You can read about my own journey into freedom from shame in my book One Small Voice. It is available on Amazon today.
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