Ruth And Boaz At The Threshing Floor

The story of Ruth written during the time of Judges, 6th century to 4th Century B.C., is a powerful story which emphasizes several teachings found in the Old Testament. These lessons range from the importance of maintaining faith in how God incorporates foreign converts into his holy family. Specifically within the passages of Ruth and Boaz at the Threshing Floor, written by an anonymous true author intended for post exilic Israelites, follows the protagonists Naomi and Ruth, whose struggle require them to relocate back to Judah after the death of their family in Moab. Once in Judah, the reader is introduced to the final main character Boaz, an Israelite farmer whose genealogy reveals that he is capable of restoring Naomi’s family by assuming the role of a goal (Ruth 3: ).

The antagonist is the alternative goel, whose kinsman position is nearer than Boaz’s (Ruth 3:12). While this other possible candidate poses as an obstacle, God guides the widow, Naomi and her daughter-in-law through this endeavor. However, God never confronts the main cast directly or uses theophanies, but instead influences their circumstances and choices through divine providence. Divine providence constantly influences the salvation of man and this story only reinforces such themes as this particular passage prefigures the sacrifice made by Christ in the New Testament (Luke 23:46). Naomi is suffering with her faith, but by God’s usage of virtuous characters is her fidelity restored as established through the unification of the literal and spiritual sense of sacred scripture. God uses the loyalty of Ruth to demonstrate how obedience influences the salvation of