THE FIRST PART: A BIRD’S-EYE VIEW OF THE OLD TESTANENT
From David to the Captivity
Message One—Boaz
Scripture Reading: Ruth 1:1; 2:1; 14-16; 3:15; 4:1-17; Rom. 6:6; 7:4; 2 Cor. 12:9; Eph. 2:12-14; 3:6, 8; Rev. 5:10
I. The book of Ruth, being a record of a couple’s excellent story, bright and aromatic, is a complete prefigure of the Gentile sinners’ being brought, with Israel, God’s elect, into the divine inheritance through the redemption of Christ in their union with Him—Eph. 2:12-14:
A. As an appendix to the book of Judges, the book of Ruth is an excellent, bright, and aromatic story against a background of miserable, dark, and stinking history.
B. The book of Ruth is an important part of the genealogy of Christ—Matt. 1:5, footnote 3.
II. Boaz and Ruth typifying Christ and the Church, Boaz typifies Christ in redeeming the church and making the church His counterpart for His increase—John 3:29; Eph. 1:23:
A. Boaz typifies Christ in two aspects—Ruth 2:1, 14-16:
1. As a man of noble birth—Ruth 2:1,14-16; 3:15:
a. In Luke 19:12 the Lord Jesus likened Himself to a man of noble birth; this signifies that the Lord Jesus, who is of the highest status, is the God-man, both honorable in His deity and noble in His humanity.
b. As a man, rich in wealth and generous in giving , Boaz typifies Christ, whose divine riches are unsearchable and who takes care of God’s needy people with His bountiful supply—Eph. 3:8; 2 Cor. 12:9.
2. As a kinsman of Mahlon—Ruth 4:9-10, 13:
a. The first kinsman of Ruth’s husband typifies our natural man who cannot and will not redeem us from the indebtedness (sin) of our old man.
b. As a kinsman of Mahlon, the dead husband of Ruth, who redeemed the lost right of Mahlon’s property and took Mahlon’s widow, Ruth, as his wife for the producing of the needed heirs, Boaz typifies Christ in redeeming the church and making the church His counterpart for His increase—4:9-10, 13; John 3:29-30; Eph. 1:23; 5:23-32.
B. Ruth typifies the church, as the counterpart of Christ, being redeemed—Rom. 7:4:
1. Ruth, being a woman in Adam in God’s creation and a Moabitess in man’s fall, thus becoming an old man with these two aspects, typifies the church, before her salvation, as men in God’s creation and sinners in man’s fall being “our old man”— 6:6.
2. Ruth, being the widow of the dead husband, redeemed by Boaz, who cleared the indebtedness of her dead husband for the recovery of the lost right of her dead husband’s property, typifies the church with her old man as her crucified husband redeemed by Christ, who cleared away her old man’s sin for the recovery of the lost right of her fallen natural man created by God—7:4a.
3. Ruth, after being redeemed by Boaz, becoming a new wife to him typifies the church, after being saved, through the regeneration of the church’s natural man, becoming the counterpart of Christ—7:4b.
4. Ruth being united to Boaz typifies the Gentile sinners being attached to Christ that they may partake of the inheritance of God’s promise—Eph. 3:6.
III. The book of Ruth shows us how Boaz (a type of Christ) redeemed both Ruth (a type of the church in redemption) and her birthright—Ruth 2:1; 3:2, 9-11; 4:1-17:
A. Boaz redeemed his kinsman’s inheritance and married the man’s widow; hence, he became a notable forefather of Christ, a great associate of Christ—4:1-17.
B. Boaz treasured the God-given birthright and was concerned not only for his own birthright but also for that of others; he paid the price to redeem his kinsman’s inheritance and married his kinsman’s widow—Ruth 4:1-17.
C. As a brother and a Boaz, you should take care of others’ birthright of Christ, not only your own birthright; in other words, you should not only take care of your own enjoyment of Christ, but also others’ enjoyment of Christ.
D. The birthright includes the right and position to enjoy Christ with the privileges to be a priest to bring man to God and to be a king to bring God to man—Eph. 3:8; 1 Pet. 2:5, 9; Rev. 5:10.
E. It was due to Boaz’s compassion on the poor and weak Ruth and his redemption of her birthright that David, the king who established the kingdom, was brought in—Ruth 4:17.
IV. The book of Ruth is a book not of power but of life—Ruth1:16-17; 3:12-13:
A. Ruth moved in life in her clinging to Naomi, obeying Naomi, and in her approaching Boaz—Ruth 1:16-17.
B. Boaz moved in life in his contact with Ruth—Ruth 3:12-13:
1. Boaz was absolutely restrained, not moved, in his lust—Ruth 3:7-15.
2. He was willing to bear his responsibility according to God’s ordinance to redeem Elimelech’s inheritance, yet he would not overstep the one who was ahead of him in this matter—vv. 12-13.
3. Boaz was lawful in every way, and his being lawful was based not on power but on life
C. Only life can bring Christ forth; only life can keep the lineage, maintaining the thin line to bring God into humanity, to produce Christ and to minister Christ and to supply the entire human race with Christ—Matt. 1:23.
Ministry Excerpts:
RUTH BEING THE RECORD OF A COUPLE’S EXCELLENT STORY
Ruth is an appendix to the book of Judges, contemporary with the first half of Judges. Judges is a book of Israel’s miserable history, dark and stinking; Ruth is the record of a couple’s excellent story, bright and aromatic. The main role in this story is like a lily growing out of brambles and a bright star in the dark night. (Life-Study of Ruth, msg. 1)
AS A MAN RICH IN WEALTH AND GENEROUS IN GIVING
As a man, rich in wealth and generous in giving, Boaz typifies Christ, whose divine riches are unsearchable and who takes care of God’s needy people with His bountiful supply.
Sadly, in their experience many of today’s Christians do not have Christ in His riches, and they do not have Him as the Husband. In the church we have Christ as our riches, and we also have Him as our Husband. In Ephesians Paul speaks of the unsearchable riches of Christ. He speaks also of Christ as the Husband of the church. In Revelation our Husband is unveiled as the Lamb, the redeeming God. The Bible reveals, therefore, that Christ with His unsearchable riches is our Husband. In the last two chapters of the Bible, we see that Christ, the Lamb, is our Husband and that we, the believers in Christ, are the Lamb’s wife. (Life-Study of Ruth, msg. 6)
IN THIS BRIGHT AND AROMATIC STORY RUTH TYPIFING THE CHURCH IN FOUR WAYS
First, Ruth was a woman in Adam in God’s creation and a Moabitess in man’s fall. Through the fall the God-created man became a sinner and thus became the old man consisting of two parts—a natural (good) part created by God and a fallen (evil) part corrupted by sin. As a created and fallen person with these two aspects, Ruth typifies the church, before its salvation, as men in God’s creation and sinners in man’s fall being “our old man”.
Second, Ruth, the widow of the dead husband, was redeemed by Boaz, who cleared the indebtedness of her dead husband to recover the lost right to her dead husband’s property. In this aspect Ruth typifies the church, whose old man is her crucified husband, being redeemed by Christ, who cleared away her old man’s sin for the recovery of the lost right of her fallen God-created natural man. Ruth’s old husband, Mahlon, typifies the fallen part of our old man, and his indebtedness typifies our sin caused by our fallen part, because of which we lost our right as a God-created being. Ruth herself, as the wife, typifies our natural man, who was created by God to be God’s counterpart, His wife, and who was redeemed and regenerated to be the new man as the wife of Christ. Christ’s death on the cross destroyed the fallen part of our old man, redeemed the part created by God, and cleared our sin caused by the fallen part, thereby recovering the right of the God-created part.
Third, Ruth, after being redeemed by Boaz, became a new wife to him. As such, she typifies the church, which, after being saved, became the counterpart of Christ in the organic union with Him through the regeneration of the church’s natural man. When Ruth married Boaz, she was redeemed from her indebtedness, and she became his new wife for the producing of the needed heirs. In the fulfillment of this type, Christ, our new Husband, died to redeem us and to clear the indebtedness caused by the sins of our old man. Then in resurrection He, as the life-giving Spirit, regenerated us to make us a new creation married to Him. After being redeemed and regenerated, our natural man, excluding our fallen part, becomes our new man and takes Christ as our new Husband in the divine organic union with Him. Now, in the organic union between Christ and us, we can bring forth Christ and spread Christ by ministering Him to all men universally for His increase.
Fourth, Ruth (a Gentile sinner) being united to Boaz that she might participate in the inheritance of God’s elect typifies the redeemed and regenerated Gentile sinners (the main constituents of the church) being attached to Christ that they may partake of the inheritance of God’s promise. (Holy Bible Recovery Version, Ruth 1:4, footnote 2)
Ruth, after being redeemed by Boaz, becoming a new wife to him typifies the church, after being saved, through the regeneration of the church’s natural man, becoming the counterpart of Christ (Rom. 7:4b). Just as the redeemed Ruth became a new wife to Boaz, so the saved and regenerated church has become His new wife, His counterpart, in the organic union with Him.
RUTH BEING UNITED WITH BOAZ
Ruth being united to Boaz typifies the Gentile sinners being attached to Christ that they may partake of the inheritance of God’s promise. The more we consider these aspects of Ruth as a type of the church, the more we can know our status as believers in Christ today. First, we were created by God. Second, we became fallen persons. Third, we were redeemed by Christ. Fourth, we were regenerated by the pneumatic Christ as the life-giving Spirit. Thus, we may summarize our status in four words: created, fallen, redeemed, and regenerated.
Let us now consider further how, in typology, the various aspects of Ruth’s situation apply to us today. In God’s creation Ruth was good, but she became fallen in Adam. When she turned to Israel, she believed in the saving God and was redeemed. Then, having become a new person, she married Boaz and became his new wife.
As signified by the type of Ruth and her dead husband, Ruth’s natural part created by God and her fallen part cooperated to assume to be the husband, forsaking God as the Husband. This husband was the main part of her old man, which was composed of her God created part and her fallen part. The old man as the illegal husband made many mistakes and incurred a great deal of debt, thereby selling himself and losing his right as a God-created being because of his sins. After Ruth’s husband died, she was not only a widow but was also in a condition of indebtedness. The only way out of this condition was to be united in marriage to the proper person. When Ruth married Boaz, she was redeemed from her indebtedness, and she became his new wife for the producing of the needed heirs.
This is a picture of our situation today. Christ, our Husband, died to redeem us and to clear the indebtedness caused by the sins of our old man. Then in resurrection He, as the life-giving Spirit, regenerated us to make us, as created, fallen, and redeemed persons, a new creation married to Him. Now, in the organic union between Christ and us, we can bring forth Christ and spread Christ for His increase. (Life-Study of Ruth, msg. 6)
GOD’S MOVE IN THE SPIRIT OF POWER AND
GOD’S MOVE IN THE SPIRIT OF LIFE
In this concluding word on the book of Ruth, I have the burden to cover a very crucial point in Joshua, Judges, and Ruth. This crucial point is that these books show us one picture with two sides. One side concerns God’s move in His economical Spirit, the Spirit of power; the other side concerns God’s move in His essential Spirit, the Spirit of life. With all the judges, and even with Joshua and Caleb, we can see only the work, the move, of God in power. In the books of Joshua and Judges it is hard to find even a hint of God’s move in His life.
In contrast, the book of Ruth is a book not of power but of life.
The Example of Ruth
Ruth was outstanding in life. The purpose of the book of Ruth is not to tell us anything concerning power but to reveal the things of life to the uttermost. Naomi made it clear to Ruth that she had no capacity to produce a husband for her who could redeem her and bring forth a descendant for her father-in-law, Elimelech. Feeling that the situation was hopeless, Naomi encouraged Ruth to return to her mother’s house in order to have a future. Ruth’s reply was full of life. She would go with Naomi forever, being with her in poverty. Ruth said to Naomi, “Do not entreat me to leave you and turn away from following after you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you dwell, I will dwell; and your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Where you die, I will die; and there will I be buried. Jehovah do so to me, and more as well, if anything but death parts me from you”. This is the real spirit of the New Testament believers—to follow Jesus by forsaking everything: parents, children, relatives, houses, and so forth. This is the way of life revealed in the New Testament.
The Example of Boaz
Like Naomi and Ruth, Boaz was a person in life to the uttermost. Naomi said to Ruth, “My daughter, I must seek some resting place for you, that it may go well with you”. Then Naomi charged her to wash herself, anoint herself, put on her best clothes, go down to the threshing floor, and, at the proper time, make herself known to Boaz. Eventually, Ruth identified herself to Boaz, saying, “I am Ruth, your maidservant. Spread your cloak over your maidservant, for you are a kinsman”.
In his contact with Ruth at the threshing floor that night, Boaz was absolutely restrained, not moved, in his lust, absolutely different from the lust-indulging judges. Boaz blessed Ruth and highly appraised her. Then he told her that he was willing to bear his responsibility according to God’s ordinance to redeem Elimelech’s inheritance, yet he would not overstep the one who was ahead of him in this matter. Here Boaz seemed to be saying, “Daughter, wait until tomorrow. Yes, I am your kinsman, and we are free in God. But there is another kinsman who is closer to you than I am, and he must be allowed to go ahead of me. If I do not care for him in this matter, the holy people of God will condemn me for overstepping. Let the other kinsman go ahead of me. If he is not willing to do the kinsman’s duty for you, I will do it for you. ” Boaz was lawful in every way, and his being lawful was based not on power but on life. This shows that Boaz had the highest standard of life.
TAKING THE WAY OF LIFE IN THE LORD’S RECOVERY
In the Lord’s recovery, should we take the way of the judges to be powerful and to do a great work? If we take the way of the judges instead of the way of life, whatever we accomplish will mean nothing. Not one judge was a forefather of Christ. The judges had nothing to do with keeping the line in humanity to bring in God in His incarnation. It was Ruth and Boaz who participated in keeping this line. However, they did not fight a war; they did not exercise any power.
It is crucial for us to see that only life can bring Christ forth. Only life can keep the lineage, maintaining the thin line to bring God into humanity, to produce Christ and to minister Christ and to supply the entire human race with Christ. This was done not by the judges but by Ruth and Boaz, who took the way of life.
In the Lord’s recovery, I have very much promoted the gaining of the increase, but I do not mean that we should try to gain the increase by being a Samson or a Gideon. I would rather have no increase and keep my genuineness in life. I would rather be without any power, without any result from the work, and remain in the line that brings forth Christ out of eternity into time, that brings forth Christ with His divinity into humanity. (Life-Study of Ruth, msg. 8)