Fully Accepting the Challenge of Jehovah’s Service

“‘I concealed my face from you for but a moment, but with loving-kindness to time indefinite I will have mercy upon you,’ your Repurchaser, Jehovah, has said.”​—Isa. 54:8.

1, 2. What events in ancient Bethlehem were leading up to a challenge that would have far-reaching effects?

DAWN was breaking over Bethlehem. Already some movement could be faintly distinguished in the streets as the dim light of the new day revealed a few shadowy figures hurrying about some early morning chore. The graceful figure of a young woman approaches the city and glides quickly across the open space at the entrance of the gate. There is a look of joy on her face and a spring in her step despite the bundle she carries wrapped in her cloak. She turns aside and enters a modest home where she is greeted briefly by a much older woman, then both sit down, expectantly waiting, the younger woman with a prospective hope for the future, the older woman with the hope of fulfillment of a lifelong desire.

² The minds of both women turn toward the city gate and the events that begin to occur as the first rays of the rising sun light upon the little city perched on the hilly eminence. More people are moving through the streets. The sun mounts higher. Though it is hardly yet summer, the six-month dry spell is well advanced and even at this early hour of the day the sun is beginning to make its heat felt. Now people are everywhere and the open space before the city gate is the scene of considerable activity. But sitting alone at the entrance of the gate is an older man, his bearing and dress denoting him as a man of means and of some prominence in the community. His demeanor this morning is serious as his eyes search out each new face that appears in the square. Obviously, he is looking for someone. Suddenly he calls out: “Do turn aside, do sit down here, So-and-so.” Another man of mature years stops, turns and seats himself alongside the first. With this greeting and this response, events were to begin that would change, not only the lives of the two women waiting patiently in the little home in Bethlehem, but also the lives of many in generations to come. A challenge was to be made to “So-and-so” that would have far-reaching effects, even down into our day.

3. Who were the principal characters in the drama of Naomi and Ruth, and what questions must be settled as to their relationships?

³ The name of the young woman who entered the city on this significant day was Ruth and the older woman who greeted her on entering the home was her mother-in-law, Naomi, widow of Elimelech. Ruth was not a natural-born Jewess though Naomi was. Ruth was a Moabitess. But how did she come to be the daughter-in-law of Naomi, living in Bethlehem so far away from her own land and people? What was her relationship to Boaz, the older man who was so intent on discussing a matter with So-and-so? And what was this matter of such import that its challenge could affect our lives today, over thirty centuries later?

4. Who or what do the principal characters picture?

⁴ The drama that was beginning to unfold in ancient Israel, as recorded in the book of Ruth, was prophetic of events in modern times that are just as challenging and far reaching in their effects as were those then. (1 Cor. 10:11; Rom. 15:4) And each of the characters involved in the ancient drama is pictorial as well. Elimelech’s name means “God is king.” Thus he pictures the Lord Jesus Christ. So does Boaz, a close relative of Naomi, his name possibly meaning “in strength.” It would be expected, then, that Naomi, whose name means “my pleasantness,” would picture those espoused to Jesus, those who are his bride, particularly those on earth in this “time of the end” when the drama is having its remarkable fulfillment. Ruth, her name perhaps meaning “friendship,” became the daughter-in-law of Naomi and was thus in line to produce offspring for Naomi. Thus she, too, would represent those of the bride of Christ, from a slightly different viewpoint and under different circumstances. Whom, then, does the one called “So-and-so,” who was also a close relative of Naomi, picture? We shall allow the unfolding of events in the modern day to make this identification clear.

A WOMAN FORSAKEN

5. (a) What occurred in Bethlehem in Naomi’s day, and what did her husband Elimelech do as a result? (b) What does this picture in the modern fulfillment?

⁵ We return now to the time when the happy family of Elimelech was still intact, his wife, Naomi, and their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, residing in the territory of Judah, in Bethlehem or Ephrathah. Bethlehem means “house of bread,” whereas Ephrathah means “fruitfulness” or “fertility.” Both names have to do with abundance, absence of starvation or famine, but in this thirteenth century before our common era, famine, lack of bread, does befall Bethlehem and the whole territory of the tribe of Judah, picturing the scarcity in a spiritual way that came upon Jehovah’s organization during World War I. Whether any other residents of Bethlehem left the city or not, Elimelech moves out with his family. He crosses over the Jordan River and settles down in the land or field of Moab to reside there temporarily as an alien resident, just as Jehovah’s servants today are temporary residents in Satan’s system of things. (John 17:16; 1 John 5:19) In doing this, Elimelech leaves behind in the land a hereditary possession.​—Ruth 1:1, 2.

6. What events occurred in Moab with Naomi’s relatives?

⁶ In the course of time the aged Elimelech dies and leaves Naomi as a widow. Naomi then sees good to marry off her two sons there in the land of Moab, and Mahlon, apparently the older, marries the Moabitess Ruth, while Chilion marries Orpah, also a Moabitess. Eventually, however, Mahlon and Chilion also die and leave behind a widowed mother, Naomi, and widowed wives, Ruth and Orpah. (Ruth 1:3-5) They are childless widows, bearing no offspring to Naomi. Being too old to bear children herself, Naomi must bear the brunt of the reproach. The death of Mahlon (meaning “sickly, invalid”) and Chilion (meaning “frailty”) pictures the spiritual death of some associated with God’s organization during this trying period. It was a time of great sorrow for Jehovah’s people.

7. How did Naomi view her condition, and what condition did Isaiah prophesy centuries later?

⁷ Naomi saw herself as a woman forsaken, one without seed or the reproductive power to produce seed. She was like “a wife left entirely and hurt in spirit, and as a wife of the time of youth who was then rejected.” In the days when fruitage of the womb could be viewed as a blessing from Jehovah and barrenness as a curse, Naomi felt justified in saying: “It is Jehovah that has humiliated me.” (Ruth 1:21) Centuries later the prophet Isaiah was inspired to write of a similar humiliation, in this instance as a direct result of Jehovah’s displeasure. To appreciate fully the challenge that faced Naomi, we must understand Isaiah’s prophecy and its application to events that have taken place in modern times in fulfillment. “‘For Jehovah called you as if you were a wife left entirely and hurt in spirit, and as a wife of the time of youth who was then rejected,’ your God has said: ‘For a little moment I left you entirely, but with great mercies I shall collect you together. With a flood of indignation I concealed my face from you for but a moment, but with loving-kindness to time indefinite I will have mercy upon you,’ your Repurchaser, Jehovah, has said.”​—Isa. 54:6-8.

JEHOVAH, A HUSBANDLY OWNER

8, 9. (a) To whom are the words of Isaiah 54:6-8 addressed, and how is this shown in the context of the prophecy? (b) What group is taken thereinto that is also pictured by Naomi?

⁸ This prophecy would suggest that Jehovah, the God of all creation, has a wife. Is this possible? Yes, symbolically speaking. To her it is said in Isaiah 54:5: “For your Grand Maker is your husbandly owner, Jehovah of armies being his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Repurchaser.” These words are addressed, not to Naomi, who had been dead for five centuries by Isaiah’s day, nor to any literal woman but to an organization, the heavenly Zion, God’s universal organization of spiritual sons in heaven. For the past nineteen hundred years these spiritual sons of God’s universal organization have not been confined to the invisible spiritual angels of heaven who are still holy and loyal to Jehovah God. This universal organization of Jehovah has taken in spirit-begotten sons of God on earth who finally total up to the number of 144,000. (Rev. 14:1) All of these are footstep followers of the chief one in God’s universal organization, namely, the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁹ These 144,000 footstep followers of Jesus Christ are engaged to marry him in heaven and consequently they are the prospective bride of Christ, as Revelation 21:9 calls them, “the bride, the Lamb’s wife.” The members of this bridal class have been in course of selection during the past nineteen hundred years. For this reason there could at most be only a remnant of them on earth today. Those who survived World War I, being dedicated to God and baptized before the year 1919 of our twentieth century, are pictured in the drama by Naomi. How, then, did they come to be in the condition of Naomi in the land of Moab, childless and forsaken?

10. What interrelationship exists between the remnant and God’s universal organization, and during what period did the Greater Elimelech “die” toward the Naomi class?

¹⁰ In order to understand this feature of the drama of Naomi and Ruth it is necessary to understand another feature of the relationship of the remnant on earth to the other members of God’s universal organization, those in heaven. Those of the remnant being members of the universal organization of God, whatever affects the remnant of the bride, still in the flesh though spiritual sons of God, likewise affects God’s woman, the heavenly Zion or the universal organization. This becomes quite clear when we consider the prophecy of Isaiah 54:6-8 in the light of events that surrounded the activity of the Naomi class during World War I. For it was in this period, from 1918 into 1919, that the Greater Elimelech “died” toward the Naomi class, who became forsaken, as though without a husbandly owner. It was an experience of humiliation when Jehovah, the husband of that universal organization, rejected his woman, as represented by the spirit-begotten members here on the earth, to fulfill Isaiah 54:6-8.

JEHOVAH IS DISPLEASED WITH HIS WOMAN

11. When and for what reason did Jehovah find displeasure in the remnant, and how was this manifested, affecting the entire universal organization?

¹¹ Notice how Jehovah describes his woman in Isaiah’s prophecy as being abandoned, hurt in spirit with his face concealed from her. That indicates a period of displeasure in her. That is why, in the Isa 54 eleventh verse, he addresses her: “O woman afflicted, tempest-tossed, uncomforted.” The Naomi remnant came into a condition like that, particularly in the year 1918, when they were, in a sense, exiled from Jehovah God’s favor. In that year Jehovah God came to his temple suddenly, accompanied by the messenger of the covenant, the Lord Jesus Christ. He examined the remnant here upon earth; he was displeased with them. (Mal. 3:1, 2) For a time they were not fully accepting the challenge of Jehovah’s Kingdom service that had opened up to them. They were holding back, through fear of man and were not properly keeping themselves “unspotted from the world.” (Jas. 1:27, Authorized Version) Therefore Jehovah let them go into bondage to Babylon the Great and her political associates. During this time much persecution and abuse were heaped upon them culminating in the arrest and imprisonment of the Society’s headquarters representatives in 1918, on the false charge of espionage.a This meant that all of the universal organization of God, God’s woman, would be affected by his displeasure, and the prophecy foretells that the entire organization would be as “a wife left entirely.”

12. How does Jehovah’s concealing his face from his woman fit in with the death of Elimelech if Elimelech represents the Lord Jesus Christ?

¹² But how does Jehovah’s concealing his face from his woman fit in with the death of Elimelech if Elimelech represents the Lord Jesus Christ? How does the heavenly Jesus Christ, in effect, die toward the Naomi class on earth? During his earthly ministry Jesus clearly demonstrated the rule of action: ‘What I see my Father do, I do.’ If, then, during the remnant’s period of divine disfavor, Jehovah abandoned his woman, concealed his face from her, then the Son must do the same thing, particularly to that portion of God’s universal organization, the spiritual remnant here on earth, who are members of his bride. Thus Jesus Christ, in effect, “died” to those whom Jehovah abandoned.

A SERIOUS CHALLENGE RAISED

13. What does Naomi now determine to do, and how does this present a challenge to Ruth and Orpah?

¹³ By this time, in the ancient drama, ten years have passed and now Naomi hears that a change has taken place in Bethlehem. Jehovah has again directed his attention to his people by giving them bread. Naomi determines to return. But there is an even more pressing reason. Back there in Bethlehem of Judah Naomi had a hereditary possession and she needs to go back there to take it over. This raises a serious challenge to Ruth and Orpah, her two “daughters.” What will they do? Apparently without question they set out with Naomi on the road back to Bethlehem. (Ruth 1:6, 7) Then, somewhere along the road, Naomi attempts to dissuade them. “‘Go, return, each one to the house of her mother. . . . May Jehovah make a gift to you, and do you find a resting-place each one in the house of her husband.’ Then she kissed them, and they began to raise their voices and weep. And they kept saying to her: ‘No, but with you we shall return to your people.’ But Naomi said: ‘Return, my daughters. Why should you go with me? Do I still have sons in my inward parts, and will they have to become your husbands? Return, my daughters, go, for I have grown too old to get to belong to a husband. . . . No, my daughters, for it is very bitter to me because of you, that the hand of Jehovah has gone out against me.”’​—Ruth 1:8-13.

14. What decision does Orpah make, and what similar course is followed today by those whom she pictures?

¹⁴ “At that they raised their voices and wept some more, after which Orpah kissed her mother-in-law. As for Ruth, she stuck with her. So she said: ‘Look! Your widowed sister-in-law has returned to her people and her gods. Return with your widowed sister-in-law.”’ (Ruth 1:14, 15) Orpah pictures some who come into contact with the faithful Naomi class and who manifest some interest and zeal for a time but who shrink back while still in their Christian youth. Self-interest and personal desires stand in the way of their accepting Jehovah’s challenge to ‘test him out’ whether he would “not open to you people the floodgates of the heavens and actually empty out upon you a blessing until there is no more want.”​—Mal. 3:10; Heb. 10:38, 39; 2 Pet. 2:22.

15, 16. How did Ruth respond to the challenge?

¹⁵ The Ruth class, on the other hand, sacrifice all personal advantages to share with the Naomi class in fulfilling Jehovah’s purpose for them. “And Ruth proceeded to say: ‘Do not plead with me to abandon you, to turn back from accompanying you; for where you go I shall go, and where you spend the night I shall spend the night. Your people will be my people, and your God my God. Where you die I shall die, and there is where I shall be buried. May Jehovah do so to me and add to it if anything but death should make a separation between me and you.”’​—Ruth 1:16, 17.

¹⁶ With these words, “May Jehovah do so to me and add to it,” Ruth was swearing, taking an oath to Jehovah that she would do these things. She was fully accepting this challenge to serve the God of Naomi, accompanying Naomi in his service even to death. Orpah’s failure to respond did not weaken Ruth’s determination or dampen her zeal. The influence of Naomi had worked to Ruth’s conversion, and the deep-rooted desire of Naomi’s heart was now to be worked out so that there would be faithful response on the part of Ruth to the further challenge both women were to face back in Bethlehem.

A FURTHER CHALLENGE PRESENTED

17. What did Naomi reply to the greeting of her neighbors upon her return to Bethlehem?

¹⁷ The bitterness and disillusionment Naomi had expressed to Ruth and Orpah as to their prospects in Bethlehem are not alleviated by Naomi’s homecoming. Back in her home, her sense of loss is only sharpened, and the keen realization of her impotence only heightens her bitterness and grief. All the city become stirred up over their return, especially so the womenfolk, and they cannot believe their eyes. Why, where is Elimelech? Where are Mahlon and Chilion? And who is this Moabite girl? “And the women kept saying: ‘Is this Naomi?’ and she would say to the women: ‘Do not call me Naomi [meaning “my pleasantness”]. Call me Mara [meaning “bitter”], for the Almighty has made it very bitter for me. I was full when I went, and it is empty-handed that Jehovah has made me return. Why should you call me Naomi, when it is Jehovah that has humiliated me and the Almighty that has caused me calamity?’”​—Ruth 1:18-22.

18. Why did God’s woman, as represented by the Naomi remnant on earth, need to be redeemed?

¹⁸ Truly the Naomi class could say during this time of affliction: “Call me Mara, the bitter one.” Isaiah 12:1 also makes reference to this severe discipline when it says, the prophet speaking to Jehovah God: “Although you got incensed at me, your anger gradually turned back.” Then Isaiah 52:3 says: “For this is what Jehovah has said: ‘It was for nothing that you people were sold, and it will be without money that you will be repurchased.”’ In other words, the people who took captive God’s dedicated servants here on earth did not pay for them, they got them for nothing. Isa 52 Verses five and six add: “‘And now, what interest do I have here?’ is the utterance of Jehovah. ‘For my people were taken for nothing. . . . For that reason my people will know my name, even for that reason in that day, because I am the One that is speaking.”’ So God let his people go for nothing; he let the enemy take possession of them without purchasing them. Therefore, God’s woman, as represented by the Naomi remnant here on earth, needed to be redeemed, repurchased, from Babylon the Great.

19. What promise of Jacob to Judah would Naomi be particularly aware of in her forsaken condition?

¹⁹ This was the challenge that faced Naomi of Bethlehem of the tribe of Judah, childless and a widow as though forsaken, chastened by Jehovah. Still there burned deep in her heart the desire to share in Jehovah’s purpose for the women of Israel, particularly a favored few of the tribe of Judah, for those in this tribe were in line for the promise of Jacob, the father of Judah. Just before he died in Egypt in the year 1711 B.C.E., Jacob blessed Judah with these words: “The scepter will not turn aside from Judah, neither the commander’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes; and to him the obedience of the peoples will belong.” (Gen. 49:10) This Shiloh, whose name means “He Whose It Is” or “He to Whom It Belongs,” must be the Commander who wields the staff. He must be the One who grasps the royal scepter. He must be the Messiah, the true Seed of Abraham, through whom all families of the earth would bless themselves. (Gen. 22:17, 18) Whose son would he prove to be in line of descent from Judah, the great-grandson of Abraham? What mother in Judah would be signally honored to carry him at her breast? Not Naomi, she might well reason in her own heart, childless and beyond the age of childbearing. No wonder that Naomi, in her desolate condition, cried out: “Call me Mara.”

JEHOVAH OPENS A WAY

20. What promise of Jehovah was made centuries later through Isaiah?

²⁰ But Jehovah was not to forsake this faithful woman whose cry had reached his ears. Well might the prophet have said to her as he did, speaking for Jehovah centuries later to the woman she pictured: “‘I concealed my face from you for but a moment, but with loving-kindness to time indefinite I will have mercy upon you,’ your Repurchaser, Jehovah, has said.” (Isa. 54:8) How was this to be accomplished with Naomi? If she were to die without a natural descendant, she would have no heir to whom to leave that estate of her dead husband. Besides, if Jehovah’s purpose to bring forth Shiloh from the tribe of Judah were to be accomplished through her, she would need a male heir. What was she to do?

21. What provision was made in the law of Israel for a widow in Naomi’s plight, and how did this present a challenge to Ruth?

²¹ Again the law of Israel made provision for someone in Naomi’s plight. It was according to Jehovah’s own promise that no faithful woman of ancient Israel be left barren. He said: “Because you keep listening to the voice of Jehovah your God: . . . Blessed will be the fruit of your belly.” (Deut. 28:2-4) Neither was a man to be left without one to carry forward his name. The law in Israel stated: “In case brothers dwell together and one of them has died without his having a son, the wife of the dead one should not become a strange man’s outside. Her brother-in-law should go to her, and he must take her as his wife and perform brother-in-law marriage with her. And it must occur that the firstborn whom she will bear should succeed to the name of his dead brother, that his name may not be wiped out of Israel.” (Deut. 25:5, 6) This law, along with the law of repurchase, was Naomi’s only hope. If a brother or near relative could be found, then Naomi might rely on this provision of the law to seek a way out. But Naomi herself could not produce a child even if the relative were to be found. Her only chance then depended on Ruth her daughter-in-law, who could take her place in this arrangement and provide a seed to Elimelech. How would Ruth view this opportunity? Would she be willing to set aside any hope she might have of her own to find a young man who could give her something for herself? Or would she recognize in this challenge an opportunity to seek out Jehovah’s purpose and make that her way of life?

22. Who else in the prophetic drama would be affected by this challenge, and how should its outcome affect us today?

²² And what of Boaz and So-and-so? How would they face this challenge to provide an heir to Naomi for the name of her dead husband Elimelech? Would they recognize it as an opportunity to share more fully in Jehovah’s service? And how does this challenge and its outcome affect us today? The way Naomi was to be restored in spirit, the way her lifelong dream was to be realized, and the parts that Ruth, Boaz and So-and-so were to play in facing this challenge, all are a part of this inspiring drama that moves us even today to make Jehovah’s purpose our way of life. The article that follows will reveal the outcome.

[Footnotes]

Make Jehovah’s Purpose Your Way of Life

1. (a) What attitude of mind and heart afflicts mankind today? (b) What challenge that faced both Ruth and Naomi provides us with a lesson in zeal and devotion?

“FAITH is not a possession of all people.” So said the apostle Paul. (2 Thess. 3:2) Outstanding among the many reasons why this is so is the spirit of self-determination that has become so strong in our own twentieth century. This desire for self-gratification has become a religion, with love of the Creator crowded into a corner and indifference toward his purpose completely subverting the heart and mind. How refreshing it must be to Jehovah, and what an example it is to us, to observe those who have unselfishly accepted the challenge of Jehovah’s service and made his purpose their way of life. One outstanding example is that of Ruth in ancient times who left behind her own people and her home in Moab and accompanied her widowed mother-in-law Naomi back to Bethlehem. A widow also, she could well have interested herself in finding a husband in Moab and settling down in familiar surroundings to raise a family. But Ruth’s love for Naomi and for the worship of Jehovah prompted her to forsake all and accompany Naomi back to Israel. In this unfamiliar setting the unselfishness of her love was tested to the limit, but her sincere desire to make Jehovah’s purpose her way of life sustained her and moved her to face this challenge without a moment’s hesitation. The outcome to Ruth and Naomi, as well as the events themselves leading up to it, provide us with an inspiring lesson in zeal and devotion.

2, 3. What does the return of Naomi to her homeland with Ruth refer to in modern times?

² It is the time of the barley harvest, which would mean it is after the Passover celebration. It is springtime, the winter rains are over, and now there is something to harvest in Bethlehem-Judah. It is again the place of bread after ten long years of famine. Those years Naomi had spent in Moab, where she had lost her husband Elimelech and her two sons, one of them being Mahlon, Ruth’s husband. Now Naomi is home again, with Ruth, having divine favor. They are gathered back to her homeland; they are back at Naomi’s hereditary possession. (Ruth 1:22) What does this refer to in modern times? In the historical antitype of today this would call attention to Jesus’ words regarding the regathering of all the chosen ones, the remnant of his anointed disciples, by the angels. When? After Babylon the Great (the world empire of false religion) had fallen before the antitypical Cyrus the Great. Then it was time for fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy regarding the end of the system of things to take place.​—Matt. 24:29-31.

³ Isaiah 12:1, 2 speaks of the joy at that time of gathering the remnant out of Babylon the Great. “And in that day you will be sure to say: ‘I shall thank you, O Jehovah, for although you got incensed at me, your anger gradually turned back, and you proceeded to comfort me. Look! God is my salvation. I shall trust and be in no dread; for Jah Jehovah is my strength and my might, and he came to be the salvation of me.’” These words are echoed by the Naomi remnant, beginning in 1919 with a restoring of them to divine favor and a reestablishing of them in God’s service according to his purpose for them.

ZEAL IN THE HARVEST PROVES FRUITFUL

4. According to what provision in Israel does Ruth seek to contribute toward Naomi’s support, and how is her labor of love rewarded?

⁴ Now, in the dramatic type, the barley harvest was in progress. Ruth was living with her mother-in-law, but she did not want to be a burden upon her. She wanted to contribute to Naomi’s support. So, with Naomi’s consent, she took advantage of Israel’s law on harvesting (Lev. 19:9, 10) and “she went off and entered and began to glean in the field behind the harvesters. Thus by chance she lighted on the tract of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the family of Elimelech.” (Ruth 2:1-3) Boaz was a true worshiper of Jehovah and he respected Jehovah’s law. (Ruth 2:4-7) When he learns of Ruth’s identity he makes arrangements for Ruth to continue working in his fields, both through the barley harvest and also the wheat harvest that would follow and run down through the feast of Pentecost in the month of May. In doing so he tells Ruth: “The report was fully made to me of all that you have done to your mother-in-law after the death of your husband, and how you proceeded to leave your father and your mother and the land of your relatives and to go to a people whom you had not known formerly. May Jehovah reward the way you act, and may there come to be a perfect wage for you from Jehovah the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to seek refuge.” (Ruth 2:8-13) When he favors Ruth with this arrangement, he has in mind her mother-in-law, the aged Naomi, to benefit her also.

5, 6. What is pictured by Ruth’s joining herself to Naomi in harvest activity.

⁵ The dramatic events of the day that fulfill this are in line with what Jesus said: “The field is the world . . . The harvest is a conclusion of a system of things, and the reapers are angels.” (Matt. 13:38, 39) The membership of the bride of Christ was not yet complete by the year 1919. More had to be gathered in and, just as Ruth joined herself to Naomi and worked diligently with her in harvest activity, loyally even to death, so a newer addition to the remnant class began to appear from 1919 onward. This additional class was pictured by Ruth.

⁶ In that year, on Saturday afternoon, September 6, 1919, a mass baptism was conducted in Lake Erie, at the time of the Cedar Point, Ohio, general convention, and there were more than 200 that were baptized. These were an addition to the old original Naomi remnant of the bride of Christ. Among those looking on were the Society’s officers who had been released from the Atlanta federal prison on Tuesday, March 25, of that year. They were now enjoying new freedom and still working in behalf of the Kingdom interests of Jehovah God’s theocratic government. Three years later, in 1922, another general assembly was held in Cedar Point, Ohio. On Saturday, September 9, 1922, 361 were baptized. The Ruth class continued to be added to as time went on. Now, like Ruth the Moabitess, the modern Ruth class determined to work zealously together with the Naomi class to the end of God’s harvest in the earth, both the barley harvest and the wheat harvest, as the prophetic drama pictures. And just as with Ruth, whom Boaz pronounced an excellent woman, so with this new addition to the remnant. It proved to be an antitypical excellent woman of exclusive devotion to Jehovah God.

NAOMI’S HOPE TESTS RUTH’S DEVOTION

7. (a) How only can Naomi keep her hereditary possession in Elimelech’s name and also make a contribution to the royal line leading to the promised Shiloh? (b) How does this provide a challenge to Ruth?

⁷ Now, as a result of Ruth’s industriousness and the generosity of Boaz, Naomi and Ruth have food. Still, Naomi is an aged widow beyond the age of bearing children and she has this hereditary possession that was her husband Elimelech’s. She is helpless now without Ruth’s acting as an agent or substitute for her. Naomi sees the way out. She decides to sell this possession, having in mind particularly the benefits to Ruth, whom she must use in this transaction. Furthermore, as widows, Naomi and her daughter-in-law Ruth could not make any contribution to the royal line in the tribe of Judah leading to the promised Shiloh. Naomi must have a child; she must have an adopted child, a child by Ruth in the tribe of Judah, because that hereditary possession could not be moved out of the tribe of Judah. Ruth therefore has to marry a man in the tribe of Judah and keep the property there. But first, Ruth must accept this way of life for her, renouncing any desire she might have for a younger man than the aged Boaz. How will she react to the proposal?

8. How does Naomi propose to Ruth that this solution to their problem be put into effect, and how does Ruth respond?

⁸ Naomi puts the challenge to her quite plainly. She says to her: “My daughter, ought I not to look for a resting-place for you, that it may go well with you? And now, is not Boaz, with whose young women you have continued, our kinsman? Look! He is winnowing barley at the threshing floor tonight. And you must wash and rub yourself with oil and put your mantles upon you and go down to the threshing floor. Do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. And it should occur that when he lies down, you must also take note of the place where he lies down; and you must come and uncover him at his feet and lie down; and he, for his part, will tell you what you ought to do.” How did Ruth respond? “At that she said to her: ‘All that you say to me I shall do.’ And she proceeded to go down to the threshing floor and to do according to all that her mother-in-law had commanded her.”​—Ruth 3:1-6.

9. How is Naomi like Paul in taking this course?

⁹ Naomi is like the apostle Paul. In his relationship to the church or congregation, Paul says: “I personally promised you in marriage to one husband that I might present you as a chaste virgin to the Christ.” (2 Cor. 11:2) Likewise, Naomi arranges for the marriage of Ruth to the right man. So Ruth goes out into the field and lies down at the feet of Boaz. When he wakes up in the middle of the night she proposes that he take her as wife in order to raise up a seed to the dead man Elimelech.​—Ruth 3:7-9.

ANOTHER “GOʼELʹ” INTERPOSES

10. Why was this not immoral action on the part of Naomi and Ruth, and how did Boaz view Ruth’s proposal of levirate marriage?

¹⁰ This was not immoral action on the part of Naomi and Ruth. It simply manifested confidence in the honor of the one in the position of a repurchaser, a goʼelʹ. That Boaz did not misunderstand her motive or misinterpret her proposal of levirate marriage as an unvirtuous overture is evident from his reply. “At that [Boaz] said: ‘Blessed may you be of Jehovah, my daughter. You have expressed your loving-kindness better in the last instance than in the first instance, in not going after the young fellows whether lowly or rich. And now, my daughter, do not be afraid. All that you say I shall do for you, for everyone in the gate of my people is aware that you are an excellent woman. And now while it is a fact that I am a repurchaser, there is also a repurchaser closer related than I am. Lodge here tonight, and it must occur in the morning that if he will repurchase you, fine! Let him do the repurchasing. But if he does not take delight in repurchasing you, I will then repurchase you, I myself, as sure as Jehovah lives.”’​—Ruth 3:10-13.

11. (a) Why did Boaz not immediately accept Ruth’s proposal and act toward her as a repurchaser? (b) How does this apply in the antitype?

¹¹ Boaz is an honorable man, a man of great self-control, and he reminds Ruth that there is a man in the family relationship that is closer to Naomi than he is. He himself is the nephew of Naomi, whereas this closer relative is a brother-in-law of Naomi. He is the one who should have the first opportunity to buy this hereditary possession of Naomi, to act as the repurchaser, the goʼelʹ. This does not mean that Boaz is not willing, after being an old bachelor for so long without family responsibilities, to do his duty, even if it means becoming father of a family. He is willing to make his contribution to the royal line leading up to the promised Shiloh of the tribe of Judah, to which Boaz belongs. This applies in the antitype to the Lord Jesus Christ as the heavenly goʼelʹ, Repurchaser or Redeemer. But first of all he leaves the Naomi class and the Ruth class exposed to whoever is pictured by “So-and-so,” the brother-in-law of Naomi. This brings about a test of the Naomi and Ruth divisions of the remnant of today. Who wins? Who fails? The account tells us.

12. How do Ruth and Naomi react to the position Boaz has taken?

¹² Ruth goes her way to her mother-in-law before the first rays of the morning sun light upon the city. She is joyful as she carries wrapped in her cloak six measures of barley that Boaz has given her as a token of his promise. She is greeted by the aged Naomi with the words: “Who are you, my daughter?” Recognizing the import of Naomi’s expression, she points out that she is not yet the wife of Boaz, but relates everything that occurred and that Boaz told her. Naomi then says: “Sit still, my daughter, until you know how the matter will turn out, for the man will have no rest unless he has brought the matter to an end today.” Ruth waits expectantly, with a bright hope for the future; Naomi waits with the hope of fulfillment of a lifelong desire.​—Ruth 3:14-18.

THE REPURCHASER FACES A CHALLENGE

13. What action did Boaz take to bring the matter to an end?

¹³ Now the climax of events on this significant day rapidly begins to unfold. “As for Boaz, he went up to the gate and began to sit there. And, look! the repurchaser was passing by, whom Boaz had mentioned. Then he said: ‘Do turn aside, do sit down here, So-and-so.’ Hence he turned aside and sat down. . . . He now said to the repurchaser: ‘The tract of the field that belonged to our brother Elimelech, Naomi, who has returned from the field of Moab, must sell. As for me, I thought that I should disclose it to you, saying, “Buy it in front of the inhabitants and the older men of my people. If you will repurchase it, repurchase it; but if you will not repurchase it, do tell me, that I may know, for there is no one else but you to do the repurchasing, and I am next to you.”’ At that he said: ‘I shall be the one to repurchase it.”’​—Ruth 4:1-4.

14. How did “So-and-so” respond to the challenge of becoming the repurchaser?

¹⁴ Ah, yes, “So-and-so” is willing to buy the property; that will increase his own proprietary holdings in Bethlehem. And as for this old woman, Naomi, she has lost her power of reproduction, so there is no fear of having a child by her to whom the property will pass on; so he will have the whole property of Naomi to himself, in addition to what he already has. “Then Boaz said: ‘On the day that you buy the field from Naomi’s hand, it is also from Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of the dead man, that you must buy it so as to cause the name of the dead man to rise upon his inheritance.”’ Ah, now that is a different matter. It is too much responsibility; it might complicate matters. Faced with this unexpected challenge, the repurchaser replies to Boaz: “I am unable to repurchase it for myself, for fear I may ruin my own inheritance. You repurchase it for yourself with my right of repurchase, because I am not able to do the repurchasing.” So he takes off a sandal and hands it over to Boaz as an attestation of the agreement.​—Ruth 4:5-8.

15. What course did Boaz follow?

¹⁵ “So-and-so” has failed to meet the challenge. But not Boaz. He accepts the arrangement; he is happy to do so. And he says to the closer relative and all the people: “You are witnesses today that I do buy all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon from the hand of Naomi. And also Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, I do buy for myself as a wife to cause the name of the dead man to rise upon his inheritance and that the name of the dead man may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his place. You are witnesses today.” Thus Boaz fulfills Jehovah’s purpose regarding responsibility toward a brother, whereas “So-and-so” is disgraced in the eyes of all the people in the gate.​—Ruth 4:9-12.

16. Whom does “So-and-so” represent in modern times?

¹⁶ But, whom does “So-and-so” represent in modern times? And how does this challenge affect us, some thirty centuries later? Since “So-and-so” stood in the way of Boaz for a while, he represents a class here on earth who stand in the way of Jesus Christ the bridegroom to whom both those of the Naomi class and those of the Ruth class are betrothed spiritually. This “So-and-so,” who was the brother-in-law to Naomi and who could have taken the place of Elimelech and could have raised up a seed, pictures one who fails of his duty, a mere pretender Christ, a false prophet, of whom the Lord Jesus Christ warned his followers saying: “For false Christs and false prophets will arise [in the time of the end] and will give great signs and wonders so as to mislead, if possible, even the chosen ones,” that is, the Naomi class and the Ruth class. (Matt. 24:24) So it is with this false Christ class of today. Oh, they want to capture the congregation, the remnant espoused to the Lord Jesus Christ, and they want the patronage of these and the support of these, but they do not want the responsibility of making the Naomi class and the Ruth class fruitful with Kingdom interests; that would be too much work. It detracts too much from their own selfish interests. They are not interested in the kingdom of God. They prefer the League of Nations and now the United Nations of the present time. They do not want to tie in with the royal lineage of Shiloh, the King Jesus Christ. This attitude of mind and course of action could fit only the religious clergy of Christendom. They have failed to accept the challenge of Jehovah’s service and make his purpose their way of life. From such Jesus warned us to flee!​—2 Tim. 3:5; Rev. 18:4.

ACCEPTING JEHOVAH’S WAY IS BLESSED

17. How are Boaz and Ruth blessed in accepting the challenge presented to them, and in what way are Naomi’s interests intertwined?

¹⁷ On the other hand, Boaz, true to his promise, takes Ruth as his levirate wife. (Ruth 4:13-15) Their marriage did not produce a king or the Shiloh; the time of the Kingdom of Israel had not yet begun. But they did produce one who became the grandfather of King David, the eleventh in line from Judah and with whom Jehovah made a covenant for an everlasting Kingdom (Matt. 1:3-6; 2 Sam. 7:12, 13) and one in the line that leads eventually to the Lord Jesus Christ, the permanent heir of King David. (Luke 3:23-31; 20:41-44) Ruth’s interests and Naomi’s interests are all intertwined. Ruth is the mother, but Naomi adopts the baby and acts as its nurse, as though it were the son of her own dead husband Elimelech, the one to take over the hereditary possession of Elimelech. Accordingly the neighbors say: “‘A son has been born to Naomi.’ And they began to call his name Obed [meaning “servant” or “one serving”].” (Ruth 4:16, 17) Thus, Boaz and Ruth, in accepting the challenge presented to them, with the interests of Jehovah’s purpose at heart, unselfishly devote their lives to fulfilling that purpose and Jehovah blesses them in allowing them to produce one of royal prospects indeed in the line of the promised Shiloh, whose “scepter will not turn aside from Judah, neither the commander’s staff from between his feet, . . . and to [whom] the obedience of the peoples will belong.”​—Gen. 49:10.

18. What relationship exists between the Naomi section and the Ruth section of the remnant today, and what is produced thereby?

¹⁸ Now, finally, in our own day the Naomi class and the Ruth class of the spiritual remnant are in line to become the bride of Christ, the Shiloh of Jacob’s prophecy. But they do not produce the anointed king of God’s Messianic Kingdom, no more than Boaz and Ruth did so. They do, though, produce a class that serves God. Just as the name of the boy that was born to Ruth in Bethlehem was called Obed, meaning “one serving” or “servant,” so the modern Ruth and Naomi classes produce or make up a class that is described in Jesus’ prophecy at Matthew, chapter 24, as the “faithful and discreet slave” class. Also both sections of the spiritual remnant of today, the Naomi section and the Ruth section, have intense love for one another like the unbreakable love of Ruth for the older widow Naomi, to whom Ruth ‘is better than seven sons.’ Nothing except death can make a separation between the two.

A TIME FOR ZEAL AND DEVOTION

19. What example of unselfish love do Naomi and Ruth provide for those on whom the end of this system has come?

¹⁹ What a lesson in zeal and devotion is to be found in the dramatic yet moving Bible book of Ruth! And what an example the modern-day Naomi and Ruth classes provide for those living now in the time of the end of this wicked system of things! This is no time to turn to a course of self-determination, preferring a way of our own choosing due to selfish interests or pursuits. Neither is it a time for indifference to the purpose of God now approaching a culmination for this system of things. Naomi surely realized that she might not know if she would be used in the line of Shiloh, yet she was willing to devote her whole life to making it possible. And Ruth, being a young woman, could have married any kind of young man, a rich one if she had wanted to or a poor one if she had loved him, but instead she was willing to marry an old man just so her son could become Naomi’s son. But both of them did it because they loved Jehovah and wanted to have a part in fulfilling Jehovah’s purpose. What an example of unselfish love! Yet both Naomi and Ruth, in their own time and among their own neighbors, might have been considered just “ordinary” people.

20. What warning did Paul give, and how can we receive Jehovah’s blessing of reward today?

²⁰ Today we are living in the “time of the end,” the time in which all these prophecies are having such a grand fulfillment. Paul wrote this warning for us: “Moreover, this I say, brothers, the time left is reduced. Henceforth let those . . . making use of the world [be] as those not using it to the full; for the scene of this world is changing.” (1 Cor. 7:29-31) If we think we can live like the people of this system do, occupying our time with the pursuits of just living, then we are due for a rude awakening because, as Paul is inferring, this world is rapidly disappearing and soon there will be no living in it at all. Today, there is so much to live for in view of the prospects of the Messianic Kingdom blessings soon to flow to all the earth, and there is so little time left to live in this present wicked system. Even if we were to give up everything this system has for us, “making use of the world,” as Paul said, “as those not using it to the full,” how could this compare to the course taken by Ruth, and by the Ruth class who have already spent years in fulfilling Jehovah’s purpose? Yet just as Jehovah has blessed both the Naomi and the Ruth sections of the anointed remnant with Kingdom fruitage, so will he bless anyone who now fully accepts the challenge of Jehovah’s service and makes Jehovah’s purpose his way of life. What better reward could anyone have than that?