The Book of Ruth: Finding #Love The Biblical Way {Who is Boaz, Part I}

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I am a romantic at heart. No, I am not a romance novelist. However, every book that I have written has a romantic element. I am a fan of love. I love seeing happy couples together and cringe when I see unhappy couples tolerating one another—I see that a lot. When I read the book of Ruth, I was fascinated. They actually dated in biblical times. Who knew? Seriously, I read it and I want to share what I learned. I don’t know how long this series will last, but I will keep going until it is done.

Boaz was a close relative of Naomi’s husband. He owned the fields that Ruth works in to feed herself and Naomi. Boaz notices her and enquires about her. He is kind to her because he heard about her loyalty toward Naomi. He even assures her safety, and that she has more than enough to support her blended family.

This is only a small window into the kind of man that Boaz was. We will see as we discuss their relationship that Boaz was truly a noble man. Boaz was the kind of man that appeared to be a rarity then and a rarity now. There are several reasons why Boaz appears to be a rarity. One is because of the nature of Boaz. If we compare Boaz to the “Bad Boy” that so many women will admit that they love, we will find that Boaz in the modern time isn’t the kind of guy you would find in the club.

To be honest, you may not find him in the church either.

He is a respectful person, a hard worker and values these traits in other people. Because he believes in doing what is right and working hard, he tends to either have more or working toward having more in his life. His God is the center of his life, so money is only a tool to him. He doesn’t do the flash even though he can do the flash. He believes in taking care of people and that is as about as selfish as he can get.

He is a good man.

Now the Bad Boy has an edge and a magical hold on certain women. When you ask these women, what it is about a Bad boy that they love so much, they may say that they want to help mold him into the man God has called him to be.

That is so lame.

It isn’t a woman’s calling to change a man’s heart. God does that over time. Don’t misunderstand—I have had a strong female influence in my life. A woman has that power, but the power to influence is not equivalent to the power to change a person’s heart. A good example or a bad example would be the classic nag. Her husband refuses to go to church and she nags him and nags him until he goes. She has influenced him. He has gone and she has gotten what she wanted.

But has she changed his heart?

No, she may not realize it, but she has planted a seed of resentment in his heart. He may go, but is unhappy. And guess who he will associate this sense of unhappiness with? The woman who tried to change him. You are probably thinking that at least he is going to church. Yes, but one of the things that makes Bad Boy so attractive, is that Bad Boy is not desperate. He realizes that he doesn’t have to put up with you. Other women will pick up on this and Sister So and So, who has a voice like honey and a decent figure, can move in. And let’s be honest, she doesn’t have to look good as you. All she has to do is hint that she will give what you will not give. Less nagging, more cooked meals and better bedtime stories. Seriously, no man wants to hear the bedtime story that ends and begins with, “I have a headache.”

Yes, a woman can influence a Bad Boy, but she cannot change him.

So why do I mention Bad Boys in this post when we are studying Boaz? Because Bad Boys tend to find themselves a Ruth type woman and before you know it, that sweet loving Ruth, has become a heavily scarred Jezebel…. To learn how to avoid the situation or even heal from the situation; we need to understand the situation.

Next post: Who is Boaz? Part II; more on Bad Boys.