![]() ![]() And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” Since Ruth was a Moabite, she would have been allowed to glean parts of the leftover harvest since she was also a sojourner or stranger (Deut 24:19-22). We can read in the Book of Ruth how this law was able to support those who had been widowed in Ruth 2:1-2 “Naomi had a relative of her husband’s, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. If the producers do allow some of the produce to remain in the fields or on the trees God has said it would be so “that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.” The failure to do so would also remove the blessing of God on those who produce the harvests but was also a punishable offense. This reflects the tender mercy of God on those who have little or nothing due to circumstances beyond their control. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt therefore I command you to do this.” This allows the fatherless, the widows, the poor, and even the sojourners to have sustenance when their means of support is gone. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow. When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not strip it afterward. When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over them again. It shall be for the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. In Deuteronomy 24:19-22 we read “When you reap your harvest in your field and forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it. The Book of Deuteronomy gives ample evidence that the poor, the widows and orphaned, and even the strangers or sojourners should have a way to feed themselves and this law was given to those who were the owners of the fields and groves and again shows God’s concern for those who are unable to provide for themselves. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God.” There was a law of God that commanded this such as in Leviticus 19:9 which says “When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest.” The reason for this is further expounded in Leviticus 23:22 “And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, nor shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. ![]() These disenfranchised people are often the widows and the elderly who have lost their husbands or relatives due to death or abandonment and have no other way to survive. Gleaning is the custom of following a harvest so that what remains might be used primarily for the poor who have little or no means of supporting themselves. If you have ever read the Book of Ruth you can probably recall her gleaning so what does this have to do with the Christian today? What can we learn from Ruth’s gleaning in the harvest field? What is Gleaning? ![]()
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