Building A Reputation

“Then Naomi said, ‘Wait my daughter, until you find out what happens. For the man will not rest until the matter is settled today.’” Ruth 3:18

The man that Naomi was talking about in the above scripture is Boaz. Boaz is a major figure in the Book of Ruth. Boaz was a wealthy farmer in Bethlehem and kinsman of Elimelech, Naomi’s late husband. When Naomi decided to go back to her hometown in Israel after her husband and both of her son’s died, one of her young daughter-in-law’s, named Ruth, followed her back to her hometown. Ruth not only left behind her hometown to follow Naomi but she also held fast to Naomi’s God. Naomi knew the God of Israel and openly allowed Ruth to feel all the joys and anguish of her relationship to God.

In the scripture above, Naomi is arranging for Ruth’s marriage to Boaz. Boaz knew that in order to marry Ruth, he needed to find the nearest relative who had the first right as kinsman redeemer and he needed to first offer it to him before he could marry Ruth as the Law provided.  Boaz was a man that wanted to do the right thing in the eyes of God and in the eyes of others. Boaz wanted to do the right thing sooner rather than later - he was a man who was not a procrastinator!

Boaz is known among all the people in his community as a man of his word – he followed through with his commitments. I love how Naomi described Boaz when she said, “For the man will not rest until the matter is settled today.” What confidence Naomi had in Boaz' character!

One of the reasons I fell for my husband was because of this very character trait. When he says he is going to do something, he follows through as soon as possible even when it hurts. I noticed this trait in him right at the beginning of our courtship and over the thirty years together, I have had many opportunities to see my husband keep his word not only to me but also to his employer, his family, his children and even the strangers he meets for the first time.

“Naomi implied that Boaz would follow through with his promise at once. He obviously had a reputation for keeping his word and would not rest until his task was completed. Such reliable people stand out in any age and culture. Do others regard you as one who will do what you say? Keeping your word and following through on assignments should be high on anyone’s priority list. Building a reputation for integrity, however, must be done one brick, one act, at a time.” Commentary

Do the people in our life have confidence that we are a man or a woman of our word? If so, we will stand out no matter what our age and no matter what culture we are living in!

“LORD, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain? The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart; whose tongue utters no slander, who does no wrong to a neighbor and casts no slur on others; who despises a vile person but honors whose who fears the LORD; who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change their mind; who lends money to the poor without interest; who does not accept a bribe against the innocent. Whoever does these things will never be shaken.” Psalm 15