And now it is true that I am a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I. Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the LORD lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning.’
(Ruth 3:12-13 ESV)
Waiting is one of the hardest things God asks us to do.
Ruth knew that feeling. She had approached Boaz and asked him to act as her kinsman-redeemer. Boaz responded positively, but there was a complication. Another man had a prior claim. Before anything could happen, the matter had to be settled properly. So Boaz told Ruth to lûn (לוּן), pronounced “loon.” It means to remain, to stay, to wait.
That simple instruction must have been difficult. I’m sure that Ruth wanted immediate answers. Would she be redeemed? Would Boaz marry her? What would happen to Naomi’s future?
What Boaz was asking Ruth to do wasn’t just physical (“stay here on this threshing floor”). He was asking her to trust his word. He said , “There’s a complication but I’m going to handle it.” That promise meant something. Boaz was giving Ruth something to hold onto while the process played out.
And so Ruth lay down. She waited. She slept (or tried to) at the feet of a man who had given her his word.
Many of us find ourselves in a similar place. We’ve prayed. We’ve obeyed. We’ve taken the steps God has asked us to take, but the answer still hasn’t come. A door remains closed. A decision remains unresolved. A diagnosis stays uncertain. A job offer doesn’t come. Our prayer doesn’t seem to be answered.
Our instinct in those moments is almost always to do something. We want to be the one who makes things happen, because at least then we’d feel less helpless.
But sometimes faith requires us to lûn. To remain where God has placed us. To trust Him through the night. To believe that even when we can’t see progress, God is still working behind the scenes.
Ruth could rest because Boaz had given His word. She had something to hold onto. And we have something to hold onto as well. We have the promises of God and He cannot lie. He does not forget, and He is not asleep.
Ruth’s night of waiting eventually gave way to a morning of redemption. Your night of waiting will give way to morning too. God’s timing is rarely our timing, but it’s always right. So for now, lûn. Stay. Wait. Trust the one who has given you His word.
Prayer: Father, waiting is difficult for me. I want answers, solutions, and certainty right now. Help me to practice lûn, to remain where You have placed me and trust You while I wait. Give me patience when the future is unclear and peace when the answers are delayed. Teach me to rest in Your promises until Your timing becomes clear. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Alan Smith
Reprinted with permission from Alan Smith’s Thought For the Day