The Marriage of Rey Ramos & Ruth Tesfai

Ruth 1:16-17

September 3, 2026

+INJ+ On the morning after his wedding day, Martin Luther told a friend how surprised he was to wake up and find pig-tails on his pillow.

Something similar happens with Boaz in the Bible. Nothing inappropriate happened, but when Boaz went to sleep one night, a young woman named Ruth came where Boaz was sleeping. “She came softly, uncovered his feet, and lay down. Now it happened at midnight that the man was startled, and turned himself; and there, a woman was lying at his feet. And he said, ‘Who are you?’ So she answered, ‘I am Ruth, your maidservant.’”

Tragedy had befallen this Ruth. Her first husband died. But she persevered. She went with her late husband’s mother Naomi back to Israel. She said to Naomi, “Entreat me not to leave you, or to turn back from following after you; for wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God.”

Ruth confesses faith in YHWH, the LORD God of Israel. And her words become foundational for the Christian understanding of family and marriage. “Where you go, I go. Your people are my people. Your God is my God.”

Modern theories of relationships rest on ideas like compatibility. But this is the compatibility that matters: a common god, a common worship.

Personality quirks, thermostat preferences, the degree of melanin in the skin, no difference matters if you confess together the Nicene Creed, believe in the forgiveness of sins, and agree to submit to your husband and love your wife as Christ loved the church.

This is a compatibility of death – death to self, and a commitment to live together toward this death in Christ that we may be raised with Him. Ruth continues, “Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. The LORD do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts you and me.”

So off they go, to Bethlehem. She notices Boaz, that he is kind. He is generous. He is a man of God. He makes sure Ruth has food.

There’s a special function in Hebrew law that makes certain men responsible for taking care of widows. They’re called Redeemers. That word, of course, comes to have the deepest meaning in the work of Jesus. Boaz is eligible to be Ruth’s redeemer.

So when Boaz wakes up in the night, surprised to find Ruth sleeping down by his feet, he learns something about her. She could have looked for a man with more worldly qualities. But instead, she goes to the feet of Boaz. And when he wakes up with cold feet, she says to him, simply. “I am Ruth, your maidservant. Take your maidservant under your wing.” She asks for his protection and provision. That’s the job of the husband: protect and provide. And love, like Christ loves His Church. Love to the death. “Where you go, I go. My money is your money. My food is your food. My life is yours, and yours if mine. We are one flesh. For you I will live, and for you I will die. And even in death, we shall be together, for we have a Lord who tramples down death by His death.”

And to this man, to this husband, the wife delights to submit. “I am your maidservant,” she says.

The surprised Boaz praises Ruth: “You are a virtuous woman.” And Rey, this is also what you have found, in this Ruth. The book of Proverbs indicates such a wife is rare: “Who can find a virtuous wife? For her worth is far above rubies” [31:10].

Rey, you are Ruth’s redeemer. Which is to say, you are Christ to her. You absolve her, nourish her, protect her, speak tenderly to her. And you, Ruth, are a virtuous woman. You will be a blessing to Rey. You will go where he goes, you will be his maidservant. And most importantly, you will fulfill the meaning of your name, for Ruth in the Hebrew language means friendship. The LORD bless you, redeemer and friend, man and wife. +INJ+