Boaz is presented as a very wealthy man from the family of Elimelech, and thus it is known that he is related to Naomi’s deceased husband. Ruth comes to work in this relative’s field.
Ruth 2
2 Then Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Please let me go to the field, and I will glean after him in whose sight I shall find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.”
ears of grain
An ear is the part of the plant that holds the grain. After the harvest, when the stalks have been cut, sometimes loose or unharvested ears of grain remain in the field. These could be gathered by the poor or strangers (Leviticus 19:9-10; 23:22; Deuteronomy 24:19-21). This gathering and picking up of the ears of grain was called “gleaning.” Ruth goes gleaning in Boaz’s field.
Word of God
Wheat is made into bread, a familiar biblical type of God’s word. The gleaning of grain is a representation of reading God’s word. In Dutch, gleaning is “aren lezen”, litteraly translated, it’s “reading the ears”. “Lezen” means also “gathering.” This is also the case in several other languages. Those who read gather knowledge.
Grace
Ruth says she will glean ears of grain, after him in whose sight I will find grace. Later in the chapter, we will see this fulfilled. It speaks of the future in which the Jewish people will find grace. Israel, through reading God’s word, will find her Redeemer and meet Him!