A Deeper Dive Into the Book of Revelation - Part 37
“Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to Ruth, ‘My daughter, shall I not look for security and a home for you, so that it may be well with you? Now Boaz, with whose maids you were [working], is he not our relative? See now, he is winnowing barley at the threshing floor tonight. So wash and anoint yourself [with olive oil], then put on your [best] clothes, and go down to the threshing floor; but stay out of the man’s sight until he has finished eating and drinking. When he lies down, notice the place where he is lying, and go and uncover his feet and lie down. Then he will tell you what to do.’”
“Ruth answered her, ‘I will do everything that you say.’”
“So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had told her.”—Ruth 3:1-6 (AMP)
Before the harvested grain could be stored in the barn, it had to be taken to the threshing floor. There the grain was crushed under the feet of oxen to separate the grain from the inedible husks or “chaff.” Then the grain and chaff were tossed into the air with winnowing forks or shovels. The wind would blow away the chaff and the precious grain would fall back to the floor to be gathered and stored in the barn.
John the Baptist prophesied that Jesus, like Boaz, would make thorough work of His threshing floor:
“His winnowing fan (shovel, fork) is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clear out and clean His threshing floor and gather and store His wheat in His barn, but the chaff He will burn up with fire that cannot be put out.”—Matthew 3:12 (AMPC)
Ruth goes voluntarily and submits herself to the threshing floor experience. The threshing floor is symbolic of experiences of suffering and tribulation in which the “chaff” of our lives is removed as we respond to these experiences of suffering in ways that please the Lord. The chaff represents issues of sin, worldly influences, and demonic influences. When we come out of the threshing floor experience, we will be pure and holy. Our consecration to the Lord will be complete and acceptable for presentation to our Heavenly Bridegroom.
This is how the angel described the Great Tribulation to Daniel:
“Many will be purged, purified (made white) and refined, but the wicked will behave wickedly. None of the wicked shall understand, but those who are [spiritually] wise will understand.”—Daniel 12:10 (AMP)
The Shulamite maiden in the Song of Solomon calls on the harsh, cold north wind to blow upon her because she understands that these harsh conditions will release the precious fruits and the sweet aromas from her life that will be pleasing to her Bridegroom.
“[You have called me a garden, she said] **Oh, I pray that the [cold] north wind and the [soft] south wind may blow upon my garden, **that its spices may flow out [in abundance for you in whom my soul delights]. Let my beloved come into his garden and eat its choicest fruits.”—Song of Solomon 4:16 (AMPC)
Every Christian has his personal threshing floor. No one escapes this, but some submit to this early so that it does not need to be forced upon them through harsh circumstances like the Great Tribulation.
“For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.”—1 Corinthians 11:31
Naomi experienced suffering and tribulation, but she did not respond in ways that pleased the Lord. Instead, she chose to become angry and bitter against God. She did not allow her sufferings to cleanse her and make her a better person. Because of this, her sufferings did not “remove the chaff” of sin, worldly influences and demonic influences. She actually embraced the “chaff” in her life.
Naomi rejected the threshing floor and refused to submit to it.
Naomi represents those in the Church who do not overcome the issues of sin, the world, and the devil in their lives. Because they did not respond correctly to God’s promptings to deal with these issues, these foolish virgins will need to go through the 3½ years of Great Tribulation. This will be God’s last-ditch effort to cleanse and purify these “thorny ground” believers in order to bring the entire body of Christ to maturity.
“This work must continue until we are all joined together in the same faith and in the same knowledge about the Son of God. We must become like a mature person—we must grow until we become like Christ and have all his perfection.”—Ephesians 4:13 (ICB)
As my mentor, Dan Cummins used to say, we can either pay now, or we will pay later. No one escapes the threshing floor of tribulation.
“It is through many tribulations and hardships that we must enter the kingdom of God.”—Acts 14:22 (AMP)
Ruth went to the threshing floor voluntarily because she was pursuing the Bridegroom. She was gladly willing to submit to anything that would bring her closer to her Redeemer.
**“**Ruth answered her, ‘I will do everything that you say.’”—Ruth 3:5 (AMP)
Ruth represents those Overcomers who take the initiative to deal with issues of sin in their lives early. Because of this, they meet the conditions of Luke 21:36, and are counted worthy to escape the Great Tribulation, and to be presented to the Lord as His First Fruits Overcomers.
“Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”—Luke 21:36 (NKJV)
These are the Overcomers that John sees standing before the Lamb of God in Revelation 7:9.
To explain to John who these people are, the elder tells John that, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14 ESV).
We know that this group is in Heaven before the Great Tribulation begins because Revelation 7 is sandwiched between the opening of the Sixth Seal in Revelation 6 and the opening of the Seventh Seal in Revelation 8, which releases the Seven Trumpets.
Then the Great Tribulation begins with the sounding of the First Trumpet in Revelation 8:7.
Those “Naomis” in the Church who did not submit to God’s threshing floor experiences voluntarily, will be forced into a worldwide 3½-year threshing floor experience that will finally purge the Church of all the “chaff” of corruption and sin, making her worthy to meet her Lord when He returns to “gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matthew 24:31 KJV).
**Reference: **
Cummins, D. (2021). I Am Ruth Thy Handmaid. Capitol Worship.
