Thoughts On Ruth

Ruth is a magnificent, short book. It is the story of the lives of ordinary people in an ancient agricultural world living in a society where many were choosing to do whatever "was right in their own eyes."1 (Not unlike our own!) The result as we learn from the book of Judges was a Israelite culture where sexual immorality, rape , civil war, and violence were common - a culture slipping toward collapse. In the midst of this culture, we are introduced to a small family which flees the famine in Israel and settles in Moab, a culture know for its sorcery, child sacrifice, demon worship, and antagonism towards Israel. Talk about out of the frying pan and into the fire.

In Moab, our friend Naomi takes center stage. Her husband (Elimilech) whose idea it was to move to Moab dies. Naomi's two sons marry Moabites (Orphah & Ruth), but after a few years Naomi's sons also die. Naomi is heart broken, poverty stricken, and very angry with God. She returns to Israel upon hearing that God is again blessing his people. Despite this news and the kindly accompaniment of her daughter-in-law Ruth who pledges to join Naomi's people and follow her God, Naomi remains bitter and depressed.

As the days go by, Ruth realizes that they are running out food as they live in Naomi's home that is about to be foreclosed on. She patiently waits for Naomi to take action. When she doesn't, Ruth asks Naomi for permission to go out into the harvest fields and scavenge what barley is left in the fields. Ruth's commitment and submission to Naomi is not without reward as she happens (perhaps by divine chance) to enter the field of a man named Boaz.

Boaz is an able man although getting older in years who unlike most of people of his day still sought to live according to God's ways and laws; God is central to everything he does. He greets his workers in the morning with the blessing of God and notices a new young woman in his field. He soon finds out she is Ruth, the Moabitess, and he welcomes her to Israel promising that she will find refuge on the shadow of the Lord God of Israel. Knowingly or unknowingly, Ruth has found herself in new land, a land where Lord God is King. Unknowingly, Boaz will end up fulfilling his promise of God's goodness to Ruth.

As the story unfolds, we see Ruth's commitment and patience as she waits for God's promise to of good to come to past. We see Boaz fulfill God's plan of redemption for Ruth and Naomi as he demonstrates God's goodness by purchasing Naomi's land and marrying Ruth.

The story of Ruth reveals that God is both good and sovereign (in control). The main characters struggle to reconcile these two truths in the face of death, economic crisis, pain, and suffering. Elimelech and Orpah are examples of people who the circumstances of life and not who God is motivate their decisions. They die in Moab apart from God. Naomi represents a follower of God who is desperately struggling with her faith finding it almost impossible to believe a sovereign God is good in the midst of her suffering. Her honesty and openness give Ruth a flickering yet real faith to seek after.

Ruth models an ideal follower of Jesus who not only is coming into a belief that God exists but is actively seeking him out by serving and listening to an older believer (even though the believer is clearly in a crisis of faith). Ruth models kindness, faith, humility, and obedience. Ruth's statement to Naomi, “All that you say I will do.” clearly foreshadows Jesus command to his own disciples to "obey everything he commanded them."2 Ruth exhibits a tremendous level of respect and trust by refusing to chase after other younger men as many of her fellow peers were.

Boaz introduces us to the concept of redemption. Ruth and Naomi no longer have a right to live in Israel - God's kingdom - because their land is being foreclosed on. As human beings we have no right to a relationship with God because we have lived lives filled with lies, selfishness, and rebellion to God's way. Thankfully like Boaz Jesus paid our redemption price by his blood shed during a brutal death on a cross. Because our redemption price has been paid in full, a relationship with God is possible. Like Ruth and Naomi we must in the face of tragedy, suffering, and the injustice of this world believe Jesus exists, Jesus is sovereign, and Jesus is good. As we join with his church (his people) in knowing him, we discover that the circumstances that seemingly brought great pain and torment into our lives were the very circumstances that God was using to draw us into relationship with himself.

Thus, the book of Ruth is the story of God's incredible grace in using Elimelech's flight to Moab, the death of Naomi and Ruth's husbands, and the poverty they faced to bring Ruth, a Moabite woman that would have died apart from God in pagan land, to a place of relationship with himself and a part of his son Jesus' lineage.

Read the story click here.


1 Judges 21:25, 17:6, 18:1
2 Matthew 28:20