Bible Women: Ruth - Part 2

The Book of Ruth

Ruth - Part 2

for Ruth Part 1 go here

In the first part of Ruth, we learned how Ruth came back to Bethelem-Judah with her mother-in-law Naomi after the death of her husband. Ruth was a Moabitess, and Naomi told her to go back to her family and to her land, but  Ruth stated "Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:........."(Ruth 1:16) and Naomi and Ruth came to Bethlehem in the beginning of the barley harvest (In God's providential timing.) Ruth went to glean "in whose sight I shall find grace" and she was led (by the Lord) to glean in the field belonging to a man named Boaz, who was kinsman of Naomi's dead husband.  Boaz asked who Ruth was, and he provided care for her, and asked that she stay in his field through barley and wheat harvest, staying near his lady workers the whole time, instructing the men not to touch her, providing more food for her.  Ruth continued to dwell with Naomi, thus preserving her reputation as a virtuous woman.

When Naomi learned from Ruth that she was gleaning in Boaz's field, Naomi  recognizes that Boaz, as her near kinsman, has the right to marry Ruth and so she instructs Ruth what to do to obtain Boaz as her redeemer.

Ruth is instructed to wash herself, anoint herself, put on her garment and go to the threshing floor but not to make herself known to Boaz until he had finished eating and drinking.  Then, when he laid himself down, she was to go and lie down at Boaz' feet, and when he found her there, he would tell her what she should do.(Ruth 3:4) Ruth told Naomi that "all that thou sayest unto me I will do. And she went down unto the floor, and did according to all that her mother-in-law bade her. (Ruth 3:4-5) Ruth is obedient to Naomi. 

Bible Women: Ruth - Part 1

Ruth - Part 1

In our study of Naomi, we learned that when the Lord brought a famine to the land of Bethlehem-Judah, Naomi went with her husband Elimelech, when he chose to leave his home there  and to travel to the country of Moab,  rather than to stay and trust the Lord to provide for his family.  Elimelech went to "sojourn" which is a temporary journey.  He did not know that he would not return to Bethlehem-Judah. Proverbs 3:5-6 "trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not on thine own understanding, in all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths." Moab was a  pagan land with pagan gods, and that fact alone should have kept Elimelech in his own land, with his own people, trusting the Lord to provide for them.

But, "we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose". (Romans 8:28) and as the story of Ruth progresses we will see how the Lord used this famine to bring a Gentile woman into the line of the Lord Jesus Christ.

V2 says that when they came to the country of Moab they "continued" there, now more than a "sojourn".  After a time Elimelech died, and Naomi was left with her two sons Mahlon and Chileon.  Instead of returning to Bethelem-Judah, they made their own decision to stay in Moab and Mahlon and Chilion married wives of the women of Moab, one named Orpah, the other named Ruth.  Ruth means "beauty". V4 "and they dwelled there about ten years."  then Mahlon and Chileon also died.  The timing of their deaths is an example of God's perfect timing, for it is now that Naomi heard that "the LORD has visited his people in giving them bread." (Ruth 1:6)  We can see from this that Naomi recognizes that it is the LORD who has ended the famine.

Bible Women: Naomi, the Book of Ruth

Naomi is one of the central characters in the book of Ruth.  Her history begins in the time of the judges, when "...every man did that which was right in his own eyes." (Judges 21:25).

In the days of Naomi, God brought a  famine to Bethelehem-Judah, and Naomi's husband Elimelech,  instead of staying and trusting God, made the unwise choice to leave his home in Bethlehem, and journey to the land of Moab with his wife and two sons Mahlon and Chilion. (Ruth 1:1-2)  There,  Naomi's husband died, and Naomi, instead of returning home with her two sons, decided to stay in Moab with her sons.  This was a pagan land, with pagan gods.  Naomi's sons made the choice to marry  Moabite women..they "took them wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they dwelled there about ten years" (Ruth 1:4).  While at first glance this is an unequal yoke of Jew and Gentile, we will  soon find out that it was in the providential will of God for Ruth to marry Mahlon, one of the sons.

After ten years, both sons die too, and Naomi is left with her daughters-in-law.  Hearing that the Lord has brought bread to the land of Bethlehem-Judah, Naomi  decides to return to Judah, and tells Orpah and Ruth to return to their mother's homes, as she has no more sons for them to marry -  Ruth 1:11 "And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will ye go with me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?"   But the two ladies desire to stay with Naomi.  She knows that if they stay with her, they will still be considered part of her family, and as such, would be required to marry within the family and raise up sons as unto their dead husbands, and Naomi knows that even should she remarry and have sons, it would be a very long time before they were reach the age of marrying.  And so Naomi wants them to go back to their own land.   At this time, Naomi believes that "the hand of the LORD is gone out against me" (Ruth 1:13). She does not know of the wonderful blessing to come.

At first Orpah and Ruth want to stay with Naomi, but after more urging, Orpah turns and goes back to Moab where her heart truly lay..we never hear from her again and she is a reminder like king Agrippa "almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian"  almost, but in choosing the gods of Moab, Orpah has destined herself to be eternally separated from the Lord.   Ruth, however, "cleaves unto her" (V14) and confesses that most wonderful "...for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:" (V 16)