The Writings of Ruth

The book of Ruth begins with an ordinary family moving to a foreign country to escape a famine.  Sadly, tragedy strikes.  The husband dies.  Then another tragedy strikes, and the two adult sons die.  You might think that the story would turn towards bitterness and sadness because of these tragedies  But it doesn’t.  All because of one woman, Naomi.  This selfless woman puts the lives of her daughters-in-law before her own life and encourages them to go home so they can marry again and be secure.  One daughter-in-law returns to her family but not Ruth.  Ruth chooses to stay with Naomi.  Ruth had seen something special in her elderly mother-in-law’s life.  Was it God shining through her? 

After Ruth and Naomi make the decision to stay together, they develop a strong, loving and loyal friendship and they set out on a journey of faith to her home town of Bethlehem.  Can you imagine what this may have looked like?  Two poor and desperate widows take a long journey home along dusty roads. They do not know what future awaits them.  Naomi is old and struggling with her grief.  She has lost almost everything.  She is returning to her home country but she knows that people will judge her because she is coming home with no husband.  Naomi knows that life will not be easy for Ruth either.  Ruth has also lost her husband and now she is moving far away from her friends and family.  Because Ruth is a foreigner from people will despise her. 

The story shifts from the kindness of Naomi to the perseverance of Ruth. She chooses to do good.  Even though she is young and alone she goes into the harvest field to collect grain to feed Naomi, her mother-in-law.  Ruth is seen by the owner of the field, Boaz, a distant relative of Ruth.  Boaz is kind and generous to Ruth.  He is also obedient to God’s law.  He tells his workers to leave parts of his field unharvested so that Ruth can collect more grain.  A beautiful love story unfolds.  Even though Ruth is a foreigner, Boaz gives her protection as she works in his field. Ruth and Boaz’s love and respect for each other grows.  The story ends with Boaz marrying Ruth.  Ruth and Naomi’s lives go from hardship and pain to lives of happiness and fullness. 

God provided protection and care for Ruth and Naomi.  God turned tragedy into good.  God had a plan that involved bringing Ruth into his family.   The story however doesn’t end with Boaz and Ruth.   This one story in the Bible continues on for generations to come and plays an important part of God’s plan for the world. God’s miraculous story of love continues to unfold.   Ruth has children and eventually becomes the great-grandmother of King David.  Ruth, a person not of Jewish descent but welcomed into God’s family, is in the line of Christ.   Boaz also reveals a picture of Jesus through the story of Ruth.  Boaz shows love and grace, just like Jesus.  Boaz pays a price to give Ruth a secure future, just like Jesus. 

This short love story is more than just a romance tale put in the Bible. It’s a picture of God working, through the generations and the nations, to see His plan of rescue and salvation brought to every person.