Ruth
Introduction to the Book of Ruth
Ruth is a story about self-sacrificial love against all odds. The title character is a Moabite woman who marries into an Israelite family but becomes an impoverished widow. Ruth refuses to abandon her mother-in-law, Naomi—also a widow. Together, they travel from Moab to Bethlehem, where Ruth works to provide for them both. Ruth then marries Boaz, a relative of Naomi’s husband, and gives Naomi a grandchild—redeeming them from poverty and restoring Naomi’s joy.Ruth was a dedicated daughter-in-law to Naomi, her bereaved mother-in-law. Boaz was the kindly owner of a busy farm and the second-nearest family redeemer. In their story, there is loss and loyalty, a homecoming, a secret midnight meeting, a public transfer of property, a marriage, and a child. The book of Ruth records no miracles, but it is full of God’s love.
The book of Ruth gets its name from one of its principal characters, a Moabite woman named Ruth who was the ancestor of David and Jesus. After reading the book of Judges, which paints a dark and depressing picture of Israel, the reader is relieved to encounter Ruth. Although the book is relatively short, it is rich in examples of kindness, faith, and patience. It is one of the five scrolls that was to be read during the Jewish festivals, in particular the Festival of Weeks.Theme & Overview
Ruth, a Moabite woman, proves to be a model of faithfulness in Israel during the period of the judges.The events in the book of Ruth probably took place during the period covered in the book of Judges. The NIV Quest Study Bible says that, though it recounts an ancient time, the book of Ruth raises questions that are surprisingly modern and seemingly ever-present: Is God good? Does he care about me? It describes the wrenching story of a suffering woman. Naomi, like Job, was a follower of God who endured a barrage of tragedies that left her looking at God from rock bottom. God answered Naomi’s despair through Ruth, Naomi’s foreign-born daughter-in-law, who, along with the wealthy landowner Boaz, displayed God’s sacrificial love that far exceeds the limits of ordinary human love. Ruth reminds us that even during the darkest circumstances, when doubts about God overwhelm us, God’s love for us is sure.Redemption is at the center of Ruth. At the beginning of the book, Naomi believes that Yahweh has turned against her (1:13, 20–21). Despite this, Ruth demonstrates her love by staying with Naomi instead of returning to her own family. These two marginalized women travel together to Israel in hope of a better life. Through Ruth’s kindness and self-sacrifice, God works to renew Naomi’s faith and redeem Ruth from the bleak existence of widowhood in the ancient world.The book emphasizes the vital role women play in God’s plan for humanity. By the standards of Israelite society, Ruth and Naomi would be powerless and inconsequential. But God’s plan turns societal expectations upside down, and the women become central figures in the story of God’s people.Underlying this story of redemption is Yahweh Himself, who is with His people even in foreign lands—unlike Moab’s gods. The story shows that Yahweh desires to incorporate outsiders into His people, even into the lineage of Israel’s great king, David, and its ultimate king, Jesus (Matt 1:5–6; compare Gal 3:28–29). Ruth demonstrates that Yahweh can use any of us to further His work in the world and that He will go anywhere for any of us.This book highlights how God’s people experience his sovereignty, wisdom, and covenant kindness. These often come disguised in hard circumstances and are mediated through the kindness of others.Author
Tradition records the prophet Samuel as the author. The book itself does not name its writer.Recipients
The book of Ruth was written to the Jewish people, likely during the time of David's reign as king. This audience was familiar with David, yet likely lacked the background of his family line beyond his father Jesse. The book of Ruth provides two benefits to that audience. First is a powerful relational account. Second is a theological narrative, connecting David with his ancestors in a manner reflecting God's love and divine plan. Date
Likely written between 1011 and 931 BC.Background
The book of Ruth is mainly set in the town of Bethlehem of Judah—the hometown of David and birthplace of Jesus (Matt 2:1–6; John 7:42). The narrative opens explaining how famine in Judah drove Naomi’s husband, Elimelech, to move his family to Moab. The story is set during the period of the judges (roughly 1250–1050 BC) and serves as a bridge between this lawless era—when everyone did what was right in their own eyes (Judg 17:6; 21:25)—and the era of Israel’s monarchy.Like many stories in the Old Testament, Ruth presents an unexpected reversal of the common expectations of the time. In the patriarchal culture of ancient Israel, a childless widow like Ruth would have been limited to the lowest levels of society. Her status as a foreigner from Israel’s sometime-enemy Moab (Judg 3:12–21) would have reduced her social status even further. However, through her faithfulness to Naomi and her marriage to Boaz, she moves from the margins to mainline society.The marriage of Ruth and Boaz depicts an ancient Near Eastern custom called “levirate marriage” (described in Deut 25:5–10). After a man died, a relative (often his brother) was expected to marry the deceased man’s widow; the Hebrew text calls this as acting as a go’el, which may be broadly defined as redeemer. This custom preserved the deceased man’s lineage and his family’s inheritance. It also provided support for the widow—redeeming her from an otherwise desperate existence without a family and income.The events in Ruth took place during Israel’s period of the judges, about 1100 BC. The book of Judges records violent, momentous events, but Ruth shows a peaceful, ordinary side of life at the time.During this period, Israel had few political structures. The average person focused more on tribal and clan ties than on national identity. Virtually every family in Israel depended on their own crops and animals for food and for most other necessities. Israel’s hill country was fertile, but the water supply was variable. Two or three years of low rainfall could cause famine.The Purpose & Audience (Reasons for the letter)
God usually works in the ordinary events of everyday life. Miracles do happen, but God regularly accomplishes his purposes and blesses his people through routine occurrences. If we learn faithfulness in the everyday, we are equipped to be faithful when crises come.Ruth contains at least nine spoken blessings. God’s people have the privilege of blessing each other in God’s name. We often help fulfill those blessings, as Naomi and Boaz fulfilled the blessings they gave to Ruth.Sure, I said, heaven did not mean,
Where I reap thou shouldst but glean;
Lay thy sheaf a-down and come,
Share my harvest and my home.
THOMAS HOOD
(1799–1845)
from “Ruth”
Naomi felt abandoned by God; but God had not abandoned Naomi, and by the end of the book Naomi knew that God had restored more to her than she could have dreamed. God is trustworthy in our darkest hours.Faith in God involves willingness to take risks. The unnamed family redeemer who wanted to preserve his good name through his own heirs lost an opportunity to be generously faithful. Boaz, by contrast, took the risk of faithfulness and generosity, and he was richly rewarded.The everyday and the ordinary can have breathtaking eternal results. Ruth’s and Boaz’s daily faithfulness in the unremarkable rhythms of farming, marriage, childbirth, and parenthood resulted in eternal blessings that still multiply through King David and his descendant Jesus Christ.GRACE: Naomi thought that the Lord’s hand of judgment was upon her after she and her husband left the promised land in search of food and married their sons to Moabite women in search of offspring (1:21). She underestimated God’s grace. Her daughter-in-law, Ruth the Moabitess, turned out to be the means by which the Lord would meet her needs for food and offspring to carry on the family name. Ruth’s choice of a place to glean, which seemed to be a matter of chance, turned out to be a divine appointment with Boaz, the man who would fulfill the role of family redeemer for Naomi and Ruth.The book of Ruth resembles the parable of the lost son (Lk 15:11–32) in two strands. The family of Elimelech wandered away from the land where the Lord had promised to bless his people in search of fullness. As a result, however, Naomi ended up empty and alone. Yet the Lord’s judgment on her was designed to bring her back home and to replace her emptiness with a new fullness. Similarly, the book of Ruth opens with the Lord’s people experiencing the trials of the days of the judges, when general disobedience led to famine. Yet the Lord graciously provided food for his hungry people and a king to meet their needs for leadership. These are lessons that speak to modern readers as well. We too have gone astray from the Lord and need to receive his grace and mercy.GOD’S PROVIDENCE: The family records of David at the end of the book show that the Lord worked through this story to provide for his people’s need of a king. Even though the Lord’s actions are mainly concealed, there are two specific events attributed directly to him—providing food for his people (1:6) and conception for Ruth (4:13). In these ways, the Lord provided for all of his people’s needs.FAITHFUL LOVE: The book of Ruth demonstrates how the Lord shows his covenant faithfulness to his undeserving people, often in surprising ways. In the course of the narrative, each of the main characters proved to be a person of extraordinary courage and covenant love (Hb chesed; “loving-kindness, faithfulness, loyalty,” is the key word in the book: 1:8; 2:20; 3:10). These are people whose spiritual commitment is demonstrated clearly in godly living.THE FAMILY REDEEMER: The book of Ruth provides a great example of a family member who used his power under Jewish law to redeem. Boaz demonstrated one of the duties of the family member—that of marrying the widow of a deceased family member. A correlation is sometimes made between the redemption of Ruth by Boaz and the redemption of sinners by Christ. Because of God’s covenant faithfulness, he has provided the Redeemer that we all need in Jesus Christ. Jesus is the true King toward whom the family records of David will ultimately extend (Mt 1:5–6), and he is the Redeemer in whom his wandering people find rest. In him, the Gentiles too are incorporated into the people of God by faith and are granted a place in the family of promise.CONTRIBUTION TO THE BIBLERuth’s covenantal faithfulness to her mother-in-law Naomi and her God provided a model showing that those who were not ethnic Israelites could be incorporated into the people of God through faith. If Moabites who joined themselves to the Lord could be accepted, there was hope for other Gentiles as well (Is 56:3–7). The book also effectively answered questions that may have been raised over the legitimacy of the Davidic line, given his Moabite roots.Key Verses (ESV)
Ruth 1:16: "But Ruth said, 'Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.'" Ruth 3:9: "He said, 'Who are you?' And she answered, 'I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer.'"Ruth 4:17: "And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, 'A son has been born to Naomi.' They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David."Key Passages (NLT)
Ru 1:1–9 In the days when the judges ruled in Israel, a severe famine came upon the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah left his home and went to live in the country of Moab, taking his wife and two sons with him. The man’s name was Elimelech, and his wife was Naomi.Structure & Outline 1
Ruth may be divided into four acts bookended by a prologue and an epilogue, with the story moving thematically from death to life. The prologue (Ruth 1:1–5) sets the stage with an Israelite family migrating to Moab during a famine. The father and his sons die, leaving his wife, Naomi, and the sons’ Moabite wives, Ruth and Orpah. In the first major section (1:6–22), Naomi and Ruth journey to Israel. Rather than remaining in Moab and marrying a husband from her own people, Ruth insists on committing herself to Naomi and Naomi’s God—the God of Israel, Yahweh (1:15–18).In the second section (2:1–23), Ruth gathers food for herself and Naomi by gleaning barley in the field of Boaz, a relative of Naomi. The third section (3:1–18) describes Ruth following Naomi’s advice and sleeping on the threshing floor at Boaz’s feet. Ruth asks Boaz to redeem her by marrying her, and he agrees. In the fourth major section (4:1–12), Boaz successfully negotiates with a closer relative, who has the first right to act as Ruth’s redeemer (go’el in Hebrew). In the epilogue (4:13–22), Boaz marries Ruth, and she gives birth to a son, Obed, who becomes the grandfather of King David.Outline • Prologue: The family line ends (1:1–5) • Ruth joins Naomi (1:6–22) • Ruth meets Boaz (2:1–23) • Ruth sleeps at Boaz’s feet (3:1–18) • Boaz redeems Ruth (4:1–12) • Epilogue: The family line continues (4:13–22)Outline 2
This book consists of 4 chapters. Scholars often separate the text into seven sections. The first section provides the background of Elimelech and Naomi's downfall in Moab (Ruth 1:1–5). Naomi's husband and two sons die, leaving her with only two daughters-in-law. Second, Naomi and Ruth return to Bethlehem (Ruth 1:6–22). Ruth refuses to return to her own people, but remains loyal to Naomi and her God.Third, Boaz accepts Ruth as a worker in his field (Ruth 2:1–23). This action highlights the generosity of Boaz in addition to the hardworking attitude of Ruth. Both individuals seek to serve the Lord and show concern for others in need.Fourth, Ruth suggests marriage with Boaz (Ruth 3:1–18). Boaz is flattered, realizing she could have sought a younger man. Instead, she sought marriage with a person of integrity who was also part of Naomi's family in accordance with the Mosaic law. However, Boaz also seeks to show discretion and proceed through the appropriate steps.Fifth, Boaz redeems Ruth before the people of his community (Ruth 4:1–12). Everyone in the community accepts the decision and supports their marriage. Sixth, God honors Boaz and Ruth with a son (Ruth 4:13–17). He is named Obed and became the grandfather of David. Naomi's bitterness turns to joy as she becomes a grandmother and has a redeemer for her family line. Ruth is recognized as a godly woman despite not being of Jewish descent. Seventh, Ruth and Boaz's son becomes an ancestor in the line of Judah leading to King David (Ruth 4:18–22). The genealogy presents the connection between Perez, from the tribe of Judah, down to David, supporting his rightful status as the king of Judah.