ADONAI’S Hand Has Turned Against Me
1: 11-13

ADONAI’s hand has turned against me DIG: What arguments did Na’omi make to support her argument that her daughters-in-law return to Mo’ab? What was her motivation? Was she being selfish or selfless? Ruth and Orpah could only find rest in marriage. How was Isra’el’s position similar then? How is Isra’el’s position similar now? How is this position similar to the congregations of God today? How were Job’s and Na’omi’s feelings similar?

REFLECT: Do you know anyone who is hurting with loss like Na’omi was? If so, what can you do to help them? Describe a time when you have been angry with God? What did you do to resolve it? Have you resolved it? How can you help others?

The two daughters-in-law started off with Na’omi, but down the road she stopped and urged them not to continue to Judah. She even prayed for them that the LORD would be kind to them and find them new husbands and give them rest after all their sorrow. But when Na’omi saw them hesitating, she said: Return (shuwb) home, my daughters. Why would you come with me? Na’omi gave her daughters-in-law three reasons why it would be impossible for them to find joy if they returned to Y’hudah.

First, she could not produce any more sons for them to marry: Am I going to have any more sons in my internal organs who could become your husbands (1:11)? Na’omi’s word choice here seems to add a touch of deeply felt emotion to her statement. The usual word for womb (Hebrew: rechem) is not used. Instead the word for internal organs, (Hebrew: me’im) is used which connotes more generally the abdomen or “guts.” The word hints at Na’omi’s sadness at neither having nor hoping for any more sons and facing her last years without her family.²⁷ She couldn’t even say the word womb. It was too painful. So the answer was no, your best chance for marriage lay in Mo’av, not in Beit-Lechem.

But this very impossibility hints at an important possibility . . . a future marriage as the means to provide Na’omi with an heir. More importantly, this depressing scene prepares the reader for the story’s conclusion. Only God can do the impossible. But for the present, that hope is nowhere on the horizon.

Return (shuwb) home, my daughters; second, she was too old to remarry: I am too old to have another husband. If I should say there was still hope for me – even if I had a husband tonight and then gave birth to sons. It is worth noting that she does not use the usual construction for a conditional clause. Normally, the word if I should say (Hebrew: amar) would be expressed in the imperfect tense denoting various possibilities. Na’omi, however, uses the perfect tense, meaning the situation was just as real as if it had actually happened. It was as if she was saying, “Even if I have a husband tonight and give birth to two sons.” By doing so she brings out the absurdity of her proposition.²⁸

Then using over-exaggeration to make her point she says: Would you wait until they grew up? One almost hears the ironic echo of Y’hudah’s request that Tamar wait until Shelah grew up to get married (see the commentary on Genesis, to see link click Jd – Judah said to Tamar: Live as a Widow Until My Son Shelah Grows Up), an idea feasible in her case, but virtually impossible in Na’omi’s. Would you remain unmarried for them? Then Na’omi answered her own question: Absolutely not, my daughters (1:12-13a). But it is interesting that she did not mention finding husbands for them in Y’hudah itself. This was probably because they were Moabites. They needed to remarry, have children and enjoy life. In the ancient Near East a woman without a husband was in serious trouble because she lacked security.

Then Na’omi cried out of her wounded heart. But, her focus shifted from arguments for the women not coming with her, to accusation against the LORD. It is more bitter for me than for you, because ADONAI’s hand has turned against me (1:13)! Job felt the same way when he declared: I swear by the living God, who is denying me justice, and by Shaddai, who has made my life bitter (Job 27:2 CJB). He repeatedly accused Ha’Shem of injustice (Job 6:4, 7:20, 10:2-3, 13:24, 16:12-13, 19:7 and 23:14), and of giving him inner bitterness (Job 3:20, 7:11, 10:1 and 23:2).

Na’omi and her daughters had each lost a husband. Na’omi had lost a husband and two sons as well. Thirdly, she thought she was cursed. Na’omi felt that she was the target of God’s overwhelming power and wrath. Thus, Na’omi made her most crucial point. If even YHVH was after her, to follow her back to Judah was to court personal disaster. Her earlier tragedies – famine, exile, bereavement, and childlessness – might only be the beginning. One ought to shun that person to escape the turmoil of her misfortune. What better argument to make to return to Mo’av attractive? Na’omi had built an airtight cause for not being connected to her.²⁹

Based on this text the rabbis teach that there must be an attempt to talk a would-be Gentile proselyte to Judaism out of it three times because by the fourth time he or she should be converted.

But Na’omi seemed a bit insensitive to the grief of her daughters-in-law. She thought that her case was more bitter than theirs because they still had potential for childbearing. She regarded her plight a result of the hand of God. All that had happened to her was not merely bad luck. Na’omi was apparently in a stage of grief that caused her to speak in anger against YHVH. And yet she was still a woman of faith. She had no doubt that the LORD was actively involved in their lives. She saw ADONAI as sovereign and the ultimate Master of her destiny. Who else could straighten out her dilemma?³⁰

What does faith in YHVH mean in times of suffering? Later we can look back on our pain and sometimes discern good that has come from it. Often, we can believe, suffering confronts us as no other experience can, with the brevity and frailty of our lives. Suffering can open to us deeper dimensions of the spiritual life. The LORD can be a pathway to growth and maturity of character: pain can heal. But at the time it does not feel like that. At the time, as Na’omi’s experience bears witness, the essence of trust, throughout the experience of affliction, is to humbly bow beneath ADONAI’s hand from whom we feel the blow, in the firm belief that despite all outward appearances, it is the hand of a loving Father.³¹

Dear Great and Loving Father, When we look at our trials, they seem so big, but when we lift our eyes to stare at how Mighty You are-then our problems look so much smaller. How true it is – Big problem – small God – Big God, small problem. Please help us to keep our eyes on the eternal joy that You will give Your children in heaven. For I consider the sufferings of this present time not worthy to be compared with the coming glory to be revealed to us (Romans 8:18). In heaven there will be no tears, pain or anything that causes sadness. He shall wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more. Nor shall there be mourning or crying or pain any longer, for the former things have passed away.”(Revelation 21:4).

      We praise You for being able to conquer any road block that stands in our way of serving you. You are in complete control of all that comes across our path. There is no army, no nation, no pandemic that is more powerful that you. At the end of the 7 years of Tribulation when Satan gathers all the nations to fight against You, You will defeat them without even a battle for, From His mouth comes a sharp sword – so that with it He may strike down the nations – and He shall rule them with an iron rod, and He treads the winepress of the furious wrath of Elohei-Tzva’ot.  On His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “King of kings, and Lord of lords” (Revelation 19:15-16).

 We love and praise You and desire to please You by our living with a trusting heart in you Almighty power and Awesome love! In your holy Son’s name and power of resurrection. Amen

We Will Go Back With You to Your People
1: 6-10

We will go back with you to your people DIG: Without a husband or sons, what crisis is Na’omi facing? In a male-dominated age, how important would male relatives be for widows? Why did Na’omi go back to Beit-Lechem? Why didn’t she want to take her daughters-in-law? What ethnic enmity complicates prospects for her daughters-in-law? Given the social problems facing these widows, why do you think Na’omi told Ruth and Orpah to return to their families?

REFLECT: Na’omi wanted to be alone in her grief. Can you relate? Na’omi didn’t want to be responsible for her two daughters-in-law. Does that sound familiar? What is your motivation in dealing with others? Are you a giver or a taker? What was Orpah? Ruth? Na’omi? When was the last time anyone showed that amount of devotion to you?

After an absence of ten years, Na’omi, widowed and childless, homeless and destitute, prepared to return to Judea where she learns from traveling merchants that the famine had ended. When Na’omi heard in Mo’av that YHVH had visited (Hebrew: paqad) His people by providing food for them, she and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there (1:6). Given the setting in the days of the judges, this can only mean that the LORD’s people repented and saw His favor restored to them. She would have to swallow her pride and go back to YHVH’s people in Beit-Lechem where she had heard that there was now food again. God’s blessing had finally returned to Judah. After experiencing the bitter emptiness of the land of compromise, the time was long overdue for the prodigal daughter to go home.¹⁹

This shows that the famine was one of divine judgment. The Hebrew verb paqad is used of divine activity in the TaNaKh, it can either carry the overtones of divine judgment (Jeremiah 25:12) or divine blessing as we see here. Thus, when ADONAI visits, His response depends on the faithfulness or faithlessness that He finds in His people. Faithfulness will result in blessing; faithlessness will result in judgment. The verb paqad is a warning against presuming on the holiness of YHVH and a reminder that God delights to bless.²⁰ In this particular case, ADONAI visits His people and the result was the end of the famine. The Rabbis teach that God gave bread to His people on account of the righteousness of Ibtzan of Beit-Lechem (Judges 12:8-10), and on account of Bo’az the pious.

Whenever we have disobeyed the Lord and departed from His will, we must confess our sin and return to the place of blessing. Abraham had to leave Egypt and go back to the altar he had abandoned (Gen 13:1-4), and Jacob had to go back to Bethel (35:1). The repeated plea of the prophets to God’s people was that they turn (shuwb) from their sins and return (shuwb) to the Lord. The wicked must forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. The only way they will be able to do that is for them to turn to the LORD, and He will have mercy on them, and to our God, for He will freely pardon (Isaiah 55:7).

Na’omi’s decision was right, but her motive was wrong. She was still interested primarily in food, not in fellowship with YHVH. You don’t hear her confessing her sins to God and asking Him to forgive her. She was returning to her Land . . . but not her LORD.²¹ So she departed from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return (shuwb) to the land of Judah (1:7 NASB).

What was Na’omi’s motivation? Beit-Lechem had been Na’omi’s home, it was never the home of her daughter-in-laws. Her people were not their people. If Orpah and Ruth came with her, it would mean two more mouths to feed. Na’omi wasn’t even sure she could feed herself. Two more bodies to clothe and house, all the while dependent on charity from family members. Oy vey! Would anyone welcome them into the polite society of Tziyon?

Somewhere along the road, likely some distance from Mo’av, Na’omi finally broke her long, tense silence. These, her first recorded words, launched a lengthy conversation among the three women. It was probably easier on her having this conversation some distance from Mo’av. If she had to say good-bye, the further from their homes the better. Then Na’omi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Return (shuwb), each of you to your mother’s home (1:8a). This was surprising because widows normally returned to their father’s house (Genesis 38:11; Leviticus 22:12; Numbers 30:3-5; Deuteronomy 22:21; Judges 19:2).

On the one hand, these were Moabite women who by their very presence would be a constant reminder to Na’omi and all those around her of her sin in abandoning the Promised Land and marrying her sons outside the covenant people. Every time she saw their foreign faces, she would be confronted with the heavy hand of God’s judgment upon her in the loss of her husband and sons. It was in some ways similar to the situation of a young woman who has lived a rebellious life away from home and has a child outside of marriage. Adoption may be a hard choice, but if she keeps the child when she returns home, she (and everyone around her) may be constantly reminded of her sin by the child’s presence. Unless grace abounds, the child could easily be viewed as an embarrassing intruder.²²

On the other hand, though the deaths severed their social ties with Na’omi, Orpah and Ruth had voluntarily stayed with her, indeed, Ruth had even chosen to leave her own country to care for Na’omi in Na’omi’s country. These acts reflect remarkable self-sacrifice . . . the forfeiture of their own happiness to provide Na’omi with a “mother’s house,” that is, some semblance of social roots in a mother’s role. They willingly endured their own widowhood, childlessness, and displacement for her sake.²³

Na’omi genuinely cared for both of them. She said: May ADONAI show you chesed (to see link click Af – The Concept of Chesed), just as you have shown kindness to your dead husbands and to me beyond the normal expectations (1:8). May YHVH grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband (1:9a). The concept of rest in this book refers to marriage and this was exactly the problem for her two Moabite daughters-in-law. It was unlikely that they would find husbands in Judah because they were Moabites. Surely they would only end up sharing in Na’omi’s poverty and therefore would not find rest.

No wonder, then, that Na’omi thought it far better for her daughters-in-laws (and for her) that they should go back to their parent’s houses, to live on the charity of their own people and find new husbands among the Moabite community. Why should they choose a road to nowhere and come along with her to a land that was not their own?²⁴ Then, with very mixed emotions, she kissed them goodbye and they wept aloud (1:9b).

Even so, they still clung to her, saying: We will return (shuwb) with you to your people (1:10). This is a touching scene. The years together had forged a firm, affectionate bond among the women. You can just see the three of them standing in the middle of the road and crying. It demonstrates that after all the grief these two young women had shared with their mother-in-law, they were more attached to her than to their own people.²⁵

At the end of this section, one must not miss that the storyteller has introduced a major theme to be followed in succeeding events, namely, the finding of a husband for a widow (3:1-2 and 18, 4:13). The audience now waits for something to happen. And if it does, God will get the credit. It will be His act, but the answer will be Na’omi’s wish.²⁶

Dear Father God, How much we love You! Praise You for going ahead of Your children and behind them and alongside of each child. We cannot even see tomorrow, but You are omniscient and can see to the end of the world and beyond. Praise You that we do not need to fear the future, even when it looks real scary to us. We can look confidently into Your loving face and place our trial and problems into Your Mighty hands. When you asked Abraham to sacrifice his son, he loved his son so deeply and had no idea how things would turn out, but he obeyed and trusted You.  Abraham said, “God will provide” (Genesis 22:8). You did provide-not a week early or an hour ahead of time but at exactly the right time you provided perfectly. So, also, when we need a solution, You will provide. The provision may not be what we would choose, but we can trust You to provide what is best for us. It must have been very tiring for Ruth to work so hard every day in the hot sun gathering grain from the fields, but You had a wonderful future planned for her and You have the best future planned for us. We praise and love and trust and worship You dear Father. In your holy Son’s name and power of resurrection. Amen

Ruth’s Dedication
1: 6-18

Na’omi had no reason to stay in in Mo’av. The news that the famine that had brought the family there in the first place was over was sufficient to cause her to decide to return home to Isra’el. This led to a problem for her daughters-in-law that they faced in different ways. Orpah returned to her native country of Mo’av, but Ruth did the extraordinary thing and went with Na’omi. It brought from Ruth a magnificent declaration of her dedication.¹⁸

(art by Sarah Beth Baca: see more information on Links and Resources)

Scene One reaches its climax as Ruth makes her declaration in 1:16-17.
These verses form a chiastic A-B-C-B-A literary structure.

A Don’t press me to leave you or to turn back from you.

B Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay.

C Your people will be my people and your God my God.

B Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried.

A May God deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.

Scene One:
Na’omi’s Return to Beit-Lechem
1: 6-22

As Ian Duguid writes in his commentary on Ruth, in every life there are certain defining moments, key crossroads along the way. On the one hand, there are certain times when a person consciously chooses his or her destination. There are occasions where one has to choose between going down a path everyone else is following or taking another path, a road less traveled, as it were. A life changed forever.

On the other hand, though, there are also times in life when it seems that your destination has chosen you. These are the occasions when life gives us no choice at all, but throws us head-over-heels down a path that, however well or little traveled, we would never have chosen for ourselves. No one chooses to have her husband die, leaving her a widow with young children. No one chooses to have a crippling accident or a life-threatening disease with permanent consequences. These too can be defining moments in a life. But all of us – whether defined by the choices we have made or the choices life has made for us – are on a journey through life, a road that is heading toward some destination or other. Where are you going?

The first chapter of the book of Ruth is the story of choices made and choices seemingly thrust upon people, about roads traveled or left untraveled. It is about the long-term consequences of the decisions we make. Often the consequences are not those we expected or anticipated, but our lives nonetheless bear the mark of the decisions we have made and the defining moments we have faced. The book of Ruth shows us that our actions have consequences. However, our lives are not simply the consequence of the various decisions we have made and events that have occurred, as if the universe were a giant supercomputer into which we feed all of the variables and come out with a predictable answer. There is a mysterious X-factor that is evident in the book of Ruth – a variable that has the power to change everything. It is the grace of ADONAI, which directs the outcomes of those decisions and events according to His sovereignty and good purpose for His people. That grace is not always evident to the players in the game at the time. But it is always there, whether acknowledged or unacknowledged. Ultimately, for believers, the grace of God is always the defining element of our lives.¹⁷

Prologue: Na’omi’s Misery and Emptiness
1: 1-5

Prologue: Na’omi’s misery and emptiness DIG: What is the climate of the times for Na’omi? What personal disasters befall her? What has Na’omi lost during her time in Mo’av?

REFLECT: Can you think of a period in your life when you did “whatever you wanted, whenever you wanted?” What happened to you? Where are you living? In Beit-Lechem or Mo’av? How do you recover from a bad decision? What is an area in your life where you often see nothing but problems? What are some temporary solutions you often toss around in your mind? What “temporary stop” have you made in your life that has become permanent? Explain. What is an area you can see the Adversary trying to create a “permanent stop” in your life? What can you to do to prevent it?

The book begins: Back in the days of the judging of the judges (1:1a CJB). The Rabbis teach this was a lawless generation in which the judges committed more sins than the rest of the people, and a generation that judged its judges. This gives us the chronological period when the story occurred. It was about a century before the time of David, during the period of the judges and is a fitting appendix to the book of Judges. The rabbis teach that this occurred during the period of the judge Ibtzan of Beit-Lechem (Judges 12:8-10). And the reason his name is not mentioned here in verse one is out of respect because another rabbinic tradition says that Ibtzan was a relative of Elimelek.

At a time when there was a famine in the Land (1:1b CJB). This famine may have taken place in connection with the devastation of the Land by the Midianites in the days of Gideon. If that were true, it had to be a very serious one that extended over the whole Land. Otherwise one could just go to another part of the country to survive. Secondly, it had to last for several years to compel them to leave the Land and go to Mo’av. Thirdly, ten years passed until they would hear that the famine had ended. Fourthly, the Midianites oppressed the people for seven years and they ruined the crops and did not spare a living thing for Isra’el, neither sheep nor cattle nor donkeys (Judges 6:3-4). So it seems likely that the story of Ruth took place during the time of Gideon. The cause of the famine is not stated here, but drought and famine were among the judgments YHVH said would come upon the Land as a result of failure to keep the Torah (Leviticus 26:18-20; Deuteronomy 28:23-24). And the book of Judges gives us plenty of evidence of the failure to keep the Torah that brought about the famine during the days of Gideon. Furthermore, in this context the drought did not affect Mo’av, which is very close to Isra’el, separated only by the Dead Sea. So this was a local famine in Isra’el only, pointing to divine judgment.¹²

A certain man from Beit-Lechem in Judah went to live in the fields of Mo’av (1:1c CJB). The ultimate irony had occurred: Beit-Lechem, whose very name means house of bread, was a place with no food. In that situation, Elimelek had a choice to make, a road to choose. He could stay in Beit-Lechem, the empty breadbasket of Y’hudah, mourning the sin that surrounded him and trusting God to provide for him and his wife and two sons, or he could leave the Promised Land behind in search for greener fields, in this case the fields of Mo’av, where food was more abundant.¹³

The Hebrew word for went to live is ger, and is used of a resident alien. This shows that his purpose was to live in Mo’av temporarily, not permanently. The root meaning of the word means to live among people who are not blood relatives. The ger did not have civil rights but was dependent upon the hospitality of the natives. This played an important role in the culture of the ancient near east. In Isra’el the ger had certain guaranteed rights, but this was not true in Mo’av. The fields of Mo’av point to the 4,300 foot plateau of Mo’av, good for growing crops, not the rigorous mountainous region along the eastern shore of the Dead Sea.

He (Elimelek), his, wife and his two sons went to live in Mo’av (1:1d CJB). The Jewish reader of Ruth would therefore be somewhat shocked and appalled by the fact that Elimelek moved his family from Beit-Lechem and sought refuge in Mo’av. But he was a devout Jew, so this showed the severity of the famine. The land of Isra’el was evidently both spiritually and physically parched, and times were desperate.

The relationship between the Hebrews and the Moabites was sometimes friendly, but often the reverse (to see link click Ac – Introduction to the Book of Ruth: The Historical Background). At the time described in the book of Ruth it may be assumed to have been friendly. Yet it is no wonder that tradition looked with disapproval at Elimelek’s going. Mo’av was not a place filled with people who loved God. They worshiped a false god named Chemosh.

The man’s name was Elimelek, which means my God is king. It appears, however, that ADONAI was no more King in Elimelek’s heart than He was in the hearts of his fellow countrymen where there was no king and everyone did whatever seemed right in their own eyes (Judges 21:25 NLT). There was no king in Elimelek’s life, and therefore, like so many others in the days of the judging of the judges, he chose to do what was best in his own eyes. He chose a road to Mo’av.

His wife’s name was Na’omi, which means the pleasant one, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon, which means sickness, and Kilion, meaning wasting. So the names imply that the sons were not healthy from the time that they were born. They were Ephrathites from Beit-Lechem, Y’hudah, who traced their descent from Ephrath, wife of Caleb (First Chronicles 11:19). And they were driven from their home to the fields of Mo’av (1:2a). Now, either they were the only Jewish family to do this, or the only ones mentioned who did so.

But the journey to Mo’av was wrong for three reasons: First, Na’omi herself recognized that the death of her husband and her two sons was a judgment of God (1:13). Second, in Deuteronomy 23:3-6, the Moabites were barred from participating in the life of Isra’el and Isra’el was forbidden to seek a treaty of friendship with them. Third, if YHVH had wanted Elimelek to leave Isra’el He would have declared so as He did with the Assyrian and Babylonian exiles.

And they lived there (1:2b). It was to be a temporary solution to a problem they had, but Elimelek couldn’t have imagined the permanent effect his decision would bring. That reality wasn’t immediately apparent, of course. It rarely is. It seemed like Elimelek had made a good choice. While his kinsmen back home were suffering and hungry, there was food in Mo’av. Like the story of the prodigal son that Yeshua told (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Hu – The Parable of the Lost Son and His Jealous Brother), Elimelek’s stay in a far country went well at the beginning. He was able to support his wife and two sons. Having arrived in Mo’av, they initially were only going to stay there temporarily, but unfortunately they continued to live there permanently. Perhaps there never was a conscious decision to settle there permanently, but after a while Mo’av became home, and like Lot (see the commentary on Genesis Dx – Abram Lived in the Land of Canaan, While Lot Pitched His Tents Near Sodom) they got comfortable in a land where they shouldn’t have been. They just existed there, drifting through life without a plan.

Husbands and fathers certainly want to provide for their wives and family, but they must not do it at the expense of losing the blessing of YHVH. When the Adversary met Yeshua in the wilderness, his first temptation was to suggest that Messiah satisfy His hunger rather than please His Father (Matthew 4:1-4; John 4:34). One of the devil’s favorite lies is, “Well, you do have to live.” But it is in God that we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28), and He is willing and able to take care of us.

David’s witness is worth considering: I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, or his descendants begging for bread (Psalm 37:25). As Rabbi Sha’ul faced a threatening future, he testified: But I consider my own life of no importance to me whatsoever (Acts 20:24a). In difficult times, if we can die to self and put the will of ADONAI first (Mattityahu 6:33), we can be sure that He will either take us out of trouble, or bring us through it.¹⁴

By going fifty miles to the neighboring land of Mo’av, Elimelek and his family abandoned God’s Land and God’s people for the land and people of the enemy. Tragedy quickly mounted. Then Elimelek, Na’omi’s husband died, not from old age or infirmity, but as the result of divine punishment and the sovereignty of YHVH. How long this happened after entering Mo’av we simply don’t know. But however long it was, she was left with her two sons (1:3). But that too will soon change.

The Torah did not specifically forbid the marriage to Moabites as it did forbid marriage to Canaanite women lest they worship other gods (Deuteronomy 7:1-3). However, common sense suggests that for similar reasons, marriage to a Moabite was just as sinful. So the sons sinned even more grievously than their father because they married Moabite women, one named Orpah, meaning stubborn, and the other Ruth, meaning friendship. No doubt Na’omi and her sons must have felt trapped by their desperate circumstances, and Na’omi seems to have graciously accepted her daughters-in-law. Ruth married Mahlon (4:10), who was apparently the elder of the two sons. Orpah, then, would have been the wife of Kilion.

Na’omi and her sons lived there about ten years. This fits the situation of Gideon (Judges 6:2-5). That is probably the total time they spent in Mo’av rather than the amount of time that passed after the young men were married, because neither of the couples had any children. That would have been very unusual, even in a time of famine, and barrenness was considered a punishment of YHVH (Deuteronomy 28:18).

Meanwhile, circumstances did not appear to be improving for Na’omi. In fact, matters took a turn for the worse. Both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Na’omi was left without her two sons and her husband (1:4-5). Wow, five verses, two weddings and three funerals! Elimelek and his family fled Judah to escape death, but the three men met death just the same.¹⁵ In that culture, this was a nearly impossible situation. Three widows, with no children and no responsible relatives, in a time of famine, could not hope to survive for long, even if they pooled their meager resources. We’re not told what caused any of the husbands to die, but the fact that all three perished is a measure of how hard life was in the adversity of those days. Both Mahlon and Kilion seem to have died in quick succession, suggesting they perhaps fell victim to disease, very likely related to the famine.¹⁶

We can’t run away from our problems. We can’t avoid taking with us the basic cause of most of our problems, which is an unbelieving and disobedient heart. But this story will show us that YHVH is a God who restores, rebuilds, and renews . . . all things.

The Book of Ruth and Shavu’ot

The Jewish traditions on Shavu’ot include the reading of the scroll of Ruth. This small, four-chapter book is one of the most remarkable jewels in the TaNaKh. It is a love story that is venerated among literature buffs for its sheer elegance. Ruth, a Moabitess, in her loyal dedication to Na’omi (her widowed mother-in-law), after her own husband dies returns with Na’omi to Beit-Lechem where she ultimately marries Bo’az, a wealthy landowner, who is the hero of the story. The book is also treasured among Bible students because it gives us an unparalleled glimpse into the life and customs of ancient Isra’el. The laws concerning gleaning, the redemption of property, and the laws concerning the levirate marriage are all beautifully illustrated by the narrative.

But it may come as a surprise to believers that it is also a key book of prophecy, without which one has little chance of really understanding the book of Revelation. The story illustrates the role of a go’el, the kinsman-redeemer, who returns the land lost to Na’omi by performing the requirements of redemption. He also takes for himself a Gentile bride who is destined to appear in the family tree of David and of Jesus Christ.

The exquisite parallels have been well recognized by many biblical scholars: Na’omi (foreshadowing Isra’el) returning to the land, and Ruth (foreshadowing the Bride of Christ), each established by the act of redemption by the kinsman-redeemer, Bo’az. What is remarkable is how even the subtle details of the scroll of Ruth seem to support this foreshadowing. Ruth learns of the pattern (God’s design) of redemption through Na’omi. The Church learns of God’s redemptive design through Isra’el. An unnamed servant introduces Ruth to Bo’az. The Ruach ha-Kodesh is always modeled in the TaNaKh types as the “unnamed servant.” Jesus told us that the Holy Spirit would never testify of Himself. Na’omi learns of Bo’az through Ruth. Is there a witness burden here for the Church?

And where is Ruth during the threshing floor scene? At Bo’az’s feet! The threshing floor is one of the idioms that can allude to the tribulation. One cannot build doctrine from foreshadowing, but it can be instructive. The list goes on and on. Every time we study this book it seems there are additional “discoveries.”

It is interesting that Ruth can be viewed as prophetic of the Church (to see link click Av – Scene Three: Na’omi’s Wonderful Plan for Ruth’s Life), which was a mystery in the TaNaKh (Ephesians 5:32). And it is interesting that, even among the Jewish community, this book is associated with Shavu’ot. Many assume that the Festival of Shavu’ot was completely fulfilled in Acts 2:15. But surely there’s still more to come.

The Meaning of El Shaddai

As described by Nathan Stone in his book Names of God, El Shaddai was the first great revelation of the significance of the divine name given to Isra’el in Egypt. They were a covenant people, a separated people through whom a righteous and holy God would work out His purpose of redemption for mankind. In Exodus 3:14-14, He thus revealed Himself: I am that I am . . . say to the Israelites, “ADONAI, the God of your fathers – the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob – has sent me to you.” This is My name forever, the name by which I Am to be remembered from generation to generation,” or eternity (3:14-15). Then in Exodus 6:2-3 God spoke to Moshe and said to him, “I am ADONAI. I appeared to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as El Shaddai, although I did not make myself known to them by my name, YHVH. It is suggested that by this it was meant that the Patriarchs had not understood the full significance of that name. The full significance of a name that means the ever-existent One, the eternal, the ever-becoming One – that is, the One continually revealing Himself and His ways and purposes could not be understood except after centuries and centuries of unfolding of events and experiences. The point is, however, that the Patriarchs knew Him as God Almighty, or in Hebrew, El Shaddai.

The name appears first in connection with Abram: When Abram was ninety-nine years old ADONAI appeared to him and said: I am El Shaddai. Walk before Me and be perfect (Hebrew: tam). I will confirm My covenant between Me and you and I will greatly increase your numbers (Genesis 17:1-2). The occasion was the confirmation of a promise already made to Abram to make him a great nation (Genesis 12:2), to make his seed as the dust of the earth innumerable (Genesis 13:16), and like the innumerable stars of heaven (Genesis 15:5). But thirteen years passed and still Abraham and Sarah had no child. When, humanly speaking, it was no longer possible for her to conceive, Sarah took things into her own hands and suggested that her husband have a child with her handmaiden (which technically in their culture would have been hers). The result was Ishmael, but still no son of promise. Seemingly a dead-end again. But is anything too hard for YHVH? Nothing is impossible for Him! And it was precisely at this point and in this connection that the promise of a seed was confirmed, and the name of Abram was changed to Abraham with the revelation of YHVH as El Shaddai, or God Almighty.

The word El is translated God over 200 times in the Bible with that general significance: You are the God who does wonders, You reveal Your strength to the peoples. With Your mighty arm You redeemed Your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph (Psalm 77:14). He is the El of Isra’el, who gives strength and power to the people (Psalm 68:35b). And Moshe says of Him, “What other god is there in heaven or on earth that can do the works and mighty deeds that You do by Your strong hand” (Deuteronomy 3:24)? It’s the word Hezekiah used when he spread Sennacherib’s blasphemous letter before Him in the Temple (Isaiah 37:15). It is the word often used to denote God’s power to interpose or intervene. So Nehemiah called upon the great, the mighty, and the terrible El to intervene on behalf of His people (Nehemiah 9:32). El reveals Himself with special deeds of power as He sees fit.

In addition, El Shaddai is the One who fills and makes fruitful. As we experience God’s sufficiency, we must realize our insufficiency. To experience God’s fullness, we must experience our emptiness. It is not an easy thing to empty ourselves. But the less empty we are, the less blessing El can pour into us; the more pride and self-sufficiency, the less fruit we can bear. Sometimes only divine discipline can make us realize this. Therefore, it is that the name El Shaddai is used in connection with judging, chastening or purging. It is not insignificant when Na’omi loses her home, her husband and her two sons, that she declares: Don’t call me Na’omi [pleasant], call me Marah [bitter], because Shaddai has made my life very bitter. I went out full, and ADONAI has brought me back empty. Why call me Na’omi? ADONAI has testified against me, Shaddai has afflicted me (1:20-21 CJB).

The same El Shaddai of the TaNaKh is the One who chastens those whom He loves in the B’rit Chadashah. He is the same One who has chosen us to bring forth fruit, much fruit – fruit that will last (John 15:16). As the all-sufficient One says: Without Me you can do nothing (John 15:5). Sometimes He finds it necessary to purge us so that we may produce more spiritual fruit (John 15:2). But even in discipline, His ultimate purpose is love and mercy. Even though millions will be judged during the Great Tribulation, that time will witness the greatest revival in the history of the world. Many will be martyred, but ADONAI will see them standing on the sea of glass singing the song of the Lamb (see the commentary on Revelation, to see link click Dz – The Seven Angels with the Seven Last Plagues).

So we see that the name El Shaddai, Almighty God, speaks to us of the riches and fullness of His grace in self-sacrificing love pouring itself out for others. It tells us that from YHVH comes every good and perfect gift, that El never gets tired of pouring out His mercies and blessings upon His people. But we must not forget that His strength is made perfect in our weakness (Second Corinthians 12:9); His sufficiency is most clearly seen in our insufficiency; and His fullness in our emptiness, that we being filled, may flow rivers of living water to a thirsty and needy world.¹¹

The Concept of Chesed

The book of Ruth holds out the practice of chesed as the ideal lifestyle for Isra’el. Every blessing enjoyed by Ruth and Bo’az at the story’s end derives from their firm loyalty. The storyteller holds them up as role models of living by chesed. Through them, the reader learns the heavy demands of chesed.⁸

Used some 248 times in the TaNaKh, the Hebrew word chesed has no English equivalent. Being an expression of relationship, the term means faithfulness, kindness, goodness, mercy, love and compassion, but primarily loyalty to a covenant. YHVH is the One who models chesed. It is a characteristic of Ha’Shem rather than human beings; it is rooted in the divine nature. Chesed precedes the covenant (b’rit), which provides additional assurance that YHVH’s promise will not fail. While the righteous may call for help based on a relationship with El, there can also be an appeal for help based not on any human merit, but rather on the faithfulness of ADONAI to help the undeserving to bring forgiveness and restoration. Again, God models “doing chesed” for us. The chesed of the LORD that is experienced and known by His children comes to define what human chesed can be, ought to be, and sometimes actually is.⁹

And as Robert Hubbard describes in his commentary on Ruth, the author stresses the idea of chesed through two sets of contrasting characters. First, he contrasted the two daughters-in-law, Orpah and Ruth (1:8-17). Without criticism, he reported Orpah’s return to Moab in obedience to Na’omi’s commands. She represents one who does the ordinary . . . except that it is not chesed. By contrast, Ruth represents one who does the extraordinary – the unexpected. She was not content to rejoin her Moabite family, remarry, and live, as her contemporaries would have. Her commitment was to Na’omi’s people and God – even in the afterlife (1:17). Further, even in Beit-Lechem, she refused to seek a husband for her own advantage (3:10). Instead, she sought a marriage for Na’omi’s benefit. In such compassionate devotion she stands out from her peers as one who does chesed.

Second, the writer contrasted Bo’az over the unnamed kinsman (to see link click Ba – Bo’az Obtains the Right of Redemption). Again, the kinsman turns out to be average in character, one who gladly passed on his duty to someone else when he gained no economic advantage. One may not fault him for this action, for Israelite custom permitted it . . . but it is not chesed. By contrast, willing to sacrifice his own means, his own life for two impoverished widows, Bo’az far exceeded him and modeled the extraordinary demands of chesed.

Such commitment requires taking unusual risks. Again, both Ruth and Bo’az illustrate this aspect of chesed. Ruth demonstrated great courage in going out to glean in Beit-Lechem’s fields! She risked ostracism – perhaps even physical abuse – because of her gender, social status, or race. She also faced possible rejection when she asked for special gleaning privileges (2:7). But the ultimate risk foreshadowed her nighttime visit to the threshing floor. She could not foresee Bo’az’s reaction to such feminine forwardness – anger, embarrassment, awkwardness, acceptance? Nor could she calculate the lost reputation and new accusations to result, were she and Bo’az discovered. On the other hand, much was to be gained – the survival of Na’omi’s family – so she took the risk. Along similar lines Bo’az took some risks in bringing her case before the ten elders of the town (4:1-8). He could not anticipate how the proceedings at the gate would go. Nor could he determine how the town would interpret his taking a Moabite wife, or the initiative in the matter. Again, the gain was worth the risk. Both did what chesed demanded.

Though rare, risky and restrictive, the practice of loyal, compassionate devotion – in a word, chesed – pleases YHVH so much that one may reasonably expect repayment in kind from Him (1:8 and 3:10). Such reward is the generous gift of a sovereign LORD who graciously chooses to honor human chesed. Only those who do it may receive it.¹⁰

The Duty of Levirate Marriage

This law states that a widow’s brother-in-law is obligated to marry her and father a son for her (if she was childless) so that his dead brother’s name would continue (Deuteronomy 25:5-10). What happens in the book of Ruth, however, does not follow the strict commands of Levirate marriage. The key root yavim, meaning to perform the duty of the brother-in-law does not appear in this book. The rabbis asked the question, “What is the reason behind this law?” Moses had simply stated to raise up a seed for the dead brother. So the rabbis taught that the soul of a man who dies childless finds no rest. This troubles his widow because his name is forgotten in Isra’el. In the event of her marrying his next of kin, and a child being born, it is as if the soul of the departed has been revived. The child would receive the name and status of the deceased and continue the line of the inheritance.

Furthermore, there is no brother-in-law mentioned in Ruth, in fact Na’omi laments the fact that she cannot produce any more sons to take that role (1:11). But there is a broader application, which is that of the go’el (to see link click Au – Na’omi Evaluates the Meeting), meaning to redeem or act as a kinsman. This is the application of the law of redemption in Leviticus 25, where people or property that have been lost can be redeemed by the payment of a fee, usually by the owner, or in other cases, by a relative. Marriage was not specifically mentioned in Leviticus, but seems to be assumed in Ruth. Then Bo’az said: On the day you buy the land from Na’omi, you will also acquire Ruth the Moabite, the dead man’s widow, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property (4:5).Therefore, while the TaNaKh does not overtly state the need to use the Law of Levirate for redemption, this law appears to be an approved means to accomplish redemption.⁷

The Themes in Ruth

The divine providence in Ruth resolves the three common human needs which hang menacingly above the story like a dark, foreboding sky: food, marriage, and children. Against that tragic background emerge several themes that the author interweaves to serve his purposes.

The first theme is YHVH’s gracious rescue of Elimelech’s family from extinction. The story records how famine sent Elimelech’s family into exile in Mo’av, and how death threatened their very existence. Graciously, however, ADONAI rescued the family in two stages. First, He preserved Elimelech’s survivors from starvation through the determination of Ruth and the generosity of Bo’az. That ensured them of some relief but no long-term solution. Finally, however, God provided an heir for Elimelech and care for Na’omi, again through Ruth and Bo’az. The LORD was in control all the way.

Elimelech was not the only beneficiary of God’s gracious providence. Within the fabric of that theme, the author carefully interwove threads of two others. The first concerned the reversal of Naomi’s fortunes from emptiness to fullness. The word return (shuwb) in 1:6 signaled her destiny, initially tragic, but then headed for blessing. Na’omi herself clearly voiced this theme in 1:21 saying that she left Beit-Lechem full, but YHVH has caused me to return (shuwb) empty. While the mention of Shavuot (1:22b) hinted at the hope of fullness, its completed fulfillment took some time. Ruth’s industriousness filled her stomach, but as for the problem of an heir, the reappearance of the word empty, this time on the lips of Bo’az (3:17), signaled that the fullness of a grandson was just around the corner. Finally, in the climax of the story (to see link click Bc – Epilogue: Na’omi’s Satisfaction and Fullness), Na’omi has a [grandson] Obed (4:17a)! At one time she thought YHVH was her enemy (1:21), but now she praises Him (4:14b). The newborn child (Hebrew: yeled) had replaced Na’omi’s lost sons (Hebrew: yeled).

The other thread traces the reversal of Ruth’s fortunes. Surprisingly, the author also speaks of Ruth’s return (shuwb) to the land of Isra’el (1:7, 16, 22 and 2:6), even though she is a Moabitess. Na’omi first mentioned Ruth returning (albeit to Mo’av) to find rest in the home of another husband (1:8-9), and then schemed (albeit through the providence of YHVH) to make the wish of finding Ruth rest in the home of another husband (3:1-2) a reality. Na’omi’s acts executed God’s plans. But when Ruth proposed a marriage in Bo’az’s role as her kinsman-redeemer (3:9), he reminded her that another kinsman had a prior right to be her go’el (3:12). Finally, after Bo’az had cleverly maneuvered the marriage (again through the providence of YHVH), Ruth got her home and husband (4:13). ADONAI had supplied her lack of a husband and a home.

Ruth’s return also sounded the story’s other important minor theme, the acceptance of Gentiles into Isra’el. Ruth’s dramatic, determined declaration to embrace both YHVH and Isra’el (1:16-17), started her acceptance by the Israelites (4:11). Subtly, gradually, the narrator pursued the point along two lines. On the one hand, he stressed Ruth’s worthiness by reporting both her actions of devotion and courage (2:2, 3:6-10) and her high public esteem (2:11, 3:11). That she found favor in the eyes of Bo’az (2:10, 13), implies that she also found favor in the eyes of YHVH Himself. That she enjoyed refuge under the wings of the God of Isra’el (2:12), also hinted possible membership in the community of Isra’el. On the other hand, the narrator described her rise in status from Moabite daughter-in-law (1:22) to servant (2:13), possible marriage partner (3:9), welcomed woman (4:11), and finally wife (4:13). The word play between wings of refuge (kanap) in 2:12 and corner of your garment (kanap), may also imply a connection between Ruth’s marriage to Bo’az and membership in the community of Isra’el. In any case, Ruth’s marriage to Bo’az ended her two tragedies, the fact that she was a widow and a foreigner (4:9-10). The blessings at the gate (4:11-12) testified to Ruth’s popular acceptance by her community as a full-fledged Israelite, thereby implying that others like her will also be welcomed.

The second theme is, the triumph of Elimelech’s family gave Isra’el King David. The book’s surprise ending gave the story a much larger perspective, and the genealogy confirmed it. The triumph of Elimelech’s family over tragedy gave Isra’el King David, the Davidic Covenant and the Messiah. That outcome was not totally unexpected, however, for the storyteller hinted at it all along because the providence of God was at work. The fact that it was utterly impossible for Na’omi to have an heir left divine intervention as the only solution to her childlessness. But if that were to happen it implied that the child must be destined to be great. Though ambiguous on the surface, when YHVH lifted the drought (1:6), it seemed to point to divine intervention. Ruth’s choice of Bo’az’s field for gleaning was no accident, but the providence of the LORD to bring them both together. And the unexpected unnamed kinsman-redeemer with prior rights to her, again reminds us that only God’s help could make the marriage possible.

Once Bo’az had the rights of marriage to Ruth, the author proceeds to the larger story. The good wishes for the couple (4:11-12) and of the women for the child (4:15b) suggested it. Finally, with a short genealogy (4:17b), he revealed it: YHVH’s preservation of Elimelech’s family line resulted in King David. It is that event that the story’s great destiny is aimed. YHVH’s care for Na’omi’s family reflected His care of all Isra’el.⁶

Introduction to the Book of Ruth
from a Jewish Perspective

To Ruth Johnson, my grandmother. Saint Francis of Assisi said,
“Preach the gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words.”
From her Quaker roots, my grandmother preached the gospel her whole life.

The book of Ruth is a flawless love story in a compact format. It’s not an epic tale, but a short story of only eighty-five verses. Nevertheless, it runs the full range of human emotions, from the most gut-wrenching kind of grief to the very height of triumph.

Ruth’s life was the true, historical experience of one genuinely extraordinary woman. It was also a perfect picture of the story of redemption (see the commentary on Exodus, to see link click Bz – Redemption). Ruth herself furnished a fitting picture of every sinner. She was a widow and a foreigner who went to live in a strange land. Tragic circumstances reduced her to hopeless poverty. She was not only an outcast and an exile, but also left without any resources – reduced to a state of utter destitution from which she could never hope to redeem herself by any means. When she had nowhere else to turn, she sought the grace of her mother-in-law’s closest kinsman. The story of how her whole life changed is one of the most deeply touching stories in the whole Bible.¹

Title

The biblical book of Ruth derives its name from one of its three main characters, the Moabite daughter-in-law-of Na’omi and eventual wife of Bo’az. That the book should be named after Ruth is truly remarkable for several reasons. First, Ruth was not even an Israelite. She was a Moabite. Second, Ruth is not the main character in the story. The story opens up describing the crisis in Na’omi’s family, highlighting her own emptiness, and concludes with the resolution of the crisis and the declaration of her fullness in the birth of Obed. Scholars have recognized the importance of direct speech in this book. Fifty-five out of eighty-five verses contain dialogue and 52.4 percent of the words occur on the lips of the characters. Of the three main characters, however, Ruth speaks least often, and her speeches are the shortest. Based on the plot, the book could be called “The Book of Na’omi” and based on the dialogue, “The Book of Bo’az.” In addition, given the concluding Epilogue and genealogy, as well as the purpose of the book, it might even have been called “The Book of Obed.” No doubt the present title reflects the narrator’s and reader’s fascination with and special admiration for the character of Ruth.²

Authorship

The identity of Ruth’s author is uncertain. The author records the events that took place 100 to 150 years earlier. Whoever the author was, he was not an eyewitness to these events because he records the events well before his time. However, it is obvious he must have had access to the written accounts of the family of Y’hudah and the line of Perez. The Talmud (200 AD) ascribes the book to Samuel.

Date

The book gives us several clues about the timing of its writing. To begin with, although the story itself takes place during the period of the judges, it was written after the period of the judges because the first verse of the book is in the past tense: Back in the days when the judges were judging (1:1a). Therefore, it was probably near the end of the period of the judges, which covered 450 years (Acts 13:20). The story of Ruth took place over a period of 10 years. A second clue occurs in Chapter 4. In the past, this is what was done in Isra’el for the redemption and transfer of property to become final: a man took off his sandal and gave it to the other. This was the method of legalizing transactions in Isra’el (4:7). Here the author has to explain a custom in Isra’el that was no longer practiced, which shows a lapse of time between the event and the writing of the story. A third clue is the fact that the genealogy ends with David and does not mention Solomon. Fourthly, the language of Ruth is classical Hebrew and this indicates an early date for the book. Fifthly, it contains many archaic forms, which were not found later in Hebrew. So Ruth was probably written during King David’s reign in about 1000 BC. And for reasons we will discuss later, it was probably written when David was king over Judah only, before he became king over all Isar’el.

The Place in the Canon

In the Hebrew Bible (which is divided into three parts: the Torah, the Prophets, or the Nevi’im, and the Writings, or the Ketuvim) is found in the fifth book of the third division known as the Ketuvim. It is also one of the five books (the Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes and Esther) known as the megillot, meaning scrolls, which are read in the synagogue on five holy occasions. They are read in the following order: Song of Songs is read at Pesach; Ruth is read during the feast of Shavu’ot (see Ah – The Book of Ruth and Shavu’ot); Lamentations is read during the ninth of Av (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Mt – The Destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple on Tisha B’Av in 70 AD); Ecclesiastes is read at Sukkot; and the book of Esther is read at Purim (see the commentary on Esther Bn – The Feast of Purim).

The English Bible follows the order of the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the TaNaKh) and places Ruth after the book of Judges. Ruth gives a more positive side of life during the time of the judges and showing that there were those who sought after ADONAI. Ruth also serves as an introduction to the books of Samuel and background for King David.

The Historical Background

The book took place during the time of the Judges. Within the book we are told that it took place during and after a time of famine. We see a famine mentioned in Judges 6:3-4, so the story probably took place during the time of Gideon.

There are similarities and differences in the book of Judges and the book of Ruth. Judges shows immorality, homosexuality (Judges 19:16-24), while Ruth demonstrates fidelity, righteousness, and purity. The book of Judges shows idolatry, the book of Ruth shows the worship of the One True God. Judges shows decline and disloyalty, whereas Ruth shows devotion. The book of Judges shows lust, but the book of Ruth shows love. Judges shows war, however, Ruth shows peace. The book of Judges demonstrates cruelty, while the book of Ruth demonstrates kindness. Judges reveals disobedience leading to judgment, but Ruth reveals obedience leading to blessing. Lastly, the book of Judges demonstrates spiritual darkness, however the book of Ruth demonstrates spiritual light.

Ruth was a Moabitess and the Moabites generally had a contentious relationship with Isra’el. The Moabites were descendants of Mo’av, who was the son of Lot, through his older daughter (see the commentary on Genesis Fb – Let’s Get Our Father to Drink Wine, and then Lie With Him to Preserve Our Family Line). The descendants of the son of Lot occupied the plateau directly southeast of the Dead Sea. The Moabites became prominent in Isra’el’s history during the time of the exodus. At the time when Isra’el passed through Moabite territory the Ammonites controlled it and were defeated by Isra’el under the leadership of Moses (see the commentary on Exodus Cv – The Amalekites Came and Attacked the Israelites at Rephidim).

Now Balak, who was the king of Mo’av during the time of Moses, did not try to stop Isra’el’s advance as did the Edomites. Instead he summoned Balaam, a wicked prophet (not a false prophet), to curse the Jews instead (Numbers 22-24), but to no avail. Finally, in Numbers 25:1-9, it was Moabite women who finally succeeded in seducing Isra’el and resulting in her judgment. In spite of that enmity, God forbid Isra’el from provoking Mo’av to war because YHVH Himself had given them their land (Deuteronomy 2:9). In the subsequent history, however, the Moabites were a major source of Isra’el’s troubles.

For example, in Judges 3:12-14, for eighteen years the Moabites subjugated Isra’el under Eglon. Later on, after King Sha’ul had assumed rule over Isra’el, he fought against the Moabites (First Samuel 14:47). In the early days of David, he had a friendly relationship with the Moabites and when Sha’ul was purusing him, he even took his parents to Mo’av for safe keeping from the hands of Sha’ul (First Samuel 22:3-4). The chief god of the Moabites was Chemosh (Numbers 21:29), which included human sacrifice (Second Kings 3:26-27), and they also worshiped Ashtar, the wife of Chemosh. Now the Moabite Stone, a famous archeological stone, gives us information about the conflict between Mo’av and the dynasty of Omri in the northern kingdom of Isra’el.

Social Background

Ruth is not a history of public events, but a picture of humble village life, painted on a quiet background away from the turmoil and strife that fills the pages of the book of Judges. The existence of such peaceful conditions in that era would be unknown to us but for the book of Ruth. Who would have dreamed that so beautiful a society as described in its chapters could flourish in those lawless times? Life in the towns was insecure, and corrupt rulers administered justice. It was, in the words of the Rabbis, a generation that judged its judges. Describing the rampant lawlessness, the Midrash tells of men who, having been tried and convicted of crime, would turn and assault their judges. Nevertheless, it was a generation that had the judges they deserved.

What a relief to turn to the placid scene of goodness in the small town of Beit-Lechem! And how happy we are to feel that the simplest country life can, and did, exist side by side with the general state of social disorder and continuous warfare. We thank YHVH for so ordaining that no times shall be so wild, but that in them one might find quiet corners and green oases, all the greener for their somber surroundings, where life might glide on in peaceful isolation from tumult and strife.

At some such quiet period in the history of the Judges, the incidents of the book of Ruth took place. Their lives could apparently be lived in comparative safety, without hindrance, and men and women would love and work and weep and laugh and enjoy their tranquil days about their homes. We see these folk with their time-honored customs and family events; the toiling shepherd, the busy reaper, the women with their cares and uncertainties, the love and labor of simple life, the sympathetic crowds that gathered to share the sorrow of the bereaved or the joy of the newly-wed . . . all of the various religious and social occasions. A religious influence was evidently emanating from some central place of worship and spreading far and wide.

This was where the real world history was being made. Not in the arena of battle, but in the peaceful homes of the simple country folk – there Isra’el’s character was built and her heroes were fashioned. The “unimportant people” who lived and died unnamed and unseen in their homes actually shaped the course of history and it was there, as seen in the book of Ruth, that world-changing event took place.

Structure

The structure contains four basic scenes:

Aj – Scene One: Na’omi’s Return to Bethlehem

Ap – Scene Two: Ruth Meets Bo’az in the Grain Field

Av – Scene Three: Na’omi’s Wonderful Plan for Ruth’s Life

Az – Scene Four: Bo’az Marries Ruth

Literary Features

The book of Ruth is a Jewish short story, told with flawless skill. Among the historical narratives, only Esther rivals it in its compactness, vividness, warmth, beauty and dramatic effect. Wonderfully symmetric, the action moves from a prologue of distress, see Ai – Na’omi’s Misery and Emptiness (with 71 words in Hebrew), through the four scenes, to an epilogue of relief and hope, see Bc – Na’omi’s Satisfaction and Fullness (with 71 words in Hebrew). The crucial turning point occurs exactly midway: Na’omi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by ADONAI, who has never stopped showing grace, neither to the living or the dead.” Na’omi also told her, “That man is one of our closest relatives; he is one of our kinsman redeemers” (2:20 CJB).

The opening line of each of the four scenes signals its theme: 1:6 the return; 2:1 the meeting with Bo’az; 3:1 finding a home for Ruth; 4:1 the decisive event at the gate, while the closing line of each scene facilitates the transition to what follows: 1:22, 2:23, 3:18 and 4:12. Contrast is also used effectively: pleasant (the meaning of Na’omi) and bitter (1:20), full and empty (1:21), and the living and the dead (2:20). The most striking is the contrast between two of the main characters, Ruth and Bo’az. The one is a young, foreign, destitute widow, while the other is a middle-aged, well-to-do Israelite securely established in his home community. For each there is a corresponding character whose actions highlight, by contrast, his or her selfless acts: Ruth to Orpah and Bo’az and the unnamed kinsman-redeemer.³

Aim and Purpose

There are several purposes to the book. The first purpose is to provide a genealogical link between Judah and David, and so continue the messianic line because there is no genealogy given of King David in the book of First Samuel. A second purpose is to show there was faith and obedience in that time of apostasy, that God still had a remnant. A third purpose is to foreshadow the person of the kinsman-Redeemer. A fourth purpose was to show that the grace of YHVH includes the Gentiles. But a fifth, and most important purpose, was to show the superiority of the house of David over the house of Sha’ul, and therefore defend the claims David over the claims of Sha’ul’s son Ish-Bosheth. After Sha’ul was killed, David did not become king of all Isra’el for seven years, rather, Ish-Bosheth became king of all the tribes except for Judah. If it were not for the genealogy in Ruth, David would not have been able to defend his right to the throne over all Isra’el.⁴

The Use of the New International Version

This commentary on Ruth is written from a Jewish perspective, using the New International Version unless otherwise indicated. There will be times when Hebrew is substituted for English names using the Complete Jewish Bible by David Stern; but generally the NIV translation will be used for the Jewish perspective.

The use of ADONAI

Long before Yeshua’s day, the Hebrew word ADONAI had, out of respect, been substituted in speaking and in reading aloud for God’s personal name, the four Hebrew letters yud-heh-vav-heh, variously written in English as YHVH. The Talmud (Pesachim 50a) made it a requirement not to pronounce Tetragrammaton, meaning the four-letter name of God, and this remains the rule in most modern Jewish settings. In deference to this tradition, which is unnecessary but harmless, I will be using ADONAI where YHVH is meant.⁵ In ancient times when the scribes were translating the Hebrew Scriptures, they revered the name of YHVH so much that they would use a quill to make one stroke of the name and then throw it away. Then they would make another stroke and throw that quill away until the name was completed. His name became so sacred to them that they started to substitute the phrase the Name, instead of writing or pronouncing His Name. Over centuries of doing this, the actual letters and pronunciation of His Name was lost. The closest we can come is YHVH, with no syllables. The pronunciation has been totally lost. Therefore, the name Yahweh is only a guess of what the original name sounded like. Both ADONAI and Ha’Shem are substitute names for YHVH. ADONAI is more of an affectionate name like daddy, while Ha’Shem is a more formal name like sir.

The use of TaNaKh

The Hebrew word TaNaKh is an acronym, based on the letters T (for “Torah”), N (for “Nevi’im,” or the Prophets), and K (for “Ketuvim,” or the Sacred Writings). It is the collection of the teachings of God to human beings in document form. The term “Old Covenant” implies that it is no longer valid, or at the very least outdated. Something old, to be either ignored or discarded. But Jesus Himself said: Don’t think I have come to abolish the Torah and the Prophets, I have not come to abolish but to complete (Matthew 5:17 CJB). The Hebrew acronym TaNaKh is used in this devotional commentary. Sometimes instead of the phrase, the Old Testament, the phrase the Old Covenant is used when comparing something to the New Covenant.

The use of the phrase, “the righteous of the TaNaKh,”
rather than using Old Testament saints

Messianic synagogues, and the Jewish messianic community in general, never use the phrase Old Testament saints. From a Jewish perspective, they prefer to use the phrase, “righteous of the TaNaKh.” Therefore, I will be using “the righteous of the TaNaKh,” rather than Old Testament saints throughout this devotional commentary.

Key Verse: Ruth 2:20

Key Word: shuwb

The key word in Ruth is shuwb, meaning to repent (from evil), to return, or to turn back (to something or someone good). This is a significant Hebrew verb and embodies the essence of the book of Ruth. This verb occurs 1,059 times in the TaNaKh and in every chapter of Ruth. I will be inserting the word (shuwb) in the text when it is used.

The Outline of the Book of Ruth

The basis for this commentary is taken from Arnold Fruchtenbaum
and Ariel Ministries in San Antonio, Texas.

Ruth, Where Life and the Bible Meet (Aa)

Outline of Ruth (Ab)

The Introduction to the Book of Ruth from a Jewish Perspective (Ac)

The Themes in Ruth (Ad)

The Duty of Levirate Marriage (Ae)

The Concept of Chesed (Af)

The Meaning of Shaddai (Ag)

The Book of Ruth and Shavu’ot (Ah)

Prologue: Na’omi’s Misery and Emptiness – 1:1-5 (Ai)

Scene One: Na’omi’s Return to Beit-Lechem – 1:6-22 (Aj)

A. Ruth’s Dedication – 1:6-18 (Ak)

1. We Will Go Back With You to Your People – 1:6-10 (Al)

2. ADONAI’S Hand Has Turned Against Me – 1:11-13 (Am)

3. Your People Will Be My People and Your God My God – 1:14-18 (An)

B. Don’t Call Me Na’omi, Call Me Marah – 1:19-22 (Ao)

Scene Two: Ruth Meets Bo’az in the Grain Field – 2:1-23 (Ap)

A. Ruth Gleans in the Field of Bo’az – 2:1-3 (Aq)

B. Bo’az and the Overseer – 2:4-7 (Ar)

C. Bo’az’s Grace and Ruth’s Gratitude – 2:8-13 (As)

D. Bo’az Provides for Ruth – 2:14-17 (At)

E. Na’omi Evaluates the Meeting – 2:18-23 (Au)

Scene Three: Na’omi’s Wonderful Plan for Ruth’s Life – 3:1-18 (Av)

A. Na’omi Discloses Her Plan for Ruth and Bo’az – 3:1-5 (Aw)

B. Ruth and Bo’az on the Threshing Floor – 3:6-13 (Ax)

C. Na’omi Evaluates the Encounter – 3:14-18 (Ay)

Scene Four: Bo’az Marries Ruth – 4:1-12 (Az)

    A. Bo’az Obtains the Right of Redemption – 4:1-6 (Ba)

    B. Bo’az Redeems Ruth the Moabitess – 4:7-12 (Bb)

Epilogue: Na’omi’s Satisfaction and Fullness – 4:13-17 (Bc)

Coda: The Genealogy of David – 4:18-22 (Bd)

Glossary (Be)

End Notes (Bf)

Bibliography (Bg)

Ruth, Where Life and the Bible Meet . . .

1. Look at the outline (Ab), and the Introduction (Ac) before starting on the commentary itself.

2. The DIG and REFLECT questions are in bold green and will help to give you a deeper understanding of the book and make it more personal to you. Go slowly and give yourself time to answer these questions. They really strike at the heart of the commentary. What are the DIG questions for? To dig into the Scripture “story.” To find out what’s going on, to figure out the main idea, the plot, the argument, the spiritual principle, and so on. What are the REFLECT questions for? To apply the “story” in the Scripture to your own life; to take personal inventory and to decide what you are going to do about it! Many of the DIG and REFLECT questions are taken from the Serendipity Bible.

3. I would strongly suggest that you look up the references that are given in each section. Many times this will greatly enhance the background, and hence, your understanding of the Scriptures that you are reading on a particular day. Take your time, read only as much as you can digest.

There are times when I refer you to either another file in Isaiah, or a file in another book of the Bible, to give you more detail on a particular person, topic, concept or theology. An example might be something like the Great Sanhedrin (see my commentary on The Life of Christ, to see link click Lg – The Great Sanhedrin). If you feel you already know enough about the Great Sanhedrin, you can skip the reference and continue reading. But if it interests you, or if you don’t know what the Great Sanhedrin is, you can go to that file and read it first before continuing. It’s your choice. 

4. All Scripture is in bold print. The NIV is used unless indicated otherwise. However, sometimes the purpose of the bold print is merely for emphasizing a certain point. When bold maroon is used, it is for special emphasis. The words of Jesus are bolded in red.

5. When bold teal is used, it is quoted from one of the two Jewish commentaries listed in the bibliography. This will give you the moderate Orthodox Jewish interpretation. It is useful for word studies, but its Christology is obviously entirely wrong. Where rabbinical interpretation is cited, I will add, “The rabbis teach. . .” in front of the passage. Although it is not a Christian interpretation, I think it is interesting to see how the rabbis interpret these passages.

6. Read the Scriptures for a particular day first, then skim the DIG or REFLECT questions, read the commentary and reflect on it; answer the DIG or REFLECT questions, then read your Bible again. Hopefully, it will have greater meaning for you the second time you read it. Then live it out.

7. If you come to a word you do not understand, see the Glossary at the end of the book (see Be – Glossary).

8. To download a pdf file, click on the red rectangle on the top of any page.

9. You can download anything you want from this devotional commentary to use for personal devotionals or Bible study, but nothing can be sold © 2017 but all rights are reserved by Jay David Mack, M.Div.