WHEN someone says, "Let me tell you about my mother-in-law," we expect some kind of negative statement or humorous anecdote because the mother-in-law caricature has been a standard centerpiece of ridicule or comedy. The book of Ruth, however, tells a different story. Ruth loved her mother-in-law, Naomi. Recently widowed, Ruth begged to stay with Naomi wherever she went, even though it would mean leaving her homeland. In heartfelt words Ruth said, "Your people will be my people and your God my God" (1:16). Naomi agreed, and Ruth traveled with her to Bethlehem.
   Not much is said about Naomi except that she loved and cared for Ruth. Obviously, Naomi's life was a powerful witness to the reality of God. Ruth was drawn to her - and to the God she worshiped. In the succeeding months and years, God led this young Moabite widow to a man named Boaz, whom she eventually married. As a result, she became the great-grandmother of David and an ancestor in the line of the Messiah. What a profound impact Naomi's life made!
   The book of Ruth is also the story of God's grace in the midst of difficult circumstances. Ruth's story occurred during the time of the judges - a period of disobedience, idolatry, and violence. Even in times of crisis and deepest despair, there are those who follow God and through whom God works. No matter how discouraging or antagonistic the world may seem, there are always people who follow God. He will use anyone who is open to him to achieve his purposes. Ruth was a Moabitess and Boaz was a descendant of Rahab, a former prostitute from Jericho. Nevertheless, their offspring continued the family line through which the Messiah came into our world. Read this book and be encouraged. God is at work in the world, and he wants to use you. God could use you, as he used Naomi, to bring family and friends to him.

<>< <>< ><> ><>
VITAL STATISTICS
<>< <>< ><> ><>

PURPOSE:
To show how three people remained strong in character and true to God even when the society around them was collapsing

AUTHOR:
Unknown. Some think it was Samuel, but internal evidence suggests that it was written after Samuel's death.

DATE WRITTEN:
Sometime after the period of the judges (1375-1050 B.C.)

SETTING:
A dark time in Israel's history when people lived to please themselves, not God (Judges 17:6)

KEY VERSE:
"But Ruth replied, 'Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God' " (1:16).

KEY PEOPLE:
Ruth, Naomi, Boaz

KEY PLACES:
Moab, Bethlehem

<>< <>< ><> ><>
THE BLUEPRINT
<>< <>< ><> ><>

1. Ruth remains loyal to Naomi (1:1-22)
2. Ruth gleans in Boaz's field (2:1-23)
3. Ruth follows Naomi's plan (3:1-18)
4. Ruth and Boaz are married (4:1-22)

   When we first meet Ruth, she is a destitute widow. We follow her as she joins God's people, gleans in the grain-fields, and risks her honor at the threshing floor of Boaz. In the end, we see Ruth becoming the wife of Boaz. What a picture of how we come to faith in Christ. We begin with no hope and are rebellious aliens with no part in the kingdom of God. Then as we risk everything by putting our faith in Christ, God saves us, forgives us, rebuilds our lives, and gives us blessings that will last through eternity. Boaz's redeeming of Ruth is a picture of Christ redeeming us.

<>< <>< ><> ><>
MEGATHEMES
<>< <>< ><> ><>

Theme
Faithfulness

Explanation
Ruth's faithfulness to Naomi as a daughter-in-law and friend is a great example of love and loyalty. Ruth, Naomi, and Boaz are also faithful to God and his laws. Throughout the story we see God's faithfulness to his people.

Importance
Ruth's life was guided by faithfulness toward God and showed itself in loyalty toward the people she knew. To be loyal and loving in relationships, we must imitate God's faithfulness in our relationships with others.

Theme
Kindness

Explanation
Ruth showed great kindness to Naomi. In turn, Boaz showed kindness to Ruth - a despised Moabite woman with no money. God showed his kindness to Ruth, Naomi, and Boaz by bringing them together for his purposes.

Importance
Just as Boaz showed his kindness by buying back land to guarantee Ruth and Naomi's inheritance, so Christ showed his kindness by dying for us to guarantee our eternal life. God's kindness should motivate us to love and honor him.

Theme
Integrity

Explanation
Ruth showed high moral character by being loyal to Naomi, by her clean break from her former land and customs, and by her hard work in the fields. Boaz showed integrity in his moral standards, his honesty, and by following through on his commitments.

Importance
When we have experienced God's faithfulness and kindness, we should respond by showing integrity. Just as the values by which Ruth and Boaz lived were in sharp contrast to those of the culture portrayed in Judges, so our lives should stand out from the world around us.

Theme
Protection

Explanation
We see God's care and protection over the lives of Naomi and Ruth. His supreme control over circumstances brings them safety and security. He guides the minds and activities of people to fulfill his purpose.

Importance
No matter how devastating our present situation may be, our hope is in God. His resources are infinite. We must believe that he can work in the life of any person - whether that person is a king or a stranger in a foreign land. Trust his protection.

Theme
Prosperity/Blessing

Explanation
Ruth and Naomi came to Bethlehem as poor widows, but they soon became prosperous through Ruth's marriage to Boaz. Ruth became the great-grandmother of King David. Yet the greatest blessing was not the money, the marriage, or the child; it was the quality of love and respect between Ruth, Boaz, and Naomi.

Importance
We tend to think of blessings in terms of prosperity rather than the high-quality relationships God makes possible for us. No matter what our economic situation, we can love and respect the people God has brought into our lives. In so doing, we give and receive blessings. Love is the greatest blessing.

<>< <>< ><> ><>
Ruth & Naomi's Profile
<>< <>< ><> ><>

   The stories of several people in the Bible are woven together so closely that they are almost inseparable. We know more about their relationship than we know about them as individuals. And in an age that worships individualism, their stories become helpful models of good relationships. Naomi and Ruth are beautiful examples of this blending of lives. Their cultures, family backgrounds, and ages were very different. As mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, they probably had as many opportunities for tension as for tenderness. And yet they were bound to each other.
   They shared deep sorrow, great affection for each other, and an overriding commitment to the God of Israel. And yet as much as they depended on each other, they also gave each other freedom in their commitment to one another. Naomi was willing to let Ruth return to her family. Ruth was willing to leave her homeland to go to Israel. Naomi even helped arrange Ruth's marriage to Boaz although it would change their relationship.
   God was at the center of their intimate communication. Ruth came to know the God of Israel through Naomi. The older woman allowed Ruth to see, hear, and feel all the joy and anguish of her relationship to God. How often do you feel that your thoughts and questions about God should be left out of a close relationship? How often do you share your unedited thoughts about God with your spouse or friends? Sharing openly about our relationship with God can bring depth and intimacy to our relationships with others.

<>< <>< ><> ><>
Ruth & Naomi's Strengths and Accomplishments
<>< <>< ><> ><>

* A relationship where the greatest bond was faith in God
* A relationship of strong mutual commitment
* A relationship in which each person tried to do what was best for the other

<>< <>< ><> ><>
Lesson from Ruth & Naomi's Lives
<>< <>< ><> ><>

* God's living presence in a relationship overcomes differences that might otherwise create division and disharmony

<>< <>< ><> ><>
Vital Statistics
<>< <>< ><> ><>

* Where: Moab, Bethlehem
* Occupation: Wives, widows
* Relatives: Elimelech, Mahlon, Kilion, Orpah, Boaz

<>< <>< ><> ><>
Key Verses
<>< <>< ><> ><>

"But Ruth replied, 'Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me'" (Ruth 1:16, 17).

Their story is told in the book of Ruth. Ruth is also mentioned in Matthew 1:5.

<>< <>< ><> ><>

1. Ruth remains loyal to Naomi

<>< <>< ><> ><>
Naomi and Ruth
<>< <>< ><> ><>

1. What was there in the days when the judges ruled, who went to live for a while in the country of Moab, what was the man's name, what was his wife's name, what was the names of his two sons, and what were they?

________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________

   The story of Ruth takes place sometime during the period of the rule of the judges. These were dark days for Israel, when "everyone did as he saw fit" (Judges 17:6- 21:25).
   But during those dark and evil times, there were still some who followed God. Naomi and Ruth are beautiful examples of loyalty, friendship, and commitment - to God and to each other.
   Moab was the land east of the Dead Sea. It was one of the nations that oppressed Israel during the period of the judges, so there was hostility between the two nations.

<>< <>< ><> ><>

<>< <>< ><> ><>

   The famine must have been quite severe in Israel for Elimelech to move his family here. They were called Ephrathites because Ephrath was an earlier name for Bethlehem. Even if Israel had already defeated Moab, there still would have been tensions between them.

2. What happened to Elimelech, whom did Naomi's sons marry, what were these women names, and what happened after they had lived there about ten years?

________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________

   Friendly relations with the Moabites were discouraged but probably not forbidden, since the Moabites lived outside the promised land.

<>< <>< ><> ><>

<>< <>< ><> ><>

   Marrying a Canaanite (and all those living within the borders of the promised land), however, was against God's law (Deuteronomy 7:1-4).

<>< <>< ><> ><>

<>< <>< ><> ><>

   Moabites were not allowed to worship at the tabernacle because they had not let the Israelites pass through their land during the exodus from Egypt.
   As God's chosen nation, Israel should have set the standards of high moral living for the other nations. Ironically it was Ruth, a Moabitess, whom God used as an example of genuine spiritual character. This shows just how bleak life had become in Israel during those days.

   There was almost nothing worse than being a widow in the ancient world. Widows were taken advantage of or ignored. They were almost always poverty stricken. God's law, therefore, provided that the nearest relative of the dead husband should care for the widow; but Naomi had no relatives in Moab, and she did not know if any of her relatives were alive in Israel.
   Even in her desperate situation, Naomi had a selfless attitude. Although she had decided to return to Israel, she encouraged Ruth and Orpah to stay in Moab and start their lives over, even though this would mean hardship for her. Like Naomi, we must consider the needs of others and not just our own. As Naomi discovered, when you act selflessly, others are encouraged to follow your example.

   Naomi's comment here ("sons, who could become your husbands") refers to levirate marriage, the obligation of a dead man's brother to care for the widow.

<>< <>< ><> ><>

Cross-reference Deuteronomy 25:5-10
   (5)If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband's brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her. (6)The first son she bears shall carry on the name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel.
   (7)However, if a man does not want to marry his brother's wife, she shall go to the elders at the town gate and say, "My husband's brother refuses to carry on his brother's name in Israel. He will not fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to me." (8)Then the elders of his town shall summon him and talk to him. If he persists in saying, "I do not want to marry her," (9)his brother's widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, take off one of his sandals, spit in his face and say, "This is what is done to the man who will not build up his brother's family line." (10)That man's line shall be known in Israel as The Family of the Unsandaled.

<>< <>< ><> ><>

   This law kept the widow from poverty and provided a way for the family name of the dead husband to continue.
   Naomi, however, had no other sons for Ruth or Orpah to marry, so she encouraged them to remain in their homeland and remarry. Orpah agreed, which was her right. But Ruth was willing to give up the possibility of security and children in order to care for Naomi.
   Ruth was a Moabitess, but that didn't stop her from worshiping the true God, nor did it stop God from accepting her worship and blessing her greatly. The Jews were not the only people God loved. God chose the Jews to be the people through whom the rest of the world would come to know him. This was fulfilled when Jesus Christ was born as a Jew. Through him, the entire world can come to know God. Acts 10:35 says that "[God] accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right." God accepts all who worship him; he works through people regardless of their race, sex, or nationality. The book of Ruth is a perfect example of God's impartiality. Although Ruth belonged to a race often despised by Israel, she was blessed because of her faithfulness. She became a great-grandmother of King David and a direct ancestor of Jesus. No one should feel disqualified to serve God because of race, sex, or national background. And God can use every circumstance to build his kingdom.

<>< <>< ><> ><>
Answers to Ruth One
<>< <>< ><> ><>