Bible: Beginning to End - Ruth 1-4

Episode Date: August 26, 2022

Ruth 1-4 (Read) Important Links for the Podcast  Click Here for our YouTube Channel Discuss each episode on Reddit Contact Us Visit our Website On Instagram @biblebeginningtoend On Twitter: @biblebeginning1 Via email: [e-mail] Supporting the Show Financial contributions are never required, but if you'd like to support the show, here are a couple of ways: Be a listener and share the show with your friends! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to become a monthly supporter via Spotify.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠* ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to make a one-time contribution via Paypal⁠⁠⁠.* *Note that the Bible Beginning to End podcast is not a registered 501(c)3 or charitable organization. Therefore, any monetary support provided is not tax deductible. 10% of any profits made from this podcast via ad revenues or listener support will be donated to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Asha's Refuge⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a Christ-centered nonprofit that "exists to assist the most disadvantaged refugees/asylees in achieving a successful resettlement in the Memphis, TN area.". Episode Timestamps 00:00 - Intro 2:20 - Ad Break 2:21 - Ruth 1 10:34 - Ruth 2 15:58 - Ruth 3 21:29 - Ruth 4 31:18 - Outro Bible Verse Copyright Statement Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. To purchase an NLT, please visit https://amzn.to/3wUpUef

Hello and welcome back to Bible beginning to end, where we are reading through the scriptures together from Genesis to Revelation. I am so glad you are here to read with us today. As always, as we read through the scriptures, I won't be offering any commentary, but I will ask questions along the way. And these are critical thinking questions to help you grow closer to the scriptures and closer to God, so that you can really think about these things, these topics, these themes, these questions on your own and hear what God is saying to you about them. Right now we are still using the New Living Translation. That will change at some point, but don't worry, I will let you know when that happens.

So last time, we finished the Book of Judges. And the Book of Judges told the story of the time in Israel where they had different leaders throughout Israel, and we saw Israel continue to be unfaithful to God, and we saw the consequences of those actions. Well, today we're starting a new book, and this book of the Bible is only going to take us one episode. We will finish it today. It is a very short book, and it is the book of Ruth. The book of Ruth takes place during the time of the judges, but it tells a little bit of a different story. It tells the story of some people who remained faithful to God during this time. Ruth might be a popular story that you know a lot about.

So I always ask with these stories that we know really well, that you look at them with fresh eyes, that you try to get something new out of it. And don't worry if you don't know anything about the book of Ruth. You don't have to to read along with us. So if this is your first time coming to this story or your 10th time or your 100th time, just look at it with a curious mind

and see what God is trying to tell you about it. Something you might note about this book of the Bible is that it is the first one we've come to that was named after a person. We'll see many books of the Bible named after people. So that might be a good question to go ahead and start asking, why do you think this book is named after a person rather than having a different type of title that describes the book? Okay, so let's go ahead and get started with a real.

Ruth one and the first section of Ruth is called the prologue. Alimalec moves his family to Moab. So Ruth 1, verse 1. 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 Alimlech, and his wife was Naomi. Their two sons were Malin and Killian. They were Ephrothites from Bethlehem in the land of Judah, and when they reached Moab, they settled there. Okay, so pause there.

What have we already learned about this family? Who are the people in the family? Where are they from? And does that location tell us anything about them? Verse 3. Then Alamelech died, and Naomi was left with her two sons. The two sons married Moabite women. one married a woman named Orpah and the other a woman named Ruth.

But about ten years later, both Malin and Killian died. This left Naomi alone without her sons or her husband. The next section is Naomi and Ruth returned to Bethlehem. Verse 6. Then Naomi heard in Moab that the Lord had blessed his people in Judah by giving them good crops again. So Naomi and her daughters-in-law got ready to leave Moab. Moab to return to her homeland. With her two daughters-in-law, she set out from the place where she had been living, and they took the road that would lead them back to Judah. Okay, so pause there. Earlier,

it said that Naomi's sons married two women from Moab, two Moabite women. Does that tell us anything about these women? Were they followers of God, or were they followers of multiple gods or pagan gods. Does where they're from tell us anything about them? Also ask yourself, why did Naomi decide to go back to Judah? What was going on during this time? It said that God had blessed the people in Judah by giving them good crops again. So what do you think happened during this time that caused God to bless the people in Judah? Verse 8, but on the way, Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, go back to your mother's homes, and may the Lord reward you for your kindness to your husbands and to me. May the Lord bless you with the security of another marriage. Then she kissed them

goodbye, and they all broke down and wept. No, they said, we want to go with you to your people. But Naomi replied, why should you go on with me? Can I still give birth to other sons who could grow up to be your husbands? No, my daughters. Return to your parents' home for I am too old to marry again, and even if it were possible, and I were to get married tonight and bear sons, then what? Would you wait for them to grow up and refuse to marry someone else? No, of course not. My daughters, things are far more bitter for me than for you, because the Lord himself has raised his fist against me. and again they wept together and orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye but ruth clung it tightly to naomi look naomi said to her your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods you should do the same okay so pause there

what is Naomi talking about in this section why is she telling her daughters-in-law to go back to their home What was life like for a widow during this time period? Why do you think the girls wanted to stay with Naomi? Why do you think that Orpah decided to leave, but Ruth wanted to stay? And what do you think Ruth's response is going to be? What did Naomi mean when she said to her daughters-in-law that they should go back to their gods? What gods are she referring to? did Ruth and Orpah worship God or did they worship multiple gods, false gods?

And then why did Naomi say in her speech that they should leave because she wouldn't be able to have another child and give them another husband? Was there some kind of regulation in place that would require any other son Naomi had to marry one of his brother's widows? Verse 16. but Ruth replied, Don't ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go.

Wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die. And there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us. When Naomi saw that Ruth was

determined to go with her. She said nothing more. Okay, so pause there. In this section, we heard Ruth make a promise to Naomi. But who else is she making a promise to? Are we seeing a conversion story right here? Are we seeing Ruth deny false gods, the gods of her family, the gods that she grew up with, to accept and follow the one true God? Why is it significant? that we see a story about a foreigner coming into God's family and choosing to follow God. What does that tell us about God and who he accepts? Why do you think Ruth chose to accept God and follow Naomi? Why do you think she didn't go back to her people and her false gods?

Is God available to all people? Can anyone choose to believe in God and explain? experience the life change that comes with that. Verse 19. So the two of them continued on their journey. When they came to Bethlehem, the entire town was excited by their arrival. Is it really Naomi? The women asked. Don't call me Naomi, she responded. Instead, call me Mara, for the Almighty has made life very bitter for me. I went away full, but the Lord has brought me home empty. Why call me Naomi when the Lord has caused me to suffer, and the Almighty has sent such tragedy upon me. So Naomi returned from Moab, accompanied by her daughter-in-law, Ruth, the young Moabite

woman. They arrived in Bethlehem in late spring at the beginning of the barley harvest. Okay, so pause there and reflect on Naomi's name change. She said, Call me Mara, which means bitter. It is always significant when a person changes their name. So pay attention to that. Why do you think she did that? Why did she change her name from Naomi to Mara? What has gone on in her life to ignite this change. Okay, so now we can go into Ruth, Chapter 2.

And the title of this section is Ruth works in Boaz's field. Chapter 2, verse 1. Now, there was a wealthy and influential man in Bethlehem named Boaz, who was a relative of Naomi's husband, Alimalek. One day, Ruth, the Moabite, said to Naomi, let me go out into the harvest fields to pick up the stalks of grain left behind by anyone who is kind enough to let me do it. Naomi replied, all right, my daughter, go ahead.

So Ruth went out to gather grain behind the harvesters, and as it happened, she found herself working in a field that belonged to Boaz, the relative of her father-in-law, Alemelak. When she was there, Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters. The Lord be with you. he said. The Lord bless you, the harvesters replied. Then Boaz asked his foreman, Who's a young woman over there? Who does she belong to? And the foreman replied, She is the young woman from Moab who came back with Naomi. She asked me this morning if she could

gather grain behind the harvesters. She's been hard at work ever since, except for a few minutes rest in the shelter. Boaz went over and said to Ruth, listen, my daughter. Stay right here with us when you gather grain. Don't go to any other fields. Stay right behind the young women working in my field. See which part of the field they are harvesting, and then follow them. I have warned the young men not to treat you roughly. And when you are thirsty, help yourself to the water they have drawn from the well. Ruth fell at his feet and thanked him warmly. What have I done to deserve such kindness? she asked. I'm only a foreigner. Yes, I know, Boas replied, but I also know about everything you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband.

I've heard how you left your father and mother and your own land to live here among complete strangers. May the Lord the God of Israel under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully for what you have done. I hope I continue to please you, sir, she replied. You have comforted me by speaking so kindly to me even though I am not one of your workers. At meal time, Boaz called to her, Come over here and help yourself to some food. You can dip your bread in the sour wine. So she sat with the harvesters,

and Boaz gave her some roasted grain to eat. She ate all she wanted and still had some left over. Okay, so pause there. We have a new character entering the story, Boaz. What do we know about Boaz? Who is he? Does he follow God? How is he related to Roos?

or Naomi? And what else do we know about him? And what was Ruth doing in these fields? Why was she needing to collect grain? Verse 15. When Ruth went back to work again, Boaz ordered his young men. Let her gather grain right among the sheaves without stopping her,

and pull out some heads of barley from the bundles and drop them on purpose for her. Let her pick them up and don't give her a hard time. So Ruth gathered barley there all day. And when she beat out the grain that evening, it filled an entire basket. She carried it back into town and showed it to her mother-in-law. Ruth also gave her the roasted grain that was left over from her meal. Where did you gather all this grain today? Naomi asked.

Where did you work? May the Lord bless the one who helped you. So Ruth told her mother-in-law about the man in whose field she had worked. She said, the man I worked with today is named Boaz. May the Lord bless him, Naomi. told her daughter-in-law. He is showing his kindness to us as well as to your dead husband. That man is one of our closest relatives, one of our family redeemers. Then Ruth said,

What's more, Boaz even told me to come back and stay with his harvesters until the entire harvest is completed. Good, Naomi exclaimed. Do as he said, my daughter. Stay with his young women right through the whole harvest. You might be harassed in other fields, but you'll be safe with. with him. So Ruth worked alongside the women in Boaz's field and gathered grain with them until the end of the barley harvest. Then she continued working with them through the wheat harvest in early

summer, and all the while she lived with her mother-in-law. Okay, so pause there. Naomi says that Boaz is the family's redeemer. What do you think that means? What do you think of when you hear the word Redeemer? Who do you think of when you hear the word redeemer? Why do you think Boaz is treating Ruth so well? Why is he giving her this special attention and allowing her to harvest in his field and providing her with food? Why do you think he's treating her this way? Why do you think Naomi is so excited when Ruth tells her that she's been getting grain from Boaz's field? Okay, so now we can start Ruth Chapter 3, which is titled Ruth at the Threshing Floor, Chapter 3, verse 1. One day, Naomi said to Ruth, my daughter, it's time that I found a permanent home for you, so that you will be provided for. Boaz is a close relative of ours, and he's been very kind by letting you gather grain with his young women.

Tonight, he will be winnowing barley at the threshing floor. Now do as I tell you, take a bath and put on perfume and dress in your nicest clothes. Then go to the threshing floor, but don't let Boaz see you until he has finished eating and drinking. Be sure to notice where he lies down. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down there. He will tell you what to do. I will do everything you say, Ruth replied. So she went down to the threshing floor that night and followed the instructions of her mother-in-law.

Okay, so pause there and ask yourself this question. What is Naomi asking Ruth to do? And why do you think she's asking Ruth to follow these specific instructions? What did Naomi mean by permanent home? She said it was time for Ruth to find a permanent home so she would be provided for. What did that look like? And why was that so necessary for Ruth? Ruth responds to Naomi by saying,

I will do everything you say. What does that reveal about Ruth's character? And what does that reveal to us about Naomi's character that Ruth would so easily and quickly trust what Naomi is telling her to do? Are there wise people in your life whose advice you trust? Does Ruth's response show us anything about how we should respond when we hear the Holy Spirit speaking into our lives? Okay, verse 7.

After Boaz had finished eating and drinking and was in good spirits, he lay down at the far end of the pile of grain and went to sleep. Then Ruth came quietly, uncovered his feet, and lay down. Around midnight, Boaz suddenly woke up and turned over. He was surprised to find a woman lying at his feet. Who are you? he asked. I am your servant, Ruth, she replied. Spread the corner of your covering over for me, for you are my family, Redeemer.

The Lord bless you, my daughter, Boaz exclaimed. You are showing even more family loyalty now than you did before. For you have not gone after a younger man, whether rich or poor. Now don't worry about a thing, my daughter. I will do what is necessary for everyone in town knows you are a virtuous woman. But while it's true that I am one of your family redeemers, there is another man who is more closely related to you than I am. Stay here tonight, and in the morning I will talk to him.

If he is willing to redeem you, very well. Let him marry you. But if he is not willing, then as surely as the Lord lives, I will redeem you myself. Now lie down here until morning. So Ruth lay at Boaz's feet until the morning, but she got up before it was light enough for people to recognize each other. For Boaz had said, No one must know that a woman was here at the threshing floor.

Then Boaz said to her, Bring your cloak and spread it out. He measured six scoops of barley into the cloak and placed it on her back. Then he returned to the town. When Ruth went back to her mother-in-law, Naomi asked, What happened, my daughter?

Ruth told Naomi everything Boaz had done for her, and she added, He gave me these six scoops of barley and said, Don't go back to your mother-in-law, empty-handed. Then Naomi said to her, Just be patient, my daughter, until we hear what happens.

the man won't rest until he has settled things today. Okay, so pause there at the end of chapter three. What was the result of Ruth's actions? What happened after she followed Naomi's instructions? Was Ruth putting herself in a vulnerable and possibly scary situation by following Naomi's instructions? When we follow what God asks us to do, are we sometimes put in vulnerable and scary situations?

And even if those situations are scary, do we still, and should we still, trust what God is telling us to do? And then what happens at the end of this chapter? What does Naomi say to Ruth? She says, wait, be patient. Are there times in our lives when God tells us to wait and be patient, even if we've already done what he's asked us to do? what can we learn during a period of waiting and a period of patience? Okay, now we can start the final chapter, Ruth 4, which is called Boaz Mary's Ruth. Chapter 4 verse 1. Boaz went to the town gate and took a seat there. Just then, the family redeemer he had mentioned came by.

So Boaz called out to him, come over here and sit down, friend. I want to talk to you. So they sat down together. then Boaz called ten leaders from the town and asked them to sit as witnesses. And Boaz said to the family redeemer, You know Naomi, who came back from Moab. She is selling the land that belonged to our relative Alemalek. I thought I should speak to you about it,

so that you can redeem it if you wish. If you want the land, then buy it here in the presence of these witnesses. But if you don't want it, let me know right away, because I am next in line to redeem it after you. The man replied, all right, I'll redeem it. Then Boaz told him, of course, your purchase of the land from Naomi also requires you to marry Ruth, the Moabite widow. That way, she can have children who will carry on her husband's name and keep the land in the family. Then I can't redeem it.

The family redeemer replied, because this might endanger my own estate. You redeem the land. I cannot do it. Now, in those days, it was custom in Israel for anyone transferring a right of purchase. to remove his sandal and hand it to the other party. This publicly validated the transaction, so the other family redeemer drew off his sandal as he said to Boaz, you, buy the land.

Then Boaz said to the elders, and to the crowd standing around, you are witnesses that today, I have bought from Naomi all the property of a limelike, Killian, and Malin. And with the land I have acquired Ruth, the Moabite widow of Malin, to be my wife. This way, she can have a son to carry on the family name of her dead husband

and to inherit the family property here in his hometown. You are all witnesses today. Then the elders and all the people standing in the gate replied, we are witnesses. May the Lord make this woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, from whom all the nation of Israel descended. May you prosper and Afrotha and be famous in Bethlehem. And may the Lord give you descendants by this young woman who will be like those of our ancestor, Perez, the son of Tamar, and Judah. Okay, so pause there. What did we learn about family redeemers in this section? What was their purpose? Why was it necessary for some families to have a family redeemer? Why did Boaz have to go to this other family member to make sure he didn't want to redeem the family first. How did Boaz present the information

to this other family redeemer? And why did he ultimately decide not to redeem the family land and Mary Ruth? I also want you to reflect on this last passage that we read where the people said, may the Lord make Ruth, like Rachel and Leah, from whom all the nation of Israel descended. Why do you think that's a significant phrase that they included here. One thing to note is that Ruth is actually one of the few women who is listed in the genealogy of Jesus. So how did God fulfill this proclamation that these people made to Boaz? Does that give you any insight into why Ruth's story is so important to the entire scripture?

We also see Boaz taking initiative and putting in a lot of effort to make sure that Ruth and her family are taken care of. How does God show us that we are cared for and go to great lengths to make sure that we're taking care of every day? Okay, the next section is the descendants of Boaz, verse 13. So Boaz took Ruth into his home and she became his wife. when he slept with her, the Lord enabled her to become pregnant and she gave birth to a son. Then the women of the town, said to Naomi, praise the Lord, who has now provided a redeemer for your family. May this child be famous in Israel. May he restore your youth and care for you in your old age, for he is the son of your daughter-in-law who loves you and has been better to you than seven sons.

Naomi took the baby and cuddled him to her breast, and she cared for him as if he were her own. The neighbor women said, Now at last, Naomi has a son again, and they named him Abed. He became the father of Jesse and the grandfather of David. This is the genealogical record of their ancestor Perez. Perez was the father of Hezron. Hezron was the father of Ram. Ram was the father of a minivan. was the father of Aminadab. Aminadab was the father of Nashon. Nashin was the father of Salman. Salman was the father of Boaz.

Boaz was the father of Abed. Abed was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David. Okay, so pause there at the end of Ruth. Why was it important that that genealogy was included? Did you recognize any names from the scripture that sounded familiar? If you know scripture, you know David. David is a very important person in the Bible's history. If you've read about David, you know that he is also in Jesus's genealogy, which of course makes sense because he's part of Ruth's genealogy. If you're not familiar with the Bible, we will learn about David very soon. and you'll see why Ruth's story is so important.

So reflect on that genealogy and why it was included here. Also, reflect on how God provided for Ruth and for Boaz and for Naomi. What did we see in this final chapter? What was given to this family? We saw a family redeemed. And from this family redeemed, there will be born the ultimate, Redeemer in Jesus, which leads me to my final thought about the book of Ruth. It can be looked at

in a couple of different ways. Many people read Ruth, and they see it as a love story, a story about Boaz and his love for Ruth and their love story as they became husband and wife. And that is part of it. Part of this story is about Ruth and Boaz. But I think there is another. part to this story. And this is a little more commentary than I usually give, but I think it's important. I think that we also see a picture of God and how he redeemed the world through Jesus. We have Ruth, who is a foreigner, who chooses to follow God. She makes a clear choice at the beginning of Ruth, that she's going to go with Naomi, that she's going to deny these false gods, of her people and follow the one true God, the God that Naomi follows.

She did not know where this was going to lead her. She did not know whether she would ever have another husband. She did not know whether she would be provided for. But she trusted in God and she trusted in Naomi. And eventually, she was redeemed. Her family was redeemed through Boaz, just like God redeems the church, redeems his people, redeems all of us through Christ.

When we choose to follow him, we have no idea what's going to happen. We don't know if we are going to find happiness or sorrow, but what we do know is that our needs will be taken care of, that God will be with us, and that we are and have been, and we'll always be redeemed. So I think that's just another way to look at this book, to look at Ruth.

And so if you've never seen it that way before, maybe go back and listen to it again and see if you get anything new out of the story of Ruth. She is such an important part of Jesus' story. Because without Ruth, we wouldn't have David and all the other people who came after him to bring us Jesus. So it's such a great story. It's really short, but it's so rich. It has so much in there, so much symbolism,

so much depth about the story of God and how He redeems us all. So thank you so much for listening today. I'm so thankful for each of you for every message that I receive. Love hearing from you all. We're getting there a little bit out of time. work just started back for me, so it's been crazy finding time to record. But we're getting there slowly but surely.

And sometimes that's the best way to read through scripture. Not all at once, but a little bit at a time and take your time going through it. You can always go back and revisit other sections that you've read before or read ahead on your own as we're getting there. But thank you so much for listening and I will talk to you in the next one. Thank you.