![]() Further, Naomi’s two sons marries Moabite women named Orpah and Ruth, but the two sons die also. ![]() His name is Elimelech and his name means, “My God is king.” But he is not living up to his name as he has moved his family away from the promised land into the land of the enemy. We are now given the name of the man from Bethlehem. This first sentence of the book of Ruth sets up for the reader that disaster that we are about to see. They are oppressed by Moab whenever God allowed Moab to be strong and afflict them. In Judges 3:12-14 we read that the Israelites served under Eglon the king of Moab for 18 years. The Moabites are enemies of the Israelites. We do not know by the Hebrew word if they intend to live temporarily in Moab or permanently. By turning their hearts back to the Lord and trusting in him God would provide for them all that they need. God’s people were to trust him, even through famines that would come. We have seen in our study of Genesis that leaving the promised land is condemned by God. Third, this man from Bethlehem along with his wife and two sons move to Moab. This is another picture of God’s judgment against the people for their wickedness and depravity. There is no bread in the house of bread is what we are being told. The name Bethlehem means “house of bread” and yet there is a famine in the land. We are introduced to a man of Bethlehem in Judah. We are going to notice that the names of things in this book are very meaningful to the direction of the story. This sets up for us some irony in the first verse. The famine is a picture of the disobedience that is occurring in the days of the judges. However, if the people chose to forsake the Lord, they would experience famine. If the people obeyed, then God would give them the rains and the land would produce for them. From heaven dust shall come down on you until you are destroyed. 24 The Lord will make the rain of your land powder. 23 And the heavens over your head shall be bronze, and the earth under you shall be iron. 22 The Lord will strike you with wasting disease and with fever, inflammation and fiery heat, and with drought and with blight and with mildew. 21 The Lord will make the pestilence stick to you until he has consumed you off the land that you are entering to take possession of it. (Leviticus 26:3–4 ESV)Ģ0 The Lord will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in all that you undertake to do, until you are destroyed and perish quickly on account of the evil of your deeds, because you have forsaken me. If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them, then I will give you your rains in their season, and the land shall yield its increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. Listen to the Lord’s promises to Israel before they enter the land of Canaan. Famine is a declaration of God’s wrath and judgment against his people. Now this is not merely information about the economic situation and how difficult it was to live during that time. Second, we are told that there is a famine in the land. It is a terrible, wicked time when the book of Ruth takes place. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:25 ESV). “In those days there was no king in Israel. The end of the book declares where the wickedness came from. We read about some horrible events happening during the days of the judges, particularly what happened in Gibeah (Judges 19). The days of the judges were a hopeless time when there was great wickedness and unfaithfulness. The book of Ruth opens with these words: “In the days when the judges ruled there was a famine in the land, and a man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons.” This introduction is filled with ominous words.įirst, we are told that it is the days of the judges. With these grand concepts in mind, let us begin our study of the book of Ruth. One of the grand pictures of this book is that expresses the sovereignty of God, answering an important question for us: Can I trust and love God who has given me pain in my life? Finally, the book glorifies God through Christ. The book reveals what risk-taking love and devotion looks like. Ruth reminds us that there is always a remnant of God’s people who are loving the Lord and serving him. The book deals with the problem of racism, as it speaks the issues concerning the relationships between Israelites and Moabites. The book paints a beautiful portrait of manhood and womanhood. The book of Ruth contains a beautiful love story picturing sacrificial love. The book of Ruth contains many portraits that instructs us about God and gives us hope and encouragement through difficult times. ![]() The account of Ruth contains a beautiful narrative that is highly instructive to the people of God.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |