“the Whole Story” Series

“Now Naomi had a relative of her husband’s, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz. And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, “Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor.” And she said to her, “Go, my daughter.” So she set out and went and gleaned in the field after the reapers, and she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz, who was of the clan of Elimelech. And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to the reapers, “The Lord be with you!” And they answered, “The Lord bless you.” Then Boaz said to his young man who was in charge of the reapers, “Whose young woman is this?” And the servant who was in charge of the reapers answered, “She is the young Moabite woman, who came back with Naomi from the country of Moab. She said, ‘Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.’ So she came, and she has continued from early morning until now, except for a short rest.”

Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Now, listen, my daughter, do not go to glean in another field or leave this one, but keep close to my young women. Let your eyes be on the field that they are reaping, and go after them. Have I not charged the young men not to touch you? And when you are thirsty, go to the vessels and drink what the young men have drawn.” Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground, and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your eyes, that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” But Boaz answered her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told to me, and how you left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did not know before. The Lord repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge!” Then she said, “I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your servant, though I am not one of your servants.”

And at mealtime Boaz said to her, “Come here and eat some bread and dip your morsel in the wine.” So she sat beside the reapers, and he passed to her roasted grain. And she ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over. When she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young men, saying, “Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her. And also pull out some from the bundles for her and leave it for her to glean, and do not rebuke her.”

So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley. And she took it up and went into the city. Her mother-in-law saw what she had gleaned. She also brought out and gave her what food she had left over after being satisfied. And her mother-in-law said to her, “Where did you glean today? And where have you worked? Blessed be the man who took notice of you.” So she told her mother-in-law with whom she had worked and said, “The man’s name with whom I worked today is Boaz.” And Naomi said to her daughter-in-law, “May he be blessed by the Lord, whose kindness has not forsaken the living or the dead!” Naomi also said to her, “The man is a close relative of ours, one of our redeemers.” And Ruth the Moabite said, “Besides, he said to me, ‘You shall keep close by my young men until they have finished all my harvest.’” And Naomi said to Ruth, her daughter-in-law, “It is good, my daughter, that you go out with his young women, lest in another field you be assaulted.” So she kept close to the young women of Boaz, gleaning until the end of the barley and wheat harvests. And she lived with her mother-in-law.”

Ruth was doing her part to pull her weight while living with Naomi and God rewarded her faithfulness by drawing the attention of an unknown relative to act as a kinsman-redeemer. This was a role created by God in His law to help care for those in trouble or need. It was the responsibility of the wealthy to look after their less fortunate relatives, and Ruth had unwittingly stepped onto the land of such a person. Boaz assured that Ruth wouldn’t be harassed in the field and even made provisions to restore some of her dignity by inviting her to walk with his women and even have access beyond what was normally permitted.  

Ruth 1

“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. The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there. But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons. These took Moabite wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. They lived there about ten years, and both Mahlon and Chilion died, so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband. 

Ruth 4:13-17

“So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife. And he went in to her, and the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a redeemer, and may his name be renowned in Israel! He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age, for your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.” Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse. And the women of the neighborhood gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi.” They named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.”

The Bible shows history through the lens of human brokenness and God’s grace, and Ruth is one of the best examples of that view. The book of Ruth details everyday struggles through famine, sin, bitterness, selfless courage, redemption, restoration, and joy.

While the period of the judges was a dark time in history, a widow (Naomi) and her widowed, gentile, daughter-in-law (Ruth) find redemption through a “kinsman-redeemer” (Boaz). A kinsman-redeemer was someone who would buy and take care of the land and family of a deceased or poor kinsman (Leviticus 25:25, Deuteronomy 25:5).

Although we see Ruth’s love for Naomi, Naomi’s advice for Ruth, and Boaz’s love for Ruth, God is the hero. He gave grace to a gentile and her bitter mother-in-law, placed her into His family, and made her the grandmother of David, which leads to Christ. A Moabite is redeemed and in the genealogy of Jesus. God is always the hero!

Judges 3:31

Judges 3:12-25

“And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel because they had done what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He gathered to himself the Ammonites and the Amalekites, and went and defeated Israel. And they took possession of the city of palms. And the people of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.

When he had gone, the servants came, and when they saw that the doors of the roof chamber were locked, they thought, “Surely he is relieving himself in the closet of the cool chamber.” And they waited till they were embarrassed. But when he still did not open the doors of the roof chamber, they took the key and opened them, and there lay their lord dead on the floor.”

Many people in our culture struggle with the idea of how God could be good but still allow evil in the world. This idea has troubled many people in our world to the point that they have no desire to have a relationship with Jesus. They are quick to blame a holy and perfect God but are slow to look at themselves as the producers of evil. We live in a culture where we place responsibility on everyone but ourselves. To answer this question more adequately, we must put more of the focus on our evil than God’s “so-called” evil.

The people of Israel continued to do what was evil in the sight of the Lord again and again. As a consequence of their evil, they were defeated by Eglon, the king of Moab. God strengthened the Ammonites and the Amalekites to defeat Israel because their evil had grown so much against God. God desires to lead His people to holiness, never to evil. God is a God of justice, so He allowed Israel to be defeated to bring them back to holiness.

Israel cried out to God for help, and out of God’s grace, He raised up a deliverer for them by the name Ehud. Ehud made a sword with two edges and hid it under his clothes as he went to see the wicked King Eglon. His job was simple, straightforward, and sneaky. Ehud’s mission was to kill Eglon and he did just that. This allowed the people of Israel to find new freedom, which only came through the grace of God.

God is not evil. You are evil. God loves you so much that He has made a way through the perfect deliverer, Jesus Christ, so that you may be holy. Trust Him. 

Judges 16:25-30

“And when their hearts were merry, they said, “Call Samson, that he may entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison, and he entertained them. They made him stand between the pillars. And Samson said to the young man who held him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars on which the house rests, that I may lean against them.” Now the house was full of men and women. All the lords of the Philistines were there, and on the roof there were about 3,000 men and women, who looked on while Samson entertained.

Then Samson called to the Lord and said, “O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me only this once, O God, that I may be avenged on the Philistines for my two eyes.” And Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and he leaned his weight against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other. And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” Then he bowed with all his strength, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people who were in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he had killed during his life.”

As a kid, I remember thinking that Sampson was about as close as you could get in the Bible to a traditional superhero. But as I got older and re-read the biblical account, I realized I had gotten the condensed and sanitized version of his story in children’s church. Sampson was a hero but only in regards to his strength. In every other area of his life, he was a complete mess. He strayed from the path of his calling, used his talents out of anger and arrogance, and squandered his opportunities with poor choices.