The story of Ruth takes
place in the time of the Judges, approximately the last 100 years or so of that
period, possibly around the time of Samson. It is a wonderful story and filled
with prophetic significance.
Ru 1:1 ¶ Now it came to pass in the days when the
judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of
Bethlehemjudah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and
his two sons.
2 And the name of the man was Elimelech, and
the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion,
Ephrathites of Bethlehemjudah. And they came into the country of Moab, and
continued there.
There is a lot to be
determined from these 2 verses. Bethlehem in Judah means the house of God or bread. God gave Israel manna, and Jesus is the bread of life. Elimelech the head of the
house means God is king, or king. Elimelech was raised to know God, and trust in
Him, obviously because of where he was raised and the meaning of his name.
Bethlehem is also the birthplace of our Saviour, Jesus about 1000 years in the
future. Naomi Elimelech’s wife means pleasant.
Times were very tough and tried the faith and trust of Elimelech in his God,
Jehovah. The LORD had promised Joshua that led Israel into the promised land
that He would bless them and give them a land of milk and honey.
Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of
thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest
observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt
make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.
9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a
good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is
with thee whithersoever thou goest.
Joshua taught the people
and led them into the land which they prospered and lived under the umbrella of
God’s protection and provision. However, after Joshua died, they fell away from
God several times during the time of the Judges, and were attacked by hostile
neighbors. When Israel would cry before God, He would raise up a Judge that
would deliver them. God was always good and would bless His people when they
turned to Him and trusted in Him. Elimelech would have known this history and
from his name and birthplace, his parents would have taught him of God’s faithfulness.
Hard times can drive one
to drastic measures. We can see the times were hard on Elimelech’s family for
he named his sons; Mahlon which means sickness
and Chilion which means destruction.
Moab may have had what
looked like a better life, but they were evil. They worshipped false god’s of
Baal and Chemosh which required them to sacrifice their children in fire. God
had cursed Moab and no Moabite was allowed to come near to the Tabernacle. They
were hated by Israel.
Regardless of all the
reasons why, Elimelech decided to take his family to Moab and did not trust in
his God to deliver him in his own land.
3 And Elimelech Naomi’s husband died; and she
was left, and her two sons.
4 And they took them wives of the women of
Moab; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth: and they
dwelled there about ten years.
Elimelech’s decision ended
up costing him his life, the Bible does not tell us how. Mahlon married Ruth which means friend, lover, mate. Chilion married
Orpha which means back of neck.
5 And Mahlon and Chilion died also both of
them; and the woman was left of her two sons and her husband.
6 ¶ Then she arose with her daughters in law,
that she might return from the country of Moab: for she had heard in the
country of Moab how that the LORD had visited his people in giving them bread.
The Bible does not tell us
how Mahlon and Chilion died leaving the two widows with Naomi. The Holy Spirit
does tell us that Jehovah caused rain to come and the famine to end in Israel
and Judah.
7 Wherefore she went forth out of the place
where she was, and her two daughters in law with her; and they went on the way
to return unto the land of Judah.
8 And Naomi said unto her two daughters in law,
Go, return each to her mother’s house: the LORD deal kindly with you, as ye
have dealt with the dead, and with me.
9 The LORD grant you that ye may find rest,
each of you in the house of her husband. Then she kissed them; and they lifted
up their voice, and wept.
They both loved Naomi,
which says a lot for her and her kindness to her daughters in law.
She wanted them to go home
to their parents.
10 And they said unto her, Surely we will return
with thee unto thy people.
11 And Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why
will ye go with me? are there yet any more sons in my womb, that they may be
your husbands?
12 Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I
am too old to have an husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should have
an husband also to night, and should also bear sons;
13 Would ye tarry for them till they were grown?
would ye stay for them from having husbands? nay, my daughters; for it grieveth
me much for your sakes that the hand of the LORD is gone out against me.
14 And they lifted up their voice, and wept
again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her.
15 And she said, Behold, thy sister in law is
gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in
law.
16 And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee,
or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and
where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my
God:
17 Where thou diest, will I die, and there will
I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee
and me.
18 When she saw that she was stedfastly minded
to go with her, then she left speaking unto her.
The faith that Ruth shows
toward God, whom she was introduced to by Naomi and Mahlon, is great and we see
that she has abandoned the gods of Moab, and is steadfast to return to Israel
and be part of it the rest of her life…a new beginning for her.
19 ¶ So they two went until they came to
Bethlehem. And it came to pass, when they were come to Bethlehem, that all the
city was moved about them, and they said, Is this Naomi?
20 And she said unto them, Call me not Naomi,
call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me.
21 I went out full, and the LORD hath brought me
home again empty: why then call ye me Naomi, seeing the LORD hath testified
against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?
22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess,
her daughter in law, with her, which returned out of the country of Moab: and
they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest.
Naomi is bitter over her
loss of her husband and sons and in these days (and in OT times), God was often
held accountable for all things good and bad. This is not accurate or fair as,
there is a devil, who often is not given credit for bad things that happen.
Plus the decisions that Elimelech had made had terrible consequences on his
family. God is not responsible for our bad decisions. Jesus promised us that He
would send us the Holy Ghost to lead and guide us in all truth. If we ignore
that guidance and choose to go our own way, we are to blame for the
consequences that follow. In these days the guidance of God was still
available, however, one was not led from the inside by the Holy Ghost as we are
now; one was led by the promises of God and their faith in His benevolence.
The famine was over, and
so the barley harvest was a big one and all of Bethlehem was hopping with lots
of work to be done.
Ru 2:1 ¶ And Naomi had a kinsman of her husband’s, a
mighty man of wealth, of the family of Elimelech; and his name was Boaz.
2 And Ruth the Moabitess said unto Naomi, Let
me now go to the field, and glean ears of corn after him in whose sight I shall
find grace. And she said unto her, Go, my daughter.
3 And she went, and came, and gleaned in the
field after the reapers: and her hap was to light on a part of the field
belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech.
Boaz means strength is in him. The Holy Spirit
shows here that Ruth was going to glean after the one in whose sight she would
find grace. As we will see, Boaz here is a type or representation of
Jesus, and Ruth is a type or representation of Gentiles. Naomi is a type or
representation of Israel.
4 ¶ And, behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem, and
said unto the reapers, The LORD be with you. And they answered him, The LORD
bless thee.
5 Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set
over the reapers, Whose damsel is this?
6 And the servant that was set over the reapers
answered and said, It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out of
the country of Moab:
7 And she said, I pray you, let me glean and
gather after the reapers among the sheaves: so she came, and hath continued
even from the morning until now, that she tarried a little in the house.
Now word had spread
quickly through Bethlehem about Naomi’s return and the damsel with her from
Moab. But, when Boaz saw her, he was captivated by her beauty.
It was a law that the
reapers were to leave some barley for the poor to glean. It was an act of
charity, kind of like the tithe.
8 Then said Boaz unto Ruth, Hearest thou not,
my daughter? Go not to glean in another field, neither go from hence, but abide
here fast by my maidens:
9 Let thine eyes be on the field that they do
reap, and go thou after them: have I not charged the young men that they shall
not touch thee? and when thou art athirst, go unto the vessels, and drink of
that which the young men have drawn.
Boaz was attracted to her
and their meeting was because of the circumstance that the LORD had caused, for
her to want to glean in his field. It did not bother Boaz that Ruth was a
Moabite. His own mother was a Gentile from Jericho whose name was Rahab. She
had been a harlot that had hidden the spies from Israel from the authorities of
Jericho and Israel saved her and her household during the conquering of the
city. She had marked her window with a red cord which was a type of the blood
of Jesus Christ. She married an Israelite, Salmon. The LORD had accepted her
into Israel for her obedience and faith.
10 Then she fell on her face, and bowed herself
to the ground, and said unto him, Why have I found grace in thine eyes, that
thou shouldest take knowledge of me, seeing I am a stranger?
11 And Boaz answered and said unto her, It hath
fully been shewed me, all that thou hast done unto thy mother in law since the
death of thine husband: and how thou hast left thy father and thy mother, and
the land of thy nativity, and art come unto a people which thou knewest not
heretofore.
12 The LORD recompense thy work, and a full
reward be given thee of the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come
to trust.
13 Then she said, Let me find favour in thy
sight, my lord; for that thou hast comforted me, and for that thou hast spoken
friendly unto thine handmaid, though I be not like unto one of thine
handmaidens.
14 And Boaz said unto her, At mealtime come thou
hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy morsel in the vinegar. And she sat
beside the reapers: and he reached her parched corn, and she did eat, and was
sufficed, and left.
15 And when she was risen up to glean, Boaz
commanded his young men, saying, Let her glean even among the sheaves, and
reproach her not:
16 And let fall also some of the handfuls of
purpose for her, and leave them, that she may glean them, and rebuke her not.
You can see the love that
Boaz had for Ruth; how he cared for her, fed her, made sure that she would have
enough grain for both her and Naomi. He knew her heart was good by her
commitment to Naomi and to Jehovah.
17 ¶ So she gleaned in the field until even, and
beat out that she had gleaned: and it was about an ephah of barley.
18 And she took it up, and went into the city:
and her mother in law saw what she had gleaned: and she brought forth, and gave
to her that she had reserved after she was sufficed.
19 And her mother in law said unto her, Where
hast thou gleaned to day? and where wroughtest thou? blessed be he that did
take knowledge of thee. And she shewed her mother in law with whom she had wrought,
and said, The man’s name with whom I wrought to day is Boaz.
20 And Naomi said unto her daughter in law,
Blessed be he of the LORD, who hath not left off his kindness to the living and
to the dead. And Naomi said unto her, The man is near of kin unto us, one of
our next kinsmen.
21 And Ruth the Moabitess said, He said unto me
also, Thou shalt keep fast by my young men, until they have ended all my
harvest.
22 And Naomi said unto Ruth her daughter in law,
It is good, my daughter, that thou go out with his maidens, that they meet thee
not in any other field.
23 So she kept fast by the maidens of Boaz to
glean unto the end of barley harvest and of wheat harvest; and dwelt with her
mother in law.
The Grace that in the
heart of Boaz for Ruth saw to it that her and Naomi’s provision was taken care
of. She took home a bushel of grain, enough for several days food. Jesus is our
provider as well. Ruth now knows who re
redeemer is and with Naomi’s advice will stay in Boaz’s field to the end of the
barley harvest.
Ru 3:1 ¶ Then Naomi her mother in law said unto her,
My daughter, shall I not seek rest for thee, that it may be well with thee?
2 And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with
whose maidens thou wast? Behold, he winnoweth barley to night in the threshingfloor.
3 Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and
put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself
known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking.
4 And it shall be, when he lieth down, that
thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover
his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do.
5 And she said unto her, All that thou sayest
unto me I will do.
6 ¶ And she went down unto the floor, and did
according to all that her mother in law bade her.
7 And when Boaz had eaten and drunk, and his
heart was merry, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of corn: and she
came softly, and uncovered his feet, and laid her down.
So she got all cleaned up
and perfumed as Naomi had told her. And after the day of harvest in the field
they had a party where they would feast and drink. After Boaz had feasted and
well drunk he lay down to sleep. Then she went where he lay and laid herself
down at his feet. This is the perspective bride presenting herself before her
groom without spot or blemish.
It is so awesome how the
Holy Ghost writes so many stories that foreshadow the events of the future in
the very things that are happening then, as Solomon wrote in Eccl; there is
nothing new under the sun. Our God is all knowing, and all understanding, His
will be done.
8 And it came to pass at midnight, that the man
was afraid, and turned himself: and, behold, a woman lay at his feet.
9 And he said, Who art thou? And she answered,
I am Ruth thine handmaid: spread therefore thy skirt over thine handmaid; for
thou art a near kinsman.
10 And he said, Blessed be thou of the LORD, my
daughter: for thou hast shewed more kindness in the latter end than at the
beginning, inasmuch as thou followedst not young men, whether poor or rich.
11 And now, my daughter, fear not; I will do to
thee all that thou requirest: for all the city of my people doth know that thou
art a virtuous woman.
12 And now it is true that I am thy near
kinsman: howbeit there is a kinsman nearer than I.
13 Tarry this night, and it shall be in the
morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well; let him
do the kinsman’s part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to thee, then
will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as the LORD liveth: lie down until the
morning.
We can see from this set
of scriptures that Boaz was not a young man. He also said that their was a
closer kinsman than himself. The symbolism of this man is a type of the law,
for he is never named and is unbending, as we shall see. Boaz on the other hand
is a symbol of Grace and a type of our Lord Jesus. The Grace of God has always
been His will for man.
14 ¶ And she lay at his feet until the morning:
and she rose up before one could know another. And he said, Let it not be known
that a woman came into the floor.
15 Also he said, Bring the vail that thou hast
upon thee, and hold it. And when she held it, he measured six measures of
barley, and laid it on her: and she went into the city.
16 And when she came to her mother in law, she
said, Who art thou, my daughter? And she told her all that the man had done to
her.
17 And she said, These six measures of barley
gave he me; for he said to me, Go not empty unto thy mother in law.
18 Then said she, Sit still, my daughter, until
thou know how the matter will fall: for the man will not be in rest, until he
have finished the thing this day.
As our Lord does, Ruth
could not leave until he had blessed her with abundant food to take home for
her and Naomi. In Jn 10:10 Jesus said; …I have come that they may have life and
have it more abundantly. In the Amplified, I came that they may have and enjoy
life, and have it in abundance, (to the full till it overflows).
Naomi’s wisdom and faith
here also is shown; for she tells Ruth to be patient, sit still and to trust,
for Boaz will not be in rest till he finishes his work. Our Lord never slumbers
or sleeps and will finish the good work that He has begun in us, and has finished
the work of our redemption.
Ru 4:1 ¶ Then went Boaz up to the gate, and sat him
down there: and, behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spake came by; unto whom he
said, Ho, such a one! turn aside, sit down here. And he turned aside, and sat
down.
2 And he took ten men of the elders of the
city, and said, Sit ye down here. And they sat down.
3 And he said unto the kinsman, Naomi, that is
come again out of the country of Moab, selleth a parcel of land, which was our
brother Elimelech’s:
4 And I thought to advertise thee, saying, Buy
it before the inhabitants, and before the elders of my people. If thou wilt
redeem it, redeem it: but if thou wilt not redeem it, then tell me, that I may
know: for there is none to redeem it beside thee; and I am after thee. And he
said, I will redeem it.
5 Then said Boaz, What day thou buyest the
field of the hand of Naomi, thou must buy it also of Ruth the Moabitess, the
wife of the dead, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance.
Boaz has set the scene
here with 10 elders (witnesses of proceeding and law) and has laid out the
requirements of what the un-named kinsman needed to do by redeeming the land
and marrying Ruth to raise up children to her dead husband.
6 And the kinsman said, I cannot redeem it for
myself, lest I mar mine own inheritance: redeem thou my right to thyself; for I
cannot redeem it.
7 Now this was the manner in former time in
Israel concerning redeeming and concerning changing, for to confirm all things;
a man plucked off his shoe, and gave it to his neighbour: and this was a
testimony in Israel.
8 Therefore the kinsman said unto Boaz, Buy it
for thee. So he drew off his shoe.
This un-named kinsman
represents the law in this story of history, and the law is unbending; perfect,
but not with compassion, or understanding. So, he says he cannot redeem it for
himself lest he mars his own inheritance. The symbol of the shoe is
interesting, because the law walks on us and condemns us, but here the shoe
comes off, a symbol of having no more control over Ruth or Naomi or the land.
The symbol here for us to see is that when we are under Grace, there is no
condemnation of the law, for Jesus bore that condemnation for us.
9 ¶ And Boaz said unto the elders, and unto all the
people, Ye are witnesses this day, that I have bought all that was Elimelech’s,
and all that was Chilion’s and Mahlon’s, of the hand of Naomi.
10 Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of
Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon
his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his
brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day.
11 And all the people that were in the gate, and
the elders, said, We are witnesses. The LORD make the woman that is come into
thine house like Rachel and like Leah, which two did build the house of Israel:
and do thou worthily in Ephratah, and be famous in Bethlehem:
12 And let thy house be like the house of
Pharez, whom Tamar bare unto Judah, of the seed which the LORD shall give thee
of this young woman.
So now it was all legal
and had the blessing of the elders. God had brought a Gentile into the fold of
Israel once again because of her faith. Naomi was redeemed from the oppression
she was in, sickness (Mahlon) and destruction (Chilion) were lifted off and
away from her and Ruth. All of the debt owed under the law was paid by Boaz and
he took the responsibility of it all. Jesus has done this same thing for us,
who brought us into the fold of God by our faith, not our works. Jesus took all
of the condemnation, sins, sickness, poverty, even death so that we could be
free in Him before God. In Him is our righteousness, justification, health,
provision, and life, even life eternal.
Ga 3:7 Know ye therefore that they which are of
faith, the same are the children of Abraham.
Jn 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his
only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have
everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to
condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him is not condemned:
but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in
the name of the only begotten Son of God.
13 ¶ So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and
when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son.
14 And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the
LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be
famous in Israel.
15 And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy
life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth
thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him.
16 And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her
bosom, and became nurse unto it.
17 And the women her neighbours gave it a name,
saying, There is a son born to Naomi; and they called his name Obed: he is the
father of Jesse, the father of David.
18 Now these are the generations of Pharez:
Pharez begat Hezron,
19 And Hezron begat Ram, and Ram begat
Amminadab,
20 And Amminadab begat Nahshon, and Nahshon
begat Salmon,
21 And Salmon begat Boaz, and Boaz begat Obed,
22 And Obed begat Jesse, and Jesse begat David.
Obed means serving. He was the grandfather of David.
The Christ line that followed Adam through Seth and Noah through Shem, then
Abraham through Isaac, now would now end up through David.
In 2 Sam 7, God promises
David that his son would sit on the throne forever. Of course this prophecy is
and is being fulfilled in Jesus, who humanly is a descendent of David, but
Divinely, the Son of God. Born by Divine conception of the virgin Mary.
Matthew records the Kingly
lie of Jesus through David’s son, Solomon. (Joseph)
Luke records the common
side of Jesus through David’s son, Nathan. (Mary).
A study of how this all
came together through the times of the Kings, the captivity of Israel and the
guiding hand of Jehovah is very rewarding. Truly our God is an awesome God.
All of the scriptures here are from the Authorized KJV unless another version is stated.
The pictures are all from the Internet with credit given where known.
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