Ruth:

Ruth 1:1–5 CSB

1 During the time of the judges, there was a famine in the land. A man left Bethlehem in Judah with his wife and two sons to stay in the territory of Moab for a while. 2 The man’s name was Elimelech, and his wife’s name was Naomi. The names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They entered the fields of Moab and settled there. 3 Naomi’s husband, Elimelech, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4 Her sons took Moabite women as their wives: one was named Orpah and the second was named Ruth. After they lived in Moab about ten years, 5 both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was left without her two children and without her husband.

INTRODUCTION: When we hear the story of Ruth we tend to water it down to just that, the story of Ruth and her engagement to Boaz. This is part of the story but it is not all of the story. I might as well gon’ head and start preaching. Isn't that also true for our lives? If we only focus on the acts and actions in our lives we run the risk of missing the larger plan of God and His sovereignty in all matters.

The book of Ruth is not a story of how to get a husband. Instead it is a beautiful tapestry of God’s nature. And just like Ruth we can only fully understand our story when we see them within His story.

The author only mentions God’s name......

THE SETTING: The time of the Judges

Ruth 1:1 CSB

1 During the time of the judges, there was a famine in the land. A man left Bethlehem in Judah with his wife and two sons to stay in the territory of Moab for a while.

Rose Then and Now Bible Map Atlas with Biblical Background and Culture Chapter 7: Naomi and Ruth: The Way It’s Supposed to Be

The story of Ruth is a breath of fresh air in the turbulent atmosphere of the time of the Judges. It comes none too soon, for the deeper the reader gets into the Book of Judges, the more outlandish the actions of its characters become until the summary conclusion offers the terse rationale: “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in their own eyes” (Judg 21:25)

THE PEOPLE

Elimelech אֱלִימֶ֫לֶךְ (eli-God/melech-king)-God is my King

Names had significant meanings in bible days. It is quite ironic that Elimelech means God is king and this is during a time when the people of God were wildin’ out and doing what was right in their own eyes.

Moab’s sketchy beginning (Lot and his daughter’s incestual relationship)

Genesis 19:30–38 describes the origins of Moab, stating that when Lot became intoxicated, his daughters seduced him. Each of them conceived a child, from which two Transjordanian states were born: Moab and Ammon.

Moabites not allowed in the assembly

Deuteronomy 23:3 CSB

3 No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the Lord’s assembly; none of their descendants, even to the tenth generation, may ever enter the Lord’s assembly.

Israel was not to pursue their wealth (Elimelech did)

Deuteronomy 23:6 CSB

6 Never pursue their welfare or prosperity as long as you live.

ReMember: God had freed them from the hands of the Egyptians. HE had given them their own land. He had kept them but Elimelech allows a famine (which was common) to cause him to trust himself (which was the spiritual disposition of Israel at this time) instead of Yahweh (like us at times).

ReCap: Things are bad. The time is bad (Judges). The place is bad (Moab). The family leader is bad (Elimelech). and it’s about to get worst.

In the midst of Israel’s disobedience, God says this......(and gives restoration to them)

Jeremiah 32:27 (CSB)

27 “Look, I am the Lord, the God over every creature. Is anything too difficult for me?

Application: You may be thinking that things are too bad, they have gone too far, but if it be the Lord’s will there is nothing that is too far for him.

Naomi נָעֳמִי -Elimelech’s wife

Her name means “pleasantness”. However, she later changes her name to Mara which means bitter.

Ruth 1:20 CSB

20 “Don’t call me Naomi. Call me Mara,” she answered, “for the Almighty has made me very bitter.

Here and Elimelech have two son’s Mahlon

Elimelech and Naomi’s Two Sons

Mahlon מַחְלוֹן (Ma-ha-loan) (tired and weak) and Chilion כִּלְיוֹן (kil-yon) (to stop, to come to an end)

About them

While in Moab they took Moabite women or their wives (Orpah and Ruth). The father, Elimelech, has died and now both of the sons have died. (this could be partly do to disobedience to God).

Now this leaves Naomi in a compromising position.

THE PLAN

Ruth 1:6–7 CSB

6 She and her daughters-in-law set out to return from the territory of Moab, because she had heard in Moab that the Lord had paid attention to his people’s need by providing them food. 7 She left the place where she had been living, accompanied by her two daughters-in-law, and traveled along the road leading back to the land of Judah.