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OK, you can turn to Ruth chapter 
1, the book of Ruth chapter 1. I'll 
read the first chapter, and then we'll look at the teaching of 
the chapter. We gave some introductory thoughts 
last week concerning the book, and some of that will be rehearsed 
as we move through, especially the first part this evening. 
So beginning in chapter 1 at verse 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 Bethlehem, 
Judah, went to dwell in the country of Moab, he and his wife and 
his two sons. The name of the man was Elimelech. 
The name of his wife was Naomi. And the names of his two sons 
were Malon and Kilian, Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they 
went to the country of Moab and remained there. Then Elimelech, 
Naomi's husband, died, and she was left and her two sons. Now 
they took wives of the women of Moab. The name of the one 
was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth, and they dwelt there 
about ten years. Then both Malon and Kilian also 
died, so the woman survived her two sons and her husband. And 
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 that the 
Lord had visited his people by giving them bread. Therefore, 
she went out from the place where she was and her two daughters-in-law 
with her, and they went on the way to return to the land of 
Judah. And Naomi said to her daughters-in-law, 
go, return each to her mother's house. The Lord deal kindly with 
you as you have dealt with the dead and with me. the Lord grant 
that you may find rest each in the house of her husband. So 
she kissed them and they lifted up their voices and wept. And 
they said to her, surely we will return with you to your people. 
But Naomi said, turn back, my daughters. Why will you go with 
me? Are there still sons in my womb, 
that they may be your husbands? Turn back, my daughters. Go. For I am too old to have a husband. 
If I should say I have hope, if I should have a husband tonight 
and should also bear sons, would you wait for them till they were 
grown? Would you restrain yourselves from having husbands? Know my 
daughters, for it grieves me very much for your sakes that 
the hand of the Lord has gone out against me." Then they lifted 
up their voices and wept again. And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, 
but Ruth clung to her. And she said, look, your sister-in-law 
has gone back to her people and to her gods. Return after your 
sister-in-law. But Ruth said, entreat me not 
to leave you. or to turn back from following 
after you. For wherever you go, I will go, 
and wherever you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my 
people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die, and 
there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me and more 
also, if anything but death parts you and me." When she saw that 
she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to 
her. Now the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem. 
And it happened, when they had come to Bethlehem, that all the 
city was excited because of them. And the women said, is this Naomi? 
But she said to them, do not call me Naomi, call me Mara, 
for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. I went out 
full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you 
call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and 
the Almighty has afflicted me? So Naomi returned and Ruth the 
Moabitess, her daughter-in-law with her, who returned from the 
country of Moab. Now they came to Bethlehem at 
the beginning of barley harvest. Amen. So beginning here in Chapter 
1, it sets the stage for all that follows in Chapters 2 to 
4. Remember last week we considered 
the primary theme of the book is the last few verses. The fact 
that it would be Boaz and Ruth that would give birth to Obed, 
Obed begot Jesse, And Jesse, of course, begot David. So we see that's the specific 
target. Just rehearsing what John Gill 
said, said, the principal design of it, of this book, is to give 
the genealogy of David, whom Samuel had anointed to be king 
of Israel, and from whom the Messiah was to come. and who 
therefore may be said to be the aim and scope of it as he is 
all of scripture. And whereby it appears that he 
sprung from both Jews and Gentiles and is the savior of both. And 
there is a good foundation for both to hope in him. And the 
call and conversion of Ruth the Moabitess may be considered as 
a shadow, emblem, and pledge of the conversion of the Gentiles. So that's the ultimate end or 
primary goal of the book. But of course, chapters 1, 2, 
and 3 gives us the story, the narrative of how these things 
took place. Remember, there's no signs. There's 
no wonders. It's a pretty ordinary situation 
going on in the life of one. particular family. Well the first 
thing we ought to notice is the famine in the land verses 1 to 
5 in chapter 1, then we'll notice secondly the return to Judah 
in verses 6 to 18, and then thirdly the theological interpretation 
given by Naomi. in verses 19 to 22. So note first, 
the famine in the land, verses 1 to 5, we have the setting. Again, rehearsing what we saw 
last week, the period of the judges. This probably serves 
or functions like one of the appendices that we find at the 
end of Judges 17 to 21. Only 17 to 21 probably precede the initial or the first judge 
off Niel. So Ruth takes place actually 
in the midst of those series of judges. Mentioned last week, 
Kyle and Dalich locate Ruth specifically during the time of Gideon because 
there was famine during the time of Gideon. The Midianites would 
come in and would oppress them and there would be a famine as 
a result of that. Whether or not that's correct, 
sometime during one of the earthly deliverers that God had raised 
up, this story of Ruth occurs. As well, we need to remember 
the setting is one of judgment, judgment from God. Verse 1, it 
came to pass in the days when the judges ruled that there was 
a famine in the land. Now when we read the Bible, we 
don't read it in terms of, wow, that must have meant there wasn't 
a lot of rain. Certainly, that is a means. When 
there's not a lot of rain, that produces famine or is a cause 
for famine. But remember, we're reading theological 
history. When there's a reference to a 
famine in the land, we need to think in terms of God. We need 
to think in terms of what God is doing. And also, when we're 
reading books connected to the Pentateuch, we need to think 
in terms of the promises of God in terms of either blessing for 
his people if they obey in the land or curses for his people 
if they disobey in the land. So in the book of Judges we see 
that God uses foreign oppressors to bring judgment to bear upon 
the people of Israel. Here we see that he uses a famine 
in the land to bring judgment to bear upon the people of Israel, 
consistent with Leviticus 26, 19 and 20. God promises when they break 
the covenant I will break the pride of your power I will make 
your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze and your strength 
shall be spent in vain for your land shall not yield its produce 
nor shall the trees of the land yield their fruit." Again we 
don't read this and say wow they were certainly unlucky in Bethlehem 
Judah at that particular time certainly if they would have 
had better farmers or better implements or better tools they 
could have yielded a crop. No, if they had obeyed God and 
been faithful in the land, then He had promised to bless them 
in the land and to water the land. Deuteronomy 28, 23 and 
24. And your heavens which are over 
your head shall be bronze, and the earth which is under you 
shall be iron. The Lord will change the rain 
of your land to powder and dust, from the heaven it shall come 
down on you until you are destroyed." So this is the particular setting. 
Then the family is introduced to us in verse 2. We have a Limelech 
we have his wife Naomi, we have his sons Malon and Killian, Ephrathites 
of Bethlehem, Judah. Now notice secondly their plan. 
The plan is not to repent. Now whether this family does 
or not, the nation as a whole isn't repenting. When God does 
send bread to the house of bread, which is what Bethlehem actually 
means, the house of bread. So he deprives the house of bread 
of bread and then according to verse 6, He then sends bread 
to the house of bread. It's an act of grace and mercy 
because we don't read anything that the people of Israel repent. 
We don't read anything that the people of Israel cry out to God 
and forsake their sin. What Elimelech and Naomi do, 
they leave from Judah to go to Moab in order to ride out the 
famine. Now we need to remember something 
about the Moabites. Are they good guys or are they 
bad guys? The fact that they go to Moab 
is not a good thing. I mean, we ought not to go live 
among the pagans simply to get water and simply to get food. 
Remember that the origin of the Moabites was an incestuous relationship 
between Lot and his daughter, Genesis 19, 30-38. The Moabites 
resisted Israel during their wilderness wanderings in Numbers 
22-24. It was the Moabite women that 
the children of Israel played the harlot with, according to 
Numbers 25. And as a result, there was public 
execution for the children of Israel that were involved in 
that. The Moabites were excluded from the assembly of the Lord, 
according to Deuteronomy 23, 3 to 6. And as well, in the very 
book of Judges itself, This, again, is located in that time 
frame, in that time period. There was a Moabite king that 
Ehud had to deal with, that fat man named Eglon. So even in the 
Book of Judges, the Moabites exercised oppression over the 
children of Israel. So the idea in Elimelech's mind, 
the text seems to indicate that it was his idea. The idea was 
to go to Moab to ride out the famine and to sustain his family. And again, nothing wrong with 
wanting to sustain one's family, but as they go to Moab, things 
certainly don't turn out well for them. Perhaps that is the 
narrator's way of indicating they perhaps should have stayed 
in Judah, repented, called the people of God around them to 
repent, rather than to bail and go to the land of the Moabites. 
So we see the setting, we see the plan. Now notice thirdly, 
under the famine in the land, the problem. Verses 3 to 5. Then 
Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died. And she was left and her two 
sons. Now that's a difficulty for a 
woman in that given situation. I mean, she leaves her home, 
she leaves her country, she leaves her place, she leaves her people, 
she goes to Moab and she's around a bunch of people that really 
are not the best ones to be around. And then her husband dies there. 
And then notice what the text says in verse 4. Now they took 
wives of the women of Moab. Now the Moabites were not one 
of the nations specified in Deuteronomy 7, 1 to 5 in terms of holy war. They were not one of the nations 
that were under the ban in that particular regard. However, based 
on what the rest of the Bible says concerning the Moabites, 
it probably wasn't the best idea to take these two wives. Now, 
certainly I'm speaking as a man, because in God's sovereignty, 
Ruth is specifically the star of the show. I mean, she's the 
one that's going to give birth to Obed, and Obed to Jesse, and 
Jesse to David. But as we look at the situation, 
these young men do not know this at the time, they take wives 
of the women of Moab. The name of the one was Orpah 
and the name of the other Ruth. It's interesting, they dwelt 
there about 10 years. What do we gather from this statement 
that they dwelt there for about 10 years? They were childless 
for 10 years. Could be, again, more of that 
concept of Deuteronomy 28 coming through loud and clear. They 
went to Moab to try and escape the famine. They go to the land. Her husband dies. Her two sons 
die. And her two sons had been married 
for 10 years and neither of them had had a child. Now, it could 
happen to be sure that these were two ladies that happened 
to be barren, but we know that Ruth isn't because she ultimately 
gives birth to Obed, right? These are indicators. These are 
signs. These are clues. These are pieces 
of evidence to tell us that this was not a good move. The covenant 
law stipulated that you were to obey God. When there was sin 
in the land, you were to repent of that sin. The covenantal curse 
of Deuteronomy 28.32, your sons and your daughters shall be given 
to another people, and your eyes shall look and fail with longing 
for them all day long, and there shall be no strength in your 
hand. The sons lived with their wives in Naomi and Moab for 10 
years, but never ever had any children. Very interesting, very 
intriguing. So verse 5 then tells us, Malon 
and Kilian also died, so the woman survived her two sons and 
her husband. Now this is a stroke of providence. And she certainly is right in 
her theological assessment of this reality. It was the hand 
of the Lord against her. But also she tends to go overboard 
in the sense that she doesn't acknowledge the goodness of God 
that is throughout the passage as well. We'll see that when 
we get to the end of our study this evening. I was thinking 
we often refer to, I don't know if you do, but at least in my 
thoughts, I refer to a negative Nellie. I've had to rethink that 
and think it's negative Naomi. I mean, she has a proper view 
of the sovereignty of God, but there's no appreciation whatsoever 
of any of the goodness of God in her theology. And that's a 
sad thing. It's good to affirm God's sovereign 
hand, good to affirm it even in our afflictions, but we need 
to be able to spot, identify, and see the goodness in the midst 
of those struggles as well. I pointed this out on Sunday 
morning. David, in Psalm 103, says, Bless the Lord, O my soul, 
and all that is within me. Bless His holy name. He repeats 
himself in case himself didn't hear what he said. Bless the 
Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits. We need to 
start looking for and appreciating and spotting and viewing and 
seeing the little things. The fact is she's in Moab. She 
gets word that the Lord God has given bread to the city of Bethlehem. That's a blessing. She doesn't 
praise God for that. She acknowledges that these two 
daughters-in-law have dealt kindly with her. Well, who moved them 
to deal kindly with her? Do pagans just naturally deal 
kindly with people? No, there's a sovereign God behind 
the scenes. The fact that Ruth says what 
she says in verses 16 and 17 is absolutely amazing and incredible. Instead of saying, praise Yahweh 
from whom all blessings flow, Thank you for this precious Ruth 
that you have given to be a helper to me." She goes back to the 
city of Bethlehem and all she does is whine. All she does is 
complain. Don't call me pleasant. Call 
me bitter. My whole life is just one big 
bitter pill. Well, wait a minute, Naomi. Who's 
this Ruth with you? She seems to be quite a blessing. 
She seems to be quite an encouragement. Brethren, let us not be negative 
Naomis. Let us be able to see, even in 
the midst of the affliction, even in the midst of the hardship, 
even in the midst of the trial and the difficulty, that God 
is working. I was thinking about Jeremiah 
and Lamentations. Jeremiah in Lamentations is lamenting 
over the fall of Jerusalem. It was bad. People, women, are 
eating their babies because there's no food in the city. It is a 
terrific judgment of God Most High, and yet in the midst of 
this, this is where we get our hymn, Great is Thy Faithfulness, 
the prophet says, through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed. In other words, if it wasn't 
for the mercy of God, every last one of us would be dead in this 
city. But the fact that there are still 
some, the fact that Jeremiah is alive and lamenting, is an 
evidence of the mercy of God most high. He says, through the 
Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because his compassions fail 
not. Have you ever given weight or 
thought or consideration to when this was penned? Can you actually 
imagine Jeremiah understanding the siege in the city of Jerusalem, 
having witnessed the fall of their temple, seeing women turn 
to cannibalism in order to eat the issue of their own body, 
and he says, because his compassions fail not, They are new every 
morning. Great is your faithfulness. The 
Lord is my portion, says my soul. Therefore, I hope in Him." I 
think this is an element of faith that believers possess when in 
the midst of the worst forms of tragedy they are able to nevertheless 
see that God has His purposes, God has His hand in this, and 
God is working out His will for His glory and for the good of 
His people. You see, we need an increase 
in faith so that we can theologically assess situations and not just 
come out heavy on the bitterness element, and not just come out 
heavy on the affliction element. I've met Christians before who 
seem to wear this as a badge. Oh yes, I've had such a rough 
life. Oh yes, the Lord deals with me so severely. The Lord's 
chastening hand is upon me. Can you ever appreciate that 
because of His compassion, you fail not? You've been the recipient 
not only of affliction and hardship, but you've been the recipient 
of the grace to be able to bear up under the affliction and the 
hardship. That's the mercy and the kindness 
of God. We've got to be theologically 
inclined. We've got to be balanced. We've 
got to be full-orbed when it comes to God's dealings with 
His people. Negative Naomi does understand 
sovereign grace. She does understand sovereign 
providence, but she definitely weighs heavy on the affliction 
that it's been to her. And I'm giving away the whole 
end, but this is as good a time as any. Notice what else is absent 
from negative Naomi, and I'm not picking on her. She's a believer. 
I believe that she's sitting with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 
God willing, I'll meet her someday. She'll probably say, Why did 
you let me have it in that Bible study on that Wednesday night? 
Notice what? There's no acknowledgement of 
the sin of Israel. Is God just arbitrarily up in 
heaven saying, I'm going to get Naomi. I'm going to let Bethlehem, 
Ephrathah have it. I'm just going to send, no. God 
ordained or God called the nation of Israel to covenant faithfulness. When Israel betrays the covenant, 
God sends the judgment that was stipulated part and parcel of 
the covenant. There is not a shred of acknowledgment 
in Naomi's speeches, in any of them, to say it's because we 
have sinned. Again, the prophet Jeremiah at 
the end of the book of Lamentations. He says very clearly, the joy 
of our heart has ceased, our dance has turned into mourning, 
the crown has fallen from our head, woe to us for we have sinned. He acknowledges that. He doesn't 
try to write that portion off. He doesn't say our cosmic father 
is just letting us have it in a mighty display of his power 
and sovereignty. No, the crown has fallen from 
our head. Woe to us, for we have sinned. Because of this, our 
heart is faint. Because of these things, our 
eyes grow dim. Because of Mount Zion, which 
is desolate, with foxes walking about on it. You, O Lord, remain 
forever. Your throne from generation to 
generation. Why do you forget us forever 
and forsake us for so long a time? Turn us back to you, O Lord, 
and we will be restored." Isn't that beautiful? We don't have 
the power of repentance. We can't restore ourselves. The 
prophet says, turn us back to you, O Lord, and we will be restored. That's what Bethlehem Ephrathah 
should have done. The city, the community should 
have gathered round and said to Yahweh, turn us back to you, 
O Lord, and we shall be restored. Renew our days as of old, unless 
you have utterly rejected us and are very angry with us. So Naomi has some shortcomings, 
at least theologically, in this chapter. You can go back to Ruth 
chapter 1. Notice secondly, the return to 
Judah, verses 6 to 18. They returned to Judah for a 
specific reason. Verse 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 that the Lord had visited his people by giving them bread. 
Now this confirms our interpretation of the famine in verse 1. If 
it is the Lord who gives his people bread, in grace, in mercy, 
in kindness and in compassion, we must infer that it is the 
Lord that restrains or keeps back Brad in his judgment, in 
his justice, in his righteousness, and in his chastisement. As well, notice that tragedy 
has hit the household of Naomi. Elimelech is dead. Melon is dead. Killian is dead. In the midst 
of gloom and doom and death and dying, this ray of light shines 
upon her. Does she acknowledge it? Again, 
it's an argument from silence, but based on the tenor of her 
theology throughout the chapter, I'm guessing she didn't acknowledge 
it. She doesn't praise God. We read no ascription or ascribing 
of glory and majesty to God. She had heard in the country 
of Moab that the Lord had visited his people by giving them bread. The Lord God, in His mercy, restored 
bread to Israel. The Lord God does this not in 
response to national repentance. This is probably one of those 
occasions like we saw in the judges' narratives. Remember, 
sin, oppression, deliverance. They would cry out, not in repentance, 
They would cry out, not in agony over their sins, but they would 
cry out in the distress that the oppression caused them. And 
nevertheless, God brought deliverance. The same thing is being fleshed 
out in the book of Ruth. Naomi should see this and praise 
God for it. Naomi should acknowledge the 
reality that we don't deserve this. We deserve the famine for 
breaking your covenant, for violating your law. But the fact is that 
God, nevertheless, visits his people by giving them bread. 
And this is something that is uniquely applicable to our God. In the midst of trial, in the 
midst of tragedy, in the midst of hardship, sorrow, and woe, 
there is that ray of sunshine, isn't there? I mean, it's not 
all doom and gloom. It's not all bad and terrible. She gets to return to Bethlehem. There's going to be food when 
she gets to Bethlehem. She no longer has a husband. 
She no longer has any sons. When she gets back to Bethlehem, 
after 10 years, people recognize her. probably her and Alimilac 
were rich or well-known or some sort of noble characters within 
that city. If they were poor and unknown, 
who would have possibly, what ladies would be standing at the 
city gates saying, is this Naomi? They understood she had a position 
in this town. Gil quotes one of the Jewish 
rabbis who makes this point. I'll read the quote later on. 
But there is mercy in the midst of trial. There is Christ in 
the midst of the storm. There is a silver lining to the 
dark clouds that do beset us. There is behind a frowning providence 
God's smiling face. Naomi doesn't recognize that. It is very important that we 
recognize that because the author is giving us clue after clue 
after clue that God is all over this scene showing his grace, 
showing his mercy, showing his kindness and the people ought 
to be responding to it. It is the Moabitess that commits 
herself to Israel's God better than some within Israel itself. So then notice the instructions, 
some dialogue back and forth between Naomi and the two daughters-in-law. First of all, she invokes blessing. Verse 7, Therefore she went out 
from the place where she was and her two daughters-in-law 
with her, and they went on the way to return to the land of 
Judah. And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, Go, return 
each to her mother's house. The Lord deal kindly with you 
as you have dealt with the dead and with me. She understands 
there's kindness in Yahweh. She still doesn't acknowledge 
that He has dealt kindly with me. She acknowledges that these 
two daughters-in-law have dealt kindly with her, and again, I 
really believe that if she acknowledges that, she should make the logical 
step to realize this is the Lord's kindness displayed, so that when 
she gets to the city gates, instead of saying, it's all been affliction, 
it's all been bitterness, it's all been hardship, she could 
report to those women in Bethlehem, But along the way, the Lord has 
sustained me. Along the way, the Lord has upheld 
me. Along the way, the Lord has been 
good. He has put good people in my life. But she doesn't do 
that. She invokes God to bless these two women. And that's good. Naomi desires that Yahweh deal 
kindly or show hesed. The word hesed is a very rich 
word. I mentioned this last week. It 
is a covenant term wrapping up in itself, this is from Bloch's 
commentary, wrapping up in itself all the positive attributes of 
God. Love, covenant faithfulness, 
mercy, grace, kindness, loyalty. In short, it refers to acts of 
devotion and loving kindness that go beyond the requirements 
of duty. And she acknowledges that these 
two ladies had dealt that way with her, so she wants God to 
deal kindly with them, to reciprocate. Naomi acknowledges the kindness 
of her daughter's-in-law, but she as well is a realist, and 
she knows that these two young ladies, without husbands, in 
this particular situation, are not going to fare well. It's 
not going to be good for them. Daniel Bloch again said, the 
death of a husband meant the loss of one's economic support 
base and the severing of connections to the kinship structures. In 
other words, if your husband died as a lady, you didn't go 
back to school and get a degree and then go out and secure a 
particular career. Now, I'm sure there were ways 
for you to find employment and that sort of thing, but it was 
fundamentally more difficult for a woman in that particular 
time frame to make it without a man and so she understands 
that so she tells Orpah and she tells Ruth to go back please 
depart go to Moab stay there find young men marry them and 
have security that's precisely what she says in verse nine the 
Lord grant that you may find rest each in the house of her 
husband so she kissed them They lifted up their voices and wept, 
and they said to her, surely we will return with you to your 
people." These are nice girls, right? These are very pleasant 
people. They're not abandoning her. They 
have no formal ties to this woman anymore. Her sons, their husbands, 
are now dead. Everything in the situation does 
dictate a return back to Moab, putting themselves back out on 
the dating market, however that works. You know, Moab.com or 
whatever. Hot singles in Moab.com might 
have been the way that they would have gone, but that's what they 
should have done. And Ruth acknowledges, or Naomi 
acknowledges that. Now notice Naomi's arguments. They're threefold in verses 11 
to 13. First, Naomi says, turn back, 
my daughters, verse 11, why will you go with me? Are there still 
sons in my womb that they may be your husbands? Essentially, 
she's saying, I'm no good to you in this. I can't help you. I cannot produce so that you 
can have a husband. The second reason is I'm too 
old. I'm not going to marry. I'm not 
a spring chicken anymore. There's not dudes with money 
that want to marry me so that then I can have sons, which is 
the third argument. Just assume for the sake of argument 
that I did take on a fella and that I did get pregnant, would 
you wait until they were adults in order to marry?" No, of course 
not. She is giving the best arguments 
possible to persuade these two ladies to turn back to their 
home country. Verse 13, Would you wait for 
them till they were grown? Would you restrain yourselves 
from having husbands? No, my daughters, for it grieves 
me very much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord has gone 
out against me. And she is an epic acknowledger 
of the hand of the Lord against her. This is the recurring theme 
in the theology of Naomi. But she says, it grieves me very 
much for your sakes. I believe this is legit. She 
doesn't want them to die. She doesn't want them to have 
to engage in illicit ways of making money. So she says, go 
back to Moab. And then notice in verse 14, 
they lifted up their voices and wept again, and Orpah kissed 
her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her. Ruth clung to her. Isn't that beautiful? What Ruth 
says in verses 16 and 17, this is one of those blessed statements 
in Holy Scripture. Block points out how people use 
this at weddings sometimes. It's not a wedding text. It's 
the daughter-in-law endearing herself to her mother-in-law. I mean, that's not a wedding 
text. Now, there are some things that 
we certainly could call out of it and make application to a 
wedding. I think that's legit, and that's 
decent, and all of that sort of thing. But Orpah kisses her 
mother-in-law. Ruth clung to her. And then in 
verse 15, she said, look, your sister-in-law has gone back to 
her people and to her gods. This isn't a good indication 
of sound theology. probably should have said, to 
her idols. Does she acknowledge that Kimosh is really a god? 
Or is it just a manner of speaking? She's gone back to her gods. 
The idea may have been that these Moabitess women married into 
the covenant community, Malon and Kilian. This could be an 
indicator that Orpah has now turned her back on Yahweh and 
has gone back to pursue Chemosh. We see just the opposite with 
Ruth. Ruth marries into the covenant 
community. Ruth marries into this particular 
family. And she clung to Naomi at this 
particular junction. But whether that happened, whether 
that's true, we know Orpah's gone back to Moab and she's gone 
back to her gods. And then Naomi makes one last 
attempt or one last ditch attempt in verse 15, return after your 
sister-in-law. And then in verses 16 and 17, 
we have something similar to what we had in Matthew 16 the 
other day. Who do men say that I, the Son 
of Man, am? Well, some say John the Baptist, 
some say Elijah, some say Jeremiah, some say one of the prophets. 
But who do you say that I am? You are the Christ, the Son of 
the living God. That was Peter's confession of 
faith. We have confessions of faith throughout scripture. Deuteronomy 
6.4 is a confession of faith. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our 
God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your 
God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Well, here's 
a confession on the mouth of a Moabitess that is absolutely 
fantastic. And in this confession, she exhibits 
five particulars. First, there is a love for Naomi. Entreat me not to leave you, 
or to turn back from following after you. For wherever you go, 
I will go, and wherever you lodge, I will lodge." Don't you think 
that when Naomi gets to the city of Bethlehem, instead of so much 
complaining about the bitterness, she'd say, I want you to meet 
Ruth. This girl is great. She has stuck by me every step 
of the way. Acknowledge the kindness of people 
in your lives. If God in his mercy gives a John 
Newton to you as a William Cooper, then praise him for it. If God 
puts somebody in your life that speaks a word of encouragement, 
or shows some devotion, or shows some love, or shows some kindness, 
praise God from whom all blessings flow. Listen to what this Ruth 
says. Entreat me not to leave you. 
Don't keep asking me. Don't try to persuade me. I don't 
care that you're not pregnant. I don't care that you can't get 
a husband. I don't care that you can't produce 
a son for me to marry. Entreat me not to leave you or 
to turn back from following after you. Wherever you go, I will 
go. And wherever you lodge, I will 
lodge. It is absolutely incredible that 
Ruth exhibits this type of faith. Notice, secondly, she identifies 
with the people of God. She identifies with the covenant 
nation. Your people shall be my people. Whatever is true of Israelites, 
whatever is true in Bethlehem Ephrathah, whatever is true in 
Judah, that's what I want. I want to be identified among 
the special people of God. I want them to be my people. I want to join up with them. 
She sees the beauty and the value of the church and she no longer 
wants to be on the outside. She could preach sermons to us 
today in our very individualistic way. Well, I have God or I have 
Jesus, but I don't need the church. Ruth didn't see things that way. 
Ruth said, your people shall be my people. I need a people. I need a community, I need covenant, 
I need those things because God has commanded such. Thirdly, she gives allegiance 
to God Almighty. Your people shall be my people 
and your God my God. This is Yahweh of Israel. Naomi 
has made this clear. Yahweh deal kindly with you. Ruth is not ascribing allegiance 
to one of the gods in the tribes or one of the gods in the nations 
around them. This isn't Kimosh. This isn't Baal. This isn't Asherah. This is Yahweh of Israel. She 
has allegiance for him. Your God will be my God. Notice, fourthly, the commitment 
to faithful perseverance to the end. From the very beginning, 
she commits. Notice, where you die, I will 
die. Naomi could have dropped dead 
right then and there at Bethlehem, Ephrathah. Ruth could have lived 
another 30, 40, 50 years, and she would have stayed in Bethlehem, 
Ephrathah. Where you die, I will die. And there will I be buried. This is commitment to persevering 
to the very end. And then notice, fifthly, she 
ratifies this by an oath. This is something else I think 
that we ought to take seriously today. There is something good 
about oath-taking. We see it covered in our confession 
of faith. We see it in the Bible. We see 
vows made unto the Lord. I mean, I think at times people 
enter into certain things with sort of a loose grip. Yeah, I'll 
be a Christian, but as long as it works out. Because if it doesn't 
work out, then I'm going to just let go and go back to Kimosh. I'm going to proselytize in. I'm going to marry somebody in 
Judah, Bethlehem, Ephrathah. But you know, when things aren't 
going well and I'm an orpah, I'm going to go back to Chemosh. 
I'm going to go back to my gods in Moab. No, Ruth isn't going 
to play that game. Ruth ratifies this by an oath. She says, the Lord do so to me, 
and more also, if anything but death parts you and me. That is a self-maledictory oath. We all know the word benediction. That is the good word of pronouncement. A malediction is a bad word, 
and I don't mean a cuss word. It is to invoke the wrath of 
God upon oneself if oneself betrays the covenant, the promise, or 
the oath one has taken. She's not playing. This is the 
real deal. She is in it for the long haul. She ratifies this with an oath, 
the Lord do so to me and more also, if anything but death parts 
you and me. Again, we alluded to this at 
the end of Matthew chapter 16, Jesus makes that radical call 
concerning discipleship. He says, come and die. Take up 
your cross daily. Follow me. Be willing to go to 
the cross. Be willing to go to the death. 
That's the kind of Christianity that the Bible sets forth. It's 
not this limp wrist of, I'm going to hold on. I'm going to ride 
it out as long as I get blessing. As soon as I don't get blessing, 
as soon as there's persecution, as soon as there's trial, well, 
I'm going to go try Buddha. Or I'm going to go try Allah. 
Or I'm going to go try Hinduism. or I'm gonna be an atheist, I'm 
gonna say, you know, I tried God and it didn't work. What 
do you mean we tried God and it didn't work? We tried prayer 
and it didn't work. What do you want? You think you 
just put in a prayer and out pops the blessing? That is not 
the way prayer is designed. In scripture, Ruth will have 
nothing of a half-hearted commitment to Israel's God. Ruth is all 
in. And then of course, thankfully, 
Naomi gives her permission. After that, you don't say, well, 
wait a minute. I think you ought to go back to Moab. I mean, even 
Naomi says, OK, verse 18, when she saw that she was determined 
to go with her, she stopped speaking to her. That doesn't mean forever. 
It just means I'm not going to try to persuade you to go back 
to Moab. I see your heart. I see your intention. I hear 
your devotion. I hear your allegiance. I hear 
your seriousness. Let's go to Bethlehem. And that brings us finally to 
the theological interpretation of Naomi. This is theology by 
Naomi. Verse 19, now the two of them 
went until they came to Bethlehem. And it happened when they had 
come to Bethlehem. And again, I hope as New Covenant 
Christians, when we see the word Bethlehem, Ephrathah, we think 
David and Jesus, because that's what this book is about, David 
and Jesus. It's all about David and Jesus. 
Bethlehem is the place from which salvation came under the rule 
and reign of King David of Israel and under the rule and reign 
of King Jesus of Israel. So the two of them went until 
they came to Bethlehem, and it happened when they had come to 
Bethlehem that all the city was excited because of them. And 
the women said, is this Naomi? Now, if the rabbi that Gil quotes 
from is right, Naomi, if she was a person of prestige, which 
I really got to believe she was, because if she was a nobody, 
who after 10 years is going to remember her? It just typically 
doesn't happen, right? If she was somebody that was 
of preeminence, she left having it in order. She's come back. Having buried a husband, having 
buried two sons, having known the bitterness of the Lord, she 
probably looked a bit more haggard than when she left. Is this Naomi? Maybe there's something of that 
in this particular expression. Gill says, this shows that Elimelech 
and Naomi were great personages. And again, he's quoting, I think, 
Abel Ezra, one of the rabbis, were great personages in Bethlehem 
formerly, people of rank and figure. Or otherwise, there would 
not have been such a concourse of people upon our coming and 
such inquiries made and questions put. Had she been formerly a 
poor woman? Is this Naomi? You look different. Moab hasn't been good to you. 
It wasn't the answer. It wasn't everything you thought 
it would be. And essentially, Naomi says, 
you're right. I'm now just a bitter old woman. 
Don't even call me Naomi anymore. That means pleasant. I'm not 
pleasant. Call me Mara. Bitterness is my 
portion and my lot. Now this is how she responds. Verse 20. But she said to them, 
do not call me Naomi. Call me Mara for the almighty 
should die, had dealt very or has dealt very bitterly with 
me. I went out full in the Lord. Yahweh has brought me home again. 
Empty. Why do you call me Naomi since 
the Lord has testified against me and the Almighty has afflicted 
me? I mean, she's had it bad, hasn't 
she? She's had it rough, hasn't she? 
And she has. But she's had blessing along 
the way. Brethren, if all that we can 
ever report is the hardship and the difficulty and the trial 
and the problem, we're not understanding the God of the Bible. The fact 
that we're taking breath. the fact that we're gathered 
together, the fact that we get to drink water, the fact that 
we get to see each other. This is the blessing of God Most 
High. No matter how bad your day was, 
no matter how many trials you go through, no matter how many 
sorrows and difficulties, there's always the sign that God is with 
His people, in the midst of His people. The hand of the Lord 
had dealt hard with her. So the renaming indicates something 
of the way that she interprets this, but the acknowledgement 
of divine sovereignty, and again, we'll give her mad props here. 
She's done well. She indicates the hand of the 
Lord went out against her, verse 13. Secondly, the Almighty had 
dealt very bitterly with her, verse 20. The Lord testified 
against her, 21a. And then the Almighty had afflicted 
her, 21b. Sometimes Christians don't ever 
see God in the midst of trial and affliction. I don't know 
what happened. I just got unlucky. What do you mean you got unlucky? 
You sin against God. Sometimes there's consequences. 
You need to start looking at those things properly. But in 
everything, we've got to be balanced. She doesn't seem to have balance. 
She fails to acknowledge divine goodness. The Lord had returned 
to Bethlehem, Ephrathah. The Lord had brought bread to 
them. And little does she know, she 
is poised to receive great things from this point out. Once Boaz 
enters the scene, there's the hero, the champion that's going 
to deliver Ruth and Naomi. He's going to bring them into 
great blessing. It is going to be as a result 
of God's providence and his work and his grace and his mercy that 
orchestrates all these things. And I think at this point we 
ought to remember it's good to look ahead with the hopeful knowledge 
that Romans 8.28 is actually a reality. There's no Romans 
8.28 in the theology of Naomi. You say, well, she didn't have 
Romans 8. She had the God of Romans 8.28. She may not have 
had the verse as Paul wrote it, but she knew from the rest of 
the Bible that she had available to her, and the theology of Israel, 
and the theology of Yahweh of Israel, that we know that God 
causes all things to work together for good. to those who love him, 
to those who are the called according to his purpose. Whether she had 
the verse as Paul penned it to the Romans or not, she had the 
theology and the God of Israel. So there is the realization of 
the sovereignty of God in bringing affliction to bear upon her, 
but a failure to acknowledge divine goodness. The Lord had 
given bread to the house of bread. The daughters-in-law are described 
as showing kindness to her. Does she appreciate that? I mean, 
here she is, a stranger in a strange land. Her husband dies and her 
two sons die. They don't start punching her. 
They don't, you know, start kicking her. They don't make sport of 
her. They don't mock her. They don't yell at her. They 
are devoted to her and are going to follow her right back to Judah. 
That's a blessing, isn't it? She's not all alone. She could 
have been all alone. The two daughters, as soon as 
they buried Male and Achillean, could have said, see you, Mom. 
I hope everything works out for you. That's not what they did. They were devoted. The love displayed 
by Ruth, I mean, verses 16 and 17 spoken in the presence of 
Naomi should have melted her heart and said, wait a minute, 
here's what I got. I was bitter, but now I'm real 
pleasant because I got Ruth next to me. How can you be a bitter 
person when you got Ruth standing there? I mean, Ruth just exudes 
kindness, love, and warmth. This is the kind of person that 
you thank God for. And the fact that she did not 
starve in the famine. I mean, think about it. What's 
going on in Israel? Judgment from the Lord. She is 
spared from this judgment of the Lord. And yet, again, it's 
an argument from silence. But as much as she theologizes, 
you think she could have fit something in along the way that 
would have spoken well of Yahweh in terms of his kindness. There 
is a type of Christian who stresses God's sovereignty in their afflictions, 
but hardly, if ever, acknowledges His goodness to them. And again, 
I'm all for interpreting providence, seeing what's going on in your 
life, realizing that the difficulties and the sorrows do come from 
the hand of the Lord. But look, by God's grace, using 
the Bible, using your eyes of faith to see that even in the 
midst of those, there is something God is doing for his glory and 
for good, your good. Block says, she, Naomi, does 
indeed ascribe sovereignty to God, but this is a sovereignty 
without grace, an omnipotent power without compassion, a judicial 
will without mercy. And again, I feel like I'm being 
hard on Naomi. Perhaps it's because I see a 
lot of Jim in Naomi and Jim needs to hear this. So that's why I 
love Naomi. She's a wonderful human being, 
but I see so much of my own disposition here and I want to preach it 
right out of me. And then, as I mentioned earlier, the failure 
to acknowledge Israel's sin. God gets the credit for afflicting 
Naomi. But Israel doesn't get the credit 
for violating the covenant. She never, ever mentions that. It's absent from all of her reports, 
from all of her theology. And then, of course, the chapter 
ends with a stepping stone into chapter 2, verse 22. Naomi returned, 
Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, with her, who returned from the 
country of Moab. In case you forgot, reader, In 
case you forgot, dear reader, the hero of this story is Ruth 
the Moabitess, who returned with Naomi from Moab. Don't forget 
that. God is going to bring redemption 
for Israel through, at least in part, Ruth the Moabitess, 
who came from Moab. It is the grace of God displayed 
in this chapter. Now, they came to Bethlehem at 
the beginning of barley harvest. She meets the man of her dreams. And Boaz makes everything right. Isn't that a picture of Christ? Isn't that what we have in Jesus? He is the man that makes everything 
right. He's the man that redeems us. He is the man that clothes 
us. He is the man that cares for 
us. He is the champion that delivers us from our woe and from our 
difficulty and from our trials. So the passage sets forth in 
most clear language and terms the sovereignty of God the providence 
of God, the justice of God, and the mercy and the grace of God. On the human side, it sets forth 
good theology from Naomi, but a theology that could ripen in 
the positive elements as well. And it sets forth, in terms of 
the human element, something blessed about Ruth the Moabitess. I mean, who wouldn't want a Ruth 
in their life? This kind of confession. this 
kind of devotion, this kind of allegiance, this kind of faith 
in Israel's God. Well, let us close in a word 
of prayer. Our Father, we thank You for this, Your Word, and 
we thank You that in the midst of these very ordinary circumstances, 
on the one hand, You are doing extraordinary things, and we 
praise You that through Ruth the Moabitess, You would ultimately 
bring the Lord Jesus Christ God, we see in this your grace, your 
power, your majesty, your excellence. We see in this as well, as John 
Gill reminds us, an emblem, a sign, a symbol of the conversion of 
the Gentiles. We know that Christ is not just 
a savior for the Israelites, but he is a savior for Gentiles, 
the entirety of the Church of the Lord Jesus. We thank you 
for this. We praise you, God. for your 
kindness to us. And we ask that you would help 
us to interpret things not only on the negative side in terms 
of the affliction of God, but help us to see your mercy and 
your goodness to us in the midst of these things. And we pray 
through Christ our Lord. Amen.