The Book of RUTH for Today

THE BOOK OF RUTH FOR TODAY

Copyright 1999 by Emerson Thomas McMullen

Given 8 Feb 99 to the GSU Christian Faculty and Staff

Some have described Ruth as a love story - and it is. But it is not a romantic love story such as dominates much our society and media today. Rather, it is about a godly, sacrificial type of love that demonstrates a much greater depth of character.

The Biblical story of Ruth takes place in a backdrop of national apostasy and moral decline, where people chased after false gods, and "where every man did what was right in his own eyes." (See Judges 2:11, 12a; 3:7; 17:6; 21:25.) This is something we see in American culture today. People are chasing after money, sex, and/or power, and many are doing what is right in their own eyes. (See my review of Deion Sanders' book).

Back then God used a woman from a despised people, the Moabites, to show the Israelites the depth of their cultural decline. Today I think God is using Mr. Clinton's impeachment process to show the depth of American moral decline. First, let me tell you about the story of Ruth, and then the application for our times.

Naomi's husband left Bethlehem because of a famine and lived in Moab. He died there, as did his two sons who had married Moabite women, Ruth and Orpah. There were now no sons to take care of Naomi in her old age, so she decided to go back to her people. Similarly, there were no children to take care of Ruth and Orpah in their pending old age, so Naomi sent them back to their families. But Ruth refused to go back to her family. She put her trust entirely in God, telling Naomi: "Your people will be my people and your God my God." (Ruth 1:16b) This is really trusting God because it looked like her chances of remarriage would be much worse in Israel than in Moab. Who in Israel would take care of her in her old age?

At this point, it appears that Orpah is the smart one by going back to her family, to her people, and to her gods, the chief one being Chemosh. And it looks like Ruth has given up a husband, children, and care in her old age (Social Security). She has decided to completely rely upon God. In making this decision, and in caring for Naomi, she shows a sacrificial love and a lot of character.

Ruth's trust in God pays off in Bethlehem, where it is harvest time. Gleaning the fallen grain behind the reapers was the welfare system then. God led Ruth to glean for grain in the fields of the wealthy and generous Boaz, who is impressed by her character.

Jewish law contains the concept of a kinsman-redeemer. If a man died childless, his brother had the obligation to marry the widow and the first son of this union would carry on the name of the dead brother. (Deut. 25:5-6) If he refused to fulfill this obligation, then the widow had the right to publicly humiliate him in front of the town council (vs. 7-10).

There was no one obligated to fulfill the duty of kinsman-redeemer for Ruth, but Boaz decided to act in the spirit, rather than in the letter of the law. Boaz also had a lot of character. He was always careful to protect Ruth's reputation, and he offered the right of kinsman-redeemer to the one who was more closely related. That man refused. Boaz married Ruth, and God gave them a son (Ruth 4:13b), Obed, who became the grandfather of King David, and who is the ancestor of Jesus Christ, our Kinsman-Redeemer.

This is quite a reward for a despised Moabitess who trusted in God, gave up a husband and family, and social security. But she got it all back with fame and fortune added in. It could have been any Israelite woman, but God chose Ruth, a Moabite.

The application for today is obvious. We do live in times that try men's souls and it looks as if things are going to get worse. What should we do? How shall we live? The first step is to give up pursuing the things of this world and to trust completely in Jesus. Next, we should know what Jesus requires of us. Then we should not just follow the letter of His commands, but rather strive to follow the spirit of them.

Let me give one example of following the spirit of Christ's commands in the area of money. We have an obligation to financially support God's work here on earth. We can grudgingly give the money, but that is not following the spirit of this obligation. We should joyfully monetarily support the things of God. That is why it says in 2 Cor. 9:7b, that God loves a cheerful giver. Verse 11 gives this promise to cheerful and generous givers: "You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion [which] . . . will result in thanksgiving to God." This is what God did for Boaz, who was a generous giver, and He can do it for us. (However, I think being "rich in every way" refers more to spiritual riches and God's care, and less to the world's wealth.)

Finally, God will see us through these difficult times because of His proven character and because of His demonstrated sacrificial love for us as a Kinsman-Redeemer.

ADDENDUM - JUDGES 4

Ruth took place during the time frame of Judges, Chapter Four. This was Israel's Fourth Apostasy and it was a time mostly of oppression. See the Appendix for the time frames of the other Apostasies.

vss. 1-3: After Ehud died, the Israelites once again did evil in the eyes of the Lord. So the Lord sold them into the hands of Jabin, a king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth Haggoyim. Because he had nine hundred iron chariots and had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years, they cried to the Lord for help.

The Jewish people were freed, but God sold them into slavery. "Jabin," a name that is a title, like Pharaoh, ruled Hazor, which filled the power vacuum created by the failure of the Israelites to control the area. The Canaanite's walled cities gave them defense, but the 900 chariots gave them the offense. They could patrol the roads and control the plains and trade - forcing the Israelites to the wooded and/or hilly areas. Harosheth Haggoyim was at the upper end of the Plain of Esdralon. Sisera was probably one of the petty chiefs of the alliance. The Canaanites sought to restore their old power, not just plunder, as did Israel's external enemies.

vss. 4-5: Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading Israel at that time. She held court under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites came to her to have their disputes decided.

`Deborah' means honeybee, not 'Bombus,' the bumblebee, but 'Apis,' the honeybee. She held court 8 - 10 miles north of Jerusalem.

vs. 6: She sent for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, "The LORD, the God of Israel, commands you: `Go, take with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun and lead the way to Mount Tabor.'"

The local courts operated at the gates of the various cities, as we saw in Ruth. Deborah only ruled in the big cases, similar to the Supreme Court in the U.S. Barak is from Kedesh, a city of refuge. His name means `lightening,' or `thunderbolt.' `Lappidoth' is `torch.' Mt. Tabor is about 1300 ft., rising at the northeastern end of the valley.

vs. 7: "`I will lure Sisera, the commander of Jabin's army, with his chariots and his troops to the Kishon River and give him into your hands.'"

Barak is to muster 10,000 at Mt. Tabor, strategically located at the junction of the tribes of Zebulun, Naphtali, and Issachar. It is chariot-proof. In 1799 Napoleon defeated Turks here, aided by a flooding Kishon River.

vss. 8-9: Barak said to her, "If you go with me, I will go; but if you don't go with me, I won't go." "Very well," Deborah said, "I will go with you. But because of the way you are going about this, the honor will not be yours, for the LORD will hand Sisera over to a woman." So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh.

Why a woman was judging - men are spiritually out of it. Barak is probably the most outstanding male leader around and he won't go without Deborah. He lacked confidence. Principle: If the men are spiritually out of it, God will use the women. Nevertheless, Barak is listed as a hero of faith in Heb. 11:32.

vs. 11: Now Heber the Kenite had left the other Kenites, the descendants of Hobab, Moses' brother-in-law, and pitched his tent by the great tree in Zaanannim near Kedesh.

This Kenite is a metal worker. He probably repairs iron chariots. He may have alerted Sisera that Barak was assembling. He originally allied with Israel while living in the south, but now he has moved north and is making money, working for Israel's enemies.

vs. 15: At Barak's advance, the LORD routed Sisera and all his chariots and army by the sword, and Sisera abandoned his chariot and fled on foot.

God supernaturally intervenes. "Routed," or "discomfited," is used for Egyptians at the Red Sea in Ex. 14:24. The Philistines at Mizpah, I Sam. 7:10+ also has miraculous overtones. Sisera flees on foot because his chariot is stuck in the mud.

vss. 17-21: Sisera, however, fled on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, because there were friendly relations between Jabin king of Hazor and the clan of Heber the Kenite. Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, "Come, my lord, come right in. Don't be afraid." So he entered her tent, and she put a covering over him. "I'm thirsty," he said. "Please give me some water." She opened a skin of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him up. "Stand in the doorway of the tent," he told her. "If someone comes by and asks you, `Is anyone here?' say `No.'" But Jael, Heber's wife, picked up a tent peg and a hammer and went quietly to him while he lay fast asleep exhausted. She drove the peg through his temple into the ground, and he died.

Jael means "mountain goat." Custom kept all men, except a woman's husband out of her tent. It was a perfect hiding place. I think Jael honored the Israeli alliance, which her husband had broken. Maybe even she was an Israeli and slipped Sisera a "Mickey Finn" that the milk disguised. In any event, whether he was drugged or in a deep slip due to exhaustion, the first blow with the heavy mallet would have at least knocked him unconscious. Then the next one killed him, if he weren't dead already. So our story started with "Honeybee" and ended with "Mountain Goat"; and the land of milk and honey is free again.

APPENDIX

CHRONOLOGY OF THE JUDGES

(From the Chronological Bible)

Prologue: ESTABLISHMENT OF JUDGES (and philosophy of history) - Judges 2 - 3:6 (a flashback).

I. FIRST JUDGE/APOSTASY - OTHNIEL/MESOPOTAMIA (1415-1367 BC) - Judges 3:5-10.

1. First Jubilee Year - (10 Oct. 1372 BC) - Lev. 25:10.

2. Joshua's Farewell - Joshua 23, 24:1-18; Judges 2:6,7.

3. The Death of Joshua - (Oct. 1372) - Joshua 24:19-31; Judges 2:8,9.

4. Joseph's Bones Buried - Joshua 24:32.

5. Incomplete Victories in the Tribal Wars of Conquest following Joshua's national one:

a) Judah (Jerusalem's First Fall) - Judges 1:1-19.

b) Benjamin - Judges 1:21; Joseph - Judges 1:22-26.

c) Others - Judges 1:27-36.

6. Israel's Backsliding - Judges 2:10-20.

7. Some Nations Left - Judges 2:21-23; 3:1-11.

II. SECOND APOSTASY - MOAB (1367-1349 BC) - Judges 3:12-14.

1. Death of Eleazar (1362 BC) - Joshua 24:33; 1 Chr. 23:22.

2. Boaz Born (1355 BC) - Matt. 1:5.

3. Second Judge - Ehud (1349-1269 BC) - Judges 3:15-30.

4. Micah's Idol Worship - Judges 17:1-13.

5. Danites Invade Laish (1325 BC) - Judges 18:1-31.

6. A Levite and his Concubine - Judges 19:1-30.

7. Civil War - Judges 20:1-48.

8. Mourning for the Tribe of Benjamin - Judges 21:1-25.

9. Third Judge - Shamgar (1269 BC - Dual Judgeship) - Judges 3:31.

III. THIRD APOSTASY - CANAAN (1269-1249 BC) - Judges 4:1-3.

1. Story of Ruth (1261-1251 BC).

a) Naomi - Ruth 1.

b) Ruth - Ruth 2.

c) Boaz - Ruth 3.

d) Obed Born - (1251 BC) - Ruth 4.

2. Fourth/Fifth Judges - Deborah/Barak (1249-1209 BC) - Judges 4:4 - 5:31.

IV. FOURTH APOSTASY - MIDIAN (1209-1202 BC) - Judges 6:1-10.

1. Sixth Judge - Gideon (1202-1162 BC) - Judges 6:11-8:30.

2. Birth of Abimelech (1187 BC) - Judges 8:31.

3. Death of Gideon (1162 BC) - Judges 8:32.

V. FIFTH APOSTASY (Starts 1162 BC) - Judges 8:33-35.

1. Reign of Abimelech (1162-1159 BC) - Judges 9:1-57.

2. Seventh Judge - Tola (1159-1136 BC) - Judges 10:1-2.

3. Jesse Born (1155 BC) - Matt. 1:5.

4. Eighth Judge - Jair (1136-1114 BC) - Judges 10:3-5.

5. Ninth Judge - Eli (1134-1094 BC) - 1 Sam. 4:18.

6. Birth of Samson (1126 BC) - Judges 13:2-25.

7. Jephthah's Youth (1126-1096 BC) - Judges 11:1-3.

8. Birth of Samuel (1115 BC) - 1 Sam. 1:1-2:10.

VI. SIXTH APOSTASY

AMMON IN THE EAST (1114-1096 BC) - Judges 10:6-18.

PHILISTIA IN THE WEST (1114-1074 BC) - Judges 13:1; Ps. 106:34-46.

1. Samson's Early Exploits (1108 BC) - Judges 14:1-15:20.

2. Eli's Sons - 1 Sam. 2:12-17.

3. Samuel's Childhood - 1 Sam. 2:11; 18-26.

4. Eli's Warning - 1 Sam. 2:27-36.

5. Birth of Saul (1105 BC) - 1 Sam. 9:1; 14:51.

6. The Call of Samuel (1103 BC) - 1 Sam. 3:1-21.

7. Tenth Judge - Jephthah (1096-1090 BC) - Judges 11:4-12:6.

8. Eleventh Judge - Samson (1096-1076 BC) - Judges 15:20.

9. Ark Captured, Restored (1094-1074 BC) - 1 Sam. 4:1-7:2.

10. Twelfth Judge - Ibzon (1090-1083 BC) - Judges 12:8-10.

11. Samson and the Philistines - Judges 16:1-3.

12. Saul's Family (1085-1065 BC) - 1 Sam. 14:50, 49.

13. Birth of Jonathan (1083 BC).

14. Thirteenth Judge - Elon (1083-1073 BC) - Judges 12:11, 12.

15. Samson and Delilah (1076 BC) - Judges 16:4-22.

16. Death of Samson (1074 BC) - Judges 16:23-31.

VII. REVIVAL AT MIZPEH (1074 BC) - 1 Sam. 7:3-8.

1. Philistines Defeated (1074 BC) - 1 Sam. 7:9-14.

2. Samuel - Prophet/Judge (1074-1027 BC) - 1 Sam. 7:15-17.

3. Fourteenth Judge - Abdon (1073-1065 BC) - Judges 12:13-15.

4. Birth of Barzillai (1072 BC) - 2 Sam. 19:32.

5. Israel Demands a King (1067 BC) - 1 Sam. 8:1-22.

6. Birth of Ishbosheth (1065 BC) - 2 Sam. 2:10.

EPILOGUE: SAUL CHOSEN AS KING (1065 BC) - 1 Sam. 9:2-11:15.