The Story of Ruth in the Bible

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The Story of Ruth in the Bible

Who was Ruth in the Bible?

Ruth was the great-grandmother of King David and the daughter-in-law of Naomi. She said the well-known words, "Whither thou goest, I will go" (Ruth 1:16 KJV). Ruth is a traditionally feminine name with Hebrew roots and origins in the Bible which means "companion" or "friend."

Ruth was “of the women of Moab” but was related to Israel through Lot, the nephew of Abraham (Ruth 1:4; Genesis 11:31). Ruth lived in the period of the judges. She married the son of an Israelite family while they were living in Moab, but then her father-in-law, husband, and husband’s only brother all passed away. So Ruth had a choice whether to remain in her home of Moab or to go with Naomi, her mother-in-law, to Judah, a place she had never known.

Why is Ruth Important from Scripture?

Ruth adored her mother-in-law and had great sympathy for her, witnessing that she lost her husband and both of her sons. Ruth could not endure to part from Naomi or from the God of Israel that she had come to know. Ruth and Naomi made the voyage back to Judah to the city of Bethlehem. Ruth’s testimony spread, and Boaz heard of her faith, as noted in Ruth 2:11-12:

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!"

Like the Canaanite woman in Matthew 15:21-28, Ruth acknowledges that she does not deserve Boaz's favor because she is a stranger. Like Christ, Boaz blesses her with his favor and protection. Ruth is rewarded for her dedication by an invitation to eat with Boaz.

The story of Ruth in the Bible illustrates a theme of redemption, a word that occurs 23 times in the book of Ruth. Boaz acts as a redeemer by buying back Naomi's land, marrying Ruth, a Moabitess, and fathering a son to keep the family line alive. Such a "kinsman-redeemer" is symbolic of the mediating work of Christ. Ruth's position as a Gentile in the ancestry of David (and thence of Christ) signifies that all nations will be represented in the Kingdom of God.

As a Moabitess, Ruth was a descendant of Lot. Twice does Scripture record that Moab, situated east of the Dead Sea, and Israel warred against each other. During a time of famine in Israel, Naomi and her Israelite family moved to Moab as a matter of survival. After the death of her husband and with the famine past, she and Naomi return to Israel, to the city of Bethlehem, later to become the city of David.

What Can We Learn from Ruth in the Bible?

The Power of Faith

Ruth showed remarkable faith for such a young believer. Faith that there was still a purpose for her ahead. Faith to believe that God was who He said He was. And faith to believe that God would provide for her and Naomi.

If you’re in an unsure place, start with faith. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as, “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

You might not be able to see what God is doing, but trust that He is moving.

Trust in Redemption

Against all odds redemption is always possible. Ruth had no reason to believe she had earned anything but believed God was everything she needed. Ruth believed God would provide and in that place of faith God did a miraculous work to redeem Ruth.

He took a poor, hurting outcast and healed her, provided for her, and brought her a great love with Boaz.

Redemption is possible in your life. No matter where you come from or what you've been through, God has a plan for you that far surpasses all of that.

(See more lessons that we can learn from Ruth on Crosswalk.com)

Read the scriptures of Ruth's story in the Bible below and find related articles:

Photo credit: ©Getty/ZvonimirAtleti

Ruth 2

1 Now Naomi had a relative of her husband's, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz.
2 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."
3 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.
4 And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to the reapers, "The LORD be with you!" And they answered, "The LORD bless you."
5 Then Boaz said to his young man who was in charge of the reapers, "Whose young woman is this?"
6 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.
7 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."
8 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.
9 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."
10 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?"
11 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.
12 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!"
13 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."
14 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.
15 When she rose to glean, Boaz instructed his young men, saying, "Let her glean even among the sheaves, and do not reproach her.
16 And also pull out some from the bundles for her and leave it for her to glean, and do not rebuke her."
17 So she gleaned in the field until evening. Then she beat out what she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley.
18 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.
19 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."
20 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."
21 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.'"
22 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."
23 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 2 Commentaries

Ruth 3

1 Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, "My daughter, should I not seek rest for you, that it may be well with you?
2 Is not Boaz our relative, with whose young women you were? See, he is winnowing barley tonight at the threshing floor.
3 Wash therefore and anoint yourself, and put on your cloak and go down to the threshing floor, but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking.
4 But when he lies down, observe the place where he lies. Then go and uncover his feet and lie down, and he will tell you what to do."
5 And she replied, "All that you say I will do."
6 So she went down to the threshing floor and did just as her mother-in-law had commanded 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 grain. Then she came softly and uncovered his feet and lay down.
8 At midnight the man was startled and turned over, and behold, a woman lay at his feet!
9 He said, "Who are you?" And she answered, "I am Ruth, your servant. Spread your wings over your servant, for you are a redeemer."
10 And he said, "May you be blessed by the LORD, my daughter. You have made this last kindness greater than the first in that you have not gone after young men, whether poor or rich.
11 And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you ask, for all my fellow townsmen know that you are a worthy woman.
12 And now it is true that I am a redeemer. Yet there is a redeemer nearer than I.
13 Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will redeem you, good; let him do it. But if he is not willing to redeem you, then, as the LORD lives, I will redeem you. Lie down until the morning."
14 So she lay at his feet until the morning, but arose before one could recognize another. And he said, "Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor."
15 And he said, "Bring the garment you are wearing and hold it out." So she held it, and he measured out six measures of barley and put it on her. Then she went into the city.
16 And when she came to her mother-in-law, she said, "How did you fare, my daughter?" Then she told her all that the man had done for her,
17 saying, "These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said to me, 'You must not go back empty-handed to your mother-in-law.'"
18 She replied, "Wait, my daughter, until you learn how the matter turns out, for the man will not rest but will settle the matter today."

Ruth 3 Commentaries

Ruth 4

1 Now Boaz had gone up to the gate and sat down there. And behold, the redeemer, of whom Boaz had spoken, came by. So Boaz said, "Turn aside, friend; 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 down here." So they sat down.
3 Then he said to the redeemer, "Naomi, who has come back from the country of Moab, is selling the parcel of land that belonged to our relative Elimelech.
4 So I thought I would tell you of it and say, 'Buy it in the presence of those sitting here and in the presence of the elders of my people.' If you will redeem it, redeem it. But if you will not, tell me, that I may know, for there is no one besides you to redeem it, and I come after you." And he said, "I will redeem it."
5 Then Boaz said, "The day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you also acquire Ruth the Moabite, the widow of the dead, in order to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance."
6 Then the redeemer said, "I cannot redeem it for myself, lest I impair my own inheritance. Take my right of redemption yourself, for I cannot redeem it."
7 Now this was the custom in former times in Israel concerning redeeming and exchanging: to confirm a transaction, the one drew off his sandal and gave it to the other, and this was the manner of attesting in Israel.
8 So when the redeemer said to Boaz, "Buy it for yourself," he drew off his sandal.
9 Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, "You are witnesses this day that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and to Mahlon.
10 Also Ruth the Moabite, the widow of Mahlon, I have bought to be my wife, to perpetuate the name of the dead in his inheritance, that the name of the dead may not be cut off from among his brothers and from the gate of his native place. You are witnesses this day."
11 Then all the people who were at the gate and the elders said, "We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman, who is coming into your house, like Rachel and Leah, who together built up the house of Israel. May you act worthily in Ephrathah and be renowned in Bethlehem,
12 and may your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring that the LORD will give you by this young woman."
13 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.
14 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!
15 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."
16 Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her lap and became his nurse.
17 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.
18 Now these are the generations of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron,
19 Hezron fathered Ram, Ram fathered Amminadab,
20 Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon,
21 Salmon fathered Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed,
22 Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered David.

Ruth 4 Commentaries

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