Rev. David Holwick F
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
February 7, 1993
Ruth 1:16-17
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I. Love stories have always been popular.
A. "Harlequin Romances" are churned out once a week.
1) Rich dark guy towers over maiden, who swoons in his arms.
2) Soap operas suffocate their fans in similar way.
B. The book of Ruth goes against the usual formula.
1) A simple girl, an impoverished setting, but genuine feeling.
II. The romance's shaky start.
A. Mahlon sinned by marrying Ruth.
1) Moabites were not popular with Jews.
a) They were descendants of Lot's daughters.
b) They hired Balaam to curse the Jews.
2) Ezra and divorcing of foreign wives. Ezra 9:1-4; 10:1-3
a) Not racial (all were Semitic), but religious motive.
b) Idolatry had to be stamped out without mercy.
c) Moabites were forbidden in the Temple. Neh 13:1-3,23-27
B. Naomi's tragedy: death of husband and sons. 1:5
1) Childless widows had most insecure position in society.
2) No one to carry on name.
3) Naomi prepares to spend her life all alone. 1:8
III. Love between Ruth and Naomi.
A. Two widows had little to offer each other but love.
B. Ruth's commitment: 1:16-17
1) She refuses to leave.
2) She will go with Naomi anywhere, no matter what.
3) Commitment was for a lifetime.
C. Further, she commits herself to Naomi's God. 1:16-17
1) By following Naomi, she turned her back on her past.
2) Ruth followed wholeheartedly, no compromise.
IV. Love between Ruth and Boaz. 2:1 ff
A. Gleaning leads to a relationship.
1) Potential danger in living on the edge of society. 2:9,22
2) Boaz is a righteous and decent man.
a) He greets the harvesters with God's blessing.
b) He protects poor gleaners.
c) He cares for his relatives, even distant ones.
3) Uncommon dating practices. 3:4
a) Sounds weird to us, but was proper custom.
1> Uncovering feet signified servanthood.
2> Her character was above reproach. 3:11
b) They have little in common (age, nationality)
but only love. 3:10
B. Kinsman-Redeemer. 3:1 ff
1) Survival of families found in custom of levirate marriage.
a) Deceased man's name and land inheritance kept alive. 4:8f
b) Apparently idea extended to other relatives.
c) Offer of land sounded great - until he found out a
wife was thrown in. 4:4-6
2) Strange customs, but done in orderly way.
a) No deception.
b) Customs like marriage are important in God's eyes. 4:9
V. God's love for them is shown throughout.
A. God is concerned for poor and outcasts. (gleaning)
1) In midst of despair, God provides daily bread.
2) Gleaning principle is for poorest of poor.
3) Naomi had despaired, but even then God was providing for her.
B. God accepts aliens.
1) Jews were chosen to be a light, not a monopoly.
2) Book of Ruth is a beautiful example of God's grace.
3) God shows no favoritism. Acts 10:34-35
a) We also need to be careful about "labeling" people.
C. From Ruth, God brings the greatest king, and the Messiah (Jesus).
1) A man can "redeem" a wife, but only Jesus can redeem a soul.
************************** Notes ******************************
Leland Ryken, "The Literature of the Bible," pp. 71 ff.
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Ruth is a narrative of idyllic romance.
A. An idyl is a short poem or prose work describing a simple,
pleasant aspect of rural, pastoral, or domestic life.
B. Ruth is above all a domestic heroine.
1) She is twice married.
2) Devoted to her mother-in-law.
3) A mother in the royal line of David.
4) A member of the messianic line.
C. The domestic heroine draws much of her identity from her
religious strength.
1) Her beauty is not outward but rather her gentleness and
strength of character.
D. The plot of the story is comic, moving from tragedy to happy
conclusion. It has a well-made plot:
1) Exposition (background info).
2) Inciting moment.
3) Rising action.
4) Turning point.
5) Further complication.
6) Climax.
7) Denouement.
Copyright © 2024 by Rev. David Holwick
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