The purpose of the book of ruth

The purpose of the book of ruth from the bible jack wellman. Even though its small, this remarkable book contains many principles with profound impact to our lives today. The purpose of the book of ruth this book was written to israel but i believe it has an even greater and much deeper meaning to christians today because it is reflective of our own redeemer, jesus. Postcards from the widows path gleaning hope and purpose from the book of ruth. Ruth haley barton is a spiritual director, teacher and retreat leader. The text itself says nothing of the author, but whoever wrote it was a skilled storyteller.

As a last option for understanding ruth, i would offer that ruth does fit well when set against the background of the early postexilic period. Boaz meets ruth 15 when ruth got up to glean, boaz ordered his young men, even if she gathers among the sheaves, do not insult her. Ruth presents various important themes, each one of which merits being explored and elaborated. Before going on to read this study, please read the book of ruth first. It is a tradition to read the book of ruth during shavuot jun 12, 2016 festival of weeks. Ancient versions and modern translations consistently entitle this book after ruth the moabitess heroine, who is mentioned by name 12 times 1.

Ruth bryan reckons herself a meager gleaner in the fields of the gracious, loving, and greater boaz, jesus christ. The book of ruth and its purpose 203 proof of israelite literature develops in such a manner that the author does not easily betray the purpose for which he has compiled it. On the festival of shavuot pentecost, the season of the barley harvest, we read the bucolic tale of ruth the moabite lady, a. The tradition is that the book of ruth was written by the prophet samuel. Structural symmetry and its significance in the book of ruth. Ruth, biblical character, a woman who after being widowed remains with her husbands mother. Trained through the shalem institute for spiritual formation washington, d. The literature on this time is vast and continues to grow, but it is safe to say that the small community in judea in the late 500s to early 400s b. Observing the inner life of ruth bryan is a reminder to all believers of the boundless mercies of christ, for who are we that such handfuls of purpose should be dropped for us.

This book was written to israel but i believe it has an even greater and much deeper meaning to christians today because it is. The book of ruth is the narrative of a love story, yet also has some important genealogy. Postcards from the widows path gleaning hope and purpose from the book of ruth ferree hardy on. Naomi loses her husband and sons in the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. This fall i will be sharing some blog posts focusing on the significance and application of some books of the bible. Christ spoke of his kingdom as the kingdom of heaven, to differentiate it from the worldly kingdoms. Ruth is a book for all times, whether written in post. It gives a genealogy that leads to the lord jesus christ, and it explains his coming from the line of david. The book of ruth is one of the most beautiful stories because the circumstance seems as if there was no purpose in it, and it is a story that seems to lose hope, but god was there to fulfill his purpose, and to renew hope. Watch our overview video on the book of ruth, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. This book received its title in honor of the heroine of the story.

So a man from bethlehem in judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of moab. It is set in the time of the judges not the best ones, if we assign it to the period of gideon and samson and it attempts to define the rights of widows and aliens within a society fallen upon hard times. And speaking of characterization, the book of ruth, imo, is the most sophisticated in the bible in that regard. The mans name was elimelek, his wifes name was naomi, and the. In the hebrew bible, ruth stands with the song of solomon, lamentations, ecclesiastes, and esther. Ruth was a moabite woman, whose sense of piety and devotion to her motherinlaw naomi led to her marriage to the prominent boaz of bethlehem in judah. In ruth, an israelite family faces tragic loss, and god uses the. The book of ruth is one of only two books of the bible to be named after women the other is esther. Ruth is one of the five festival scrolls, also known as the megilloth, in the writings section of the old testament. For this reason it is placed in the septuagint after the book of judges. God used several ordinary people in the book of ruth to accomplish his plan. Book of ruth overview insight for living ministries. However, the prevalent view is a date between 1011 and 931 b. The purpose of this book is in fact to indicate the importance of kindness, as r.

Join pastor anton and web for an informal and live bible study in the book of ruth on wednesday evenings at 7. I dont know how common this was or whether there can be an argument that this element was part of the purpose of the book, or perhaps was part of the authors characterization of boaz. The book of ruth, which is poetically idyllic in character, although the narrative is in the form of prose, contains an episode from the period of the judges. The book of ruth is about how god used ordinary people without the people knowing what god was doing in their current circumstances to accomplish great things for gods future plans. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original. Christ is to be the ultimate ruler of the kingdom of israel spiritually. There are commentators who take the position that the primary purpose of the book of ruth is to give the genealogy. Judges is a sad contrast to the book of joshua which chronicles the blessings god bestowed on. The setting of the book is the spring barley harvest, hence its long association with the festival of pentecost, which pictured this early harvest. The book of ruth, although one of the smallest books in the old testament, has many values displayed in its mere four chapters. Overview of the book of ruth third millennium ministries.

The significance and application of the book of ruth. This reconciles the two disparate explanations found in the different midrashim that examine the essence of the book of ruth. This word is used elsewhere in the bible to describe gods loyalty and faithfulness to israel. The timeline of this book is interweaved throughout the period of the judges. The book of judges is a tragic account of how yahweh god was taken for granted by his children year after year, century after century. The book of ruth is an important historical work in hebrew scripture, our old testament of the bible, as it traces the lineage of king david and ultimately that of the messiah, jesus christ. This is the reason why since the ancient and up to modern times different opinions have been formulated which have tried to. The author was anonymous but some believe it was perhaps written by samuel the prophet. Our story opens on a nice jewish family with a problem. Ruth summary we have detailed a brief summary of the book of ruth for bible study or sunday school lessons. The main purpose of the book of ruth is to give information about the direct ancestors of david, the one in whose line was to come the messiah. It celebrates the loyalty and reward of a young moabite widow ruth who chooses to follow her israelite motherinlaw naomi back to bethlehem after naomi was bereaved of her own husband and two sons.

The book of ruth is a story of ruth and boaz and it exemplifies the theory of. The timeline of this book is intertwined during the period of the judges. Famine has hit bethlehem, which forces elimelech and his wife, naomi, to move east to. Ruth, who has an entire biblical book named after her, is originally a foreigner, a moabite, and a convert, or a jewbychoice, and from her is descended no less a person than king david. According to the talmud jewish tradition, the prophet samuel wrote the book of ruth.

There are multiple purposes in the story of ruthloyalty, wise leadership and more. One writer argued that naomi is the main character in the plot, boaz is the main character in the dialogue, and obed is the main character in the purpose of the book. The book of ruth, which appears in the third section of the hebrew bible, ktuvim, writings, is a beautiful folktale written in four short chapters. In fact, the hebrew word for thischesedappears multiple times throughout the story. The book of ruth by richard arillotta friday study. Zeira noted specifically the type of kindness necessary to create and maintain the davidic dynasty as noted by. The exact date the book of ruth was written is uncertain. Book of ruth, old testament book belonging to the third section of the biblical canon, known as the ketuvim, or writings. And when she beat out what she had gleaned, it was about an ephah of barley. Ruths story is celebrated during the jewish festival of shavuot, the feast of weeks, 50 days after passover. It has been called the most beautiful short story ever written. Ruth has only four brief chapters, but it is a mighty midget with a mighty message. Throughout the book, readers are shown the struggle of ruth and her motherinlaw, naomi, as they try to survive in a patriarchal world.