Praise the Lord! The above-mentioned Scripture passage (Ruth 1:16-17) is chosen for our Scripture for the Week meditation for the week of December 17-23, 2023. The book of Ruth is one of the two books named after women that are canonically accepted and included in the Christian Scriptures (Bible). The other book is named after Esther, a Jewish young lady who was deported (along with other Israelites) to Susa [also known as Shushan] the capital city of the kingdom of Persia and Media, and was chosen to be the queen of king Xerxes [the name is mentioned as king Ahasuerus in some Bible translations] (Esther 1:1-3; 2:15-18). The interesting fact about Ruth is that, unlike Esther, she was not of Jewish origin rather she was a Moabite woman, married to a Jewish man name Mahlon, while he was in Moab along with the rest of his immediate family members (Ruth 1:1-5).

According to Ruth 1:1, the incidents recorded in the book of Ruth took place during the time of Judges’ rule in Israel sometime between the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites (Joshua 21:43-45; Judges 1:1) and the inception of the first king in Israel (king Saul, 1 Samuel 13:1). 1 Kings 6:1 states about four hundred and eighty years passed from the time the Israelites came out of Egypt until the fourth year of king Solomon’s reign. This means, considering that king Saul reigned about forty-two years (1 Samuel 13:1), king David reigned about forty years (1 Kings 2:11), and king Solomon’s fourth year of reign (1 Kings 6:1) – a total of eighty-six years (42+40+4=86 years). Based on these verses and its calculations, from the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites to the inception of the kings’ reign in Israel, a period of about four hundred years is covered (that is, the approximate time period between BC 1450-1050), and during this period the Judges ruled Israel (Judges 2:16).

Now, it is hard to specifically mention in here when exactly the famine took place in Israel during the rule of the Judges that caused the Ephrathite family (Elimelech, his wife Naomi, and their sons Mahlon, and Kilion) to move from Bethlehem in Judah to the neighboring country of Moab and settle down there to escape the famine. There is no mention of any particular Judge’s name or any particular time-period in the book to find out when exactly the famine happened in Israel during which the family moved to Moab. God delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and brought them into a land flowing with milk and honey, and gave it to them as their own inheritance. In addition to that, God promised them all kinds of spiritual and material blessings for a well nourished life in the promised land. Although the Israelites served the Lord faithfully throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced everything the Lord had done for Israel (Joshua 24:31; Judges 2:6), the following generations forsook the Lord and did evil in the eyes of the Lord by serving Baal and the Ashtoreths (Judges 2:10-13). On the one hand, they enjoy God’s blessings, but, on the other hand, along with worshipping Yahweh, they burned incense and worshipped the gods of the nations whom the Lord drove out from before them. God did not stop them from following the lustful desires of their hearts (Psalm 81:11-12; Romans 1:24). Due to their unfaithfulness to the Lord their God, the Lord’s anger burned against them and in His anger He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around who raided and plundered them (Judges 2:10-15). So, whenever they forsook the Lord and worshipped other gods, the Lord would raise their enemies against them who raided and plundered their land, which in turn caused famine in the land. When the enemy oppressed them severely (beyond their ability to bear), they would repent from their failures against God and cry out to the Lord for help, God would come to their aid and will raise Judges who will save them from the hands of their enemies. When God raised a judge, there would be peace in the land, but when the Judge died, the people would return to their folly and sin against the Lord. This pattern continued throughout the rule of the Judges in Israel. Perhaps, during one of such famine times, Elimelech and his family moved from Judea to Moab to escape the famine.

The famine caused Elimelech’s family to move from Bethlehem (means, House of Bread) to Moab (meaning, he is of my father) in search of food and other necessities (Judges 1:1-3). Perhaps, when the family arrived in Moab, it might have been like the dream come true for them – a great escape from raiders/invaders and exploitation/famine. The family might have been in high spirits and planning and preparing and building up of a well-to-do-life in the foreign land. Soon the family faced the first blow in their life – the unexpected death of Elimelech, the head of the family. Perhaps, with the death of Elimelech, all the dreams and hopes might have crumbled down for the remaining family members. Naomi, the wife of Elimelech, and their two sons Mahlon and Kilion, left alone in foreign land without proper leadership and guidance. Again, the family tried to cherish their dreams and, both sons, Mahlon and Kilion, took wives from Moab, thinking of building up the family. Against all their wishes and wills, the second blow struck the family – the death of Mahlon and Kilion. In the midst of all such catastrophes in life, Naomi, the only surviver of the family, left alone with her two Moabite-daughters-in-law (Mahlon’s wife Ruth as wife and Kilion’s wife Orpah), but without her husband and two sons. Perhaps, all these might have happened in a time span of little over ten years (Ruth 1:4). Since there is no more hope remaining for Naomi in Moab, she takes three important decisions in life: (i) she decided to trust in the Lord, the God of Israel, unwaveringly in times of uncertainties; (ii) she plans to return to Bethlehem in Judea, and (iii) she plans to send her daughters-in-law back to their mother’s households.

The above-mentioned passage (Ruth 1:16-17) is part of the conversation that took place between Naomi and her Moabite-daughters-in-law. As Naomi was about to start the long and dangerous journey from Moab to Bethlehem, her hometown; she urged her daughters-in-law to return to their own homes in Moab knowing that there is nothing left for them to live on either in Moab or in Bethlehem, but they decided to go back with Naomi to Bethlehem Judea (Ruth 1:8-10). However, later, Orpah, Kilion’s wife, decided to return to her mother’s home, whereas Ruth was determined to go with her mother-in-law to Bethlehem, the hometown of her late husband Mahlon. As Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye and went back to her people (Ruth 1:14-15), Ruth clung to her mother-in-law Naomi and said to her: Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me (Ruth 1:16-17).

Ruth, Mahlon’s wife (Ruth 4:10), was determined to cling to her mother-in-law Naomi, no matter what lies on her way ahead. The journey she was about to take along with her mother-in-law is going to take her away from her home-country, hometown, her parents, her dear and near ones and everyone and everything she was familiar with. Not only that, the journey from Moab to Bethlehem would be very dangerous, long, and solitary. Naomi’s family moved from Bethlehem to Moab because they were struggling to survive in Bethlehem, which means, nothing is there to expect in Bethlehem, and whatever they had in Moab is lost. In the midst of all such uncertainties, Ruth loved her mother-in-law and trusted in the God of her mother-in-law. When Ruth said to her mother-in-law that she is accompanying her to Bethlehem, she confirmed her decision by making the following bold statements in Ruth 1:16-17:

• • Do not urge me to leave you (1:16a)
  • Do not insist me to turn back from you (1:16b)
  • Where you go, I will go (1:16c)
  • Where you stay, I will stay (1:16d)
  • Your people will be my people (1:16e)
  • Your God will be my God (1:16f)
  • Where you die, I will die (1:17a)
  • Where you are buried, I will be buried (1:17b)
  • Ruth’s bond with Naomi was not for a shorter period but until death separate them (1:17c)

When Ruth made the above-mentioned bold statements, it shows her determination, it shows her declaration, it shows her demand, it shows her decision, and it shows her desire and willingness to cling to her mother-in-law Naomi and accept the God of Israel, Yahweh, as her God. Ruth left behind everyone and everything she was familiar with and took an unknown road to an unknown country. She was accepting an unknown people as her own people, and she was embracing an unknown God for her spiritual need. In that moment, no one knew, neither she nor her mother-in-law nor anyone in Moab or Israel, except the Lord God – the history maker – that she was walking into a situation that would make history.

When Naomi decided to return to Bethlehem Judea from Moab because of her ill-fated situation, she never thought that her daughter-in-law Ruth would accompany her to Bethlehem, that Boaz would become her kinsman-redeemer and marry Ruth, her son’s widowed wife, or that Ruth would become the great, great grandmother of king David, or even that in the fullness of time the savior of the world Lord Jesus Christ would born through that line of king David. The decision Naomi made to return to her home country would change the course of history forever.

Of course, both Naomi and her Moabite-daughter-in-law Ruth had bitter experiences in life and both went through bad to worse life situations, but they both trusted in the Lord God and He honored them. God blessed Naomi and Ruth beyond they could imagine or dream of. 1 Corinthians 2:9 says: However, as it is written: What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived — the things God has prepared for those who love him. Not only were Naomi and Ruth blessed, but all of humanity was blessed through them. The lives of Naomi and Ruth set an example for us. They teach us that in any given circumstances – good or bad, we are called to follow the Lord wholeheartedly, trust in the Lord without any doubt, worship Him and Him alone faithfully, and obey His commands at all times. Apostle Paul said, And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28). Like Ruth clung to Naomi and both of them trusted in the Lord God, let us cling unto the Lord Jesus Christ and trust Him and Him alone. It will definitely bring everlasting blessings upon us, our family, and on others through us. May the Lord our God bless us all! Amen!