Ruth message 2
Three Widows, Two Roads, One Redeeming God
God begins His work of redemption by calling needy people to leave what cannot save them and entrust themselves completely to Him.
Ruth 1:1-18 Now it happened in the days when the judges judged, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the fields of Moab [a]with his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife, Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah. Now they came to the fields of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. 4 They took for themselves Moabite women as wives; the name of the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. And they lived there about ten years. 5 Then [b]both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was left without her two children and her husband. 6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law and returned from the fields of Moab, for she had heard in the fields of Moab that [c]Yahweh had visited His people to give them [d]food. 7 So she went forth from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. 8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to her mother’s house. May Yahweh [e]show lovingkindness with you as you have [f]shown with the dead and with me. 9 May Yahweh grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10 And they said to her, “No, but we will return with you to your people.” 11 But Naomi said, “Return, my daughters. Why should you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? 12 Return, my daughters! Go, for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope, if I should even have a husband tonight and also bear sons, 13 would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is more bitter for me than for you, for the hand of Yahweh has gone forth against me.” 14 And they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15 Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has returned to her people and her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” 16 But Ruth said, “Do not press me to forsake you in turning back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may Yahweh do to me, and more, if anything but death separates you and me.” 18 So she saw that she was determined to go with her, and she [g]said no more to her.
For those of you who weren't here, We started last week in the book of Ruth. And There was a lot of background in verses one through five. There is going to be a lot of storytelling today , it paints a picture of lots of bad things happening . Some have called Naomi the biblical female counterpart to job. And that background really painted a picture of an Israelite family who went through a lot of pain and suffering. There was the father Elimelek, mother Naomi, sons Mahlon and Chilion. And first, they are living in a time in Israel, one of the most tumultuous times in that nation's history, the time of the judges. There is no king, and As is stated multiple times in the book of Job, everyone just did what is right in their own eyes. Things were bad both spiritually and morally in Israel. Second, the first verse tells us that there was a famine in the land. Elimelek and Naomi were faced with a new challenge, the challenge of providing enough food for their family. There could have been an extra struggle. Their son's names, Mahlon and Chilion, mean sickly and Frailty. Maybe both of his sons were born sickly and frail, and so when famine struck They may have been desperate. Children and no food are a deadly combination. desperately seeks a means of keeping his family alive. So Elimelech chooses to pull up stakes and move to the land of Moab where the famine isn't. But while in Moab their fortune doesn't change. Immediately the verses say that Elimelech dies. Then, maybe to Naomi's grief, her two sons choose brides from among a pagan people, Orpah and Ruth. We are not told exactly when the marriages occurred but They are in Moab for 10 years. And there are no children from either of these unions. This may indicate infertility on the part of the Suns. Things are not looking good . No, and two sons with no progeny. And then Or something even more devastating happens . Naomi's two sons die. Naomi is left a widow with two moabite daughters in law in a foreign land, in poverty.
You can imagine what she was thinking at this point. I suppose the question she would ask herself would be "why?" Why did this happen to me? We ask that same question sometimes.
When Bad Things Happen to Good People is a 1981 book by Rabbi Harold S. Kushner, written after his young son, Aaron, was diagnosed with progeria, a rare disease that causes rapid aging and early death. Aaron died at age fourteen. Kushner wrote the book not as a detached philosophical exercise, but out of a father’s grief and his pastoral experience helping others endure loss. Its central question is the ancient “problem of evil”: If God is good, loving, and powerful, why do innocent people suffer?
And the authors simplistic conclusion, based on human logic, says this. If God is all powerful and just, then everybody in this life would be rewarded or punished perfectly for their good or evil deeds. But that's not what happens. He is saying If God were all good and loving and powerful then these things wouldn't happen to good people. So, his conclusion is that God is not all powerful. He does not have complete control over all things.
Well, that book missed another conclusion. That conclusion is that our measure of bad and good is inaccurate. That we have a temporal perspective. That God is eternally good, and he knows the end from the beginning, and that he can make a silk hat out of a sow's ear.
Well, that's the story of Ruth.
Prayer
Well, I told you last time that there were four parts to the story of Ruth. Chapter one covers the need for redemption. Before redemption is revealed, the characters must recognize their need, abandon false securities, and return to the place where God has provided.
Chapter 2 the providing of that redemption. Chapter 3 the request for redemption and chapter four the accomplishment of redemption. We are still in the need of redemption. So let's pick up with our story. It's been ten years in the land of Moab. Naomi's husband is gone her son's married, but now her sons have died With no children and so she is left with two daughters in law. Ruth and Orpah. But there is a glimmer of hope. The first one in this story. During this extreme time of grief she hears that there is bread in the land of Israel.
Ruth 1:6–7 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law and returned from the fields of Moab, for she had heard in the fields of Moab that [a]Yahweh had visited His people to give them [b]food. 7 So she went forth from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah.
She hears there is food in the land of Israel. The famine is over. Proverbs 25:25: says “Like cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.”
We are going to tell this story this morning. And in order to help you hang your hat on the progression of the narrative, I am dividing it into sections with titles; Called home, releasing love, count the cost, bitterness, and two roads. We will begin with called home.
1. God’s provision calls Naomi home
A. Naomi hears that the famine has ended
Naomi had left Bethlehem—the “house of bread”—because there was no bread. And apparently this was a long ordeal . They have been gone for 10 years . This may have been a wartime famine brought on by an outside oppressor that destroyed their fields and animals. But then after Israel returned to the Lord the oppressor is defeated and therefore the famine is over. Now she hears that the Lord has once again provided food for His people. We aren't told how she heard. Maybe some travelers coming from Israel had relayed the good news that Israel had turned a corner on the famine.
But the news seems to be more than just "the famine is over." It says here that she heard that God had "visited" His people. That means a lot. It doesn't just mean that God came down among His people to say hello. It means that God brought something good to His people. The word is used In other places to describe when a woman conceives a child. God visited Sarah. It was used to describe when God rescued Israel from bondage in Egypt and also when He restored them after the Babylonian captivity.
It means that God turned His attention toward His people and acted graciously on their behalf. He had “visited” them in order to give them bread.
So, Hearing that she decides to go home. she went forth from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah.
Naomi has been sitting in grief, loss, and displacement. Now she rises and begins moving toward Bethlehem. You know, this is often what we need to do after a season of grief, discouragement, and distress. Get up and get moving somewhere. First steps. Naomi didn't know where the journey home would eventually lead. She did know that staying in Moab wasn't an option. So once the good news came. She got up and started home.
We often want God to show us the whole plan before we take the first step. Naomi receives only enough light to begin walking. Sometimes faith looks like: Getting up after a season of grief, Returning to worship after disappointment, Reconnecting with God’s people, Leaving a place that has drawn us away from the Lord, Obeying what we already know while trusting God with what we do not know.
Maybe stepping out and putting your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ because your life is empty.
When we come to an understanding of our need for redemption. When we feel the depth of the famine of our souls, we hear that there is spiritual bread out of the land of Bethlehem Ephrathah. So, we to come home.
that was called home to our second section releasing love.
2. Naomi’s love releases what she cannot restore
Ruth 1:8–13 8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to her mother’s house. May Yahweh [a]show lovingkindness with you as you have [b]shown with the dead and with me. 9 May Yahweh grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept.
Let's break this down.
8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to her mother’s house.
All three women had begun on the journey back to Israel, and Bethlehem; The House of bread. This is a 40 to 60 mile journey that would ordinarily take three to 5 days on foot . And Orpah and Ruth start that journey with Naomi. But in many ways, this was a cultural courtesy. You see, when anyone was going on a journey, and expected to be gone for a while, or maybe forever, it was natural, courteous, and loving For their loved ones, even their neighbors, to go with them a little ways down the road. It was sort of a long goodbye. So, Orpah and Ruth walk with her on those first few miles down the road.
But then, Maybe in the silence Naomi addresses the issue. They look like, for all intents and purposes , as though they plan on going with her all the way home. Even if they are only escorting her on the entire journey all told these two women would be taking on Travels that could take up to two weeks. So Naomi says, "go home to your mother's house." Now This is not an act of rejection. It is an act of self-denying love. These two are widows now without children. And they are still relatively young; able to remarry and bear children. Naomi is returning home to pick up her life, and she knows that they need to do the same. So she says, " Go, return each of you to your mother's house."
Then Naomi Says something that expresses her love for them.
“May the LORD deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me.”
Because Naomi recognizes that Ruth and Orpah had shown kindness: To their husbands while they lived. To the memory of their husbands after they died. To Naomi in her widowhood. By accompanying her on the road. Naomi asks God to return their kindness with His kindness. And this word kindness is "Hesed" in Hebrew.
“Kindly” expresses the important biblical idea of covenant kindness—hesed. It is God's loyal, steadfast, and active love. By saying this Naomi is praying for them that the Covenant kindness of the Lord would be upon them.
And she doesn't just pray for kindness but
Verse 9 Naomi prays that they will “find rest, each of you in the house of her husband.” " Go home, find a new husband, get married, have children."
This would be a strange thing to say to a new widow in our day . In their world, a widow without children was socially and economically vulnerable. Husband and children meant Security into old age And Naomi prays for their rest. “Rest” meant more than relaxation. It referred to security, settledness, protection, belonging, and a stable home. Naomi wants them to possess what she believes she can no longer provide; the blessings of a husband, home, and family.
The is a brave and selfless act on Naomi's part. These two are her only remaining lifeline. They are the only comfort she has left in this world. But she refuses to preserve her own comfort at their expense. She knows they may have a better chance of security and remarriage in their home country of Moab. She also knows that as Moabites, one of Israel's enemies, their prospects for marriage in Israel would be slim.
Naomi is such a wonderful example for us. She is in a desperate place. She, as an older woman is embarking on a long journey, on foot, back to her homeland. Can you imagine this? By yourself, walking through miles of the countryside . Camping overnight two or three times . We are not told how old Naomi was , but the impression we get a little further into the story is that she was past childbearing years. But thankfully, she has two daughters-in-law, with her. And it appears that they were willing to walk with her all the way home, even if they didn't end up staying in Israel. But she is more concerned with them than with herself.
You see, genuine love does not ask, “How can I keep this person close to meet my needs?” It doesn't ask how does this relationship help me. It asks, “What is truly best for this person?”
This applies to: Parents releasing adult children. Friends supporting someone through a life transition. Church leaders refusing to manipulate people. Caregivers who are honest about their limitations. Grieving people who still seek the good of others.
“Naomi’s heart is empty, but it is not entirely closed. Even in her grief, she can still pray for someone else’s good.”
Called home releasing love and now count the cost
C. Naomi confronts them with the cost
10 And they said to her, “No, but we will return with you to your people.” 11 But Naomi said, “Return, my daughters. Why should you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? 12 Return, my daughters! Go, for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope, if I should even have a husband tonight and also bear sons, 13 would you therefore wait until they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters; for it is more bitter for me than for you, for the hand of Yahweh has gone forth against me.”
Naomi says, go back home. But, both women, Orpah and Ruth, initially respond: “No, we will return with you to your people.” Their intention sounds sincere, but Naomi forces them to think beyond the emotion of the moment. and Up to this point the conversation has been gracious, and gentle. But now, she wants to press them to understand the realities of what they are saying.
She describes for them what they would be choosing if they return to Israel with her. As I said earlier, because they are Moabites, the chances are slim to none that an Israelite family will choose them as brides for their sons. So, If they returned with her, their only hope for a husband and family would be if Naomi herself had more sons. This reflects the background of levirate marriage, later expressed in Deuteronomy 25:5–10. Under that arrangement, a deceased man’s brother could marry the widow to preserve the dead man’s family line. So, since neither Milan or Kylian had children, Illuminati's line would end. So, to prevent that from happening, a near relative would marry and bear children in the name of the deceased.
But listen to Naomi's reasoning plea. She says, "Why would you return with me?" I have no more sons . I can't provide you a husband. And even if, by some miracle, I got a husband today and conceived this very night. And then if I was pregnant with twin boys. Are you going to wait around until those boys are grown, and marry them?
She is asking them to count the cost. And this introduces to us the 4th section of this story. Bitterness. This is bitterness.
Then she says, No, my daughters; for it is more bitter for me than for you, for the hand of Yahweh has gone forth against me.”
Naomi is not merely saying that she is irritated or resentful; she is expressing profound grief. Her life, once identified with the pleasantness of her name, Naomi, now feels painfully empty and afflicted. This same Hebrew word for bitterness is used when Egypt “made [Israel’s] lives bitter” through cruel slavery (Exodus 1:14), and when Job lamented that the Almighty had made his soul bitter (Job 27:2). Naomi’s words, therefore, convey the anguish of a woman overwhelmed by severe loss, not the casual complaint of someone facing an inconvenience. She is saying that All you find with me now is bitterness and a curse from God. If you attach yourself to me, all you can expect is for that bitterness and curse to flow over on you.
Naomi is telling them: I cannot promise you husbands. I cannot promise you children. I cannot promise you financial security. I cannot promise you acceptance in Judah.
Verse 13 “It is exceedingly bitter to me for your sake that the hand of the LORD has gone out against me.”
Naomi has a sound theology about God. God did deal her this hand. Sometimes we have a hard time saying that God has given us difficulties . We want to say he allowed it. We want to say the devil did this to me. But, my friends, the devil is a created being . He has no power but what has been given him from above . When Job lost all of his children and wealth in one day, he didn't say, "What has the devil done to me!" He said, the Lord gives and the Lord takes away, "Blessed be the name of the Lord." Let me show you another Scripture. Listen to what God said to Moses. When Moses told God, " I can't lead the children of Israel. I Can't speak well." “Then the LORD said to him, ‘Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?’” —Exodus 4:11 (ESV)
Who made the mute person? Who made the deaf person? Who made the blind person? God did.
And Naomi understood that her state, her condition, her circumstance came from God. She has a strong biblical theology. Naomi acknowledges God’s sovereignty, but she misreads God’s intention. We do this . She believes God’s hand is against her. But it is not. The narrator will eventually show that God’s providence is working for her even when it feels painful. He has plans for her life and for the life of Israel and for the life of the world that go far beyond this single painful moment.
Her theology is partly right and partly incomplete: She is right that God is sovereign. She is right that her suffering is real and that God has power over it. But she is wrong to assume that suffering means God has abandoned her.
Our pain often leads us to inaccurate conclusions about God. We may say: “God has forgotten me.” “God is against me.” “Nothing good can come from this.” “My useful life is over.” “I have nothing left to offer.”
The quote is from William Cowper’s hymn, “God Moves in a Mysterious Way”: “Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, But trust Him for His grace; Behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face.”
Behind a frowning providence He hides a smiling face.” What life provides us makes us think that God is frowning on us. But, Cowper’s point is that God’s providence may appear dark, painful, or threatening, yet His wise and gracious purpose remains behind it. The next stanza adds:
“His purposes will ripen fast, Unfolding every hour; The bud may have a bitter taste, But sweet will be the flower.”
Naomi is bitter while in the middle of bitter circumstances. But she is wrong about God. God is not against her . But she cannot see that the answer to part of her need is standing beside her. “Naomi could see the graves behind her, but she could not yet see the harvest ahead of her.”
The first section of the story was called home the second releasing love the third count the cost the 4th bitterness and now the 5th is two roads.
Ruth 1:14–15 14 And they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her. 15 Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has returned to her people and her gods; return after your sister-in-law.”
A. Orpah kisses, but Ruth clings
Both women weep. Both love Naomi. Both begin the journey. But only one continues with her.
But we should not portray Orpah as cold or cruel. She was genuinely attached to Naomi and left with sorrow. Yet the hardship of the journey and the uncertainty of life in Judah outweighed her affection. She sees the validity in Naomi's reasoning. Her prospects would not be good in Israel. So, she says her tearful goodbyes, and turns to go back home. But Ruth's response was different. It says that Ruth clung to Naomi.
The Hebrew word translated “clung” is also used in Genesis 2:24 of a husband leaving his parents and “holding fast” to his wife. It describes a binding, durable attachment—not a passing emotion. Orpah’s affection was real, but Ruth’s commitment was deeper.
B. Orpah returns to her people and her gods Then Naomi turns to Ruth.
Verse 15 Naomi tells Ruth: “See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods.”
Notice that it says that she not only returned to her people, but also to her gods. Whatever attachment she had to Naomi and her family did not include a genuine attachment to their god. She is returning to her gods. The issue is now clearly spiritual. Orpah is not merely returning to a location. She is returning to an identity, a community, and a form of worship. Remember that Moab’s national god is Chemosh Whose worship involved child sacrifice. And so here we have two roads that lead to two different gods: The wide and the narrow road. One road returns to Moab and its gods. The other leads to Israel and the Lord.
But it is even more than that. If you consider what Naomi said to both of them About their prospects if they returned with her. There was nothing in Israel but God for them. this is a choice between the wide and narrow road. Remember when Jesus was greeted by the rich young ruler? The man asked him what he must do to inherit eternal life? Jesus ended up saying to him, "Sell all that you have, give it to the poor, and come follow me."
That is the choice that was offered Orpah and Ruth. You can go with Naomi to Israel and to Israel's God with nothing. No promise of husband, family, or even of escaping poverty. Go to Yahweh God plus nothing. Or walk back home where you can have everything, but not God.
Every decision to “go back” you know takes us somewhere spiritually. When following God becomes costly, the old life begins to look familiar and safe. The decisive question is not, “Which road is easiest?” It is, “On which road will I belong to the Lord?”
And Ruth entrusts her whole life to the Lord
Well, we know this famous passage of Scripture.
Ruth 1:16–18 16 But Ruth said, “Do not press me to forsake you in turning back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may Yahweh do to me, and more, if anything but death separates you and me.”
Ruth’s response is often read at weddings As an example of the love between a bride and groom, but in context it is more than a statement of human devotion. It is a confession of faith by a Gentile woman who is leaving her old life and entrusting herself to Israel’s God. But there is something else I want to point out about these phrases before we get into their meaning.
When we read all of this statement together, we often think of this as kind of Ruth's way of saying, "Naomi, I'm not going anywhere. I'm committed to you. I'm going where you are going. You can't get rid of me." And, like I said, we use this passage in marriage ceremonies as representing the kind of love that a husband and wife have for each other. But you see, this is far more than Ruth committing herself to Naomi. She is declaring her faith in God. And that fact comes out most clearly when we understand the structure of her statement.
Ruth’s declaration to Naomi in Ruth 1:16–17 can be understood as a chiastic KYE-az-tic structure. A chiasm KYE-az-um, is a poetic literary form that arranges related ideas symmetrically so that the first corresponds to the last, the second to the next-to-last, and so forth. The pattern moves inward toward a central statement and then moves outward in reverse order—something like A–B–C–D–C′–B′–A′. The outer statements frame the passage, while the center often receives the greatest emphasis.
Now all of that may sound confusing so I put the scripture on the screen to show you what I mean. It's poetry.
A- “Do not press me to forsake you in turning back from following you;
B- for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge.
C- Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God.
B- Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried.
A- Thus may Yahweh do to me, and more, if anything but death separates you and me.”
The first statement “Do not press me to forsake you in turning back from following you;" and the fifth statement" Thus may Yahweh do to me, and more, if anything but death separates you and me.” go together. Ruth invokes the covenant name of Israel’s God. She stands apart from orpah who has returned to her Moabite gods. She calls on Yahweh. The God called I am to hold her to her vow of devotion to Naomi. She is saying to Naomi, In the name of YAHWEH, I am staying with you.
And The Second Statement "for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge." Goes with The 4th statement 17 Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. These are talking about being together geographically. Ruth is accepting the uncertainty of the journey: Wherever Naomi goes she will go. She may live in poverty. She may be treated as a foreigner. She may never remarry. She may never have children. She may spend her life caring for Naomi. She is commiting her direction. Ruth is no longer asking where the road will lead. And that has a parallel thought to "Where you die, I will die." I'm with you to the end. To be buried in Judah meant that Ruth was permanently renouncing Moab as her home. She did not intend to return even after Naomi’s death.
And these are expressed in the future tense. She is saying, "this is what I will do."
The movement is therefore from going, to dwelling, to dying, and finally to being buried. Each line makes the commitment more complete and irreversible.
But then we have the middle statement is "Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God." The center Of a chiastic structure carries the greatest emphasis. It is where the author wants your attention. At the heart of the declaration stand Ruth’s most important words: “Thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.” Everything surrounding these words concerns Ruth’s relationship with Naomi: she will go with her, live with her, die with her, and be buried near her. But at the center, Ruth declares something even greater. She is embracing Naomi’s people and Naomi’s God.
Now stay with me here so you can get the full meaning of what Ruth is saying. The first and fifth, and the 2nd and 4th statements go together. And here's something important. These statements Use a future tense verb and therefore speak of what will happen in the future. Do not urge me to leave you, for where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me severely if anything but death separates me from you. But the middle statements are different than all the others. The middle statements actually don't even have verbs in the Hebrew text. They don't say, " your people will be my people, and your God will be my God; This is what they say, your people—my people, your God—my God;
This is not the statement By Ruth of future commitment to Naomi, something she will do if they go together to Israel. This is not a statement about something she will do. This is a statement of Ruth's present faith. Don't ask me to leave you, or to return from following you. I am with you, I will live with you, and I will be buried where you are buried. And why do I say this? Because your people—my people, your God—my God;
This is more than personal loyalty. Ruth is Stating that she is abandoning her former national and religious identity as a Moabite and joining herself to the covenant people of Israel. Most importantly, she is turning from the gods of Moab to the LORD, the God of Israel.
My friends, this is Ruth's confession of faith. This is her rich young ruler moment. Forsake all you have and follow me. If offered a choice between everything in life that a person desires; family, husband, and prosperity but no Yahweh, and the promise of nothing in this life but Yahweh. I choose Yahweh. This is remarkable.
Have you made that choice? I didn't ask if you walked down an aisle , signed a card, got baptized, or are on the church role . No promise of health, wealth, and prosperity. No promise of family or meaningful relationships. Just the Lord. I choose the Lord.
Philippians 3:7–8 — Paul counts everything once considered gain as loss “because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”
Psalm 73:25-26 Whom have I in heaven but You? And [a]besides You, I desire nothing on earth. 26 My flesh and my heart fail, But God is the rock of my heart and my portion forever.
Well, Her settled resolution ends the argument. Verse 18 “And when Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more.”
“Determined” carries the idea of making oneself firm or strong in a decision. Ruth’s resolution is settled. Naomi realizes that further persuasion is useless. She had said, " No, my daughters; for it is more bitter for me than for you, for the hand of Yahweh has gone forth against me.”
Might I again say that though Naomi was right in that God had brought her to her desperate condition, Yet she was wrong about one thing. Despite all the evil that had come to her in those few short years the hand of the Lord was not against her. He just had bigger plans than she could imagine in mind. He gave her Ruth. Sometimes we may think that we have nothing. But God has not forsaken us.
Do you remember the story of Anne of Green Gables? Remember that this older brother and sister, Marilla and Matthew, in their 60's or 70's, adopted a child in order to help keep the farm going as they aged. They applied to a Mrs. Spencer, the case worker at a local orphanage to adopt a boy, but when Matthew took his wagon to the train station to pick up the boy, there was a girl, Anne with an "e" there instead. And Matthew didn't have the heart to tell her there had been a mistake. But back at home with Marilla, they actually entertained the idea of sending her back. They end up keeping and adopting her. And as the years progress in the story these three grow and their love and devotion toward each other and Anne grows to be an intelligent and industrious blessing for the both of them. In the final scenes of the movie Anne is leaving their little village to go away to college on a full scholarship and Marilla and Matthew are seeing her off at the train station again. They are all overcome with the grief of parting. As the train pulls away with her on it, Matthew turned to Marilla and says Matthew says: “Mrs. Spencer made a lucky mistake, I guess.” Marilla replies: “It wasn’t luck, it was providence. He knew we needed her.”
God sent a girl instead of a boy. And what seemed like a random mistake with devastating consequences, they needed a strong back to keep up the farm, resulted in the greatest blessing to their lives, their community, and their world. God knew better.
Very often in the middle of our frowning circumstances it is difficult for us to see the smile of God. But it is there. He is at work. And he is working for your good.
At the end of verse 18, nothing outward has improved.
Naomi is still a widow. Ruth is still a foreigner. Both are still poor. Boaz has not yet appeared. The field has not yet been entered. The family line has not yet been restored.
But something crucial has happened: Naomi has turned toward Bethlehem. Orpah has revealed where her heart belongs. Ruth has left her old gods. Ruth has entrusted herself to the Lord. Two needy widows are now walking toward the place of God’s provision.
And They do not yet know that a redeemer is waiting in Bethlehem.
Closing appeal:
“Perhaps today you are standing where Ruth and Orpah stood—between the life you have known and the God who calls you forward. The easiest road may lead back to what is familiar, but the road of faith leads toward the Redeemer. Redemption begins when we stop asking Christ merely to improve our circumstances and entrust to Him our direction, our identity, our relationships, our future, and our very lives.”