Unexpected: Five Women in the Lineage of JesusSample

Ruth: “Where you go, I will go.”

By Sue Payne

And so the story of Ruth continues. Realizing they were destitute and out of options, Naomi tells her Moabite daughters-in-law to return to their families, who would provide for them, because she must return to Judah to her family so they would provide for her. Orpah reluctantly does, but Ruth refuses, saying these famous words:

“Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will say. 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 ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.”

The overwhelming grief caused Naomi to feel hopeless. When they return to Bethlehem, Naomi asks people to call her Mara, which means “bitter,” instead of Naomi, which means “beautiful,” because of the catastrophe in her life. But God had not left her destitute. She had Ruth, and God’s faithfulness can be seen in the rest of the story through her daughter-in-law. Naomi did not recognize it, but God was at work.

Ruth gleaned grain in a field as widows were allowed to do, and God led her to a field of Boaz. Boaz is a relative and a “man of standing” in the clan. At that time, the closest male relative was to be the “kinsman-redeemer” or “guardian-redeemer” for women who had lost their husbands (a picture of the Redeemer, Jesus, who would come for all).

In his field, Ruth is protected from abuse, and Boaz becomes Ruth’s “kinsman-redeemer,” who later marries her. Together, they have a son, Obed, who became the father of Jesse, the father of David.

And in Matthew 1, in the lineage of Jesus, Obed and his mother Ruth are included. Ruth, a Gentile, a noblewoman, and a faithful follower who acted on her faith by sticking with Naomi through a catastrophe.

Questions:

1. What can you learn about God’s faithfulness through the story of Ruth?
2. What are some ways you can trust God when your life is hard?
3. What is the significance of Ruth being included in the lineage of Jesus? What does that show us?