Connely Lambert 

Ruth 1:11-18
“But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Have I yet sons in my womb that they may become your husbands? Turn back, my daughters; go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, even if I should have a husband this night and should bear sons, would you therefore wait till they were grown? Would you therefore refrain from marrying? No, my daughters, for it is exceedingly bitter to me for your sake that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me.” Then they lifted up their voices and wept again. And Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.

And she said, “See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or to return 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.  Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.” And when Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more.”  

Reflection:
This summer I read through the book of Ruth for the first time. I was working as a family ministry intern at a church in Colorado Springs, and one of our assignments was to comb through the book and look for literary devices like speech patterns and repetitive language. I learned two things: I was the only intern of the all-female team (other than me) who wasn’t familiar with the book of Ruth, and that everyone should be familiar with it. I don’t know that I’ve found another book of the Bible that showcases such a strong ability for people to be the hands and feet of God in the world.

The book begins by explaining how Naomi lost not only her husband, but her two sons while living in Moab (a country nearby Israel) and decides to return to her home in Bethlehem. Her two daughters-in-law decide to join her, but when Naomi explains the favorability of staying in their homeland with the hope of remarrying, Orpah returns home while Ruth still refuses to leave Naomi. Not only does Ruth stay, but she states her commitment to Naomi saying she will go with her wherever she goes, adopt her culture, and worship her God. Her words are beautiful, but the way in which Ruth acts out this commitment is more beautiful. 

Ancient harvesting practices banned harvesters from stripping the plants bare so that the poor or immigrants could have food. Ruth begins this common practice by gathering the excess grain from the fields of one of Naomi’s relatives, Boaz. In that time and place, two widows living together have very little hope of providing for themselves, yet just as Ruth is committed to the good of Naomi, Boaz is committed to the good of both of them. He ensures that Ruth has more than enough grain to feed her and Naomi. Seeing Boaz’s faithfulness to the two women, they endeavor to convince Boaz to help them by finding a “redeemer”, a spouse, for Ruth. After stepping through the red tape of ancient Jewish marriage law, Boaz follows through on his commitment to finding Ruth (and indirectly Naomi) a redeemer—himself. That’s a lot of summary, but that didn’t even cover all the commitment to others and from this part of the story alone God’s character is still significantly revealed through Boaz, Naomi, and most of all Ruth.

While we may not know too many folks facing realities this grim, we probably know people like her who have felt abandoned by God. Looking forward to this year, it is a powerful exercise to identify who is struggling among us and then find a way to reveal the character of God to them through words and actions as Ruth did. Ruth was a foreigner, a widow, and someone not raised in the Jewish faith. She’s not the person you’d expect to be the hands and feet of God to those around her in a story, yet she understood God’s commitment to God’s people and became a part of that mission. Just as Ruth may seem unlikely to be a redeemer, we may feel that we are unlikely sources of God’s work on earth. It’s easy to disqualify ourselves if we’re without a seminary degree or pastoral role, but God invites us to commit to those around us and will work in and through us when we are willing.         

Prayer:
Lord, I pray that you would give us eyes for the needs in our circles of influence and push us to share in your commitment to the good of all people. Give us hope and wisdom to share in the face of great trials and share that with those around us. And, ultimately, give us gratitude for your supreme goodness and kindness. Amen.