Ruth

This book was delightful and refreshing after reading the previous books of the Bible. Up until now I just felt that things were so bogged down and dreary, time and time again God's people are doubting, disobeying, and turning to other gods; they become enslaved, then God rescues them. While comforting in the redeeming nature of our God, it was disheartening in the fallen nature of man. Finally in Ruth we meet some honorable people who love God and do right.

I have always {well as long as I can remember} known the story of Ruth. As a kid my grandma Ruth had this picture on her wall of Ruth harvesting the grain, so she told us the story of this faithful woman and how God blessed her even though she wasn't an Israeli.

Ruth wasn't the only honorable person in this book, Naomi her mother-in-law was also honorable, she still cared for Ruth after her son had died, then when she decided to go to her home land she released Ruth to go back to her people rather than to travel to a land of strangers. Also Boaz, a relative of Naomi's, allowed Ruth to gather the grain the harvesters missed, even telling them to purposely drop some of the grain stalks. He knew that the responsibility fell to the family to care for Ruth and Naomi since the men had died, but he wasn't first in line to buy Naomi's land and marry Ruth. So he went to the man that was, and in the presence of town officials Boaz was given the right to buy the land and mary Ruth.

God not only blessed Ruth by providing food, land, and a husband for her but he blessed her decendants. From Ruth and Boaz eventually came David and from David eventually came Jesus.

Learned: God uses and blesses whoever is willing and obedient, even in the times of the Bible, He used a Moabite -not a Jew- as the lineage to bring His sone into the world.