Title filial piety Ruth / Ruth 1: 6-18
Contents Subject : Filial filial piety Ruth / Ruth 1: 6-18
The book of Ruth is a family account of the people of Israel at the end of the period of the Judges. It is characteristic that none of the characters appearing in this book are evil, cruel, treacherous, or self-indulgent. And in this short text, there is no mention of doctrine, theology, law, or sin, and it warms the hearts of those who read it as a sympathetic story between fathers and mothers who help each other in hardship.
1. Mother-in-law Naomi
1) When Bethlehem, the best location in Judah, experienced a famine, Elimelech and Naomi sold the land they had and fled to the land of Moab, east of the Dead Sea, with their two sons to live.
2) This evacuation route was wrong from the beginning. They were not fleeing to Moab, a land of nomads and infested with foreign gods. Naomi became one of the most unfortunate women in history. Shortly after losing her husband, her two married sons both died without children.
3) The lesson of history is that if God's chosen people become worldly, disasters will occur. When Abraham and Isaac went to Egypt, they both failed. It should be remembered that Christians face difficulties when they associate with the world.
4) Then, after shedding tears when she heard that food was abundant in her hometown of Bethlehem, Naomi decided to return home.
2. Daughter-in-law Ruth
1) When they reached the border of Jojang Valley, Naomi told her two daughters-in-law, "Let each of you go back to your mother's house" (1:8). At Naomi's earnest request, Orpah returned to his people and to his god (1:15). But they lost their identity as God's people.
2) Ruth, who was extremely filial, could not leave her old mother. And she pleaded with tears that she could not leave the God she believed in, and begged to go with her (1:16-17).
3) Ruth was influenced by Naomi's faith, so she decided to abandon the god she had originally worshiped and believe in God. Couldn't God have sent Naomi's family to Moab to save Ruth?
3. Blessed Ruth
1) Naomi returned to her hometown with Ruth, but her life was vague. But Ruth did not stand still. It was harvest time, so Ruth went out to the fields to glean and took care of her mother-in-law.
2) Ruth's beautiful actions led her to meet Boaz, a wealthy rich man in the region, and the light of hope began to shine in a family that seemed hopeless at all. Boaz heard that Ruth was the daughter-in-law of a family member, and that she was virtuous, filial to Naomi, and had a good reputation.
3) Naomi tried her best to marry Boaz for Ruth, and Boaz followed the order according to the social customs of the time, and eventually married Ruth.
4) Ruth had a son named 'Obed', and Obed became the grandfather of King David (4:17). Ruth, a foreign woman and widow, became the father of Jesus.
5) In the book of Ruth, we learn how God raises up those who are humble and sacrificial in love and reveals His glory.