Being widows without immediate male family members to provide for them, Naomi and Ruth were among some of the most vulnerable residents of Bethlehem. Nevertheless, the two women were not without hope, even though Naomi focused only on the bitterness of her circumstances, blaming God for them, and as a result wanted to be called “Mara” (Ruth 1:20).
God is always true to his people, and he faithfully meets all their needs. In his covenant Law, God provided for the poor (Leviticus 23:22), and for the deceased without male descendants a kinsman-redeemer (Deuteronomy 25:5). God’s people only needed to trust him by being faithful to him by following his commands. Despite the sorrow she felt for herself, Naomi seemingly kept God’s ways, and even though she was outside the covenantal relationship as a Moabite, Ruth deliberately pledged faithfulness to Naomi, Naomi’s people, and most importantly, Naomi’s God (Ruth 1:16–17). Ruth 3 and 4 record what God can do when his people trust him enough to obey what he has asked — Naomi saw her husband’s name continue through Obed, and Ruth received a husband and son. Both women are forever included in the line of Messiah, Jesus Christ!
Life’s adverse circumstances and disappointments are just as bitter for us today, and in the midst of them, each one of us must determine if we are going to obey God by looking to Jesus’ propitiation alone for salvation, and with his help to put into practice what Jesus taught us, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’’ (Luke 10:27). If we will trust God and obey his word, we will be surprised at what God will do for us. Most importantly, we will be like Jesus.
“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Romans 8:28–30, NIV).
Rev. David W. Davis, Carmel, Maine
