Insights for Today From the Book of RUTH

The short book of Ruth details the account of Naomi’s family moving from Bethlehem in famine-stricken Israel to Moab, which was a 7-10 day trip to the Southeast by foot (which you can get a visual of here). The two sons married Moabite women but, unfortunately, Naomi’s husband and sons soon died and thus Naomi & her two daughters-in-law were left without husbands.

While disillusioned, Naomi heard that food was available in Israel again and set out to return, but encouraged her daughters-in-law to stay in Moab. Orpah chose to stay, but Ruth insisted on sticking with her desperate mother-in-law and accompanied her to Bethlehem.

What are some key insights believers today can get from this moving story? Remember, the very purpose of these Old Testament accounts is to teach us, as verified by Romans 15:4 and 1 Corinthians 10:11. Here are ten insights to chew on:

Bethlehem literally means “place of bread,” but unfortunately there was no bread (food) there and so Naomi & family felt compelled to leave Bethlehem and go to Moab for sustenance. Quoting the Old Testament, Christ said “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4 & Deuteronomy 8:3). People will leave Church assemblies if there’s not enough spiritual food there to live on. They’ll go elsewhere to find sustenance. In some cases they’ll unwisely turn to the world for succor, like bars, alcohol, drugs (illegal or legal), psychologists & psychiatrists, psychics, sexual immorality, “gay” culture, government idolatry, etc. In short, if there’s no bread in the Church fellowship they’re naturally going to look elsewhere for sustenance, even turning to the world in some sad cases.
“The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23) and so going to Moab (the world) for succor results in heartbreak and disillusionment. Cruel Moab can destroy your marriage and steal the lives of your children. The world will rob you of your life-passion and leave you embittered. It will “steal, kill and destroy” but, thankfully, the LORD “gives life and life to the full” (John 10:10).
When Naomi “heard” that the LORD had come to the aid of his people in Israel and that there was food there, she dropped everything to return home for sustenance. The prodigals—i.e. people who leave the Church to find possible sustenance in the world (Luke 15:11-32)—will come back when they are desperate enough and hear there is spiritual bread available.
The prodigals probably won’t come back alone. Ruth accompanied Naomi to Bethlehem—the house of bread—a place she’s never been to before. In other words, the prodigals will bring those from the world—the unsaved—who’ve never been to a genuine Church assembly and experienced the abundant spiritual bread thereof (John 6:35 & 6:63). These are hungry people, longing for true spiritual sustenance since the cruel world has left them empty and bereft.
Unfortunately, some, like Orpah, won’t come because the reputation of the Church has been so sullied by lifeless legalists and the impotence of human religion. They thus choose to live and die in “Moab,” the world (Ruth 1:8-14).
Thankfully, there are those who are utterly sick of the world and hunger for truth, like Ruth (Matthew 5:6). They’re willing to leave everything they know and go to “the house of bread” merely because it’s rumored there’s spiritual succor there.
Yet Ruth didn’t stick with Naomi merely due to a rumor, but also because of (1) a noble sense of loyalty to her deceased husband and, therefore, his mother; and (2) despite losing her husband and witnessing Naomi’s disillusionment, Ruth discerned from her time with this flawed family that they had something she didn’t have, spiritually speaking. She discerned that they were a “golden connection” to something better, perhaps even the abundant life she so desired (John 10:10).
Loyalty is underrated. Note Ruth’s moving declaration of loyalty to her embittered mother-in-law:

16“Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. 17Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me.”

Ruth 1:16-17

Ruth’s moving loyalty and her passion to obtain spiritual bread by leaving everything she knew behind pays off as she meets & marries Naomi’s relative, Boaz, and they have a son, Obed, who was the father of Jesse, the father of the great King David, which placed a Gentile in the lineage of the King of Kings (Luke 3:23-38). In short, those who refuse to starve to death in a spiritual desert, but wisely take advantage of the “golden connections” the Creator provides will be placed in the line of royalty! See 2 Peter 2:9, Revelation 1:6 & 5:10.
By calling a Moabite to be in the lineage of the coming Messiah, the LORD illustrated that the New Covenant would apply to all people of every skin-color around the globe and not just to the Israelites/Jews. You can get amazing insights on this here.

This article is available in book form as (part of) chapter 24 in…