“Ruth Didn’t Know!”

Jarrod M. Jacobs

 

I am sure most Bible students are familiar with Ruth, the Moabitess who was widowed but followed her mother-in-law back to Bethlehem to live. Once there, she met and married Naomi’s kinsman, Boaz. To their union came Obed, and in time, she became the great-grandmother of King David. Having read the book, it is easy for us to focus on Ruth being David’s great-grandmother and all that this would imply in God’s plan for man’s salvation and gloss over some essential truths in her life.

            What makes this good lady stand out in my mind is her conscientious, considerate, and sacrificing attitude. Unlike us who have the benefit of reading the book and knowing it turns out well, Ruth, like all of us, faced a life full of uncertainties daily (Matt. 6:34). She didn’t know what the outcome of her life would be, yet she displayed an attitude that continues to benefit future generations. She “being dead yet speaketh” (Heb. 11:4)!

            The first time we read anything of substance about Ruth was after she became a widow. When Naomi wanted to go back to Bethlehem, Ruth begged to accompany her mother-in-law (v. 7-18) when all that was promised to her was a life of poverty, living among strangers, speaking a foreign language, worshiping a foreign God, and no promise of ever returning to Moab. (So far as the book of Ruth is concerned, she never returned to see her family.) Such faithfulness to a mother-in-law tells me just what kind of woman Naomi was and how she conducted herself among her daughters-in-law during her years in Moab (Ruth 1:1-5)!

            Such people as Ruth serve as good examples for the rest of us (Rom. 15:4). Just as she faced significant hardships in her life, so also it happens today. Isn’t this the real challenge of being faithful to God? It is easy to be faithful to God when things are going well and we are not facing the pitfalls, challenges, temptations, and hard choices. It is much harder when we are in the midst of enduring temptations, hardships, and challenges! It is at this time that we need to remember Ruth’s example of faithfulness. We would do well to remember the words of Ruth’s great-grandson: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me” (Ps. 23:4)!

            Like Ruth, we too face an uncertain future (Prov. 27:1). However, choosing to be faithful to God through it all brings true blessedness (Rev. 2:10; I Cor. 15:58; I Cor. 16:13-14; Matt. 24:13). Ruth’s unwavering faith in the midst of uncertainty is a powerful example for us all.