But at the very least, the book should make us want to read ruth again and study it more closely for ourselves from a prophetic perspective. Like ruth, we also need to work to be women and men of integrity. Just a courage and strength make a man a hero, so ruths courage and strength, shown in her virtue make her a hero, on the proverbs 31 kind of. God honors ruths integrity and diligence by weaving her into the big story of salvation. In the 85 verses of the book of ruth we follow one family and a foreign woman named ruth as they eek out a living during the difficult days of the judges a time of moral chaos and national instability, described in the last verse of judges by the frightening.
All through scripture we can identify the importance of integrity. Never underestimate the power of your decisions, commitment, humility, and integrity. It reads more like a short story and the insight in it runs deep. The faith and integrity that boaz shows throughout the book is a major factor in. She is the author of john lockes liberalism and of hypocrisy and integrity. For those unfamiliar with the bibles book of ruth, it shares a story of a. Last week, i shared an excerpt from my newest book, wisdom from women in the bible. The book of ruth gives us a glimpse into the hidden work of god during the worst of times. The hebrew word hesed is the word which has been translated most often as loyal love in the net bible. Book of ruth old testament the story the mans name was elimelech, and his wife was naomi. She makes the offer of marriage to boaz in an upstanding way in chapter 3. Character sketch from the book of ruth 2101 words bartleby. Never have i met a woman display integrity more powerfully than ruth. Machiavelli, rousseau and the ethics of politics, the latter of which received the best book award from the north american society for political philosophy in 1997.
Obviously, the author was familiar with israels greatest king. In this lesson we will look at walking in hesed or. With each step, leadership lessons become clear to me from ruths life. While ruth sees the blessing from god, naomi begins to rejoice at the change of circumstances.
The author was anonymous but some believe it was perhaps written by samuel the prophet. Of all the heroes in the bible, ruth stands out for her virtues of humility and kindness. Ruth trusts in yahweh and commits herself to his people ruth 1. What ruth in the bible can teach us about integrity. The example of boaz, who is of high stature not only based on. Apr 08, 2015 last week, i shared an excerpt from my newest book, wisdom from women in the bible. And so like all the other scriptures, as paul says romans 15. For those unfamiliar with the bibles book of ruth, it shares a story of a widow who compassionately follows her motherinlaw, naomi, to her late husband. The book of ruth has always been one of my favorite books of the bible. Hypocrisy and integrity offers a new conceptual framework that clarifies the differences between idealism and fanaticism while it uncovers the moral limits of compromise.
God honors ruth s integrity and diligence by weaving her into the big story of salvation. Im so excited about this book, because it represents my heart for the biblical principles of leadership. They were jews of bethlehem ephraimites, and situations happened that a famine broke out in region of bethlehem. Ruth chapter two a woman of integrity weve seen ruth as a woman of faith, but now lets talk about her integrity. This same word is used in a term for heroes in the bible. Ruth 1 niv naomi loses her husband and sons in bible. Book of ruth summary the book of ruth is more than just a beautiful, godordained, love story, although it is that. Ruth has been providing for both of them, but without either of them having a husband they are little more than beggars. Her name is ruth, and for someone so new to the faith in the book of her namesake, she. May the lord, the god of israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, reward you fully for what you have done. The book highlights the virtue of maintaining integrity in ones life. She is the author of john lockes liberalism and hypocrisy and integrity. Rahab was a prostitute whose faith saved her from the crashing walls of jericho.
The integrity of boazthe hypocrisy of the pharisees revphil2011. Nov 12, 2019 all throughout the book of ruth in the bible, we see the faithfulness to ruths remarkable character of integrity. Grant is professor of political science and philosophy and senior fellow in the kenan institute for ethics at duke university. The two widows, naomi of judea and ruth the moabite, return from moab to judea some 10 years after. The basic meaning behind this hebrew word is strength. After the bloodthirsty, horrid ending of the book of judges, and before the israelites gear up for the era of kings, theres a beautiful. Book of ruth, old testament book belonging to the third section of the biblical canon, known as the ketuvim, or writings.
This is the pastor bringing the early morning message entitled the spirit. Jesus christ also teaches us that therefore anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven matthew 18. Ruth 1 new international version niv naomi loses her husband and sons. Years ago, when i was in the real estate business and the market crashed, i. Ruth gendlers evocative book has as its cast of familiar characters our own emotions, brought to life with a poets wisdom and an artists perceptive eye. This is the pastor bringing the early morning message entitled the spiritual meaning of the book of ruth. The book of ruth follows the book of judges in our bibles because its setting was in that time period. Naomi loses her husband and sons in the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. Today we open a scrapbook of biblical pictures, this time from the book of ruth.
Our focus will be on ruths loyal love which goes far beyond the superficial contexts in which we sometimes use the word love. In the 85 verses of the book of ruth we follow one family and a foreign woman named ruth as they eek out a living during the difficult days of the judges a time of moral chaos and national instability, described in the last verse of judges by the frightening words, everyone did what was right in his own eyes judges 21. The timeline of this book is intertwined during the period of the judges. The book of ruth is a beautiful piece of sacred literature, applauded by. Ruth grant is a professor of political science at duke university, specializing in political theory with a particular interest in early modern philosophy and political ethics. However, he found his lost integrity again and therefore got salvation. Ruth and naomi devise a plan to determine if boaz will redeem their family. However, the book of ruth reminds us how god honors integrity. Overview of ruth gospel love story focuses on the redemption of ruth inclusion of the gentiles focuses on the redeemer boaz and the royal line leading to king david and the ultimate son of david, the messiah. It has been compared to the story of joseph in the book of genesis for its beauty, the witness of the providence of god, its positive theme and its. The book of ruth is regarded as one of the most beautifully written stories in the bible.
The hesed of the book of ruth in any and all of its manifestations points forward in the bible to. Ruth 1 the story begins with a man and his wife, elimelech and naomi. In the book of ruth, god is the ultimate source of hesed the source of ruths hesed, the one who uses hesed to reach out and redeem naomi and the one who pours out his hesed on ruth and boaz. Book of ruth structure ethical importance technology trends. Our focus will be on ruth s loyal love which goes far beyond the superficial contexts in which we sometimes use the word love. The book of ruth ends by showing that ruth became the greatgrandmother of king david, from whom christ came. Grant argues that hypocrisy can actually be constructive while strictly principled behavior can be destructive. In the hebrew bible, ruth stands with the song of solomon, lamentations, ecclesiastes, and esther. It is unlikely that it was written before the time of david cp. Her integrity was not only noticed, but it placed her in a position to receive blessings.
Once boaz knew what his relationship was to ruth, and she sought him out. Ruth 1 the story begins with a man and his wife, elimelech and naomi along with their two sons, mahlon and chilion together. In the sinful world we live in today, it is obvious that our integrity is imperfect. Feb 04, 2014 never have i met a woman display integrity more powerfully than ruth. Ruth portrays a marriage between ruth, the young moabite woman after whom the book is named, and boaz, an upright and worthy man, who takes ruth and her widowed motherinlaw, naomi, into his home. Pease is clearly a serious bible student who approaches the scriptures with intelligence and integrity, and who has a strong.
As we reflect on the compassion of boaz for ruth, certainly it was stirred by many. So a man from bethlehem in judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of moab. Following your heart with integrity can increase your influence with others. This chapter contains the story of how boaz goes up to the city gate, calls his kinsman. All throughout the book of ruth in the bible, we see the faithfulness to ruths remarkable character of integrity.
She is featured in the book of ruth, even though many bible scholars claim boaz or even naomi, ruths motherinlaw, are the lead characters of that story. Still, ruth emerges as a chaste woman, a welcome contrast to the ugly behavior in the book of judges, which precedes her account. Her work ethic might be another way to describe it if youd like to ruth has a law problem and thats where id like to begin ruth is dealing with being without a protector. The book of ruth presents us with a beautiful story of family loyalty, love, hope, concern for the welfare and future of others, faithful friendship, integrity and culturalcommunal responsibility. Here is the main idea, the purpose of the book, a few leading themes, an explanation of what it means for us today, and some study questions you can use in your small group or quiet time. Perfect integrity can be found in jesus, and through him we are able to aim towards true integrity for ourselves. Just look at the five women mentioned in the genealogy of jesus. Book of ruth structure ethical importance technology. Ruth 4 is the fourth and the last chapter of the book of ruth in the hebrew bible or the old testament of the christian bible, part of the ketuvim writings.
Despite her helplessness, ruth acts with honor and integrity. Step into the story the book of ruth is a beautiful story about ruth and naomi and ruth and boaz. Little wonder that the book of ruth would be read in synagogues centuries later during the feast of weeks, a yearly festival that concluded the wheat harvest a. Ruth portrays a marriage between ruth, the young moabite woman after whom the book is named, and boaz, an upright and worthy man, who takes ruth and her widowed mother in law, naomi, into his home. By both chance and providence, ruth, a destitute, widowed and childless outsider, becomes an ancestress of king david ruth 4. Questioning the usual judgements of political ethics, ruth w. In the book of qualities magical community, excitement wears orange socks, faith lives in the same apartment building as doubt, and worry makes lists of everything that could go wrong while. Ruth was bringing home food, but naomi wanted a husband for her so ruth.