The Book of Ruth is the record of the Moabitess who turned
to Israel's God, married Boaz of Bethlehem and became an ancestor
of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The events in this beautiful little book (only 4 chapters long)
took place in the time of the Judges. It forms a link between
the time when "there was no king in Israel" and the
time
when King David sat "on the throne of the Lord" in
Jerusalem.
The story of Ruth is one of love and devotion and it begins
in Moab. Naomi and her husband Elimelech had moved there to
escape the famine in Judea. Elimelech died in Moab. Their two
sons also died, leaving Naomi with her daughters-in-law, Ruth
and Orpah. Orpah chose to stay in Moab but, when the famine
was over, Ruth accompanied Naomi back to Judea.
Ruth the Moabitess learned from Naomi about the God of Israel
and she came to love and trust Him.
In Naomi's hometown of Bethlehem an elderly relative named
Boaz showed kindness to the two women and eventually married
Ruth. They had a son whom they called Obed and who became the
grandfather of King David. Some 1000 years later, Mary the mother
of Jesus was born of this line.
