The Loyalty of Ruth
My grandmother, Mamie, was born in 1911 and grew up on a mountain in northern Grant County, West Virginia. She contracted polio when she was very young which left her crippled in one leg. Adding the fact that she was widowed for the last 20 years of her life, I spent a lot of time helping her out and spending time with her. I was her only granddaughter, so we had a very tight bond.
Mamie’s favorite Bible story was Ruth. When I was young, she would read the entire book to me and tell me all about how loyal Ruth was to her mother-in-law and to God. In her latter years, Mamie suffered from dementia. When she would be upset, I found that reading the book of Ruth to her calmed her down and somehow seemed to bring her back to the present time, if only for a moment.
Ruth is a timeless story of heartbreak, love, and redemption. There are a lot of lessons one can learn from this short Bible book; however, this devotion will focus on the loyalty of Ruth. She remained loyal to Naomi, her mother-in-law; Jewish tradition and laws; and, most importantly, to God. What is so remarkable about Ruth’s loyalty is the fact that she wasn’t even Jewish… Ruth was a Moabitess from Moab.
Moab was an ancient kingdom that originated from Lot’s encounter with one of his daughters after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Moabites were pagans who worshiped false gods such as Baal (see Numbers 21 – 22) and enemies of Israel (see Isiah 15 – 16 and Jeremiah 48). During the time of the Judges, a famine hit Israel. To avoid starvation, Naomi, her husband, and two sons traveled to Moab where the sons met and married two Moabitess – Ruth and Orpah. When the men passed away, Naomi decided to return to Judah, but encouraged both daughters-in-law to remain in Moab with their families. Orpah chose to remain in Moab, but Ruth proclaimed her loyalty to Naomi through one of the most beautiful poems in the Bible:
“Entreat me not to leave you,
Or to turn back from following after you;
For wherever you go, I will go;
And wherever you lodge, I will lodge;
Your people shall be my people,
And your God, my God.
Where you die, I will die,
And there will I be buried.
The Lord do so to me, and more also,
If anything but death parts you and me.” (Ruth 1:16-17)
In these short two verses, loyalty to person, tradition, and God are proclaimed by Ruth. The greatest lesson we can garner from this, though, is not only Ruth’s declaration of loyalty, but her actions and follow-through of Ruth in the remainder of the story to prove her loyalty. Ruth cared for and provided for the physical needs of Naomi. She gathered barley in the field to make flour for bread and took leftovers to Naomi she saved from lunch provided by Boaz. She respected the Jewish traditions through her interactions with Boaz and patiently waiting for him to redeem her. Once redeemed, she married Boaz and gave bore his son.
Ruth was never aware of how her loyalty influenced the world. The son that she had was named Obed. He would be the grandfather of David…. the same guy that killed Goliath and was appointed King of Israel, a “man after [God’s] own heart.” (1 Samuel 13:14) Fourteen generations later, as part of the Davidic line, Jesus was born to be the Savior of the world just as God had promised for centuries. Was it easy for Ruth to be loyal? Of course not! It was one of (if not THE) hardest thing she had to do in her life. Just think about the sacrifices she made to stay with Naomi. Ruth was a Moabitess…. an enemy of Israel (remember?). How scary that had to be for her. The customs and traditions of Jewish redemption of widows may have been very peculiar and confusing to her. But she trusted in Naomi, Boaz, and God to remain loyal. As a result, all people are blessed with the greatest gift ever given by God.
Re-read Ruth’s beautiful poem of commitment and loyalty above. To whom or what are you most loyal? How are you like Ruth? How are you different from her? What can you learn from Ruth’s story of loyalty to apply to your own life today? Talk to God about what His plans are for you, and ask for the strength and faith to stay loyal to His plan.
