Ruth¶
Book summary
Ruth is set during the time of the Judges. It is a story of selflessness, loyalty and love between two widows and stands in stark contrast to the spiritual and moral decline of God’s people. Ruth’s child at the end of the book eventually becomes King David’s grandfather.
Contents
Chapter 1 — Naomi and Ruth¶
In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. 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. The man’s name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. (Ruth 1:1-2)
Now Elimelek, Naomi’s husband, died, and she was left with her two sons. They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband. (Ruth 1:3-5)
But Ruth replied, “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. (Ruth 1:16)
Chapter 2 — Ruth meets Boaz¶
Now Naomi had a relative on her husband’s side, a man of standing from the clan of Elimelek, whose name was Boaz. (Ruth 2:1)
Chapter 3 — Ruth and Boaz at the threshingfloor¶
One day Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi said to her, “My daughter, I must find a home for you, where you will be well provided for. Now Boaz, with whose women you have worked, is a relative of ours. Tonight he will be winnowing barley on the threshing floor. Wash, put on perfume, and get dressed in your best clothes. (Ruth 3:1-3)
Chapter 4 — Boaz marries Ruth¶
So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When he made love to her, the Lord enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. (Ruth 4:13)