The book of Ruth. We want to read the first verse of the first chapter of this book. Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled that there was a famine in the land and a certain man of Bethlehem Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. As we noted in the last message in this series in Ruth, the book of Ruth appears at a particular time in Israel's history. We see here in chapter 1 and verse 1 that it was in the days when the judges ruled. That brings us back to the book that precedes Ruth, the book of Judges. It's so called, obviously, because of those men who were sent by God to deliver the people from their enemies at various times in that period of history. And that particular time was noted for its apostasy and its rebellion against God. The very last verse of the book of Judges says, In those days there was no king in Israel. Every man did that which was right. in His own eyes. And we said last time how appropriate those words are to our own day because this is the very situation that we find ourselves in in our day and generation. This is a time when people are asserting this right and that right and the other right. When people have decided nobody's going to tell me what to do, least of all God Himself. It is a time when every man does that which is right in his own eyes. Independence of spirit has been taken to the nth degree. And so we have today self-rule, willful rebellion against God. God's law, His standards of morality mean nothing. That's how it was in the days when the judges ruled. Every man claimed the right to live just as he wanted to do. So today we have the Word of God, we have not just, as the Israelites did, the books of Moses, but we have a completed Bible which tells us all about God's absolute standards. And yet we have people on every hand trumpeting their individual rights. Don't tell me what to do. I will do what I want to do. I'll decide what's right and what's wrong. Every man doing that which is right in his own eyes. And we remarked just in closing last time that that's a spirit that's manifested often among children today and it seems to be getting worse. It's a spirit that's ruining the colleges of this nation. They are hotbeds of rebellion, of wickedness, to the extent that we have people now who are demanding that they be called neither men nor women, male nor female, but they are what they have described as non-binary. And we have gender neutral speech and so on and so forth. Madness. But it's more than madness, it's wickedness. It's evil. You know, it would be one thing to say people are out of their minds. And quite often, people will excuse the worst of sins by saying, well, that was a mindless act. No, it wasn't. It wasn't a mindless act. It was done deliberately. You take the terrorism that happens in our world, especially that which is given the title of Islamic terrorism. That's not mindless. They know exactly what they're doing. But they are minds that are corrupted by Satan. They're minds that are invested with a spirit of evil. And so, there's a breakout of this wickedness on every hand. It's true, I think as well, in churches. That's why false doctrine is so popular today. That's why people follow after some of the big names that they do. because they imagine that they can just dispense with divine revelation and follow after the things that they feel are right. And so in the church you have this very same attitude. Every man doing that which is right in his own eyes. There's a vital need for the proper ordering of any human society and it is authority. That's not only true in a country and in a local community, but also in the church. And it's never a good situation when every man does that which is right in his own eyes. The history of this world furnishes numerous and striking examples of what happens to people and nations when God allows them to go their own way. It's not good. when you examine the consequences of that spirit. Now, this was the very situation that prevailed at this time. It's interesting that on three occasions in the book of Judges, it mentions this lack of authority. If you go back to Judges chapter 17, verse 6, it tells us, in those days, there was no king in Israel. But every man did that which was right in his own eyes. And it's interesting that in the context, it speaks about the false worship that was carried on by Micah and the Levite who served him. Every man did that which was right in his own eyes because of a lack of authority. If you go to the next chapter, Judges 18 verse 1, again it says, in those days, There was no king in Israel. And then there's the verse that we've already quoted, the final chapter, chapter 21, verse 25. In those days there was no king in Israel. Every man did that which was right in his own eyes. This was the situation that prevailed at this time. There was a spirit of independence, of self-dependence, if you like, and outright rebellion. That's the spirit that prevailed generally among the people, as in many respects it does today. Independence in things pertaining to the worship of God, the throwing off of the restraints of His Word, the setting aside of His appointments. These are all marks of such a time. And as we've already indicated, this does not lead to anything good, whether it be in a nation or even in a family. Now, it's interesting to me that God had warned His people Israel regarding allowing this very spirit to arise among them. If you go back in your Bible to Deuteronomy chapter 12, in the midst of the statutes and judgments that the Lord was giving to His people, He said concerning certain practices, idolatry and so on, verse 8, ye shall not do after all the things that we do here this day. Every man whatsoever is right in his own eyes. You see that? That's the very thing that God warned them about. having this spirit where every man does whatsoever is right in his own eyes. There's no authority. At least, there's no authority that is acknowledged. And this is a command that God gave in the context of worship. But it had a general application. And so we know that when men ignore the counsel of God, there are consequences. And this is where we enter upon the narrative, the history of the book of Ruth. This is the situation. It came to pass in the days when the judges ruled. What were those days? Well, they were those days where there was no king in Israel, and every man did that which was right in his own eyes. That's the back cloth to the book. Now let me just put in this caveat. In reading about the apostasy and the religious declension of the times of the judges, We could well be left imagining that in such a day, the true knowledge of God had pretty much perished out of the land. Everybody had gone their own way. Nobody was serving God anymore. It was really a bad situation in the land. Well, that is not so. Because, as in every age, the Lord had a remnant. There were people who were faithful to the Lord. And in this little book of Ruth, there are evidences of a faithful company of true Israelites who still held the Lord's name in reverence. And that becomes clear as we read through the four chapters. For example, you'll see in chapter 1, Naomi speaking about the Lord. She refers to Him, for example, in verse 20, as the Almighty. In verse 21 of chapter 1, twice, she mentions the Lord. And the word, of course, is Jehovah. We see Ruth herself speaking about God in verse 16, and she mentions the name of the Lord, Jehovah, in verse 17. Again, you come into the second chapter, and you'll see there that the words that were given from Boaz to Ruth indicate where he stood spiritually. Chapter 2, verse 12, the Lord, there it is again, Jehovah, recompense thy work. and a full reward be given thee of the Lord God, Jehovah God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust." Again, you see in verse 20 of chapter 2, Naomi says, Blessed be he of the Lord Jehovah. And this is something that you will find in chapter 3 and chapter 4 as well. There's a people who have not abandoned the worship of God. They still hold His name in reverence. Now, as we've spoken of the timing of the book of Ruth, it is important also to note its themes. And there's one definite topic that comes to mind in studying this little book of Ruth right away, and it's the theme of the promises of God. God had made covenant promises, given His oath, at the very beginning of human history, concerning the sending forth of a Redeemer. That proto-evangel, as it's called, the first gospel promise, We discover in Genesis 3, verse 15, where the Lord was speaking to the serpent, and He said, And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed. It shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. The seed of the woman is the Lord Jesus Christ. And certainly the devil at Calvary would bruise his heel, but thank God the Lord would bruise his head. Isn't it interesting that when the Lord speaks of Christ later on to Abraham, he speaks of him as his seed. In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. This is the first promise, Genesis 3.15, that the Lord would send forth a Redeemer to save sinners. And that great covenant promise to deliver sinners from the grip of Satan, from out of his bondage into liberty, was renewed as well to Noah, to Abraham, to Moses, and in turn to David. The promise of a Messiah who would come. One who was referred to by the woman at the well to Jesus as that prophet which was to come. One who would save His people from their sins. That great promise of the Anointed One was made by God and it was kept by God. And the book of Ruth is part of that God keeping His covenant promise. But we can also bring it down to the individual. Not only Is there significance for the nation of Israel and for the Lord's people everywhere in all generations? But there was personal significance for Ruth as a woman, as an individual. Who was Ruth? Well, she was an inhabitant of Moab. She was, quite naturally then, to be looked upon as a child of the flesh, because Moab was a nation that came about as a result of a wicked act between Lot and one of his daughters, both of his daughters had children by him. One was Moab and the other was Ammon, the father in the one case of the Moabites and the other the father of the Ammonites who became a thorn in the side of the Israelites from that day on. But yet it's interesting, that though Ruth was a Moabiteess, and as we indicated last time, that actual term, Ruth the Moabiteess, that description is used only five times in the book of Ruth. And that's significant because five in the Bible is the number of grace. And this is a book of grace. But it's grace not just to God's people generally, but to Ruth herself. She was a woman who was a sinner. And the Lord redeemed her. She was a woman in need of God's mercy. And she freely received that mercy from God. Just like a little bird would shelter under the wings of its mother, Ruth came to that place, as indicated by Boaz in chapter 2, verse 12, where she came under his wings to trust. It's an amazing thing for you to consider that as a child of God, the Lord has you under His wing. When a mother bird, such as a hen or an eagle, any bird, lifts up her wing that she might bring her little ones in to the warm place, you think of the fact that they're not only sheltered and protected there, but they're close to her heart. They can hear the heartbeat of their mother as they shelter there under the wings. That's where Ruth was. And child of God, that's where you are today if you're truly saved. You've come under his wings to trust. You're protected. You're kept by him. But you're near to his heart. Near to the heart of God, the hymn writer wrote. That's where we want to be. And that's where we can be by the grace of God. And that's where we are if we've been saved. Ruth, as an individual, needed mercy and she received it from the Lord. But the book itself is ultimately focused on the great mediator who would be born from the royal line of David. You go to the last chapter of the book of Ruth, and of course we will deal with this in due course, But it talks about the marriage of Ruth to Boaz, verse 13 of chapter 4. So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife. And when he went in unto her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bare a son. And that child was very precious to Naomi. Always nice to see the children with their grandmother, isn't it? That's what was going on here. She became a nurse to it. And the women, her neighbours, gave the child a name. I think that's interesting that the neighbours gave the child the name. Saying, there is a son born to Naomi and they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David. And then you have the genealogy, the generations of Phares right down to Obed begat Jesse and Jesse begat David. Who was David? Well, David was the king. And David is the one from whom Christ came according to the flesh. He's referred to repeatedly in Scripture as the greater David or the son of David. He's referred to as one who is of David and of David's seed according to the flesh. He is the offspring of David according to the New Testament. And so we have here the great mediator foreshadowed, who would be born from the royal line of David. The book of Ruth has its part in bringing the Messiah to this earth. And as one put it, the book of Ruth brings us to the very essence of the gospel, the person and work of the Redeemer. So one of the things is the promises of God. Another of the themes definitely is the providence of God. There's a little statement that's made in chapter 2 and verse 3, which is really interesting. Ruth went to the field to glean ears of corn. It says in verse 3, And she went and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And then there's this statement, And her hap was to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz, who was of the kindred of Elimelech." Now that little phrase translated in English, her hap was to light on a part of the field. If you look at the margin, if you have one in your authorised version, and if you don't, next time you replace your Bible, get one that has the marginal renderings, because it's very helpful. But you'll see in the margin there's an alternate rendering here in verse 3 of chapter 2. It is, her hap happened. Her hap happened to light on a part of the field belonging unto Boaz. Now in modern parlance we would say, it just so happened. It just so happened that she came to a part of the field that belonged to Boaz. Now that's what the scripture says. That's what the Holy Ghost has recorded. But obviously, as we read the Scriptures, the whole of the Bible, we know that things don't just happen. We know that it just wasn't what we call a happenstance. It wasn't a coincidence. It wasn't an accident. There are no accidents with God. Nothing happens by chance. And nothing happens by mere coincidence. It just so happened. is another way of saying that the providence of God brought this about. Now, how do I know that? I know it because the Lord is working to a plan. And that plan becomes clear as the book of Ruth moves forward. God has a plan. God has a purpose. And there are many places in the Scripture that show us this. God told the people through Isaiah, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure. The psalmist was able to say in Psalm 115, But our God is in the heavens. He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased. So when you see men making decisions and deciding that this is going to happen and that's going to happen, and you think, well, men are doing whatever they like. No, they're not. Because God is overruling. the actions of men for His own glory. And the Word of God tells us in Romans 8, verse 28, that everything that's happening is for God's glory and for the good of His people. And we know. Don't forget those words. And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to His purpose. You say, well, brother, that's really hard to believe sometimes. Tell me about it. I know it is. I know it's difficult. I know it's hard. That's why the Bible says we walk by faith, not by sight. If we judge by what we see, we'll come to the wrong conclusion. But we know that all things work together for good. Why? Because God's making them work together for good. Who for? For everybody? No. To them that love God. To them who are the called according to His purpose. God has a purpose. Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 11 puts it like this. It's speaking there of predestination, a word that some people think isn't in the Bible, but it is. Ephesians 1 verse 11, In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated That word simply means that destiny is predetermined beforehand, predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh some things, most things, no, all things after the counsel of his own will. I have news for people who don't believe it. God is in charge. He's working all things after the counsel of His own will. Now, if you and I could just get that into our hearts, what comfort that would give us in the hard times. See, this is what happens when we get our eyes off of the Lord. We get our eyes off of the promises of God. We get our eyes away from these kinds of statements and we start imagining all sorts of things. And then we have to get back to the bedrock of the sovereignty of God. The Lord is in control. And the book of Ruth shows us this. The providence of God is everywhere here to be seen. And at that period when iniquity and corruption was abounding and spreading, God was working. A commentator by the name of Philip Morrow observed, no doubt it was a mercy to those directly concerned, that God willed to build up again the house of Elimelech which had been virtually blotted out of existence. But it is a matter which directly concerns all the hosts of the redeemed of all the ages that God was using that stranger, Ruth, to build up the line along which the Redeemer Himself was to come. And so the things that happened to Naomi and her family to Ruth herself and to Boaz, they all came together in accomplishing God's eternal purpose. And that purpose, by the way, is also spoken of in Ephesians chapter 3 and verse 11. According to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord. So one of the themes of Ruth is the promises of God. One of the themes is the providence of God. And I think as well, another theme is the provision of God. See, the Lord met the needs of His people. He met the needs of His people in giving them bread, physical bread. You look with me there at Ruth chapter 1, and when there was a situation that Naomi and her family was in that was very difficult. Verse 6 says she had heard in the country of Moab how that the Lord had visited His people in giving them bread. The chapter starts out with a famine. We'll come to that next time. There was a famine in the land. But then in verse 6, the Lord had visited His people in giving them bread. God meets the needs of His people. We know that there was provision for Naomi herself and in turn for Ruth by providing her with a husband, Boaz. And there was provision by God for Israel in bringing forth the forerunner of Messiah. And in turn, there was provision for all God's people in that the Lord provided a Redeemer for them. I believe that the book of Ruth is an illustration of the text in Philippians 4 verse 19. But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. But as well as thinking about its timing and its themes, we can also think about the book of Ruth and its teaching. Let me just say to you, when you're studying any Bible book, Before you go verse by verse through that book, it is a good thing to take a bird's eye view of the book. And you know what a bird's eye view is? When a bird is away up there, it sees everything all at once. It sees the complete picture. And then whenever you come down closer, you can look at the things individually in detail. That's how you should study your Bible if you can. Try to get an overview of a book. of its contents, what it's all about, and then study it carefully. And I would certainly recommend that you do that with a Bible book, that you get an overview, maybe get an outline of the book, and then you're able to look at it individually, closely, in detail. If you do that in the book of Ruth, you'll see that Ruth can be studied in relation to its main characters. Now, these are not the only people that are mentioned in the book. There's also Orpah. And there's a Limelech and Malon and Cilion who died. And there are other people that come into the book as we go along. But the three main characters in this book are Naomi, who I would refer to as the returning saint. And the reason I call her the returning saint is because of what she said in chapter 1 in verse 21. I went out full, and the Lord hath brought me home again empty. Why then call ye me Naomi, saying the Lord hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?" So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law with her, which returned out of the country of Moab. And they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest. Naomi is the returning saint. In many ways you could look upon Naomi as a backslider, because she even herself talked about the bitterness that she felt in verse 20 of chapter 1. She told the people who addressed her as Naomi, call me not Naomi, which means pleasant, but call me Mara, which has the meaning of bitter or bitterness. For the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me." She had found great sorrow and bitterness when she had gone away from the place of blessing, from the house of bread, Bethlehem, down into Moab. But she returned. Thank God the message of Naomi is that there is a way of return. There's a way back to God. from the dark paths of sin. Thank God there is a way of return, even for the child of God who has strayed, because the Lord is married to the backslider. She's the first character, Naomi, the returning saint. The second character, obviously, is Ruth. She gives her name to the book. And we would think upon her as the repenting sinner. She is one who is in a place of idolatry. She's among the Moabites. She's worshipping false gods. And that's clear from verse 15, where she's told by Naomi to go back to the same place as Orpah and unto her gods. But she came to trust in the God of Israel. She said to Naomi in verse 16, Thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God." Oh, she was a repenting sinner. And then there's Boaz. We would call him the redeeming suitor. He is the bridegroom. He is the one who woos and who wins a bride unto himself. And he is a wonderful type of the Lord Jesus Christ. Boaz, in his name, really pictures Christ because His name signifies ability. And the Bible says of Jesus, He is able to save. The Redeemer. That's Boaz. And so as you look at the book, you can study it in relation to its main characters. And we will seek to do that as we go through the book. You can look then at its content. There are four chapters. It's a small book. But they contain a developing story. Chapter 1 contains a record of great grief. It is a weeping chapter. Oh, there's a lot to cause tears and sorrow in this first chapter. It begins with a famine. That wasn't a very good situation. But then, when we come down into the chapter, we find that there were funerals. Because Elimelech died in verse 3. And then in verse 5, the two sons, Malon and Cilion, died also, both of them. There's great sadness here. And Naomi speaks of the sadness that she felt, the bitterness, as we've already indicated. And as you look at verse 14, there's this sadness that's involved in a woman who only comes so far, but no further, and goes back to the heathen situation that she came from. It's interesting that Naomi said to the two of them that they should go and return each to their mother's house. But in verse 10 they both said, this is Ruth and Orpah, surely we will return with thee unto thy people. So it's very hopeful for both of them at this point. Both Ruth and Orpah are going to return and they're going to become part of the people of God in Israel. But Orpah doesn't follow through. And Orpah turns back. And verse 14 speaks about the tears that were shed. They lifted up their voice and wept again. Verse 9 tells us about how they wept the first time. She kissed them and they lifted up their voice and wept. So this is a chapter of tears. This is a chapter of weeping. A chapter of great grief. But then chapter 2 is a chapter of great guidance. It's not a weeping chapter, it's a working chapter. You have Ruth in the field, gleaning ears of corn. There she is out there each day, serving, working, and knowing the blessing of the Lord upon her work. That's what Boaz refers to in that twelfth verse, as we've already indicated, the Lord recompense thy work. There she is in the harvest field, working. So it's a chapter of guidance. She was led by the Lord providentially to that part of the field that belonged unto Boaz. At that point, she may not have realized the significance of Boaz as a character, but she would soon realize and soon recognize how significant that would be. Because Boaz was to be her kinsman, redeemer, her husband. And then in chapter 3, we can speak of it as a chapter of great grace. It is a wooing chapter, or you might even say a waiting chapter, because Ruth is there waiting and sitting at the feet of Boaz. It is a time of waiting upon the Lord. And at the last of chapter 3, we have the words of Naomi that illustrate this. then said she sit still my daughter until thou know how the matter will fall she was to wait this is a chapter of grace it is a waiting chapter but then chapter four is a chapter of grandeur and i like this this is a wedding chapter boaz and ruth get together finally the deed is done the match is made And it's a wonderful story because it culminates here in the birth of one who would be the forerunner of the Messiah. Verse 13 of chapter 4, So Boaz took Ruth and she was his wife. There was a wedding. This is a story then of the heart. It's going to be a bad show if there's a wedding and there's no heart involved. The heart has to be involved in these kinds of situations. And if you would like to go back to chapter 1, you'll see that it reveals to us sad hearts. Because here you have people weeping at the funerals. But then chapter 2 is a chapter of serving hearts because Ruth is found there working in the field. Chapter 3 is a chapter of submissive hearts. I think there's a submissiveness on the part of Naomi, but especially on the part of Ruth. And even on the part of Boaz, because he has to see whether the nearer kinsman is willing to do the part of a kinsman for her. So it is very much a waiting chapter, but it's Ruth especially waiting at the feet. So here's a chapter of sad hearts. of serving hearts, of submissive hearts, chapter 3, but in chapter 4, satisfied hearts. Because here we have Ruth wedded into a family. And I was thinking about this in studying the book of Ruth. There could hardly be a greater contrast than that which we find at the beginning of Ruth and at the ending of the story. It begins with a famine. It begins with people in great distress and trouble. It begins with a woman who is widowed, and it closes with a joyful wedding. There could hardly be a greater contrast, could there? Where the story moves from sadness to joy, from a funeral to a wedding, from widowhood to being a happy wife, from idolatry in Moab to wholesome worship in Israel, from poverty to wealth, because the Bible tells us that Boaz was a mighty man of wealth. And all the riches of God's grace that there is in Christ. The story moves from barrenness, because Ruth had no child. She was widowed, but Cilion and Malon had died. and her husband, Malon, and she had no child. Barrenness, to where she became a joyful mother of a child, Obed. This story moves from estrangement, living as an outcast, to acceptance and a covenant relationship within Israel. As one writer put it, the story moves from the land of Moab to the line of the Messiah. The book of Ruth is a wonderful monument to the grace of God. And friends, it's an illustration of what the Bible tells us about all of us who are truly saved today in Ephesians chapter 2. And with this, I will close. In Ephesians chapter 2, which of course, it's an epistle written to Gentiles. And Ruth was a Gentile. It says there, Verse 11, Wherefore remember that ye, being in time past, Gentiles in the flesh, who are called on circumcision by that which is called the circumcision in the flesh made by hands, that at that time ye were without Christ. That was true, wasn't it? Before you were ever saved, before you were born again, you were without Christ. Being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel. That was certainly true of the Moabites, who were not to enter into the congregation of the Lord. And strangers from the covenants of promise. Having no hope. And without God in the world. That's where we were, friends. Without Christ. Without hope. Without God in the world. But look at this, but now in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off, even living in Moab spiritually, are made nigh by the blood of Christ. I trust that that is your testimony. I trust that it's true of you, as it was true of Ruth, that you have come to trust in the Lord God of Israel, even to dwell under His wings. May the Lord bless our study of His Word for His own glory. Amen.