๐๐ Why Was the Book of (Ruth) Written?
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๐ SUMMARY OF THE BOOK OF RUTH
So far, we have observed that throughout the Pentateuch, Joshua, and Judges, important clues were placed both at the beginning and at the end of each book. Therefore, in the Book of Ruth as well, we will examine these elements to understand what the Book of Ruth is really trying to record.
1. God reveals Ruth within the genealogy that leads from Israel → Judah → David
๐ The content of the first verse of Ruth, chapter 1:
In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land.
A man from Bethlehem in Judah went to live for a while in the land of Moab with his wife and his two sons.
๐ The content of the final verses of Ruth, chapter 4, verses 18–22:
The neighboring women gave the child a name, saying that a son had been born to Naomi, and they named him Obed.
He was the father of Jesse, the father of David.
๐ Genealogy of Perez:
Perez → Hezron → Ram → Amminadab → Nahshon → Salmon → Boaz (Ruth) → Obed → Jesse → David
๐ At the same time, we find a very interesting passage in Ruth 4:12:
“May your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, because of the offspring that the Lord will give you by this young woman.”
✔️ Judah's descendants continued through Tamar, his daughter-in-law, and we see that the people of Israel and the elders used this event as an expression of blessing.
However, when we look carefully, we can see that this blessing was related to an heir (๐).
2. The period in which Ruth lived — a relatively peaceful period in Israel ๐
→ Naomi had gone to the land of Moab because of the famine (verse 1).
→ Later, she heard that the Lord had visited His people and given them food (verse 6).
Together with the statement in verse 1 that this happened in the days of the judges, and considering that Ruth was the great-grandmother of David, we can examine the following periods:
Jephthah: a period of war; he judged Israel for 6 years ❌
Ibzan: judged Israel for 7 years (12:8–10) — apparently a peaceful period, with the largest number of children — the most likely
Elon: judged Israel for 10 years (12:11)
Abdon: judged Israel for 8 years (12:13) — apparently a peaceful period, with many sons and grandsons
Samson: 40 years of Philistine domination + 20 years as judge = 60 years ❌
๐ Why do I think Ibzan is the most likely period? (my hypothesis) ๐
It is highly likely that the period between Ruth and David, her great-grandson, was less than 100 years.
Ibzan's period appears to have been one of the most peaceful, considering that he had 60 children in total.
The text records that, for his sons, he “brought in thirty women from outside.”
There is also another important detail: the account of Ibzan specifically mentions Bethlehem.
3. How can we prove that this was a relatively peaceful period in Israel? ^^
๐ In the Book of Ruth, we see Boaz carrying out the law of redeeming property — Leviticus 25:25.
๐ At the same time, we see the law concerning continuing the name and inheritance of the deceased — Deuteronomy 25 being practiced.
๐ We also see Ruth gathering leftover grain in Boaz's field, showing that the command to leave part of the harvest for the poor and the foreigner — Leviticus 19 and 23 was being practiced.
๐ Conclusion — 1
✔️ From the contents of the first and final verses of the book, we can see that the record of Ruth is connected to the genealogy of Judah.
→ At the same time, we see that the period in which Ruth lived appears to have been relatively peaceful: ๐
A judge was ruling Israel; and
the people were practicing God's commandments. ๐
๐ Conclusion — 2
๐ The blessings given when God's commandments, laws, and statutes are kept and practiced are:
✔️ Shown not only to the Israelites, but also to Ruth, a Moabite woman.
✔️ This is demonstrated through Ruth's confession of faith, showing that she too was a person who followed the Lord God.
“Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.”
(Ruth 1:17)
๐ The Book of Ruth therefore shows that God's blessing was not limited by nationality, but also reached those who chose to follow the Lord and remain faithful to Him.
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