 The events recorded in the book of Ruth take place during the
period of the judges. This was a dark time in the history of
Israel, a time of religious and moral degeneracy, national disunity and general foreign oppression. Most specifically, during Gideon's administration.
The famine in Israel was probably God's acting in judgment on His
people because of their sin. Baal worship was common among God's
people in the days of the judges.(Judges 2:11;3:7; 8:33; 10:6,10)
Divine control of the crops was a major factor in the
developments in the book of Ruth because of the common worship of
Baal. It was believed that Baal was the owner of the land and
that he controlled the fertility of said land. Baal's female
counterpart was Ashtoreh. It was believeded that sexual intercourse
between them regulated fertility of the earth and it's creatures.
Under Joshua's rule God had commanded the Israelites to purge the
land of Canaanites and their idols. (Deuteronomy 7:16; 12:2-3;
20:17) The failure of the Israelites to do this left them open to
the temptation to look to idols rather than to God for
agricultural blessing. (Joshua 16:10; Judges 1:27-33)
It is interesting that Gideon's father built an alter to Baal,
but Gideon destroyed it. (Judges 6:25-34) The Ruth narrative
demonstrates the wisdom of trusting in God and His providence
rather than in Canaanite gods.
 Bethlehem was about 5 miles south of Jerusalem. Obed, the sone of
Boaz and Ruth was born in Bethlehem, along with his grandson,
David (Ruth 4:18-21; 1 Samuel 17:58) Bethlehem later played an
important role in David's greater Son the Lord Jesus Christ.(Luke
2:4-7)
Moab was about 50 miles east of on the other side of the Dead
Sea.
Read the entire book of Ruth to get an overview. Then read
chapter one several times. Ask the five 'W' questions.
Who?
1. Verse one tells us a little bit about this family. A. Why did they leave their home in Bethlehem to move to Moab? B. Was this a good or a bad idea and why? 2. Verse two tells us the names of the members of the family. See if you can find out what they mean? 3. Verse two also gives us a name for a people ---Ephrathites. Where is an Ephrathite from? 4.From verses three through five, write a description of what Naomi must have been feeling concerning the events that took place in her life at that time. Remember, she was widowed, sorrowing, and in living in a foreign land at the time. 5. In verse four we read about the two wives of Naomi's sons. They were Moabite women and their husband were Hebrew. Were these forbidden marriages, why or why not and what was the danger of such marriages? 6. Also, in verse five we see that the three males in this family all died. Was this a punishment on the family as Jewish tradition claims? Does the context of this verse give a reason for the death of the males in this family? 7. From verses six and seven describe the effect some news had on her and what she did about it. Describe how you would feel if you were placed in Naomi's position. What would you think, What would you do?
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