This was a violation of the Mosaic law (De 7:3; 23:3; Ezr 9:2; Ne 13:23); and Jewish writers say that the early deaths of both the young men were divine judgments inflicted on them for those unlawful connections. A teacher walks into the Classroom and says If only Yesterday was Tomorrow Today would have been a Saturday Which Day did the Teacher make this Statement? in 1971. Elimelech died in Moab. No, it is realized as I desire and is fulfilled as I intend (Isaiah 55:8-11). Naomi was now left without a husband, without sons, and without grandchildren. And yet as the story of Ruth unfolded this time, it suddenly became obvious to me that Naomi was no role model. where did these children come from? (Isaiah 49:20-21). In an effort to escape the famine, a man named Elimelech took his family to Moab, where he intended for his family to sojourn until the famine ended.10 How could he have imagined how long his family would stay? Machlon and Chillon died also both of them. God is always at his work. Bob is a pastor/teacher and elder at Community Bible Chapel in Richardson, Texas, and has contributed many of his Bible study series for use by the Foundation. There may have been others who traveled to Moab with Elimelech and his family, but the author does not make a point of telling this to his readers. Their ultimate blessing would have been to leave their land, their people, their false religion, and to identify with the Israelites and with their God. She seems to have little or no conviction regarding her sins, the sins of her husband, or of the sins of the nation. It is not Naomis belief in the sovereignty of God that troubles me as much as how she applies it. When M, Elijah ben Solomon Abraham Ha-Kohen of Smyrna, Elijah ben Eliezer Philosoph Ha-Yerushalmi, Elijah ben Baruch (ben Solomon ben Abraham) The Elder, https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/elimelech. If her daughters-in-law could snag a good (Moabite) husband, bear some children, and have a bountiful harvest they were indeed blessed, at least as Naomi viewed it. Dagon Born. T -6d$zA ^C(D`Ed8 BR. Follow your sister-in-law back home! 16 But Ruth replied. A Jew who knows the law and doesnt live by it is not really a true Jew. It would also seem that Naomis barrenness was divinely imposed.18, (5) Moab was not the place of Gods promised blessings; Israel was.19. Naomi thought of Gods blessings in terms of having food and a family. Naomi signifies my amiable or pleasant one; Mahlon and Chilion signify sickness and consumption. His name was Nate Mirza. This makes perfect sense when we consider that Biblical individuals were called by several different names over their lifetimes and that names were given in remembrance of major events. Ruths spiritual journey is similar to that of Abraham. There is literally a gap between the man and what he called himself. He was one of the c, JETHRO Who thinks of Orpah today? She views God as harsh and uncaring, doling out affliction and trouble in a way that is completely unrelated to her attitudes and actions. We dont have a very good reputation in the Bible.. They would be a reminder that Naomis sons their husbands had not married Israelite wives. There is no doubt that this is a great honor and privilege for a woman. ). When kings ruled, My God is King, denoted not only spiritual but also political power. (One was named Orpah and the other Ruth.) 3 For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your children will conquer nations and will resettle desolate cities (Isaiah 54:1-3). Due to the famine in Israel during the time of the Judges, Elimelech crossed over to Moab, where he and his two sons died. Following their deaths, his wife Naomi returned to Beth-Lehem together with her daughter-in-law *Ruth (Ruth 1:13; 2:1, 3; 4:3, 9). There Ruth married *Boaz, one of Elimelech's relatives. Thankfully, she later confessed and returned to Israel. Was it at Naomis initiative that her sons took Moabite women for wives? And so they did. What are the advantages and disadvantages of video capture hardware? 15 They show that the work of the law is written in their hearts, as their conscience bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or else defend them, 16 on the day when God will judge the secrets of human hearts, according to my gospel through Christ Jesus (Romans 2:12-16, emphasis mine). Shouldnt Ruth follow her lead? And one of these two Ruth is a Moabite, not an Israelite. We should learn from Naomi that if barrenness is ones earthly fate, our heavenly fate is vastly different. In this emergency, she was proposing an unconventional solution to their problem. Ruths words are beautiful, and thus it is no wonder that some have chosen to employ them for their marriage vows. It is not only Ruth and Naomi who benefit from Gods work in the Book of Ruth, for everyone who has been saved by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ has been saved by the offspring of Ruth and Boaz. But when she urged Ruth to return to her pagan god(s), that was the worst unkindness of all. (3) One gets the impression that those who remained in Bethlehem fared reasonably well during the famine; certainly better than Naomi and her family did. Bildungswesen. In fact, my study for this sermon has caused me to think of Naomi in even less flattering terms. ), Handbook of Ugaritic Studies (1999), index, 841. 2 0 obj The subject was the Book of Ruth. Fearing they would be overrun by the Israelites, Balak (king of Moab)4 hired Balaam to curse Israel. So the woman was left all alone bereaved of her two children as well as her husband! But it is not the essence of what our life in Christ is about. My impression is that Naomi had changed not only in her appearance (she may not have aged well in Moab), but also in spirit. You can't run away. Encyclopaedia Judaica. It was a bad start, and sadly things didnt get any better over time. The text does not really tell us but the Sages do, and so, we will engage in reverse engineering, trying to grasp their view of this complex personality and then to appreciate the antecedents of their interpretation. Leaving His land, His people, His office-bearers, His worship and His day is leaving God. - As part of a small team, I organized a five-day congress (90 participants, budget 17,000), the largest yearly event of the association. No wonder God forbade Moabites from entering the assembly to the tenth generation.7. Anyone is at liberty to use this lesson for educational purposes only, with or without credit. ; "God [or my God] is king"), the husband of *Naomi and father of Mahlon and *Chilion, from Beth-Lehem in Judah. From these events, we can easily see that the Moabites were no friend to Israel. And his little boys died too. 13 For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous before God, but those who do the law will be declared righteous. Submit your piece for review, and if approved we will publish it on our site as Community Contributions., Change Your Subscription All this is described in the Bible book of Ruth. You will note from the first verse of chapter 1 that the setting for the story of Ruth is the times of the judges. Both were traveling with Naomi as she made her way toward Israel. 1 During the time of the judges there was a famine in the land of Judah. Robert L. (Bob)Deffinbaugh graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary with his Th.M. The translation project originally started as an attempt to provide an electronic version of a modern translation for electronic distribution over the Internet and on CD (compact disk). 1 Shout for joy, O barren one who has not given birth! No wonder they didnt have a great reputation. In the midst of her affliction and hopeless despair, God is at work preparing for the gracious things He is about to reveal to her and to the reader. Ordinarily it would be translated as, My God is King. Just being Jewish and knowing the Law of Moses isnt enough; one must also live by the law. In our text (as in Judges and everywhere else in Scripture), man looks bad, very bad, and God looks good, very good. What a difference it makes to believe in a God who is in absolute control and who is also merciful and gracious, causing all things to work together for our good and for His glory, if we believe in Him. I think I understand generally what Paul is saying here, based upon the promise in Jeremiah: 33 But I will make a new covenant with the whole nation of Israel after I plant them back in the land, says the Lord. Ruth was determined to serve and care for her mother-in-law; Orpah chose to look out for herself. She was one who received Gods blessings because she blessed one of Abrahams offspring by remaining with her and committing to care for her.28 Ruth was a woman who committed herself for a lifetime, and she did so in spite of her national pride, her family affections, the example of her sister-in-law, and the urgings of her mother-in-law. If our text tells us anything about God, it is that His ways are not our ways. Naomi was preoccupied with the here and now, rather than trusting in Gods covenant promises by faith. He came alongside Eve as her friend, as someone who was doing her a favor. This is the origin of the Moabites and the Ammonites. 2 (Now the mans name was Elimelech, his wife was Naomi, and his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. However, the date of retrieval is often important. But what she fails to see is that God is only increasing her problems to the level of human impossibility, so that He can demonstrate His power and grace through her weakness. May the Lord punish me severely if I do not keep my promise! We are not told how wide-spread it was, but we do know that it affected Bethlehem (which ironically means house of bread). The name (Phoen. ELIMELECH (Heb. Dedicate an Article W. Moran, The Amarna Letters (1992), 326; W. Watson and N. Wyatt (eds. The two women, now forever bound together by Ruths covenant, continued on their way until they reached Bethlehem. Her commitment is not just to Naomi; it is a lifetime commitment to Israel and to her God. Due to the famine in Israel during the time of the Judges, Elimelech crossed over to Moab, where he and his two sons died. Elimelech had a wife named Naomi and two sons, Mahlon and Kilion. We shall see more about this in chapter 3. Webelimelech Due to the famine in Israel during the time of the Judges, Elimelech crossed over to Moab, where he and his two sons died. This news prompted her to return to her people and to her land. The security in the home of a new husband referred to earlier is now spelled out in plainer terms. He stood in the opening and blocked it with his body. He stood and surrounded it with rebuilt walls from three directions. The suffering of His people, whether for sins they have committed or for living righteously, is but the prelude to His glorious salvation. It was a good number of years ago that I sat in on an excellent elective class taught by my friend, Tom Wright. This story can be found in the book of Ruth. Within the Cite this article tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. Ruth would not only do this until death separated them, she would do so in death. We certainly are reminded of the sovereignty of God by our text, but unfortunately most of the emphasis on Gods sovereignty in chapter 1 comes from Naomi, and she is not seeing things as she should. 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