Ruth

 October 19, 2023

The Biblical judges governed from the time of Joshua’s conquest until the first monarchy under Saul, from about1400-1100 BC. Generally speaking, it was a time of unrest, with constant incursions from the surrounding peoples, and intermittent faithfulness and faithlessness from the Israelite people themselves. The author of the book of Judges summed up the chaotic and anarchical times in these succinct words: “In those times, there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6 & 21:25). 

Reading the last few chapters of the book, it’s a wonder they even survived to become a nation. Religion was corrupt, integrity of leadership was almost totally absent, morals were seemingly non-existent, and violence was the order of the day. Sounds a lot like today, doesn’t it?

And yet…in the middle of this degenerate and dissolute time comes the story of Ruth: “In the days when the judges ruled…” (Ruth 1:1). In stark contrast to the depravity of the surrounding culture we have a tender and intimate story of love that led ultimately to the royal line of David and to our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Today we look around and see cultural decline; violence, immorality, corruption in religion, politics, the educational and even medical arenas. What is good is reviled, and evil is held up as virtue; I’ve watched as Christian brothers and sisters tremble at the thought of the future. It is the time of the judges all over again, when “everyone [is doing] what is right in his own eyes.” If you are tempted to despair, remember Ruth. When everything seemed to be falling apart, God was quietly at work in the little backwater of Bethlehem. It didn’t seem like much to the larger world, but in the longer view, that intimate love story still reverberates through history while the fiefdoms of that age are covered in dust. And the seemingly insignificant details of your “insignificant” life might just prove to be what God wants to use to change the world.