The Book Of Ruth

To both men and women, Ruth is one of the most beloved books of the Bible. Ruth is the one of the only books in the Bible which have a woman as the main character, other than God. Ruth shows women, one in particular, in a remarkable light. Although Ruth happens during the time of the book Judges, it greatly varies from it. While focusing and depicting a portion of Ruth and Naomi’s life, the book is a short narrative of love, family, dedication, and, most of all, God. The book of Ruth begins with almost instant heartbreak. The husband of a woman named Naomi died shortly after marrying their two sons to Moabite women. Not long afterwards, her sons follow their father. Naomi was now left alone with her two daughters-in-law in a foreign land. She decided to release the women to go on and marry other men, and return to the land of her husband, Bethlehem. One of her daughters-in-law, Orpah, left tearfully. The other refused to leave. Her name was Ruth. Together, they moved back to Bethlehem. They soon realized that they had very little to survive on their own. Fortunately in that time, widows and the poor were able to gather wheat that the …show more content…
Even after Orpah left and her mother-in-law’s encouragements to follow suit, Ruth adamantly refused to leave Naomi alone. She was dedicated to Naomi despite whatever possible circumstances, including death. Ruth tells Naomi, “Entreat me not to leave you or to return from following you; for where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God; where you die I will die and there will I be buried. May the LORD do so to me and more also if even death parts me from you” (Revised Standard Version, Ruth 1.16-17). Ruth was beyond being able to negotiate with. She was too determined to stay by Naomi’s side, to be there for her and love