Ruth, A Story of Redemption: With Verse by Verse Analysis and Gospel Perspectives

By Dennis Prutow

This little book unfolds the story of two destitute widows, Ruth and Naomi, whom God restores to life and fulness through the faithfulness of a man, Boaz, who acts as their redeemer. The pattern presented outlines our return to God through our Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. This text also outlines suitable teaching and preaching portions based upon literary considerations, gives a verse by verse commentary, and offers an appropriate Gospel Perspective on each section of the book. This story will build your faith in God's good plans and purposes working on behalf of His people.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dennis Prutow
• Release date: Jul 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9781945305313

Dennis Prutow

Denny Prutow was born in 1939 in Cleveland, Ohio. He attended the US Military Academy at West Point (1959-1963), Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California (1965-1968), and Reformed Theological Seminary, Orlando, Florida (1995-1998). Denny was an Army Chaplain, a pastor in both the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, and the Professor of Homiletics and Pastoral Theology at Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Pittsburgh, PA. He developed Westminster Evangelistic Ministries and remains its administratior. Denny retired in 2013 after forty-five years of active ministry and is now RPTS Professor Emeritus of Homiletics. His books include So Pastor, What's Your Point?, Joyful Voices, Public Worship 101, The Visions of Revelation, You Cannot Escape from God, Biblical Baptism, and What is Saving Faith? He and his wife, Erma, live in Indianapolis, IN. They have three grown daughters and eleven grandchildren.

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Ruth, A Story of Redemption

With Verse by Verse Analysis and Gospel Perspectives

By

Dennis J. Prutow

Westminster Evangelistic Ministries

Indianapolis, Indiana

Copyright © 2021 by Dennis J. Prutow

All Rights Reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, the Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible ®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the author’s prior permission.

eBook formatting and cover design by ebooklaunch.com

ISBN 978-1-945305-33-7 (paperback)

ISBN 978-1-945305-31-3 (ePub)

ISBN 978-1-945305-32-0 (kindle)

For Gail, Denise, and Kristi

Three Daughters Working in the Harvest

Contents

Introduction

Point of View

Significance of Canonical Place

Plot and Purpose

Identifying Literary Units

Commentary and Gospel Perspectives

Ruth 1:1-6 - Emptiness and Death

Ruth 1:7-19a - On the Road Again

Ruth 1:19b-22 - Back Home

Ruth 2:1-3 - Discover the Redeemer

Ruth 2:4-17a - The Kindness of the Redeemer

Ruth 2:17b-23 - The Redeemer

Ruth 3:1-5 - On Seeking the Redeemer

Ruth 3:6-15 - The Redeemer’s Promise

Ruth 3:16-18 - Wait on the Redeemer

Ruth 4:1-12 - Redemption Accomplished

Ruth 4:13-17 - Redemption Applied

Ruth 4:18-22 – Boaz and David and Christ

Bibliography

Introduction, Part 1

"Point of View"

Ruth is an absolutely delightful little book. Mention its name and Bible readers gently smile, warmly praise its beauty, and quietly tell what it means to them personally (Hubbard, 1988, p. 1). As accurate as this statement may be, knowing God’s purpose in Ruth takes priority. Proper personal application follows.

Ruth is a short story (Block, 1999, p. 602; Hubbard, 1988, p. 47), an edifying short story (Bush, 1996, p. 46), or a Hebrew historical short story (Howard, 1993, p. 145). The Talmud attributed the book to Samuel (Howard, 1993, p. 143). Therefore, Henry (1985) says, It is probable that Samuel was the penman of it (p. 252). This conclusion is possible. David was born in 1085 BC; Samuel secretly anointed David in 1070 BC; and Samuel subsequently died in 1060 BC (Jones, 2007, p. 279). Pratt (1990) concludes, The earliest likely date for final composition is early in the beginning of David’s reign (p. 300). Perhaps Samuel wrote this little story even before David became king over Judah in 1055 BC. Pratt (1990) adds, It seems most likely that the genealogies in Ruth extended to the king who reigned in the time of the final composition. If this is so, the book came to its final form before Solomon’s rise to the throne (pp. 300-301; cf. Young, 1964, p. 339; Archer, 1964, p. 268).

The coordinate question is that of Ruth’s place in the canon. "In the present Hebrew Bible, the book appears as … the first of the five megillot (‘scrolls’) … The five megillot were used liturgically—they were read at the major festivals" (Howard, 1993, p. 147). Ruth’s reading was at Pentecost, the harvest festival.

The Masoretic Text (MT) places Ruth after Proverbs. "The Masoretes were the scholars who between A.D. 500 and 950 gave the final form to the text [in contrast to the canon] of the Old Testament (Archer, 1964, p. 56). Proverbs 31:10 asks, An excellent wife [woman], who can find? Boaz uses the same Hebrew terms to describe Ruth. All my people in the city know that you are a woman of excellence" (3:11).

Finally, the Septuagint (LXX), the Greek translation of the Old Testament, places Ruth after Judges. Most agree that it is our oldest evidence (Morris, 1973, p. 230). Baldwin (1988) maintains that the LXX potentially represents a Hebrew text older by a thousand years than the traditional Hebrew MT (p. 38). Young (1964) adds, The early date for Ruth seems further to be supported by the fact that it was early placed after Judges (p. 340).

As observed above, Ruth is a historical narrative or short story, and we should analyze it as such. "Literary scholars identify the following character types: protagonists (central characters, those who are most indispensable to the plot), antagonists (the main adversaries or forces arrayed against the central characters), and foils (characters who heighten the central character by providing a contrast … ) (Matthewson, 2002, p. 58). In Ruth, the protagonists are Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz. Pratt (1990) reminds us, Personal antagonists are not essential for well-formed stories; opposition may come from impersonal obstacles as well (p. 144). In Ruth, the problem of the story is the death and emptiness that have afflicted the life of Naomi" (Bush, 1996, p. 51). Ruth and Boaz join in overcoming this problem. The foils, which accentuate the roles of Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz, are the women of Bethlehem, Orpah, and the unnamed redeemer, respectively.

With this bit of character analysis, a danger looms large. Bush (1996) pinpoints it; Ruth is the "story of hesed, covenant love (p. 52). The story portrays in the dramatic and concrete form of the words and deeds of its protagonists what in the sphere of interpersonal and family obligations constitutes hesed while focusing sharply on the element of the imitable, ‘go thou and do likewise’ (Bush, 1996, p. 53). Taking the main characters’ point of view leads to focus on the imitable and moralism. The common ‘Bible story approach,’ replete with moral lessons taken out of context, inevitably leads to widespread moralism (Woudstra, 1981, p. 5).

However, Ruth is what we call a third-person narrative. What does that mean? Third-person narrative refers to all the characters impersonally and in this mode the narrator may display omniscience and omnipresence. Most narrative in the Bible is third-person omniscient narrative (Longman & Dillard, 2006, p. 32). In light of the above and following description, think about Ruth. While the human author may have been Samuel, God is the actual narrator.

The narrator does not figure in the events of the story; speaks in the third person; is not bound by time or space in the telling of the story; is an implied invisible presence in every scene, capable of being anywhere to recount the action; displays full omniscience by narrating the thought, feelings, or sensory experiences of many characters; often turns from the story to give direct asides to the reader, explaining a custom or translating a word or commenting on the story; and narrates the story from one overarching ideological point of view (Rhoads and Michie, 1982, p. 36).

What do we conclude? In dealing with stories in the Bible such as Ruth, remember the Bible is God’s self-revelation. Always ask what He is doing. Getting the proper perspective and point of view brings us up out of the horizontal and avoids dealing with the characters only on the earthly plane. Part of the Bible’s wonder is that God gives us His point of view. To lift ourselves above this earthly plane and assume God’s point of view is not arrogance. It is part of our God-given privilege and task; we gain an appreciation for God’s plans and purposes. Having the proper point of view is vital to correct interpretation and application.

Introduction, Part 2

"Significance of Canonical Place"

Given Ruth’s place in Scripture after the Book of Judges, what is the significance of this placement, which God’s Providence gives us? Ruth acts as an appendix to Judges (Keil & Delitzsch, 1982, p. 468). We may call it an excursus, which according to Webster’s Ninth Collegiate, is an appendix or digression that contains further exposition of some point or topic.

The Book of Judges consists of an introduction, the stories of the twelve judges,’ and two appendices (Cundall, 1973, p. 50). Scott (1976) pinpoints the purpose of these two appendices, The fact that the period of the Judges is so justifiably called the Dark Ages spiritually in Israel is well illustrated by the two stories coming out of that period recorded in chapters 17-21 (p. 75). Dumbrell (2002) concurs, Judges concludes with two stark accounts that emphasize the sordid character of the period (p. 79). Coming to Ruth, we see something different. It deals with the period of the Judges, but it forms a contrast with the book of that name. The book of Judges tells of war and strife, but [Ruth] is a quiet story of ordinary people going about their quiet lives (Morris, 1973, p. 229; cf. Scott, 1976, p. 77).

Ruth is a splash of sunshine and grace amid evil and degradation. The book of Ruth pictures a bright side to the period of the judges with graciousness, devotion, and piety (Payne, 1982, p. 107). Scott (1976) puts it this way, There were doubtlessly some godly parents in Israel who did not follow the faithless trends of the times (p. 77). Cassel (1960) adds, Undoubtedly, however, the Book of Ruth offers an interesting parallel to that of Judges. While the latter exhibits the military history of Israel, the former introduces us to the peaceful private life of the people (p. 7). Fee and Stuart (1993) add, The narrative tells us implicitly that Bethlehem was an exceptional town during the Judges period by reason of the faithfulness of the citizenry (p. 88). Block (1999) agrees, Whereas Judges had developed the theme of Israel’s spiritual infidelity in the premonarchic period, this book [Ruth] highlights the presence and nature of genuine spirituality during this period (pp. 588-589).

There is also a slightly different approach to the ever-present evil the two major sections of Judges display. The editorial comment, oft-repeated in the earlier sections, that the Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, is missing, to be replaced by the observation that ‘in those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which is right in his own eyes’ (17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25) (Cundall, 1973, p. 182). And so, on the one hand, as Breisch (1972) indicates, Judges showed us how badly the people of Israel needed a king (p. 74).

On the other hand, Ruth helps us to understand how God was preparing, even then, to give Israel a king who would truly reign for Him (Breisch, 1972, p. 74). Slotki (1990) adds, There is no escape from the fact that everything [in Ruth] in the last instance leads up to David" (p. 110). In preparation for this king, the NASB of Ruth often uses the word redeem or mentions the redeemer [go’el]. Ruth uses the underlying Hebrew term 22 times. See Gospel Perspective under the exposition of 4:18-22 for details. From the Christian perspective, as Cassel (1960) testifies, The Messianic doctrine contained in [Ruth] invests it with greater importance (p. 7). It is the go’el tradition that provides the book’s backdrop, not levirate marriage (Hubbard, 1988, p. 57). As we will see, redemption is the central theme in Ruth. Therefore, Archer insists that Ruth leads us to Christ. He makes the following comparisons.

The kinsman-redeemer serves as a Messianic type, the go’el who fills the following qualifications and functions for his kinsmen: (a) he must be a blood relative (even as Christ became a blood relative of man by the Virgin Birth); (b) he must have the money to purchase the forfeited inheritance (4:10-even as Christ alone had the merit to pay the price for sinners); (c) he must be willing to buy back that forfeited inheritance (4:9-even as Christ laid down His life on His own volition); (d) he must be willing to marry the wife of a deceased kinsman (4:10-typical of the bride and groom relationship between Christ and His Church). From this standpoint, therefore, the little book of Ruth is one of the most instructive in the Old Testament concerning the mediatorial work of the Lord Jesus (Archer, 1964, p. 269).

In Israel, every man held his piece of land as an inheritance from Yahweh (Thompson, 1975, pp. 216-217). In God’s providence, a family might fall into poverty and sell its inheritance. The duty of the go’el was to redeem family property so that a family would always have an inheritance in Israel (4:3-4). The duty of the go’el was also to marry an impoverished widow and raise up children in the name of the deceased (4:5). By these means, families would never be permanently separated from their inherited land.

This land was a place of rest for the people (Deuteronomy 25:19). But this rest was incomplete. For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that (Hebrew 4:8). The rest that these enjoyed was only a type of God’s rest and, therefore, incomplete (Hewitt, 1986, pp. 85-86). At best the ‘rest’ for the Israelites of Joshua was only temporary (Heb. 4:8). In Christ, eternal rest is promised (Hess, 1996, p. 221).

A word about biblical typology seems to be in order here. A type is a figure or adumbration [foreshadowing] of that which is to come (Terry, 1999, p. 246). "The type must prefigure something in the future … Hence