Ruth 1:1-11, 14-21
In the
days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a certain man
of Bethlehem in Judah went to live in the country of Moab, he and his wife and
two sons. 2The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his
wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion; they were
Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and
remained there. 3But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she
was left with her two sons. 4These took Moabite wives; the name of
the one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. When they had lived there
about ten years, 5both Mahlon and Chilion also died, so that the
woman was left without her two sons and her husband.
6Then she
started to return with her daughters-in-law from the country of Moab, for she
had heard in the country of Moab that the Lord had
considered his people and given them food. 7So she set out from the
place where she had been living, she and her two daughters-in-law, and they
went on their way to go back to the land of Judah. 8But Naomi said
to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back each of you to your mother’s house. May
the Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the
dead and with me. 9The Lord grant that you may
find security, each of you in the house of your husband.” Then she kissed them,
and they wept aloud.
10They
said to her, “No, we will return with you to your people.” 11But
Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters, why will you go with me? Do I still have
sons in my womb that they may become your husbands?... 14Then they wept aloud
again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15So she
said, “See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods;
return after your sister-in-law.” 16But Ruth said, “Do not press me
to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; Where
you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God. 17Where
you die, I will die— there will I be buried. May the Lord
do thus and so to me, and more as well, if even death parts me from you!” 18When
Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
19So the
two of them went on until they came to Bethlehem. When they came to Bethlehem,
the whole town was stirred because of them; and the women said, “Is this
Naomi?” 20She said to them, “Call me no longer Naomi, call me Mara,
for the Almighty has dealt bitterly with me.
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This is a strange story for scout Sunday, but it is a
story about welcome and we’re glad to welcome you here. Thanks to the Girl
Scouts for your beautiful music. And thanks to our Cub Scouts for collecting
our food offering in a few minutes. This church is better because of what you
do here and in the community every week.
In
some ways Ruth and Naomi’s story is hard to understand. The customs and places
seem very far from our lives. At its root, though, this story is as relevant as
the news, especially as our country discusses and debates immigration policy
and social programs that support those in need. Naomi and her family immigrate
to Moab when a famine threatened their survival. Later Ruth follows her mother
in law back to Naomi’s land, where she is an immigrant herself. She left her
home and relatives behind to support her mother in law, and they make a life
together.
Women
who aren’t married, whether single or widowed like Ruth and Naomi, are still
more likely to live in poverty than men or married couples. In those days it
was even harder for women to survive on their own. That’s one of the reasons
the Bible talks about widows so often; they were one of the most vulnerable
groups in ancient times and because of that, they were (and are) especially
close to God’s heart.
We
can imagine Naomi and Ruth getting to know each other at a deeper level during
the walk back to Bethlehem and as they settle into Naomi’s old house. Soon
after they get to Bethlehem Ruth announces that she is going to do something to
keep them alive. She is going to take advantage of the harvest season by
gleaning.
Gleaning was going through someone’s field and picking up
what they had dropped or left behind. It was one of ancient Israel’s social
safety nets for people in need. God’s law taught that landowners should only go
over their fields or grapevines or olive trees once when they harvested. They
shouldn’t work until they got every last morsel; instead the grapes and grain
that they left behind were meant for the poor. In addition, landowners were not
supposed to harvest the corners of their fields at all to leave something extra
for the poor and for immigrants.
