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The Book of Ruth July 2016 1 The Book of Ruth July 2016 Session 1 An introduction to the book of Ruth. This Book is considered by many to be one of the great literary love stories and is often read as a stand alone story of rags to riches. But as we always find in the Scripture, it is not a stand-alone story to be picked out but is part of the far greater and wider picture of God’s Redemptive Plan for mankind and indeed the entire creation. It needs to be laid against the fabric of ancient Israel and the unique laws of Biblical redemption, gleaning, and levirate marriage which we will explore in this study. (There will also be some provocative surprises…as always …this is our Great God behind it all.) Again we will be studying a tiny book – 4 chapters. Why This Book? It is one of the most dramatic books of prophecy in the Bible. The ancient Jewish Scriptures often included Ruth with the book of the prophets. In Ruth, every detail not only carries this romance along, it also carries along the romance of redemption, as it gives us a perspective about God’s plan for us: We will be looking at The Goel, Kinsman-Redeemer, and Israel and the Church. Our basic theme is that these 66 books are a single message system; every book, every name, every detail is there deliberately by design. This book pro- files the New Testament in ways that will surprise you. It is an essential prerequisite for the Book of Revelation! (Chapter 5). We won’t really understand Revelation ch 5 unless we also understand this background in the Book of Ruth.

Transcript of The Book of Ruth July 2016 - Crown Community Church · 2017-03-30 · The Book of Ruth July 2016 2...

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The Book of Ruth July 2016

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The Book of Ruth July 2016 Session 1 An introduction to the book of Ruth.

This Book is considered by many to be one of the great literary love stories and

is often read as a stand alone story of rags to riches.

But as we always find in the Scripture, it is not a stand-alone story to be picked

out but is part of the far greater and wider picture of God’s Redemptive Plan

for mankind and indeed the entire creation.

It needs to be laid against the fabric of ancient Israel and the unique laws of

Biblical redemption, gleaning, and levirate marriage which we will explore in this

study. (There will also be some provocative surprises…as always …this is our

Great God behind it all.)

Again we will be studying a tiny book – 4 chapters.

Why This Book?

It is one of the most dramatic books of prophecy in the Bible. The ancient

Jewish Scriptures often included Ruth with the book of the prophets. In

Ruth, every detail not only carries this romance along, it also carries along

the romance of redemption, as it gives us a perspective about God’s plan for

us: We will be looking at The Goel, Kinsman-Redeemer, and Israel and the

Church.

Our basic theme is that these 66 books are a single message system; every

book, every name, every detail is there deliberately by design. This book pro-

files the New Testament in ways that will surprise you. It is an essential

prerequisite for the Book of Revelation! (Chapter 5). We won’t really

understand Revelation ch 5 unless we also understand this background in the

Book of Ruth.

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We will also see the distinctives between Israel and The Church.

One of the tragic by-products in Christianity today is confusion on that

subject.

God has a specific plan for Israel and a specific plan for the Church. And in a

sense they are mutually exclusive. They are parallel but separate.

Approach (For Any Scripture)

There are multiple levels of study and understanding:

1) Primary application (historical, an event that actually happened: it

occurred in the time of the Judges);

2) Practical (homiletic—application to our own lives);

3) Prophetic revelations (mystical and prophetic insights).

4) Remez: hint of something deeper.

Hermeneutics is the theory of interpretation.

There are over 200 rhetorical devices or figures of speech to be found in the

Bible. That is what similitudes in Hosea is talking about.

I have also spoken by the prophets, and I have multiplied visions, and

used similitudes, by the ministry of the prophets.

Hosea 12:10

We tend to think in Greek terms which is:-

Greek Model: Prophecy = Prediction → Fulfillment

This is what we tend to think of when using the word Prophecy. Prediction

leads to fulfilment.

That is not the Hebrew model.

Hebrew Model: Prophecy = Pattern

One of the things when you study Hebrew literature is that continually you will

see patterns and patterns of the Messiah and Israel can be seen throughout

scripture.

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We can see this clearly in Genesis ch22 when Abraham knows he is acting out

prophecy. This isn’t a prophecy being given in words but through actions. This

is patterned time and again in scripture. And of course several thousand years

later we see the fulfilment of Abrahams actions when another Father offered

up his Only Son on the same mountain.

We are going to see one of the most phenomenal patterns in the Bible within

these 4 little chapters.

Critical Links in the Chain

• Bethlehem – why is Bethlehem associated with the house of David? We

take that for granted and just accept it. But why is it? We will be looking

at that.

• The Cross – the pivotal event in the entire universe.

• To the Crown – that Jesus is destined to wear.

• To the Throne of David –is also seen in this book

• Issues:

– The Kinsman-Redeemer and what we mean by that

– The distinction between the Church and the Nation Israel

The Book of Ruth

• “In the days the judges ruled…” It opens up with ‘in the days the

judges ruled’ this is something we need to understand. This is a period after

Moses, but before the Kings. There was a whole era in which the judges ruled.

It was not a good time. It was a spiritual valley. A time of darkness in the

history of the Israelites.

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• The Ultimate Love Story But within that dark period when judges

ruled we are going to read of the ultimate love story.

• At the literary level A love story at the literal level –and strangely

enough this book is probably the most relevant book of the Old Testament

for the church today. Interestingly this book is the one that the Jewish community always reads at

the time of Shavaut. Shavaut is the only place in the feasts of Moses time

where they eat leavened bread.

So what’s that all about. There’s something going on here that we don’t always

see or think about. We will be looking at that.

• At the prophetic, personal level a love story with a strong

prophetic message. Also strong teaching at the personal and practical

levels.

• One of the most significant books for the Church Clearly when

we speak of the church prophetically or dispensationaly the Book of Ruth

will surface.

• The Role of the Kinsman-Redeemer Also because it’s so clearly

seen here the role of the Kinsman Redeemer will be studied.

And it’s an essential pre-requisite to the Book of Revelation as

previously mentioned

Outline of the Book

• Love’s Resolve Chapter 1

- Ruth cleaving to Naomi

• Love’s Response Chapter 2

– Ruth gleaning

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• Love’s Request Chapter 3 – The Threshing Floor Scene a strange scene

widely misunderstood. Most secular people reading that have no grasp

whatsoever of what is really going on there.

• Love’s Reward Chapter 4

• The Redemption of both the Land to Naomi and the Bride to Boaz.

In the Jewish liturgy, the scroll of Ruth is read on Shavuot, the Feast of

Weeks. (The only feast of Moses which uses leavened bread. ) [Source:

Pfeiffer, Charles F.: The Wycliffe Bible Commentary: Old Testament.

But out of the seven feasts that were instigated in Moses time it’s the only

one that uses leavened bread. That has to have something to say to us and

we will be looking at that.

Ruth Chapter 1

1) Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a

famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem-Judah went to sojourn in

the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons.

This first sentence tells you

• What the incident is – leaving their own land in Bethlehem-Judah

• Where it took place – Judah to Moab

• When it took place and generally – when the judges ruled, between Joshua

and the Monarchy. A time of scandals ie Samson, and the Jews were

spiritually a disappointment to God.

• How it took place – A Famine

The Famine

It was a time of famine in the land. It is one of 13 famines in the Bible.

It is the reason why the family leaves the land; but also typically speaks

of a visitation of God’s judgement: Lev 26:18-20

So Naomi and Elimelech and their 2 sons left Bethlehem Judah and went East

to Moab because there was food there.

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This was their response to God’s judgement upon Israel. They got out of there.

It may even have been a response to the spiritual condition of the country

at that time.

Famines took place during the lifetimes of

• Abraham Gen 12:10

• David 2 Samuel 21:1

• Elijah 1 Kings 17:1

• Gideon Judges 6:2-5

• The story is best placed historically in the period of Gideon

• Drought and Famine were among the judgements God said would

come upon the land as a result of failure to keep the law.

Lev 26:18-20 Deut 28:23-24

The Book of Judges provides ample evidence of their failure to keep

the Law that brought about the famine in the days of Gideon.

1. The famine had to have lasted for several years to compel

them to leave the land and go to Moab. Strangely enough the whole

process of Redemption will hang on the fact that Naomi left the land. We

will see her become a type of the Diaspora. The Jews leaving their land

and being scattered in other lands. That will become significant in our

study. In terms of the Hebrew Bible, the term "Exile" denotes the fate of the Israelites who were taken

into exile from the Kingdom of Israel during the 8th century BCE, and the Judahites from the Kingdom of Judah who were taken into exile during the 6th century BCE. While in exile, the Judahites became known as "Jews" (ְיהּוִדים, or Yehudim) - "Mordecai the Jew" from the Book of Esther being the first biblical mention of the term.

2. Ten years would pass before Naomi heard that the famine had

ended. A lot happened in that ten years including her sons getting old

enough to marry and finding wives.

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3. The Midianites oppressed Israel for seven years and the

oppression included the destruction of the produce of the soil which

would naturally follow a famine. Judges 6:3-4

The key person at first is Elimelech. ‘a certain man from

Bethlehem Judah…’ written like this because there were two Bethlehem’s.

There is a Bethlehem Zebulon and God makes sure that we have the correct

one here. It is very clear because it is very important to these events.

It is this Book that links David to the city of Bethlehem.

This little family went away to live for a while in Moab. A resident alien.

Refugee. They were foreigners among the Moabites.

Moab was the son of Lot, the evil fruit of the incestuous relation of Lot with

one of his daughters. Genesis 19:36,37

It was a dismal background: Moab

• It was the Moabites who had hired Balaam to curse Israel, during Israel’s

pilgrimage to Canaan. Numbers 22:1-8 and we know all about that from

our Bible study in Jude.

• Under normal circumstances Moabites were barred from participation in

the national, corporate life of Israel Deut 23:3-6 they were very

separate.

• However, there were friendly relations between some individual Israelites

and Moabites. When fleeing the wrath of Saul, David found a friend in

the King of Moab. 1 Sam 22:3-4

In verse 2 we get the names of the family members.

Elimelech, Naomi and sons Mahlon and Chilion.

• The names appear to be significant. Because they are so descriptive.

• Elimelech = ‘God is my King’ This is an interesting name when during the

judges they had no king and were living in darkness. Also he was named as

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a baby. Maybe his parents were one of the few families who were still

God fearing people who worshipped the Lord God.

• Naomi = ‘pleasant’ and one of the synonyms for Israel is ‘pleasant land’

So we can begin to see how her name would typify Israel. She will be seen

as a type of Israel.

• Mahlon = ‘to be sick or unhealthy. It is from the Hebrew root challah

• Chilion = ‘wasting or Pine-ing’

• The names of the two sons may give us an insight into their lives here. It

would seem that Naomi gave birth to two sickly children.

At some point Elimelech dies leaving Naomi a widow alone with her two sons far

from home. In a foreign country with no benefit system. When they left

Judah they forfeited their inheritance so she had nothing.

We are not told how far along the line they all died but we do know that

Elimelech died first. Then the sons got married and then they both died.

Vv3-5 the wives were Orpah and Ruth.

The law of Moses in Deut 7 did not forbid marriage with the Moabites. They

were told not to marry Canaanite women. But in Deut 23:3 it did say that the

Moabites could not enter into the assembly of the Lord until the 10th

generation.

We will see the wonderful grace of God at work when we come to that.

• Moab is My washbasin Ps 60:8 and 108:9 not a complimentary label

• Gentile marriage forbidden in Deut 7:2,3

• Orpah means Fawn or Gazelle

• Ruth means Friendship or Desirable.

Machlon married Ruth Ruth 4:10

Chilion married Orpah

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• And a reminder that in Moses day, it was the Moabite women who seduced

the Jewish men into immorality and idolatry. Death toll was 24,000

Numbers 25:1-9

Ruth 1:5 Machlon and Chilion died leaving Naomi destitute.

• When Elimelech left Bethlehem he lost his property (he either sold it or

lost it through indebtedness) whatever it was it was a loss to the family.

V6 Naomi heard that the Lord had come to the aid of His people’

So she prepared to go home.

She heard that the Lord had provided bread for His people

The name for Bread in Hebrew is lechem. Bethlehem (Beth-lechem)

means the house of Bread. So we see the interweaving of the names here.

There is a design going on. The names are not accidental.

Ruth 1:7-10 Naomi is telling the two girls to stay. They both said they

would come with her.

Ruth 1:11-13…are there any more sons in my womb that they may be your

husbands. She tries to talk them out of it and tells them to stay and find

new husbands.

Orpah agrees and decides to stay but Ruth remains firm in her resolve to

go with Naomi and travel to Bethlehem.

V14 says Ruth clave or clung (dabaq) to her. The Hebrew word means to

stick like glue. It’s more than just a decision, Ruth deeply loved Naomi

and was willing to give up everything she knew to stick with her.

The same cause that induced Orpah to stay in Moab was the one which

caused Ruth to go with Naomi. The fact that Naomi will no longer have a

husband or sons, meant that she needed someone to take care of her.

That’s what motivated Ruth to go with Naomi. She knew Naomi would

need someone she could rely on to take care of her.

In v 15 Naomi still tries to persuade Ruth to remain in Moab. She says

‘Orpah has gone back to her people and her gods…..’

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• The national god of Moab was called Chemosh Num 21:29; 1 Kings 11:7,33

• The god that Ruth and Orpah grew up with was also a god that accepted

human sacrifice. 2 Kings 3:26-27

• Noted in the inscription of King Mesha on the Moabite Stone. A famous

stone you can look up on internet. . It’s a black basalt memorial stone

nearly four feet high and contained about 34 lines in an alphabet similar

to Hebrew.It was discovered in 1868 by a German missionary.

• The stone was probably erected about 850 BC by the Moabite King Mesha.

King Mesha’s story is written on the stone celebrating his overthrow of

the nation of Israel although the Biblical account makes it clear that

Israel was victorious in the battle. 2 Kings 3:4-27

The passage shows that Mesha honours his god Chemosh in terms similar to the

Old Testament reverence for the Lord. This is nothing new. In Egypt they

celebrate their victory in the Yom Kippur War . Even though they got

clobbered they celebrate it as though it was a victory.

The Moabite Stone has profound Biblical relevance.

Historically it confirms old testament accounts

It is also valuable geographically because it mentions no less than 15 sites listed

in the Old Testament

The writings on the stone resemble Hebrew in which most of old testament is

written.

• Orpah was used to that culture. But it’s astonishing that Ruth feels

distinctively differently about it all.

Instead we get this Wonderful verse of scripture in v 16,17

It’s an amazing declaration .

…Thy God my God …The LORD do to me – Ruth is using the vocabulary of

Jehovah. She used the Name of Jehovah and not the name of her own god.

She is abandoning all of her pagan background.

Sevenfold Decision

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1. Wherever you go I will go

2. Where you live I will live

3. Your people will be my people

4. Your God will be my God

5. Where you will die, there I will die also

6. I will be buried where you are buried

7. The Lord deal with me very severely if anything but death separated

you and me.

It’s interesting to see the fabric throughout the entire Bible. It’s amazing how

many sevenfold declarations are in the Bible.

A similar formula is used 7 times in the books of Samuel and Kings.

By Eli concerning Samuel 1 Sam 3:17

By Saul of Jonathan’s execution 1 Sam 14:44

Of Jonathan’s friendship with David 1 Sam 20:13

By David concerning Nabal 1 Sam 25:22

By David concerning Amasa 2 Sam 19:13

By Ben-Hadad concerning Samaria 1 Kings 20:10

7) by the king of Israel regarding Elijah 2 Kings 6:31

It’s another way of seeing the deliberate design of the Bible. 66 Books by

different writers they have a single author. The Holy Spirit.

So Ruth wants to go to be with Naomi’s people.

However see the verse below:- 3 No Ammonite or Moabite or any of their descendants may enter the assembly

of the LORD, not even in the tenth generation.

Deuteronomy 23:3

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How then could Ruth enter into the congregation of the Lord? By trusting

God’s grace and throwing herself completely on His mercy. This is exactly

what she did and this is what happened here in her declaration.

The Law excludes us from God’s family, but grace includes us if we put our

faith in Christ our Kinsman Redeemer.

• The genealogy of Jesus Christ (Matthew 4) includes the names of

five women, four of whom have very questionable credentials:

1) Tamar committed incest with her father-in-law (Gen 38:3)

2) Rahab was a Gentile harlot (Josh 2:5) and the mother of Boaz incidently.

3) Ruth was an outcast Gentile Moabitess (Ruth 1:5)

4) “The wife of Uriah” was an adulteress (2 Sam 11:6)

• How did they ever become a part of the family of the Messiah?

• Through the sovereign grace and mercy of God! (The same way we did.)

• God is “long-suffering toward us, not willing that any should perish

but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet 3:9).

What God really wants and longs for He does not get. Do all come to

repentance? No.

So despite His extreme measures to reach out and make provision on our

behalf He still doesn’t get what He really wants.

God has gone to incredible extremes for you and me in order for us to

become a part of His family.

But here we have Ruth. How did she become part of the family tree. The

same way we did.

18 When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking

to her.

19 Now the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem. And it happened,

when they had come to Bethlehem, that all the city was excited because of

them; and the women said, “Is this Naomi?”

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This would make a journey of about 75 mi., and not a straight or level path. It

meant they would have to descend from the Moabite Highlands to the Jordan

Valley, a descent of 4,500 feet, followed by an ascent to Bethlehem of 3,750

feet, walking through desert territory, through the Wilderness of Judah.

This was quite a journey and as it’s all explained in just one verse we maybe

don’t see it. And it was just the two of them.

They were going to Bethlehem the House of Bread.

20 “Don’t call me Naomi,[b]” she told them. “Call me Mara,[c] because the

Almighty[d] has made my life very bitter. 21 I went away full, but the LORD has

brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted[e] me; the

Almighty has brought misfortune upon me.”

Remember that Naomi means Pleasant now she calls herself Mara which means

bitter. Ex 15:22-27

The Lord Almighty – El Shaddai – The Provider. Although translated as

Almighty it is El Shaddai the Lord our Provider. It is a name for God used 48

times in the Old Testament and 31 of those are found in the Book of Job.

22 So Naomi returned from Moab accompanied by Ruth the Moabite, her

daughter-in-law, arriving in Bethlehem as the barley harvest was beginning.

The closing phrase is intended as a positive thing. It’s always important when

studying the Bible is to have knowledge of the Jewish calendar.

The Harvest could be reaped sometimes as early as March but generally in April

in Abib. The barley harvest is the first hint of something joyful. Up until now

this whole experience has been pretty dark. The famine, the leaving everything

behind, the deaths it’s all been really bad. But there’s a change coming. So

they come at the time of the barley harvest. So it’s also obvious that the

famine is over and there is a provision of food.

The Jew’s catechism is his calendar Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch

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If you are going to understand the Jewishness of the Bible you need to have a

feeling for the calendar.

They have a Heptatic Calendar ( sevenfold)

A week of days Shabbat

A week of weeks Shavuot

A week of months The Religious Year (a 7 month cycle)

A week of years The Sabbatical Year (one year in 7 the ground is to be

left to rest)

Seven weeks plus 1 The Jubilee Year

• All land reverts back to its owners

• All slaves go free

• All debts forgiven

• The time of restitution of all things Acts 3:21

One thing to understand is that you didn’t sell land. We think of selling

land as a contract and you get the title of that land.

The Jews didn’t do it like that. This is because the land belonged to the

Lord. What you could sell was the right to use the land. We call that a

Lease. You charge for its use for a number of years. When they sold land

they sold the use of the land for a period of time. If it was sold maybe

out of necessity or desperation for cash they sold it but then a relative

could come and redeem the land and pay what was owing on the other

persons behalf. This will help us understand how the system worked for

the Jew and how that benefitted Ruth. She would regain the land she

lost.

But when a Jubilee year arrived all land would revert back to the owners.

This is important to remember is that all these appointed times have been set

by the Lord. Redemption does not only refer to ourselves and being saved from

sin but God’s even bigger plan is the redemption of the earth, His creation as a

whole.

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Hence the New Heavens and New Earth still to come.

The Appointed Times ~ydI[]Amh

And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide

the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and

for days, and years:

This world does not run on chance. God has foreordained events which

are key to His overall plan.

Genesis 1:14

• “seasons”: ~ydI[]Amh “the appointed times”

“Appointed Times” in Leviticus 23

Any Jew will know there are 70 of these appointed times.

52 Sabbaths (Saturday’s)

+ 7 Days of Passover (including its related feast days)

+ 1 Shavuot, Feast of Weeks (Pentecost)

+ 1 Yom Teruah, Feast of Trumpets

+ 1 Yom Kippur, Day of Atonement

+ 7 days of Sukkot, Feast of Tabernacles

+ 1 Shimini Atzeret, 8th Day of Assembly

=70 appointed times (God has set them and ordained them)

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If you take the ‘appointed times’ (The Hebrew word is moed: appointed time, place,

or meeting Original Word: מֹוֵעד

• As an Equidistant Letter Sequence, it appears only once in Genesis.

• Statistical expectation: 5 times in the 78,064 letters of Genesis.

• It appears only once, at an interval of 70.

• It is centred on Genesis 1:14.

• Odds against this by unaided chance have been estimated at greater

than 70,000,000 to one!

GOD’S PLAN FOR THE CHURCH AND THE JEWISH PEOPLE MOADIM - THE APPOINTED TIMES

God was designing and creating His divine calendar on the fourth day of creation. The purpose was and is to

teach us about His plan of redemption through Yeshua the Messiah. "And God said, Let there be lights in the

firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for

days, and years". (Gen.1:14) God’s calendar is based on the moon, lunar time. Today, we observe the

Babylonian calendar, which is based on the sun, solar time, but God’s calendar hasn’t changed. God is the

same yesterday, today, and forever. A key word that we must understand in Genesis 1:14 is seasons. This word

has been translated and interpreted incorrectly for centuries. The root meaning of the word season is the

Hebrew word "moade or moadim", it means "an appointed time, a festival." In the Hebrew Stone’s Edition

Tanach, (O.T.) Genesis 1:14 translates "… and they shall serve as signs, and for festivals, and for days and

years." Psalm 104:9 "God appointed the moon for seasons" the word seasons again is "moadim" which is

"appointed times, festivals." Therefore, we can say God appointed the moon to determine the appointed times

and festivals. In the ancient times the prophets and the apostles looked to the moon to determine the time of the

month. They understood that the new moon marks the beginning of a month, and a full moon the middle of a

month. This was the ancient and God inspired method of counting months. We need to realize that these

"moadim-appointed times" were set in the earth prior to the creation of any living being. God had already created

a timetable for His children to meet with Him. God does not make mistakes, nor does He change His mind. In

the Amplified Bible Genesis 1:14 says, "Let them be signs, and tokens (these lights) of God’s provident care".

Provident care points to a sign of God’s covenant. These appointed times are signs of God’s agreement with us,

that He is our God and we are His people.

Also as we go through the Book of Ruth we also need to be aware of

theAgricultural Calendar

Agricultural Calendar/Wet Spring

• Gregorian Calendar: March-April

• Jewish Calendar: (1) Nisan (Early: Abib)

• Farming Calendar: Latter rains

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– Barley harvest

– Flax harvest

• Special Days:

– Nisan 14 Passover Lev 23:5

– Nisan 15-21 Unleavened Bread Lev 23:6-8

– Nisan* Firstfruits Lev 23:9-14 * Sunday following Passover

Agricultural Calendar/Dry Spring

• Gregorian Calendar: April-May

• Jewish Calendar: (2) Iyyar (early: Ziv)

• Farming Calendar: Dry season begins

Agricultural Calendar/Early Summer

• Gregorian Calendar: May-June

• Jewish Calendar: (3) Sivan

• Farming Calendar: – Early figs ripen

– Vine tending

• Special Days: Sivan 6 Shavuot Lev23:15-22

– 50 days after firstfruits

• In the Jewish liturgy, the scroll of Ruth is read on Shavuot, the Feast

of Weeks.

Agricultural Calendar/Summer

• Gregorian Calendar: June-July

• Jewish Calendar: (4) Tammuz

• Farming Calendar: – Wheat harvest/ – First ripe grapes

Agricultural Calendar/Late Summer

• Gregorian Calendar: July-August

• Jewish Calendar: (5) Av • Special Days: Av Day of mourning: Both Temples

destroyed, time of mourning• Special Days: Av Day of mourning:

• Farming Calendar: Grape harvest begins/ends in October*

(* Without refrigeration, no grape juice in the spring…they can only produce

wine)

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Agricultural Calendar/Early Autumn

• Gregorian Calendar: August-September

• Jewish Calendar: (6) Elul

• Farming Calendar: Dates/Summer figs

Agricultural Calendar/Late Autumn

• Gregorian Calendar: September-October

• Jewish Calendar: (7) Tishri (Early: Ethanim)

(1st month on Genesis Calendar; 7th after Ex 12)

• Farming Calendar: Early rains

• Special Days:

– Tishri 1 Trumpets Lev 23:23-25

– Tishri 10 Yom Kippur Lev 16; 23:26-32

– Tishri 15-21 Succot/ Lev 23: 33-36

Tabernacles

These are the times and seasons God has ordained.

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Summary: Ruth Cleaving - Chapter 1

• “In the days the judges ruled…”

• Famine drives family to Moab

– Elimelech (“God is my King”) He dies

– Naomi (“Pleasant” (Land?) she is left destitute

– Mahlon (“Unhealthy”; “to blot out”)

– Chilion (“Puny”; “to perish”)

• Naomi deters daughters-in-law from following

– Orpah (“Fawn”) [Ultimately returns]

– Ruth (“Desirable”) [Remains with Naomi]

Study Ruth Chapter 2. Study also: Law of Gleaning (Lev 19:9, 10; Deut

24:19, 21).

This then sets the stage for ch 2.

The law of gleaning is worth looking at. It’s the Jewish way of dealing with

welfare of the poor. Leviticus 19 and Deuteronomy 24 lays out this concept.

A landowner with his harvesters could pass through his land only once to

harvest. What they missed was left for the destitute, the widows and orphans.