← Don't Miss This Study
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Hi, there. Welcome to Don't Miss this, a scripture study podcast with Dave Butler and Grace Freeman.
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Each week, we point out things in the scriptures that we love and think you don't want to miss.
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Thanks for listening. Hi, there. I'm Dave Butler.
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I'm Grace Freeman. Welcome to Don't Miss this, our scripture study time together.
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I feel like you always need a line right there, Grace.
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B
So here we are.
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Here we are all together. Welcome, welcome, welcome. If it's your first time, we move through the scriptures just a little bit at a time. We're in the Old Testament this year, pointing out things we think you don't want to miss. Because we love scripture. We love little verses in scripture. We. Words in scripture. We just. This is great. And hopefully, above all, it helps you fall in love with the God of scripture. That's our hope, our wish for everybody listening. And it'll happen today because it's such a. Like what I was gonna say. What? What? So, like, a banger chapter felt a little too aggressive. A really good chapter felt sor. Of lame to say good. We're in the Book of Ruth today. Everybody saying that we love everyone. Name a week when we didn't end up loving it.
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B
We haven't all.
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Just last week was Judges, and people think they hate the judges until they listened and read. And they love the judges, especially Samson. All right. And Gideon and Deborah. All right, now, Ruth, Ruth today, Baby Ruth. So open up your journal. We're going to be talking about this page about redemption in just a second at the end of Ruth. So we're in a little bit of Ruth and a little bit of the story of Samuel today also. Oh. So let's just add this first. It's the piece that goes on your timeline. If you're wondering what that is, it's. It's the temple tabernacle. And you'll find out that Samuel lives at it. So this is sort of the symbol for the life of Samuel that we get introduced to him. It's sort of a transition time in the Bible. He's. He's essentially going to become the last judge of Israel before we move into the Kings. So he kind of is a significant spot in the history. And so this little temple thing, you're going to put on your timeline on June 1, right after the Judges won. Okay. Okay. I just was putting that on and leaning to do that. Okay. All right. So let's open up to the Book of Ruth first, and we'll just kind of tell the story of this book. We said this last week, but here it is again. A tip. If you're going to be reading a storybook, and storybook style, another translation of the Bible might be really helpful. There's some verses in Ruth that I think have to be written. I mean, I'm sorry, read in the King James, the ones that we're going to get to where she makes a promise to her mother in law. So those for sure you have to read. It just is better, right?
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Sometimes that's just true.
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A
Yeah, it's just prettier. It's prettier. But to really understand what's happening in the story, I think it's best to read it in another version of the Bible. But let's lay down the story real fast and then we'll talk about two kind of big theme lessons that we love from the Book of Ruth. Once upon a time, there was a lady named Ruth. That's how it all begins. Shout out to my dad, by the way, for the Book of Ruth, because he got called as a gospel doctor and teacher right when they were on the Book of Ruth. And he called me and he was like, who's even Ruth? Like, that's my first lesson. It's great. So if you're like my dad, but this is four years. He loves Ruth now. All right. And you don't know the story of Ruth. It's. It's happens kind of during the time of the judges, so it belongs right here. But it's almost this independent story. It's almost just like this, like when they have a TV series of one of the main characters and they get their own series or whatever. So Ruth is from Moab. Her, the family she marries into. Naomi and her husband live in Bethlehem. They're from Bethlehem and they move and leave Bethlehem because there's a famine in Bethlehem and they come into the land of Moab, which is right next door to Israel. And what you have to know is Moab has this sketchy past and they are sworn enemies to the house of Israel. So moving in is not just difficult because now you're an immigrant into this other nation, but you're actually moving into enemy territory. So the family moves in and they actually settle in and they end up. The two sons of Naomi and her husband end up marrying two Moabite women. And one of those Moabite women is Ruth. Am I telling this in a non confusing way or is it. I feel like I need like little characters to, you know, show. It's like, here's the. Naomi and her husband move into Moab. Their two sons marry Moabite ladies. Okay. Then disaster strikes their family. And Naomi's husband dies first. And then the two boys, her two sons, both die. So now who you have have left in Ruth, chapter one, is Naomi, the mother in law, and her two daughter in laws, Ruth and Orpah. And Ruth says, I'm moving back to Bethlehem. I'm sorry, she doesn't say that. Well, she does in a second. I'm sorry, Naomi. Naomi says, I'm moving back to Bethlehem and you girls need to go find a new family to marry into because, sorry, like, I, I just, I'm fine on my own. I'm going back to Bethlehem and I got to go. And they both resist and she insists. And Orpah ends up leaving. And then Ruth stays and says, no way. There's no way you're going back alone. I am going to go back with you. So they go back together and they settle into Bethlehem. And while they're there in Bethlehem, Ruth is taking care of Naomi. And in the midst of taking care of Naomi, she meets this man whose name is Boaz. And Boaz takes a liking to her and they fall in love with each other. And Ruth and Boaz get married and they all live happily ever after. Okay, there's the story.
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It's a little love story in the middle of the Old Testament. You just get a little love story.
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And it really is, darling, it's only four. It's four chapters. You can read the full story all the way through now.
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It's all happy. It's just a happy story.
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The Old Testament needed this for real at this point. When we got to the Book of Judges, when a man was blind, pulling down pillars on top of the whole temple of David. No, it was like what we needed is a woman who, who just gleans in the wheat fields and marries Boaz.
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Yep, it was perfect.
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Here it came at the perfect timing. So one of the things we want to talk about with the Book of Ruth is I think you could label this book, the entire book, as a book of radical generosity, of love beyond the law, Love outside the lines. That's the, that's the best title. I've just settled on it. Love outside the lines. Because what you find all throughout this book are people just live with. Paul uses a phrase with fervent charity. And it might be Peter who uses that phrase in the New Testament, but Paul would have also fervent charity. Just the kind of love that just again, just passes expectation and, and, and anticipation. And there's just a lot of it in this book. It's a book of kindness. It's a book of generosity. So first we wanna talk a little bit about that. And what do you wanna say about that, Grace?
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That's one of my favorite parts about this whole entire story. And it starts at the very beginning, I think, when Ruth looks at her mother in law and says, why would I ever walk away from you? And I love to think of Naomi's perspective because she would have looked at Ruth and said, you have no business doing that. You have no need. I just gave you no obligation to stand.
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Yeah. Legally I release you. Any sort of, like, legal or, you know, cultural expectation.
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She broke that up, right. She said, you, you're good. You do.
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And no. And no one dogs orpah.
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No.
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The girl who left because you're like, oh, Naomi said, you'll ruin your life if you come with me.
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Yeah. And I like, already. I think that is so sweet about Naomi to like, look at those two girls and say, like, I want what's best for you. So even though it's not what's best for me, I want you to go find a better life than the one that I can offer you.
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Which is in itself that type of love. Yeah, Right.
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Love outside the lines of love. That doesn't make sense. Reckless almost love.
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Yeah. Yeah. Because what's she gonna do?
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Yeah.
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She's older lady going to live back.
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She was letting go of any hope she had for any sort of goodness in her life.
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Yeah. And because of the laws of the land. And the laws of the land were based off the nature of things back then, which is men were landholders. And the reason they were is because generally it was a man's job to work the land and also to protect the land. And that's why it was usually in their name, because those two require, like, people. There were marauders. Okay. There were thieves and enemies back then. There are some today, but not like there were back then. So you had to work and protect. And that's why this widowed woman, older widowed woman, she's not getting married again. She has no sons to take care of her. Genuinely, what's she gonna do? Yeah.
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B
So already her letting them go is remarkable in and of itself. But Ruth deciding to stay might be one of the sweetest things of all time. Like, that is a kindness in this book that seems unbelievable. And the reason I like it so much is because in my head, I just think, like, she had every reason to walk away. She had no business staying with Naom. She did. Anyway. And like a year ago, my mom pulled out her journals from when she was, like, growing up. And I sat and I read my mom's journals for probably three hours one day. It was my best day ever. It was the funnest day of my whole entire life. I was obsessed with it. And one of the things that I love that my mom did is that she would just write down poems. And like, anytime she, like, not like, ones that she wrote, like, she would just, like, hear. I don't even know where she was hearing these poems, okay? But she would just. There was no Pinterest. I don't know where she got poems, but she would just write them in the margins of her journal. Or, like, song lyrics. She would just, like, write them and spell them all out. And for some reason, out of everything in the journal. I loved the stories. I loved all the boy drama. I loved all the silly things that she wrote down, but I loved knowing what was going on in the back of her mind, like the poems and the song lyrics. And there was one that I immediately took a picture of. And then I started searching for the book that she found in it. I didn't know, but, like, I, like, started doing research and, like, tried to find it, and I found it. It's my favorite quote of all time about love in the history of the world. And this is what it says. I have no business being in your life, but I am not here on business. I am here on love. And love transacts without permission. Love does not phone ahead or even knock. It just shows up and sits down and takes over. It let me in and wrote me in red all over your calendar. And so although I have no business being in your life, I may stay anyway. And that to me is Ruth.
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Oh, yeah, that line that you just said is, somebody at. I just took a trip to India. A tour to India. As you know, everybody. I took a tour to India. And while we were there, we spent a day at Rising Star, which is an organization that cares for communities that have been afflicted by leprosy, which is still a big problem, believe it or not there. And we had to travel three hours by plane, then three hours by bus to get out to this remote area where we were just mingling with the people in these communities and learning each other's stories and falling in love with each other. And kind of the director there said to me, he was like this, you people have no business knowing each other. You're from the opposite ends of the world. This Occasion should have never happened or worked out. And yet it is. It's happening and it's working out. So I love that line that, like, you know, go ahead. No, no, no.
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I just love the idea of. In business, there are rules and there are expectations and there are lines that you don't cross. And in love, love erases all of those things and it says, no, I don't care what my expectations are. I don't care what any of this is. Like, I am here to care about you.
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And isn't it interesting that love is the is. And maybe I said this on here before because it's a thought that's been on my mind since that India trip. But that love, love's the virtue that you can't overdo, right? Like, there's nobody who says, like, no, you love too much, or that, you know, they might be like, sheepish to receive that kind of love, but love is like just the virtue that you can't overdo. And you just see it here, Ruth, when she doesn't go, when she should stay in Moab, she speaks Moabish, okay? And she's from Moab and would be
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going to enemy territory.
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Right? Right. And she would be really honest to goodness putting her life on the line by going back into that land. And what kind of life is she going to have taking care of her Israelite mother in law right in this place? Like as these poor, no husbands, no kids, no. No, no nothing. Right. No protection, no. No land, no just. And she's going to do it. And do you want to, you want to read her line? Somebody should read her line in the king James in 16. Yeah. And it should be you. Oh, before you read it, 14 is such a good verse. It's over.
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I was wondering if you were going to say 14 or 16. That's why I asked, because they're both so cute.
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I'll do 14. 16 is better. Okay, so you get the good one. But when she lifted up her voice, it says, they wept again. This is their goodbye. And it says, and Orpah kissed her mother in law, but Ruth clave unto her. And I just. Again, nobody discredits Orpah here, but I just, I love that there's this. Like, she kissed her, which is sweet, but Ruth clave under her. Ruth gave her life to her. Ruth committed herself to her. Through. Through whatever. Whatever happens. No. No matter. No matter what. And that's why these verses that Grace is about to read in the King James, which is where it has to be read, because It's a love poem, is quoted at Christian weddings every day of every year of every decade. Because even though it's a love between a daughter in law and mother in law, it's just the phrase that describes committed covenantal love.
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It's so beautiful. And Ruth said, entreat me not to leave thee.
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I thought you were about to go into a British accent when you said, not. This is about to be.
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So I do a whole presentation, I do a whole show.
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I'm like here because it really should be read in a British accent. We just didn't have any Brits on hand. Okay.
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Who do we know? Entreat me not to leave thee or to return from following after thee. For whither thou goest, I will go, and where thou lodgest, I will lodge. Thy people shall be my people and thy God, my God. And it just honestly, like even the next one, where thou diest will I die, and there will I be buried, and the Lord do so to me. And where also, if I ought but death part thee and me. And that is the type of love that says, I don't care what any of my other business is. You are the only thing that matters now.
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So great. And now there's something in that that's actually particularly special, that end of 17, the Lord do so to me and more also, anytime you see that phrase show up in scripture, it's actually going to show up in the book of 1st Samuel in something we're getting to in a second. That is covenantal language. That's a code phrase for recognizing we are speaking covenantal language. And the word that she uses, the Lord, remember in your scriptures it's capital L, O, R D, which means she is making this promise in the name of Jehovah. So she is now, this is now confirmed converted commitment. She's like, I, I am now following your faith. And what I love about this, I was thinking about this this morning, is this is a covenantal promise that she's making. And I just love that we talk about making covenants, but this describes what the heart and soul of our covenants is. And that's people, and that is taking care of people. This covenantal promise shows us that the covenant is kindness. Right? That would be a great way to sum up. You know, it's like, I've made covenants and it's like, what kind? I have made covenants of kindness. When I was baptized, I made a covenant of kindness to look out for people, to encourage people to lift their burdens, to take care of people. When I'm married, I make a covenant of kindness to treat Jenny better than anyone else that there is in the world. When I go through the temple and I make a covenant of kindness that I will take the message of help and salvation to the rest of the world. I just think I love that this is covenantal language and that it's couched in kindness because I think that's what in their. In their heart and soul. That's what the covenants are. They're covenants of loyalty to God and to others.
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B
And I think that there is room to be said that I love that the reason Ruth begins to believe is because of Naomi. And I understand, like having your own personal witness and like that needs to be personal and individual. But I don't think we should discredit the influence that other people can have in our belief. And that Ruth loved Naomi so much that she said, I will believe what you believe. How could I not? Because I love you. So what you love, I love. And I don't know why I'm being quote girl today. I'm just loving all these things. But one of my other favorite quotes of all time, I think I might have read it on here before, so sorry if this is a repeat, but I think about this. I'm not kidding you, I think about this probably every day. And it says, I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn't resolve. But I was outside the Baghdad Theater in Portland one night when I saw a man playing the saxophone. I stood there for 15 minutes and he never opened his eyes. After that, I liked jazz music. Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you can love it yourself. It is as if they are showing you the way. I used to not like God, because God didn't resolve. But that was before any of this happened. And I just think that keep being quote girl. I know.
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A
Yeah, that was a good one.
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That is so good, huh? And I just love to imagine that. Cute.
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Cute.
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B
Dear Ruth, who looked at her mother in law and said, you showed me what it means to love God and how could I not? And maybe Ruth never did before. Who's to say? But in that moment she decided, you taught me what it looks like to love God. And how could I not? And I think that that really is actually the result of unbelievable kindness. You can't help but believe in something bigger. When you experience love like that, you.
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A
Yeah, and then. Okay, and then it keeps going, you guys. It just is the. When they go back into Bethlehem. Okay, if you read in chapter Two, as you read the story, you're just going to find that Ruth is going to be gleaning in the fields. Verse 3, chapter 2, verse 3. And she went in and she came and she gleaned in the field after the reapers. Something that you have to know about ancient Israel is there were. There were laws in ancient Israel that were compassion laws. Is. Is what they were. Is. It was sort of this. I'm trying to find this phrase that I wrote down. I really liked it while I was studying. But. Oh, structured compassion. Okay. The gleaning law was a structured compassion, and it was in the law of Israel, you had to leave the corners of your field unharvested because what if there were widows or those who were down and out or those who had lost their land? You always. It was just structured into the law that it was. And anything that you dropped as you were collecting it, you had to leave on the ground for people to come behind you and pick that up. I just want to live in that. I want to live in that place. I want to. You know, in fact, this is kind of interesting and I hope, man, as I was just thinking, I was like, I hope this doesn't come across wrong, but I was reading this on Sunday about just the gleaning, and I was, you know, about that structured compassion. And I said, oh, I actually belong to a church that has structured compassion that says, hey, we're going to kind of have this thing where once a month people will fast and they'll pay and they'll pay money for that fast. And we'll collect it all together and we'll use it to take care of people who are down and out. And I just think it's nice to have these one off kindnesses and one off acts of compassion. But there's something pretty remarkable about a structured compassion.
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B
And that doesn't make it inauthentic.
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No.
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It makes it accessible.
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A
Yeah. Yeah.
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B
And I think sometimes we get in our head and we're like, oh, that's like, it wasn't even your idea. You're not even doing that. You feel forced to do that. And it says, no, no, you still have a choice. Yeah, you have a choice about participating in that, but it makes it accessible to you.
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A
Yeah. In fact, I like you guys. I don't have a good schedule of when to, you know, we should pay. I want to pay fast offerings on the 1st of every month. That's like a good reminder when I always forget or whatever. But I was reading the story of Ruth and it Actually inspired me. I was like, I actually want to participate in that right now, you know, and so I opened up my phone and I was like, I want to pay a fast server. I can't remember the last time I did. You know, it could have been yesterday. Just because I can't be in charge of the budget or anything that's happening. And that's the part I didn't want to come across. Right. I didn't want to say like, and I paid my fast offerings. But reading this story actually did inspire me. I was like, I want to participate in something like this. The kindness. What I'm trying to say is the kindness that was shown in this story, like, made me want to be kinder, you know, because you have that. And then you have Boaz that you meet, who sees this girl, this single girl, and he's like, who is that lady? And finds out about her. And then as you read in chapters two and three, you're going to find out that he just makes sure she has extra of everything that she needs. And he says, make sure she has protectors and make sure you actually drop extra for her. And just as you read it, you just are like, these two were meant for each other. All three of them were meant for each other because they just lived this. This law of radical kindness and compassion,
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B
which does make you wonder how contagious is that, you know? Yeah, because there is just something about, like, I just don't think it was probably an accident that those three found each other. And I do think that radical kindness attracts radical kindness. And the more you do, the more you are, the more people you experience that are willing to do the same.
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A
Yeah, I think I. I can't remember if I said this on here, but I read this study about two years ago where it was like a little quiz first before they gave you the results of the study. And it was just like, if you did something kind, should you post that on. On Instagram or do you post that on Instagram? And, you know, I think the right answer to that is, no, I don't want to. Like, your right hand shouldn't know what your left hand doeth, you know, or whatever. Like, you want to keep that to yourself. And it actually was. The study was that people who do that, actually the amount of good that they inspire others to do, that's so interesting. It still feels sheepish to post it, you know, a little bit to me, but I actually appreciate when people do, because when I see people doing it, I'm like, oh, that actually does work. I, you know, and I don't think about them like, show off.
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B
Yeah.
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A
You know, I actually think like, wow, hold on, I want to do that. How can I get involved? How can I, you know, so anyways, if that helps, you want to, you know, kind of post some of those things, it actually does a lot more good than we think. So that's the theme, the best theme about this book, the second best theme about this book is the idea of a redeemer. This is a redemption story. In fact, in this book, it's kind of a book that a lot of people point to as to find the definition of redeemer. So that's a word that we normally associate as a salvation word. But redeemer was a legal word back in the system that they had in these times. And it was somebody who would bring someone back to their favored status. So like we said earlier that women didn't hold land and that the husband was meant to protect and work the land. And then if he died, there were sons and, you know, children, all these things. So if you had a woman who was unmarried and or had no children, then what? The system, the law, the structured capacity was she could have a redeemer and a redeemer would come in, marry into, and take on that responsibility of taking over the family. So in this story, Boaz is called a redeemer. And I know again, we associate that word with. With Jesus and for good reason, but it comes from this idea. The reason we call Jesus a redeemer is because there was the idea in the past that somebody was had no land or promise. They had no identity anymore, they had no protection anymore. And someone could come in and bring them back into favor and bring them back into all of those things, which is what the role of Jesus is, to be a redeemer. So if you open up your journal, these boxes are spots in the story that all kind of point to that theme of redemption in the story. So you wanna start either way? You tell me. Yeah, go ahead. Okay, I just talked for a second.
- [26:20]
B
We're gonna start with Naomi. And what happens when she goes back to Moab is I think one of the. I don't know why this is such a tender story to me, but I think it just reminds you, like so often in this story we're focused on Ruth that we forget about the grief and the depth of the mother in law. And she goes back and she says to them, all the people that she used to know, and she says, stop calling me Nails. That's not who I am anymore. She says, call me Mara, which means bitter. And she says, because the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me, this is who I am now. I lost my husband. I lost my sons. I lost the future that I was building. I lost my goals and my dreams and everything I've ever counted on. God took that away from me. He really just did. I went out full. This verse, I think, is one of the most. I don't know why it makes me want to cry so much when I read about it. It's just so sweet. And you can just hear her whole heart. And she says, I went out full, and the Lord brought me home again, empty. So why would you ever call me Naomi, seeing as the Lord testified against me and he afflicted me? And that's. That's just true about mortality, is that there are days that we say, I gave it my everything. I gave everything I had. I left and I had so much, and I was doing so well, and things were going so good for me. And now it's all gone, and I am empty, and everything has been taken from me. And the only person who was in charge of that is God. And the only option I have left to be is bitter. I'm not who I was. I am just simply sad. I'm angry. I'm hurt. And I love that. That's after Ruth decides to go with her. Because I think sometimes we, like, are so proud of Ruth for going with Naomi. And it's really beautiful that we think, like, oh, Naomi was fine. Like, that's so lucky. At least she had her daughter. Like, she's gonna be okay. And I think we do that in life with people, too. When something tragic happens and we look and we try to find, like, the one good thing that happened after the tragedy. And we say, no. Like, they're gonna be okay. It's all gonna be all right. Like, they're fine because this happened. And I think it, for me, is just, like, a little tiny moment to remember. Like, they might not be. And healing doesn't happen overnight. And grief isn't resolved in one day or after one good thing that stays with you and it makes marks on your heart. That's true about grief. But what I love is that through the rest of this story, Naomi isn't forgotten. And that's the redemption, to me, about her, is that she walked into a situation and said, I am bitter and I am empty. And throughout the rest of the story, even though. Though Ruth is the focus, Naomi is never forgotten. And I think it's important to remember that in the days and the moments, in the circumstances that may seem to turn our hearts bitter, we will not be forgotten.
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A
Yeah. You know, in just a minute, we're going to read Hannah's story, which has a lot of similarities to this one, and their speaking of grief is pretty similar. But I was just thinking as you were talking, you know that line that just kind of famous, that it's, how does it go? That it's better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all, you know, and I think it's like that movie Men in Black.
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B
I was thinking of Spider man. So at least we were both doing the movie.
- [30:07]
A
Someone says that to him because he, you know, he lost his wife in the movie and. And, you know, his younger, you know, partner says to him, companion or whatever, they're working together. What do you call it? Co worker Will Smith says to him that, quote, you know, it's better to have loved and lost and never loved at all. And he says back to him, he's like, yeah, try it. And you have a particular kind of loss here in Hannah's story. You'll find out. We'll find out in a second that, you know, she's grieving over something that she's never had, something that she wishes for and hopes for. And in this story, you have a person who, just like I did have it, I was full and now I am empty. And there's a particular kind of grief there, right? There's a kind of grief there that you have to grieve the life that you created in your head and the future that you created in your head that you had in front of you. And that's going to come full circle at, you know, at the end. But this next little box, Ruth 2:12, is such a fantastic verse. And I think it just kind of is saying what you were saying grace a second ago, which is Boaz is speaking to Ruth and he says to her, the Lord recompense thy work and a full reward be given thee of the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings thou art come to trust. And I think part of this redemption story is this moment right here where there is a promise given that the Lord will recompense thy work, that he. Because in the verse right before Boaz says to Ruth her whole story to her, right? He's like, I already know your story. And that makes me think about what you're saying about God knowing ours. He's like, I know how things are currently in the Promises. I will recompense I will make up for this. I will make up for every thing you lost and for every hard thing that happened. That is a promise that the Lord makes to his covenant children. I'm going to make up for this and a full reward is going to be given to you. And then I just love that Almost. Advice in 12. He says, under whose wings thou art come to trust. So that is a future reward and that's a future recompense in chapter two. But in the meantime, you can live under his wings of trust and those wings of protection. So I love seeing that as part of this and I think I want to add on to that. Verse three, chapter two, verse three. And she went and came and gleaned in the field after the reapers. And her hap was to light on a part of the field belonged to Boaz. And a better English of that is she just so happened to come across Boaz's land. Who you're going to find out later is their next of kin who has the legal right to be their redeemer. And they don't know it yet. And it's just interesting, the scriptures say it. And she just so happened of all the fields in Bethlehem, to stump stumble upon his and to stumble under his watch. And I think, of course this is not an accident. And that verse is kind of evidence of he does have you under his wings while you're in the waiting.
- [33:30]
B
Oh, so good. I'm needing a reminder.
- [33:32]
A
Yeah, I'm sorry.
- [33:33]
B
You're fine. Not worried. Oh, well, look, at least now I get the rest of Naomi's story. So I should have just waited. I didn't know if it was going to happen. And now it did. And now you see the redemption for Naomi. And this is in Ruth 3:17. And she says, these six measures of barley he gave me, for he said to me, go not empty unto your mother in law. And to me. I am a words girl. I'm a words of affirmation girl. I probably got it from my mom writing poems in her journal. I love words. I love poems. I love things like that. And I love that the scriptures are authored so, so good. Like, it's just like such good writing. And I like that is so lucky for a girl like me. But I love that Naomi described her life as feeling empty and the answer of her redemption was someone else showing up and saying, don't worry, he promised that he would not let you go empty. He will not let you stay the way that you are. And I think that it's interesting to Me, at least, that her emptiness was not resolved by herself, that Naomi felt empty and she felt like she had lost everything and she was sad and heartbroken and living in grief. And I think there's something beautiful to be said about she didn't solve that on her own. Someone else showed up and said, let me fill the empty parts of your soul. And I think that's often true for grief and sadness is. I think we try so hard in our hearts to fix it ourself. But I do think true healing comes from outside. And I think it's angels that God sends. And I think it is the grace and mercy and kindness of Jesus Christ that heals us. But I love that when we are left empty, he will send someone to fill us back up.
- [35:27]
A
Yeah. That's so sweet. And then that Last box, chapter 4, verses 14 and 15, is the end of all of their story, right? And it says, and the women said, now, now, just so you know, Boaz and Ruth got married and Ruth had a baby, and now Naomi has land again, she has a son again, and she has a grandchildren again. And everything that was lost in the beginning has now been restored to her. When you get to chapter four and the end of that. And it's interesting because. And the women said unto Naomi, blessed be the Lord which hath not left thee this day without. And I usually stop that reading right there because not many of us need a kinsman in 14, right? But if we remember that. That kinsman. Kinsman is a redeemer. Another way to say that is redeemer. Then listen to this. Blessed be the Lord which hath not left thee this day without a redeemer. And that's true. This is the end of everybody's story that we will not be left without that we have a redeemer. I want to point out this other verse real quick, which is verse six in that story, because in the story, as you read it in chapter four, Boaz is not the very next of kin. There's another person, and legally there was this other gentleman, we don't have his name, who had the first right to buy the family land back for them. And so Boaz goes to him and says, hey, I'm just respecting the law here and saying, do you want to buy this land back for this family? And he says, yeah. And then he says, well, as part of that, you have to marry Ruth, you know, and take on the full responsibility if you do that. And then he says in verse 6, and that other guy said, I cannot redeem it. For myself, lest I mar my own inheritance, you know, like it'll do negative to me, redeem now my right to thyself. I don't want to do it, for I cannot redeem it. And I think this is where in verses like this you begin to see that this, this book of Ruth, the sweet book of Ruth is, is pointing our hearts and minds toward our great, the great Redeemer. That there are others in our story who say I, one, I don't want to redeem your story. And two, it'll cost me too much. And two, I don't know if I can do it. And how blessed be the name of the Lord that all of us are not going to be left without. We do have a kinsman and we have a Redeemer who is both willing at whatever cost and able to redeem our stories for us. And that's the end. It's 15 says, and he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life and a nourisher of thine old age. For thy daughter in law which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons had borne him. And Naomi took the child and laid him in her bosom. This promise. She got to hold the promise in her arms. And it's awesome that we call her Naomi again at the end. The Hebrew for Naomi means pleasantness or sweetness or delightful. And that's how our story ends. It ends with sweetness and delight. And that's true. We're all looking forward to that. There are so many people that listening that can say with Naomi that I lost what I used to have. I had all my life was amazing. My life was fantastic. And then God took it all away. And in the end, in the end of all of our stories, we're going to be able to verses 14 and 15, that's going to be our story. Things will be sweet again, things will be delightful again. And in the meantime, we sit under the wings of him whose love we trust. And I Love that. Verse 18:3, 18. When Naomi says to Ruth, before everything's resolved, she said, sit still, my daughter, until you know how the matter will fall. For the man will not be in rest until he has finished the thing this day. And I think that is the words we would say to anyone we care and love about who feel like they're in that empty place and God's working out the redemption story and you're sitting in chapter two or three. The lines that we need are sit still and watch how things work out for the man, the Redeemer. Will not rest until he's finished this day. And I, I. This is such a great book. It's such a good book. It's such the promise of points us to the redeemer we all need and are looking for. And Naomi starts the bookends of this. Or Naomi starts empty and then she ends full. She starts as Mara and gets the end as sweetness and blessing in the very end. And the fun little. What do you say? Easter egg at the end of the book, as you read the end of chapter four and you find out that these are the grandparents of King David. And King David will be the great descent, will be the ancestor of Jesus. So we have the tip in of one of the grandmothers of Jesus is Ruth. And so you get to put this in the story and you get to find out that the redemption story happens through this outsider, that it happens again through such unexpected means and such radical kindness. And you read this and you think it's no wonder Jesus was the way he was because he had these, these three people's blood running in his veins. Well, not Naomi's, but practically.
- [41:20]
B
Yeah, you know, and I think it is sweet. I love these grandmothers of Jesus because I think we can easily talk about how, like, oh, of course Jesus loved and cared about the outsiders and the outcasts and the ones that made mistakes because look at his family tree. But I also love to just look at it and say, yeah, but like, look at what he inherited from them. His kindness from Ruth and his rescuing from. Why am I forgetting Rahab? And you can go back and look at these women and you're like, oh, all along they were starting the story of Jesus. You will see their attributes and their characteristics in him. And. And so, of course, their stories are forever in Scripture because they were the beginning of his.
- [42:03]
A
Yeah, yeah. It's so great. Okay, now we jump into the Book of Samuel and a couple stories we wanna say in the Book of Samuel, because, oh, my gosh, like you feel like we just said Amen for the book of Ruth and we could have, but. And we did. But now we have 1st Samuel 1:7. And this has some really fantastic stories in it also. And you open up to Samuel chapter one. And Hannah, who I've talked about, who I already talked about for just a second, you find out at the beginning of Samuel chapter one that Hannah is married to the sky and she cannot have any children. And that man also has this other wife, and she does have children. And it says this in verse six. And her adversary also provoked her Sore for to make her feel fret because the Lord had shut up her womb. And Hannah's story is the story of someone who just feels like they can't get it. They can't figure it out. They are wishing and wanting for what they see that everybody else has. And sometimes there are people who are bullies, I guess, who provoke you and make you to fret. But I think more often than not, not, we just see their stories and see what they have and see how good God has been to them. And just the very idea of that provokes our stories, that comparison of why did they get to get married, why did they get the job, why did their life get to turn out like that? Why? You know, that it provokes. We feel provoked. We feel taunted a little bit by the success and the stories of other people. And I'm not trying to diminish. I'm not trying to say, like, madam just, you know, don't compare because her husband actually says to her is like, hey, but like, you have me. Isn't that better than seven sons? And I think people, well meaning, say stuff like that all the time, right? Where it's like, hey, practice some gratitude for the blessings you have. Which I think is fantastic advice, but it just is not satisfying and fulfilling that deep wish of Hannah's heart. And so she and her husband, like they do every year, go to the temple of verse nine in Shiloh. That's where the tabernacle is. And it says in 10 she was in bitterness of soul and prayed unto the Lord and wept sore, and she vowed, avowed and said, o Lord of hosts, please look on the affliction of your handmaid and remember me, and forget not thy handmaid, but give me that blessing that I am searching for. And verse 11 is a really tender verse because there are a lot of us, a lot of people listening who've prayed that verse 11 before, who in 15 have poured out their soul before the Lord and prayed that same prayer that says, don't overlook me, please remember me, and cried those bitter tears. And then there's this promise in 17 from Eli, the high priest, who thinks she's drunk at first, you know, because she's crying so hard. And, you know, I was just talking to someone I love very much. You just said, I think I've cried every tear in my body and prayed every prayer that I could to the Lord for my son. And I love this line. In 17, Eli says, go in peace and the God of Israel grant thee thy petition that thou has asked of him. And then in 19, you get this line, and the Lord remembered her. And this story is so special and so important, particularly one to women who are praying and seeking and wanting marriages and families of their own, which there are so many. But also it's particularly tender to every mother who's poured out her soul and cried bitter tears for. For one of her children in this story, unborn, but in so many other stories, children that they're looking for. And it reminds me of this story of Augustine. He's just a great theologian who lived in the early days, one of the Christian fathers, and he had just kind of fell away from faith, wanted nothing to do with it. He was really smart, and his mom just wasn't super smart. And so she realized there's nothing I could do to kind of convince this super intelligent kid of mine to be a believer, except to pray. That's all I have, is to pray. And so she spent her life pouring out her soul to God for her son. And I want to see if I got this line that's so good. That winter, son, finally
- [47:16]
B
she.
- [47:16]
A
Oh, she. She goes to the cathedral in Milan, Italy, and prays this prayer for her son. And the bishop there in the church of Milan sees her praying and weeping over her son and told her there is no way that a child of so many tears could ever possibly be lost. And I actually think that promises is true. The great things that you will see from Samuel are a result of a mother's prayer and a mother's tears. And I don't think that we can ever underestimate the value of a mother's prayers and a mother's tears for the rest of our lives. And this story becomes just the. The hallmark for that truth.
- [48:07]
B
Oh, my gosh, you already love Samuel, and he's not even born yet.
- [48:12]
A
Yeah, exactly.
- [48:12]
B
I'm like, okay, excuse him, but don't
- [48:15]
A
you love that one?
- [48:16]
B
Yes.
- [48:16]
A
There is no way that a child of so many tears could ever possibly be lost. I think that's true with all my heart. I think that's true.
- [48:26]
B
It's the sweetest thing ever. And the Lord looks at her and. And she gets the promise. And Eli says, you're gonna have a baby. And she does. And the cutest thing is that she really does fulfill her promise to give that boy to God. And what I think is the most interesting is the way she does, because you would expect that mom to be devastated. Giving up that boy. That was what she prayed for her entire life. It was everything to her. That was the Miracle of her entire life. And then she goes and she gives him up. And I think starting in verse 26 of chapter one, like, oh, the prayer is so good. And right before she prays, she says this. Oh, my Lord, as your soul lives, my Lord, I am the woman that stood by you here, praying unto the Lord. We were together, Eli, me and you. When I said my prayer, you know what I committed to. You know who I am. You were with me from the very beginning of this miracle. For this child have I prayed. And the Lord has given me what I asked for. Therefore, I have lent him to the Lord. As long as he lives, he shall be lent to the Lord. And he worshiped the Lord there. And for some reason, I'm just so intrigued by that word Lent. And I think it's because of Lent before Easter. And it's because we're recording this in advance, and we were just doing Lent. Okay, we're almost done. Yes, we are in Lent. And I guess I just never really cared about that word. And I don't know why I didn't process it ever before. But there is something about a soul that says, I am willing to give something up for you because I know I'll be closer to you if I do. And that was the heart of Hannah. She looked and she said, this is going to be worth sacrificing, because I know a relationship with you is more important than anything else. And so she gave her boy up, and he was raised in the temple. And I do love this part. And the beginning of chapter two is so sweet. It's actually Hannah's prayer that she prays her Thanksgiving prayer.
- [50:38]
A
It's cool that they're back to back, right?
- [50:40]
B
And it's so surprising to me that it's a Thanksgiving prayer that she gives up her boy. And then she says thank you. And, like, it makes me want to pause and be like, what did you have to say thank you to? You just gave up your boy for the. Like, that was, like, the boy that you prayed for. And now you just offered him to God, and it's still a thank you prayer, not a give him back to me prayer. And I think that tells you everything you need to know about Hannah's heart. I think that's just like, a really tender moment. But then we get to know a little bit more about Samuel, and he grows up in the temple, and he is just a good boy, and he just does live his life as good as he possibly can be. And then in chapter three, we get one of my favorite Chapters, maybe ever, about revelation. And the reason I like it so much is because I work with teenagers in a lot of different capacities right now. I've gone on humanitarian trips with them. I teach seminary. I have a poetry podcast that we do like, for youth in mind specifically. I've done church history trips with them like that. It very. Is, like, very present in my life. And I think one of the biggest concerns that I hear on a consistent basis is people who are growing up that say, I just don't feel like I've ever felt the spirit. I don't think I've ever heard God. And it's not something that weighs lightly on them. I remember one time I was in Kosher Costa Rica on a humanitarian trip, and there was a boy that kind of was a punk, and I went over and was talking to him, and we were kind of started talking about God and I was like, no, like, answer honestly. Like, where are you at in your relationship with him? And he just looked at me and he said, why would I ever care about him? He doesn't care about me. And I said, what do you mean? And he said, well, he's never spoken to me, so I don't care about hearing him because he's never spoken to a kid like me. And I just started realizing that there are a lot more people like that than would maybe ever think initially. People who say, I don't think I've ever heard him. And it feels almost as though Samuel's story starts just like that, because 1 Samuel 3, verse 1 starts, and there's this little line that says, there was no open vision in the days at that time.
- [52:45]
A
Or can I read this other translation? Because I was reading it, I was
- [52:48]
B
gonna read paraphrase, but that will do it better.
- [52:49]
A
It says, meanwhile, the boy Samuel served the Lord by assisting. Now, in those days, messages from the Lord were very rare and visions were quite uncommon. So, yeah, you can't. It's hard to pick that out in that verse.
- [53:03]
B
Yeah, you just have to do a little bit. The other Bible's gonna help you a little more. And it is the exact same story as that boy in Costa Rica of a boy who said, God doesn't really speak that often. And maybe Samuel didn't ask this, but I wouldn't be surprised if he did wonder, and why would he speak to a boy like me? And he goes through, and it's nighttime, and Eli's sleeping in his room and Samuel's in his, and he gets all cozy, and Samuel lays down to go to sleep. And it says that the Lord calls Samuel. And Samuel wakes up, and he says, here am I. Like, I'm ready. Like, what's up? Who's calling my name? And it's so cute because he runs to Eli, and he doesn't know it's the Lord. We do. We're getting the backstage pass, but no one else is. And so he wakes up in the middle of the night, and he runs over to Eli, and he. Like. He's like, eli, Eli. Like, did you call me? Like, why are you calling my name? Like, what can I do for you? Do you need help? What can I. Which, first of all, in the middle of the night, of course, this boy is like, what can I do to help you? Like, anything you want. I'm like, oh, my gosh. And he says, no, I didn't even call you. Like, go back to sleep. Like, I wasn't me. Like, go lay down like you're dreaming, brother. And he goes. And he lays back down. And then the Lord calls him again. And so he wakes up, and he goes over to Eli and he shakes him awake, and he's like, here I am. You called for me. So, like, what can I do for you? And he's like, listen. And I love right now that Eli's gonna call him my son. Because, like, I just think of every parent that, like, gets woken up by their kid in the middle of the night for a bad dream. It's like, oh, my gosh. Like, I'm gonna try to treat you with love right now, but, like, why are you waking up me up in the middle of the night? He's like, my son, go back to bed. Okay, like, number two. Like, Eli had to have been getting a little bothered. Like, he's like, go lay back down. Like, dude, like, you're having bad dreams. Like, you're going crazy. Like, just sleep. And he's like, okay, like, it wasn't you. And then there's this line, and it says, now, Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him. And the reason Samuel was so confused, the reason he didn't realize it was the Lord's speaking, is because he just simply didn't know him yet. And that word is the one you should circle 800 times in.
- [55:15]
A
It's twice in there, which makes that verse so good.
- [55:18]
B
No, it's so cute that the Lord knew that one day Samuel would. He said, not yet. And I think that there's moments that, like, we. We. Like, it's like those phrases that we say, and that I think that the Lord would add the word yet to I've never felt the Spirit. And he would say, yet I've never heard God yet. I've never experienced forgiveness yet. I've never been redeemed yet. I've never felt the mercy of God yet. Yet is hope in this verse. Samuel didn't know the Lord yet. That was still on the way. And then the Lord calls Samuel the third time, and he arose. And he goes to Eli. And again he's like, eli, like, what are you trying to tell me? And Eli is like, oh, my gosh, like, it's not me. And then Eli realized, which is helpful to realize that sometimes you might need someone to help you know, that the Lord is trying to talk to you. And he says, oh, that's not me. That's the Lord. So here's what you're gonna do. And he teaches the boy how to hear God. And he says, you're gonna go back down and you're gonna lay down. And if he calls you, you're gonna say, speak, Lord, for your servant hears. So Samuel went back down. And I just love to imagine that boy getting cozy in his bed. And I wonder if he was pretending to sleep. But he's like, here's my mermaid. He's like, it's gonna happen. And he goes and lays down, and the Lord came and stood and called as at other times. That is another line that I would instantly mark in my Scriptures. Because I think sometimes we feel like if we miss the Lord, if we don't hear him, if he speaks, and we ignore him, if he speaks, and we don't understand that he's gonna stop talking. And this verse actually says that when we don't understand him, when we don't realize the Lord is speaking, he comes closer and he calls again. He will not let you miss his message. And Samuel, he looks and he calls him by his name, Samuel. Samuel. And Samuel answered and says exactly what Eli tells him to say. Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. And in that moment, the Lord has a message for Samuel. And he's going to tell him everything that's going to happen in Israel. And it's going to be a little bit of a mess. But Samuel gets clued in. But what I love the very most is the story of a boy that hears God even when it seems impossible. Because that is the story of anyone today. That the Lord. The world is loud and noisy and chaotic and stressful, and it feels like it might be impossible to ever have that Chance to hear him. And what I love the most is that doesn't stop God from speaking. That doesn't stop the God from reaching out. And when I was in Costa Rica with that boy, he had an experience, and it took a couple tries for him, but finally he heard the Lord. And the night that he, like, kind of had this moment hearing and feeling love from God, that night he was talking to me, and he said, you know what? I think I met God today in Costa Rica. And I laughed with him. And I was like, yeah, I think you did, too. And then he just paused and he said he was worth waiting for. And it might have taken a second for Samuel. It took three tries. And it might be taking a second for you, and you might be feeling like you live in the world, that it is rare to hear the voice of the Lord. But I hope you remember that he is worth waiting for. And that won't stop him from speaking to you.
- [58:58]
A
Yeah. Amen. So 100 times. There's one thing I learned years ago about when a name is repeated twice in Hebrew, it's a sign of tenderness. So I love that spot in 10 where, you know, Samuel, Samuel, after the fourth time, usually if I call my kids more than once, it's not a tender voice.
- [59:20]
B
Number four is the first, middle, and last name.
- [59:23]
A
And so for the fact that the Lord is okay with Samuel having to learn how to recognize his voice and the time he actually does, the voice is tender and it's. And it's a sweet voice. And I also love Samuel's line, something that, like, struck me so significantly today when he just says that, speak for thy servant heareth. And I thought to myself, I was a little convicted in my soul this morning to say, david, when is the last time that that has been your prayer where I'm just allowing God to say whatever he wants to say to me. And so I'm kind of taking that as a conviction and a challenge right now. My friend said to me earlier this week, it's hard to hear the voice of the Lord when you already know what you want him to say, and instead to have the kind of openness to say, okay, here I am. Say what you want to say to me. Is there something you want me to stop doing? Is there something you want me to start? Is there something you want to warn me of or correct me on or whatever it is? And I'm just. I'm just personally really touched and convicted by that right now. One last story in Samuel, you can read the ones in 4 and 5 and 6 there, they're just a treasure. And I just wanted to read this Last 1 in 7, which I love that by the time you get to chapter seven, that seven chapter, verse eight, Samuel has become a judge and a ruler and a leader over these people. And in seven, eight, the children of Israel said to Samuel, cease not to cry unto the Lord our God for us. And I love that by the time you get here. And then in nine, he cried unto the Lord for Israel, and the Lord heard him that by the time you get to chapter seven, it's like they have this really unique, special relationship with each other.
- [61:15]
B
And it's no longer Samuel hearing the Lord. It's both of them listening to each other.
- [61:20]
A
Just like I just like it. Look. It didn't even take that look. I turned twice from a kid who couldn't recognize the voice of the Lord while sleeping in the temple. Mind you, I think that's a part of the story. We're just like, he is right there in his room, you know, and he still doesn't hear him. That's okay. This is okay. And then two pages over, you know, you've got people saying, please don't stop praying for us. And the Lord hears him, and he hears the Lord and he prays for help in this particular battle of his life that he's. That he's in. And I just like that the Lord comes and helps them out in that battle. And then in 12, it says, then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen and called the name of it Ebenezer, saying, hitherto hath the Lord helped us. And I just like the comparison of. In the beginning of that chapter three, and even Hannah's story there was. This is. Please don't forget me. Please help me. Please speak to me. It feels like your words are really rare right now. And here in chapter seven, you have this story where they. Where God answered and where God helped them and they wanted to remember it. So that word, Ebenezer, which is our word of the week, is a Hebrew phrase that means stone of help, which means it's literally a stone that he set up in the field to be a reminder that God does listen and God does help. And. And like we've said so many times reading through this book, we just need the reminders. We just. It's. It's so easy to feel overlooked because of the circumstances of our life or to feel overlooked because we're having a hard time discerning the voice of the Lord. And So it makes it so important to treasure and hold on to those moments in time where it says, I know the Lord knew my name. I know the Lord heard my prayer, and I know it was the Lord who came through and helped me on this particular day. So I'll put up a monument to it because I'm probably going to need it in chapter eight to look back and remember that he is a God who knows, listens, and helps.
- [63:39]
B
And we just have to say this, so cute so fast. Is that that is the best part of Come Thou felt the song of all time. And that is. I just wrote that in my scriptures. And maybe you want to that line here I raised my Ebenezer, hither, by thy help I come. And then next year I wrote, prone to wander, Lord, I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. And I think that in the moments that we're prone to wander and prone to leave, I hope we pause and before we do, we say, let me go back to the monuments I've made of the reasons and the moments that God came to help.
- [64:13]
A
Yeah. And what was that second line? What's it do here? I raise my Ebenezer hither, by thy help I've come. Yeah, hither means here, right? And I love looking at this spot and saying, I am where I am right now because of the help of the Lord. That Ruth could say that and Naomi could say that at the end of their story, they could raise in Ebenezer, right, and say, I can look back now and see the old only reason I'm where I am is by the Lord's help. I made it because of your help. Raising it is both a reminder and it's a. It's a monument of Thanksgiving. Hannah also right at the end of 3 or 1127, here she is sitting with her child at the temple. She was like, oh, my gosh, one year ago, I was right here thinking, begging, and now I'm here with this baby in my hand. She was for this child. I prayed for this situation. I prayed for this answer. I prayed and the Lord came through. Hither, by thy help I've come. I told, listen, we love every week. I prophesied the beginning. We just love all of these so much.
- [65:26]
B
We just can't.
- [65:27]
A
Okay. Hope you're just loving the scriptures right now so much. The Old Testament is so good. Okay. All right, friends, we'll see you next week. Happy Summer.
- [65:37]
B
Happy Summer.
- [65:39]
A
If you want to follow along in everything we're doing, you can find us on Instagram. At don't miss this study at this Week's Grace and at MrDave Butler.
- [65:47]
B
And if you want to subscribe to the app or get our weekly newsletter, all of the information can be found@don'tmissthisstudy.com
- [65:53]
A
See you next week.