Then the women said to Naomi, “Blessed is the Lord who has not left you without a redeemer today, and may his name become famous in Israel.  May he also be to you a restorer of life and a sustainer of your old age;  for your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.”

–Ruth 4:14-15

Everyone appreciates a good love story, and the book of Ruth is one of the best. Chronologically, it fits with the preceding book, Judges, as the events took place during that period of Israel’s history. Bible scholar Matthew Henry attributes its authorship to the prophet Samuel, and I love his thoughts on the design and purpose of the book because he rightly discerns that it’s not just Ruth’s story, but also Naomi’s, and has prophetic implications relating to our Kinsman Redeemer, Jesus. According to Henry’s commentary, this story is written for two reasons:

First, to lead to providence, to show us how conversant it is about our private concerns, and to teach us in them all to have an eye to it, acknowledging God in all our ways and in all events that concern us. And second, to lead to Christ, who descended from Ruth, and part of whose genealogy concludes the book. In the conversion of Ruth the Moabitess, and the bringing of her into the pedigree of the Messiah, we have a type of the calling of the Gentiles in due time into the fellowship of Christ Jesus our Lord. And let us remember the scene is laid in Bethlehem, the city where our Redeemer was born.

When reading this short account, it’s evident that Ruth is the central figure in the story; however, Ruth’s story wouldn’t exist without Naomi’s. After her husband, Elimelech, passed away, Naomi is left in a strange land with her two sons. They marry two Moabite women (Ruth and Orpah), but after ten years, both sons die, leaving the three women as widows.

Naomi is very sad, bereft of her family and feels that God has dealt bitterly with her. She receives word that the situation has improved in Bethlehem, so she decides to go home. Orpah stays in Moab, but Ruth clings to Naomi, determined not to separate from the mother-in-law she has come to love. Ruth has embraced Naomi’s God, and her old life of paganism is no longer an option.

You might know how the story turns out. Ruth shows herself to be a kind, gracious, humble, hard-working, and loving woman. She cares for Naomi like her own mother and goes into the fields to glean so they will have food to eat. God directs her steps into the field belonging to Boaz, and after a few months, Naomi realizes this is God’s hand of provision for Ruth.

Naomi instructs Ruth in their customs of levirate marriage. Boaz is a near kinsman and has cultural obligations to take Ruth as his wife and raise up children so that Elimelech’s family line will not die out. Boaz is delighted that this beautiful young woman has come to him and fulfills his duty. Scripture indicates it’s just a short time until Ruth conceives and gives birth to a son, Obed, who will be the grandfather of King David.

In our culture, the term “mother-in-law” is often synonymous with an overbearing, ill-willed shrew who torments the woman her son marries, never believing she is good enough. I believe this story reveals a different kind of mother-in-law in Naomi. Even though the two women her sons married were not the ones she would have chosen, she recognized the providence of God had brought this about. By Ruth’s response to the idea that she could be separated from Naomi, we can conclude that Naomi fully embraced her, loved her, and taught her about Jehovah, the God of Israel.

Naomi did not have to pursue finding a husband and provider for Ruth, but her faith allowed her to see God’s hand of providence in placing Ruth in Boaz’s field. She looked out for Ruth’s interests, and in turn, God blessed her with a grandson, and her family was included in the Messianic line.

Naomi’s faith teaches us that when the hand of God allows our lives to go through painful times, we can still trust Him to be faithful. Naomi also teaches us to have faith that God can bring good out of difficult circumstances we wouldn’t choose. She loved Ruth in spite of her pagan background and embraced her into the family. She was willing to teach her about her God and invited her into the faith. As a result, she received a blessing she could not have imagined.

Sometimes God puts people in our lives we wouldn’t choose. Sometimes God allows circumstances that challenge our belief and hope, and we need faith like Naomi to sustain us until we see the outcome of His providential work for a greater purpose.

Give me a faith like Naomi. Let me love others well, trust God to provide, and be ready to act when He shows me the path of His providence.

1 Samuel 2:7-8 – The Lord makes poor and rich; He brings low, He also exalts. He raises the poor from the dust, He lifts the needy from the ash heap to make them sit with nobles, and inherit a seat of honor; for the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, and He set the world on them.

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This devotional is taken from my book Give Me A Faith Like That (Old Testament Version). A New Testament version is also available on our ministry website.