A Gracious Covenant

15So she said, ‘See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.’ 16But Ruth said,
‘Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you!
Where you go, I will go;
   where you lodge, I will lodge;
your people shall be my people,
   and your God my God.
17 Where you die, I will die—
   there will I be buried.
May the Lord do thus and so to me, and more as well,
if even death parts me from you!’
18When Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
(Ruth 1:15-18)
 
This is a story familiar to many of us. Grief, despair, loyalty, danger, hope, redemption; It’s all packed into this Book of Ruth. Naomi tries to dissuade Ruth from following her back to Bethlehem. Naomi has nothing to offer Ruth. She can’t provide for her safety, security or honor.  Her son, Ruth’s husband, has died. Naomi has no male relatives to care for them. It is best if Ruth abandons Naomi and return to her people. But Ruth won’t leave her. This passage reads more like a covenant than anything else. It has such finality to it that Naomi seems to just blink at Ruth and grunt “fine then, suit yourself.”  It is a singularly pivotal moment in history. With this conversation, the line of David is sealed. This is the ancestor of Jesus digging in her heels to do the right thing above and beyond the requirements of law or tradition. Did she know the impact this would have on history? Doubtful. She just loved. Not casually or to fill the requirements of the law, but she showed grace and ended up in Bethlehem. How could she know that generations later her descendant would arrive in Bethlehem? We can only imagine what an act of loyalty and love today could birth tomorrow. 

See You Sunday!

Missy