Ruth
Rut 1:1a judges Judg. 2:16
Rut 1:11 ruled
[ par. 1 2 ]
Rut 1:11 [1] Lit., judged. Ruth is an appendix to the book of Judges, contemporary with the first half of Judges. Judges is a book of Israel’s miserable history, dark and foul; Ruth is the record of a couple’s excellent story, bright and aromatic. The main character in this story is like a lily growing out of brambles and a bright star in the dark night.
Rut 1:11 [2] The book of Ruth is an important part of the genealogy of Christ (Matt. 1:5), which is the record concerning the incarnation of Christ. As a Moabitess (v. 4), Ruth was excluded from the congregation of God’s holy people (Deut. 23:3). Nevertheless, she was brought into the holy elect of God and became an important ancestor of Christ through her marriage to Boaz, the great-grandfather of King David (4:21-22; Matt. 1:5-6), which became a factor that ushered in the incarnation of Christ (Matt. 1:5-16). Hence, Ruth became an important ancestor to bring Christ into humanity through the marvelous incarnation, which made God one with man (Matt. 1:18, 20b-23). This is the intrinsic significance of the content of the book of Ruth. See note 53 in Matt. 1.
Rut 1:12b famine Gen. 12:10; 26:1; 43:1; 2 Kings 8:1
The famine in the good land was a lack of life supply for living and satisfaction. It was sent by God to His people as a punishment (Lev. 26:26; Ezek. 14:13) because of their forsaking God as their source and Husband and their turning to idols. See note 11, par. 1, in Judg. 1.
Rut 1:13c Bethlehem Gen. 35:19; Micah 5:2; Matt. 2:1, 6
Bethlehem, the city of David, would be designated as the birthplace of the coming Christ (Micah 5:2; Luke 2:4-7), and Judah was the land of the royal tribe among Israel (Gen. 49:8-10), the top part of the God-promised land (Exo. 3:8b), which was the good land (Deut. 8:7-10), the land of Immanuel (Isa. 8:8).
Rut 1:14 went
The matter of rest is the key to the book of Ruth. Israel, as God’s elect, was living in the God-promised land for the carrying out of God’s economy. Remaining in the good land that God had promised and given was the genuine rest (Deut. 12:9; Heb. 4:8). Israel’s rest, their prosperity for their enjoyment and their contentment, was related to their situation with God in His economy. For an Israelite to leave the good land meant that he was cutting himself off from God’s eternal economy. Elimelech was in the good land and had a portion of it, and he should have remained there. However, he foolishly swerved from the ground, the standing, which gave him the opportunity to enjoy the rest in the good land, a rest that ultimately resulted in the bringing of Christ into humanity through incarnation to be the real rest to God’s people (see notes 21, par. 3, in Gen. 2 and 91 in Heb. 4).
Rut 1:15 Moab
Elimelech swerved from Bethlehem in Judah to Moab, a country of the descendants of Lot who were born through his incestuous union with his daughter (Gen. 19:30-38), a place that was rejected and condemned by God (Deut. 23:3-6), and a country of idolatry (v. 15; Judg. 10:6).
Rut 1:31 died
The death of Elimelech and his two sons (vv. 3, 5) was a chastisement from God on the house of Elimelech (v. 20). It left Elimelech’s wife, Naomi, and her two daughters-in-law as widows without children in a foreign country. That was the pitiful result of Elimelech’s swerving from the rest in God’s eternal economy.
Rut 1:41 Moabite
The Moabites, a people born of incest (Gen. 19:30-38), typify all sinners, who were born of “incest” through the “marriage” union of Adam and a fellow creature, Satan (John 8:41, 44a).
Rut 1:42a Ruth Matt. 1:5
[ par. 1 2 3 4 ]
Rut 1:42 [1] In this bright and aromatic story, Ruth typifies the church in four ways. First, Ruth was a woman in Adam in God’s creation and a Moabitess (a sinner—see note 41) in man’s fall. Through the fall the God-created man became a sinner and thus became the old man (Eph. 4:22; Col. 3:9) consisting of two parts—a natural (good) part created by God (Gen. 1:27, 31) and a fallen (evil) part corrupted by sin (Rom. 5:18a, 19a). As a created and fallen person with these two aspects, Ruth typifies the church, before its salvation, as men in God’s creation and sinners in man’s fall being “our old man” (Rom. 6:6).
Rut 1:42 [2] Second, Ruth, the widow of the dead husband, was redeemed by Boaz, who cleared the indebtedness of her dead husband to recover the lost right to her dead husband’s property (4:9-10). In this aspect Ruth typifies the church, whose old man is her crucified husband (Rom. 7:4a; 6:6), being redeemed by Christ, who cleared away her old man’s sin for the recovery of the lost right of her fallen God-created natural man (Eph. 5:25). Ruth’s old husband, Mahlon, typifies the fallen part of our old man, and his indebtedness typifies our sin caused by our fallen part, because of which we lost our right as a God-created being. Ruth herself, as the wife, typifies our natural man, who was created by God to be God’s counterpart, His wife, and who was redeemed and regenerated to be the new man as the wife of Christ (Rom. 7:1-4 and notes). Christ’s death on the cross destroyed the fallen part of our old man, redeemed the part created by God, and cleared our sin caused by the fallen part, thereby recovering the right of the God-created part.
Rut 1:42 [3] Third, Ruth, after being redeemed by Boaz, became a new wife to him (4:13). As such, she typifies the church, which, after being saved, became the counterpart of Christ in the organic union with Him through the regeneration of the church’s natural man (John 3:6b, 29a; Rom. 7:4b). When Ruth married Boaz, she was redeemed from her indebtedness, and she became his new wife for the producing of the needed heirs. In the fulfillment of this type, Christ, our new Husband, died to redeem us and to clear the indebtedness caused by the sins of our old man. Then in resurrection He, as the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b), regenerated us to make us a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17) married to Him. After being redeemed and regenerated, our natural man, excluding our fallen part, becomes our new man (Eph. 4:24) and takes Christ as our new Husband in the divine organic union with Him. Now, in the organic union between Christ and us, we can bring forth Christ and spread Christ by ministering Him to all men universally for His increase (John 3:30).
Rut 1:42 [4] Fourth, Ruth (a Gentile sinner) being united to Boaz that she might participate in the inheritance of God’s elect typifies the redeemed and regenerated Gentile sinners (the main constituents of the church) being attached to Christ that they may partake of the inheritance of God’s promise (Eph. 3:6).
Rut 1:61 return
Naomi’s returning to the Holy Land was her returning to the rest in God’s economy to participate again in the enjoyment of the God-promised land, where there would be the possibility of being related to Christ’s genealogy. Naomi returned with Ruth, her daughter-in-law given to her by God for the accomplishing of His economy concerning Christ (v. 22a).
Rut 1:6a visited Exo. 3:16; 4:31; Luke 1:68
Rut 1:11a husbands Deut. 25:5
Rut 1:13a grown cf. Gen. 38:11
Rut 1:14a clung Deut. 4:4; Isa. 14:1; Zech. 8:23
Rut 1:16a wherever cf. 2 Sam. 15:21
Rut 1:161 will
Ruth chose the goal of participating with God’s elect in the enjoyment of Christ, and she even became an important ancestor of Christ, one who helped bring forth Christ into mankind. This was more than just a resolution on the part of the Moabite widow; it was a goal, a choosing. Ruth chose God and His kingdom for the carrying out of God’s economy concerning Christ.
Rut 1:16b your cf. Psa. 45:10
Rut 1:162 God
Ruth chose to go to the land of Israel because she probably had heard a great deal concerning God, God’s promise, and the good land. She had heard the good news sufficiently for her to make a wonderful choice (cf. Rom. 10:17).
Rut 1:181 Naomi
Lit., she.
Rut 1:201a Mara Exo. 15:23
Meaning bitterness.
Rut 1:20b All-sufficient Gen. 17:1
Rut 1:202 dealt
Naomi did not rebel against God’s dealing but admitted that God had dealt not only with her husband but also with her (vv. 20-21; cf. v. 3). This indicates that she was a godly woman who believed in God, regarded Him, and feared Him.
Rut 1:211 afflicted
Others translate, testified against me.
Rut 1:221 barley
Barley, which ripens earlier than other grains (2 Sam. 21:9), typifies the resurrected Christ (1 Cor. 15:20). Barley and wheat (2:23) typify Christ as the material for making food for both God and His people (Lev. 2; John 6:9, 33, 35).
Rut 2:11b Boaz Ruth 4:21; Matt. 1:5
In this book Boaz typifies Christ in two aspects: (1) As a man, rich in wealth and generous in giving (2:1, 14-16; 3:15), Boaz typifies Christ, whose divine riches are unsearchable and who takes care of God’s needy people with His bountiful supply (Eph. 3:8; Luke 10:33-35; Phil. 1:19b). (2) As the kinsman (v. 3; 3:9, 12) who redeemed the lost right to Mahlon’s property and took Mahlon’s widow as his wife for the producing of the needed heirs (4:9-10, 13), Boaz typifies Christ, who redeemed the church and made the church His counterpart for His increase (Eph. 5:23-32; John 3:29-30). See note 121 in ch. 3.
Rut 2:21 field
The field of the God-promised good land (vv. 2-3) typifies the all-inclusive Christ, who is the source of all the spiritual and divine products as the life supply to God’s elect (Phil. 1:19b; see note 71 in Deut. 8).
Rut 2:22a glean Lev. 19:9; 23:22; Deut. 24:19
[ par. 1 2 ]
Rut 2:22 [1] God’s ordinance concerning the reaping of the harvest was that Jehovah would bless the children of Israel if they left the corners of their fields and the gleanings for the poor, the sojourners, the orphans, and the widows (Lev. 19:9-10; 23:22; Deut. 24:19). This not only shows the lovingkindness of God and how great, fine, and detailed He is, but also shows the rich produce of the good land.
Rut 2:22 [2] In the ordinance of the law given by God through Moses regarding reaping, the size of the corners of the field was not specified. The size depended on the landlord’s faith in Jehovah. The larger one’s faith in Jehovah was, the larger the corners of the field would be (cf. 2 Cor. 9:6-10). Boaz obeyed this ordinance, thereby testifying to his great faith in Jehovah. Under God’s sovereignty this ordinance seems to have been written for one person—Ruth.
Rut 2:31 gleaned
[ par. 1 2 ]
Rut 2:31 [1] Ruth, as one who had returned to God from her heathen background, exercised her right to partake of the rich produce of the inheritance of God’s elect. According to her threefold status as a sojourner, a poor one, and a widow, Ruth exercised her right to glean the harvest. Her gleaning was not her begging but her right. Ruth, a Moabitess, a heathen sinner alienated from God’s promises (Deut. 23:3; cf. Eph. 2:12), being given the right to partake of the gleaning of the harvest of God’s elect typifies the Gentile “dogs” who are privileged to partake of the crumbs under the table of the portion of God’s elect children (Matt. 15:21-28 and note 271). Just as Ruth had the right to enjoy the produce of the good land after coming into the land, so we have the right to enjoy Christ as our good land after believing in Him. Ruth’s exercising of her right to gain and possess the produce of the good land signifies that, after believing into Christ and being organically joined to Him, we must begin to pursue Christ in order to gain, possess, experience, and enjoy Him (Phil. 3:7-16).
Rut 2:31 [2] This book portrays the way, the position, the qualification, and the right of sinners to participate in Christ and to enjoy Christ. According to God’s ordination we who have believed into Christ have been qualified and positioned to claim our right to enjoy Christ (Col. 1:12). This means that we do not need to beg God to save us; rather, we can go to God to claim His salvation for ourselves. We have the position, the qualification, and the right to claim salvation from God. This is the highest standard of receiving the gospel.
Rut 2:4a bless cf. Psa. 129:7-8; 2 Thes. 3:16
Rut 2:81 Listen
Lit., Have you not heard, my daughter?
Rut 2:91 I
Lit., Have I not charged…?
Rut 2:12a wings Psa. 17:8; 36:7; 63:7; Matt. 23:37; Luke 13:34
Rut 2:16a bundles Deut. 24:19
Rut 2:181 Ruth
Lit., She.
Rut 2:201a kinsmen Lev. 25:25; Ruth 3:9, 12; 4:1, 14
The word here could also be translated redeemers. So throughout the book.
Rut 3:11 I
Lit., shall I not seek…? Naomi realized that the proper person to be Ruth’s husband was Boaz. Hence, Naomi acted as a “middleman” in order to prod Ruth to get married. The genuine ministers of the New Testament are like Naomi in that they stir up the believers in Christ to love Him as their Bridegroom that they may take Him as their Husband (2 Cor. 11:2; Rev. 19:7; 21:9-10).
Rut 3:12a resting cf. Ruth 1:9
[ par. 1 2 ]
Rut 3:12 [1] Or, security. After coming to the good land and exercising her right to enjoy its rich produce, Ruth still needed a home so that she could have rest. This kind of rest could come only through marriage. Although we may be saved and love the Lord, in order to have a home for our rest we must marry the Lord Jesus, taking Him as our Husband, and live together with Him in the church as our home (Rom. 7:4; 2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 5:23-32). Christ as our Husband and the church as our home are a complete unit for us to have a proper and adequate rest.
Rut 3:12 [2] Considered in the light of Matt. 1:5-6 and 16, Ruth’s seeking for her rest was actually for the continuation of the genealogy to bring in Christ.
Rut 3:51 say
Some MSS read, say to me.
Rut 3:71 came
Ruth’s approaching Boaz in vv. 7-9 was based on God’s ordination (4:5; Lev. 25:25; Deut. 25:5-10). Boaz’s response to Ruth indicates that he was high in morality (vv. 8-11), that he was pure in conduct (v. 14), that he was wise in decision (vv. 12-13), and that he was faithful in keeping God’s ordination (v. 13; 4:9-10).
Rut 3:9a cloak cf. Ezek. 16:8
Rut 3:91 kinsman
See note 121.
Rut 3:111 assembly
Lit., gate.
Rut 3:11a worthy Prov. 12:4; 31:10
Rut 3:121a kinsman Ruth 2:20; 4:1
In this verse the first kinsman of Ruth’s husband, Ruth’s closest kinsman, typifies our natural man, who cannot and will not redeem us from the indebtedness (sin) of our old man (4:1-6). Boaz, the second kinsman of Ruth’s husband, typifies Christ, who partook of blood and flesh (Heb. 2:14) to be our Kinsman and who can redeem us from our sin, recover the lost right of our natural man in God’s creation, be our new Husband in His divine organic union with us, and take us as His counterpart for His increase (4:7-13). Cf. note 42 in ch. 1.
Rut 3:13a duty Deut. 25:5
Rut 3:151 he
Some MSS and ancient versions read, she.
Rut 3:171 said
Some MSS read, said to me.
Rut 4:1a kinsman Ruth 2:20; 3:9, 12
Rut 4:11 Boaz
Lit., he.
Rut 4:12 friend
Lit., such a one, so and so.
Rut 4:2a elders Prov. 31:23
Rut 4:4a redeem Lev. 25:25; Jer. 32:7-8
Rut 4:51 you
Following some ancient versions (cf. v. 10); the Hebrew text reads, you acquire it also of Ruth the Moabitess.
Rut 4:5a name Deut. 25:5-6
Rut 4:7a sandal Deut. 25:7-10
Rut 4:11a Rachel Gen. 29:30–30:24; 35:16-18
Rut 4:121a Perez Gen. 38:29; 1 Chron. 2:4; Matt. 1:3
See Matt. 1:3a and notes.
Rut 4:131 Ruth
[ par. 1 2 ]
Rut 4:131 [1] By gaining a husband and a home for a resting place, Ruth received a reward, a gain, for God’s economy. First, she gained a redeeming husband, who typifies Christ as the redeeming Husband of the believers (Rom. 7:4). Second, Ruth was redeemed by the capable Boaz from the indebtedness of her dead husband (vv. 1-9), typifying the believers being redeemed by Christ, the almighty, omnipotent Redeemer, from the sin of their old man, their old husband. Third, Ruth became a crucial ancestor in the genealogy that brought in the royal house of David for the producing of Christ (vv. 13b-22; Matt. 1:5-16). This indicates that Ruth had an all-inclusive and all-extensive gain with the position and capacity to bring Christ into the human race. She is thus a great link in the chain that is bringing Christ to every corner of the earth. Finally, Ruth also continued the line of the God-created humanity for the incarnation of Christ (Matt. 1:17). Through Boaz and Ruth the line of humanity that was for Christ’s incarnation was prolonged.
Rut 4:131 [2] Ruth, a Gentile and even a Moabitess, was joined to God’s holy elect and became an heir to partake of the holy inheritance through her union with the one of the holy elect who redeemed her. This is not merely a type but a complete prefigure of the Gentile sinners’ being brought, with Israel, God’s elect, into the divine inheritance through the redemption of Christ in their union with Him (Acts 26:16-18; Eph. 3:6).
Rut 4:18a Now vv. 18-22: 1 Chron. 2:5, 9-15; Matt. 1:3-6
Rut 4:181 generations
The books of Joshua and Judges show us God’s move in His economical Spirit, the Spirit of power (Acts 1:8), whereas the book of Ruth portrays God’s move in His essential Spirit, the Spirit of life (Rom. 8:2). As illustrated by Samson, the judges moved in God’s Spirit of power but not in His Spirit of life. God’s Spirit came upon Samson (Judg. 13:25; 14:6, 19), but Samson and many of the judges had no control over their indulgence in lust (see notes 161 in ch. 8, 51 in ch. 9, and 11 in ch. 14 of Judges). In contrast, the book of Ruth is a book not of power but of life. Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz were persons in life to the uttermost. Not one judge was a forefather of Christ. It was Ruth and Boaz who participated in keeping the line in humanity to bring Christ forth out of eternity into time, to bring Christ forth with His divinity into humanity. This shows that only life can bring Christ forth. Only life can keep the lineage, maintaining the thin line to bring God into humanity, to produce Christ, to minister Christ, and to supply the entire human race with Christ. This was done not by the judges but by Ruth and Boaz, who took the way of life.
Rut 4:221
The succeeding books of the Old Testament are a long record of the generations for the prolonged line of humanity for the incarnation of Christ (Matt. 1:17).