Welcome back to our series exploring the people of the Bible! Today we’re meeting someone really important…Ruth, a foreign widow whose radical declaration of faith would place her in the lineage of the Messiah Himself.
These words, spoken on a dusty road between Moab and Bethlehem, would echo through history, coming from a widow who had every reason to turn back, but chose faith instead.
Who was Ruth?
Ruth was a Moabite woman who married into an Israelite family during the time of the Judges. Her name likely means “companion” or “friend,” which proved prophetic given her loyal love toward her mother-in-law Naomi.
Understanding who the Moabites were makes Ruth’s story remarkable. They were historical enemies of Israel, and God’s law stated: “No Ammonite or Moabite is to enter the community of Adonai—even to the tenth generation.” (Deuteronomy 23:4 TLV) Meaning that Ruth came from a people excluded from God’s assembly.
After marrying Mahlon (Naomi’s son), Ruth was widowed when both her husband and his brother died, leaving her, her mother-in-law, and sister-in-law with no security. In this ancient society, a childless foreign widow had no future; therefore, Ruth stood at the point of complete vulnerability. Yet from this place of tragic loss, Ruth would make a choice that changed everything…
The Declaration That Changed Everything
The Decision Point
When Naomi heard that the Lord had provided food in Judah, she decided to return home. Both Ruth and her sister-in-law Orpah began this journey with her, but Naomi urged them to turn back:
“Go, return each of you to your mother’s house. May Adonai show you the same kindness that you have shown to the dead and to me.”
ruth 1:8 tlv
In response to this, both women initially refused to leave, but Naomi pressed harder, explaining she had no more sons to offer them and how they should return to their own people and find new husbands there. Orpah made the sensible choice. She kissed Naomi goodbye and returned to her people and her gods. “But Ruth clung to her”—she remained and clung to Naomi.
The Covenant Commitment
Naomi made one final attempt to convince Ruth to leave her side: “Look, your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Return, along with your sister-in-law!” (Ruth 1:15 TLV)
This wasn’t just about geography—it was about choosing between the gods of Moab and the God of Israel. And here, Ruth made her infamous declaration:
“Do not plead with me to abandon you, to turn back from following you. For where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May Adonai deal with me, and worse, if anything but death comes between me and you!”
ruth 1:16-17 tlv
Even though this is only two verses, there is a lot of content…Let’s break down what Ruth committed to:
- “Where you go, I will go” — Geographic commitment, leaving everything familiar
- “Your people will be my people” — Social commitment to a community that historically rejected Moabites
- “Your God my God” — The heart of it all: spiritual conversion by faith
- “Where you die, I will die” — Lifelong commitment, no escape clause
Ruth’s strength was her unwavering loyalty and radical faith. The cost that she willingly chose was accepting poverty, obscurity, and life as a foreigner over security and familiarity.
Naomi sensed this strength and resolve in Ruth and stopped urging her to turn away. “So the two of them went on until they arrived in Bethlehem.” (Ruth 1:19 TLV)
God’s Faithfulness Revealed
True to her word, Ruth immediately took initiative to provide for Naomi, gleaning in the fields according to God’s provision for the poor and foreigner. In what seemed like chance, she “happened” to glean in the field of Boaz, a relative of Naomi’s late husband (Ruth 2:3 TLV). But was it really chance? While she gleaned in his fields, Boaz noticed who Ruth was and her character and blessed her:
“May Adonai repay you for what you have done, and may you be fully rewarded by Adonai, God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.”
ruth 2:2 tlv
Following Naomi’s counsel, Ruth approached Boaz to act as kinsman-redeemer—the go’el who could redeem family property and marry his relative’s widow. After proper legal proceedings, Boaz married Ruth and they had a child together. “Adonai enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son.” (Ruth 4:13 TLV) Following the birth, the women of Bethlehem declared that Ruth was “better to you than seven sons” (Ruth 4:15 TLV)—the highest compliment in that culture.
The significance of Ruth’s story does not finish here, it extends even further. Ruth and Boaz’s son, Obed, became the father of Jesse, who became the father of David—making this Moabite outsider the great-grandmother of Israel’s greatest king and an ancestor of the Messiah!
When she made her declaration, Ruth thought that she was choosing obscurity, but in reality, God was positioning her for eternal significance. Her declaration “where you go, I will go” led to Bethlehem. Her declaration “your God my God” brought her under His wings. God gave her a husband, a son, a legacy, and a place in the Messianic line, “Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse,” (Matthew 1:5 TLV)
What Ruth’s Story Teaches Us
Ruth’s story shows a beautiful and important lesson for us today. She experiences great loss and grief, chose apparent poverty over security, and faced the vulnerability of being a foreign outsider. Yet her faith was unwavering—she demonstrated total trust in God’s goodness, showed covenant loyalty even when it was costly, and made wholehearted commitments without reservation. Her story reveals several truths for us as Messianic believers:
True faith transcends ethnic boundaries. Ruth was a Gentile from a hostile nation, yet she was grafted into God’s people through faith. Every Gentile believer is a “Ruth”—brought near to God and grafted in through faith: “But now in Messiah Yeshua, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah.” (Ephesians 2:13 TLV)
Loyal love reflects God’s character. Ruth’s love and loyalty towards Naomi mirrors God’s own loyal love towards His people. When we demonstrate covenant faithfulness to one another, we reflect the very character of the God that we serve.
Covenant commitment is comprehensive. Ruth didn’t make a half-hearted decision. She abandoned her homeland, her family, her gods, her security—everything that she had ever known. And Yeshua calls us to the same: “So in the same way, whoever does not renounce all that he has, cannot be My disciple.” (Luke 14:33 TLV)
God honors faithful commitment beyond our understanding. Ruth had no idea she would become David’s great-grandmother or Messiah Yeshua’s ancestor. She had no idea what her life or legacy would become. She chose to honor God and remain faithful to Him despite that meaning choosing a life of apparent poverty and obscurity, and Adonai honored her commitment in ways she couldn’t have imagined.
One Central Message
Ruth’s story reveals God’s inclusive covenant plan even from the beginning. A Moabite outsider became an ancestor of Yeshua—a preview of what Paul would write:
Ruth made her declaration not knowing what would come next. She only knew the God of Israel was the one, true God—and that was enough for her. What happened after her declaration proved God’s faithfulness, and rewarded her own. He redeemed, provided, honored, and included her in His eternal purposes in ways she could never have imagined.
Living This Truth Today
When we fully commit to God and His people, we become part of a redemptive narrative far greater than ourselves. Faithfulness to God positions us for His purposes in ways we cannot foresee.
Ruth chose the God of Israel on a dusty road with no guarantees, no visible provision, no promise of a happy ending. Her “where you go, I will go” led to Bethlehem, to Boaz, to Obed, to David, to Yeshua. Her choice changed everything—not just for her, but for all of history.
The question Ruth faced is the same one before us: Have we embraced the covenant community that Yeshua offers with unwavering loyalty? Have we said, without reservation, “Your God shall be my God”?
Ruth abandoned security for faith, comfort for covenant, and the familiar for the call of the living God. God’s response was to weave her story into the very fabric of our world’s salvation!
Conclusion
Ruth shows us the path of incredible faith—and the destination is more glorious than anyone could’ve dreamed. When we choose Him wholeheartedly, when we commit to be His people and follow His ways without reservation, He honors that commitment beyond what we could ask or imagine.
The same God who brought a Moabite widow into the Messianic line is still at work today, still writing stories of redemption, still honoring the faith of those that trust Him completely.
Will we, like Ruth, choose faith over security and discover that God’s plans are always better than ours?
You must be logged in to post a comment.