Ruth 1:19 So they two went until they came to Bethlehem. And it came to pass, when they were come to Bethlehem, that all the city was moved about them, and they said, Is this Naomi?
20 And she said unto them, Call me not Naomi, call me Mara: for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me.
21 I went out full, and the LORD hath brought me home again empty: why then call ye me Naomi, seeing the LORD hath testified against me, and the Almighty hath afflicted me?
22 So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter in law, with her, which returned out of the country of Moab: and they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest.
In verse 2 of this chapter, it was established that the Bethlehem that Naomi and her family came from was in Judah. There was another Bethlehem in Zebulun. God made sure we would have this information as He gave us this account. This was important. Micah was directed to prophesy that the Messiah would come out of Bethlehem Ephratah, in Judah. We will see how this fact fits into this account.
Naomi brought Ruth back to her homeland. The people recognized Naomi when she entered the city. She had been gone for 10 years. She left with her husband and her two sons. She came back empty of immediate family and with one daughter in law. More significantly, she came back spiritually empty. We read that the people were moved by the appearance of Naomi and Ruth.
In verse 20 we read that Naomi wanted to straighten out the record. She did not want to be called Naomi, which we said means “my delight”. She wanted to be called Mara which means “bitterness”. She went on to complain about how the Almighty had treated her. The name she chose for God here is Shaddai. Earlier she had referred to God as LORD which is Jehovah. Now she refers to Him as the Almighty. We need to keep in mind that God directed her in the use of her words here. God was in fact revealing Himself in a greater way here.
She claimed that the Almighty had dealt with her very bitterly. She was not pleased with how God had dealt with her. This is the impression she was giving Ruth about the LORD. As we will see, Ruth did not adopt her mother in law’s view of God. We have been noting what an honourable person looks like. Ruth had a respect for the LORD that she did not get from Naomi. She got that by submitting to the true God. He was teaching her some things about Himself that would be very important for her. We do not read of much human godly influence in Ruth’s life up to this point. We need to remember this is Old Testament times and it is before the Scriptures were completed and also before the Comforter was given to us as He has been since the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ. We must keep the context in mind.
Ultimately Ruth would learn important facts about God from Boaz. In the meantime, God was very gracious to her and was helping her to show a level of reverence for Him, that is important for all people.
In our time, we have the completed Scriptures. We also have the indwelling Holy Spirit, for those who are saved. We also have the local church which has taken a beating in some people’s minds. We cannot dismiss the importance of a true local church. That is God’s design. It is the way that God intends for His children to grow and serve Him. It is true that the church is made up of godly people. Saved people are the church. According to the Bible, you cannot separate that from the institutional nature of the local church. When the Bible tells us:
Acts 9:31 Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.
God is not talking of individuals here. He is speaking of an organized group of people who were meeting somewhere, where others knew they were. The authorities could go and arrest people and imprison people because they found them meeting together somewhere. Even in our time, a person can sit at home and study his Bible and develop a theology and the state will not bother him. If he is saved and joins a true church that teaches the Word of God, which sadly oftentimes stands against the state, the state will seek to find a way to silence that group.
In verse 21 Naomi stated that she went out full and the LORD brought her back home empty. Her husband, Elimelech, chose to move his family away from the house of God and into a pagan land. They certainly emptied themselves of the God-designed opportunities to learn of Him. Naomi did not realize this important fact. She only saw the physical aspect of what she was experiencing.
Naomi again asked why the people wanted to think of her as being a delight, when she claimed the LORD had testified against her and the Almighty had afflicted her. Naomi needed to get over her bitterness toward God. She needed to humble herself and understand that she had no right to insult the true God as she was.
God would allow her to rant for a time here. God is gracious. He is the Almighty and He is also the supreme God, and He is also compassionate. Naomi was a woman. She was left without her husband. She did not have that shoulder to lean on. She was carrying a burden that was not intended for women to carry. However, she needed to learn to lean on the LORD, the Almighty.
In verse 22 God summarized the events of chapter 1 for us. Naomi had returned home. She brought Ruth the Moabitess with her. God reminded us here that Naomi and Ruth were come out of the land of Moab. They had returned to Bethlehem. Notice the timing here.
Naomi and her family left due to a famine. They came back in time for the barley harvest. God was going to look after Naomi’s physical needs even though she was complaining about Him. God is gracious. He knew the heart of Naomi. He knew that she was still hurting from events that had taken place in her life. Naomi was not the decision maker in their home. It was Elimelech that had made the decision to leave the “house of bread” and go to a foreign land that did not honour the true God. Elimelech never came home again. He died and was buried in Moab. Naomi would learn the importance of trusting in the true God.
Naomi’s two sons chose themselves foreign wives. They were of marrying age, and their father had brought them into a foreign land. They were not ready to go back home, and they married foreign women. Ruth proved to be a good woman who desired to know the true God. Orpah was content to remain in an idol worshipping environment.
God would bless Naomi and Ruth with the needed food for the winter. He would also bless them with much more than that. They did not know that at this time, but God would reveal His plan as time moved on.
God is not teaching us that it is acceptable to complain about Him. It is important to trust Him even when things seem dark. Ruth lost her husband and she came to Bethlehem, a strange city, with nothing. She looked at life in a different light than her mother in law did.
An honourable person submits to the will of God and trusts Him to work all things for His glory. Ruth was a ready vessel. That is what God requires of His children. He will direct those who trust in Him in the way of blessing.
Ruth had come to the “house of bread”. God would provide for her in a way she could never have imagined. God is good. We need to be honourable people. We can only be that if we are saved and submissive to the will of God. We can only learn that as we study God’s Word at home and through a true local church. Be sure you are not missing out on God’s blessings in your life.
Pastor Bartel
