Lesson 10: Strangers in town

Read Ruth 1

Ruth was a young lady from Moab. Moab, as a nation, came from a son of Lot (nephew of Abraham, see Genesis 13). One of the best-known stories about Moab involved a man named Balaam, a prophet of Moab, who blessed Israel with words when the king asked him to curse the Israelite people. We remember this event because Balaam heard God’s commands to him when his donkey talked to him! Then, because Balaam still wanted the promised money from the king of Moab even though God would not let him curse Israel, he told the king he could bring trouble to Israel by sending prostitutes into the camp. The king sent prostitutes into the camp, and God destroyed over 24,000 people in Israel because of their sin. The Bible talks in other places about the doctrine of Balaam: a person says they believe in God, but their actions are all about seeking the wealth and pleasure of the world.

God cursed the people of Moab for what the king had done to Israel. But just because God cursed a nation did not mean the individuals of that nation could not come to Him if they chose to do so.

The story of Ruth begins about 150 years later. A famine in Israel caused Elimelech to move his family to Moab so they could have enough food to eat. The two sons grew up and married local girls. One of them was Ruth.


*Do you ever feel like you live in a nation that has been cursed by God?

Remember, though a nation is cursed, the individuals are not. God’s wish is that no one should have to live through eternity without Him – 2 Peter 3:9. But since He has given people the ability to choose, the choice of whether they do or do not want God in their lives is up to the individual. Anyone who chooses not to have God is already condemned to spiritual death – everlasting existence without God (see John 3:18).

Ruth took the first step, maybe not even knowing this was the first step to something far greater with God, when she accepted this son of Elimelech and Naomi as her husband. She could not have known she would soon be a widow and be left with nothing.

There are no coincidences in the life of someone who follows Jesus. Everything coming into our lives is either something Jesus wants to use to make us stronger in Him, or, when they are bad things for which we had no choice at all, they are events and circumstances Jesus can and will use for good in our lives – see Romans 8:28-29. We can rarely see how illness or trouble or disaster or anything bad can be used for good in our lives, but Jesus can – because He can see every minute of our whole future. And as we carefully watch Him fulfill His promises time after time, our trust in Him grows stronger and stronger.

*What bad event in your life have you seen God make into something good?