06/07/2026 - "Love: The First Fruits" (Ruth 1:1-17)

Scripture: Ruth 1:1-17

During the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. A man with his wife and two sons went from Bethlehem of Judah to dwell in the territory of Moab. The name of that man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They entered the territory of Moab and settled there.

But Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died. Then only she was left, along with her two sons. They took wives for themselves, Moabite women; the name of the first was Orpah and the name of the second was Ruth. And they lived there for about ten years.

But both of the sons also died. Only the woman was left, without her two children and without her husband. Then she arose along with her daughters-in-law to return from the field of Moab, because while in the territory of Moab she had heard that the Lord had paid attention to his people by providing food for them. She left the place where she had been, and her two daughters-in-law went with her. They went along the road to return to the land of Judah.

Naomi said to her daughters-in-law, “Go, turn back, each of you to the household of your mother. May the Lord deal faithfully with you, just as you have done with the dead and with me. May the Lord provide for you so that you may find security, each woman in the household of her husband.” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept.

But they replied to her, “No, instead we will return with you, to your people.”

Naomi replied, “Turn back, my daughters. Why would you go with me? Will there again be sons in my womb, that they would be husbands for you? Turn back, my daughters. Go. I am too old for a husband. If I were to say that I have hope, even if I had a husband tonight, and even more, if I were to bear sons— would you wait until they grew up? Would you refrain from having a husband? No, my daughters. This is more bitter for me than for you, since the Lord’s will has come out against me.”

Then they lifted up their voices and wept again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth stayed with her.

Naomi said, “Look, your sister-in-law is returning to her people and to her gods. Turn back after your sister-in-law.”

But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to abandon you, to turn back from following after you. Wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord do this to me and more so if even death separates me from you.”

~

The story of Ruth, Naomi, and later Boaz, is one of the most iconic stories in the Old Testament. It occurs during what’s known as the period of the judges, when the people of Judah was caught in a cycle of turning away from God, being conquered by neighboring kingdoms, then being rescued by a judge, who would then oversee a period of peace before they died and Judah turned away from God again, continuing the cycle.

It’s the cycle detailed in the book of Judges, which precedes the book of Ruth in the Old Testament. Which makes sense; the book of Ruth zooms into one point in time in that cycle and tells the story of one family trying to survive through war and famine. If Judges is written more as a historical overview of the leaders and wars and political motivations of this time period, Ruth is written to show the human side of all the political maneuvering, the wars, and the famines during this time.

And we see the impact of this unrest and upheaval immediately. Naomi, her husband, and her two sons are forced to leave their hometown of Bethlehem on a dangerous journey to Moab in the hopes that they will find food and safety. And choosing to leave their home for Moab is no easy decision. Moab’s and Israel’s relationship was shaky; sometimes they seemed tenuously at peace, other times they were in all out war. During the time of the Judges, Moab was one of the kingdoms that conquered Judah and occupied them until a judge named Ehud led a successful revolt against their occupation.

But at least in this story it seems as if they’re on enough of good terms for Naomi to feel comfortable settling there with her family. And her sons seem to have no qualms about marrying Moabite women - Orpah, and Ruth. And it’s clear in the text that both Orpah and Ruth loved Naomi, and Naomi loved them in return.

No matter what cultures they’d come from, no matter their differences in religion and language, they’d become a family. A family born out of choice. At first it was due to the choices of Naomi’s sons, but along the way Orpah and Ruth clearly come to see Naomi as a mother figure, and Naomi clearly considers them to be the daughters she never had, or never got to see grow up.

But even with two precious new additions to their family, it’s still not home. Naomi and her husband and sons live as immigrants, as strangers, in a foreign land. She buries her own husband there, then ten years later, has to bury her sons there as well.

As an immigrant in Moab, Naomi would’ve always been incredibly vulnerable. Now without a husband or sons, she’s in serious trouble. This is a time where women weren’t really allowed in the public square, and there weren’t many options for women to provide for themselves. And the options that did exist were not good ones. So Naomi was in danger with not a lot of good options in front of her to keep herself and her daughters-in-law alive. It’s no wonder that when she hears that the famine is over in Judah, she immediately sets out to return to her home.

What is surprising is that Orpah and Ruth go with her.

Both women would’ve also been vulnerable as widows, especially since Naomi tells them to go back to the households of their mothers, not fathers. This may suggest that neither of them had close male relatives that they could return to for protection. Or, they did, and Naomi is saying for them to return to their mothers instead of continuing on with her, their mother-in-law.

That being said, it was Jewish law at this time for women to remain with their deceased husband’s household and marry one of his brothers so that she would remain protected and provided for. But Naomi isn’t going to have any more children. So under the laws, cultural norms, and practices of this time period, there is no reason that we know of that Orpah and Ruth should go with Naomi. In fact, their best chance would be to go home and try to get re-married into another family.

And yet, they choose to stay with Naomi.

To love each other, even though their life experiences could not be more different.

They set out together, as a unique little family, three women bound together by loss and love.

What changes as they walk down the road, past the fields of Moab with the fields of Judah out on the horizon? Because it’s on this road that Naomi suddenly stops and insists that her daughters-in-law go back home.

Maybe it’s because seeing her homeland reminds Naomi that no matter how much she loves them, no matter how much they mean to her, their presence as Moabites will complicate her life. Because again, Moab has occupied Judah before. While they may be on okay terms right now, that has not always been the case - and we know that in their future, they will go to war again in a few generations. It’s very possible Naomi is worried about what people might think of her if she were to waltz back into Bethlehem with two Moabite women following her. Strange women from a strange land, who don’t speak Hebrew, who worships different gods, who doesn’t know the local customs or culture. Naomi knew she was already going to be on the margins of society as a widow without a male relative to protect and provide for her, and she was too old to get re-married. But being a widow with two Moabite daughters-in-law? Well, that just might be worse.

So telling them to turn back might have been self-preservation on Naomi’s part. She might have thought that by coming home alone, she would be able to re-integrate back into Judah’s society easier than if her daughters-in-law came with her. I don’t think that means she didn’t love them, but I do think it means her sense of self-preservation kicked in a little more.

Or, maybe it’s because she realizes exactly what her daughters-in-law are getting into by coming with her. While she’s going home, they’re becoming immigrants, just like she’s been for the past ten years. She knows the fear they must be facing. She knows the discomfort of having to adjust to a new culture so different from your own, where nobody follows your religion, with a strange new language to learn, and being surrounded by strangers who will be indifferent at best, and maybe hostile at worst. She knows it would be easier for them to be widows in their own country, among their own people. So maybe that’s why she sends them back.

Out of love and concern, and not wanting to put them through the same pain and struggle that she’s lived through. Even if it means losing the two women she’s come to consider daughters, who are willing to and could help take care of her in her old age.

Maybe this is the courageous choice for her. She’s willing to sacrifice her last chance at comfort and care, so the two daughters she loves can live the rest of their lives in comfort and relative stability in their home country. Whatever reason it is, she argues that the women have their whole lives ahead of them - why should they waist it on her, a mother-in-law who isn’t and can never be related to them ever again?

Orpah finally seems to listen, kissing Naomi good-bye and heading home to her biological family. But Ruth is just as courageous and beautifully stubborn. She stays right at Naomi’s side, refusing to abandon her mother-in-law who’s technically no longer her mother-in-law. Maybe it’s because she has nothing to go back to, and her best option is by Naomi’s side. Maybe her family has kicked her out because of whom she loved and married, and there’s no way she’ll be accepted back into her biological family’s house. Maybe Naomi is the only family she has left, and she’s not letting her go, no matter what the consequences are.

Even to the point of being willing to give up everything she’s ever known - her culture, her religion, and her homeland - to stay with the love of a family that she’s found. Or maybe she knows that Naomi is too old to be capable of caring for herself once she gets back to Judah. Maybe Ruth doesn’t trust that Naomi’ll be taken care of, so she wants to make sure that she stays with her so that there’s at least one person looking out for her.

Either way, she’s willing to sacrifice everything she’s known and loved in order to stay with the woman she’s come to consider like her own mother. Whatever the reason is, Naomi finally relents and lets Ruth come with her. Maybe she realizes that she can’t get rid of Ruth that easily and lets the matter go, accepting that she may be shunned even more with a Moabite woman living with her. Or maybe she’s genuinely happy that Ruth is coming with her so she won’t be alone. So that she’ll have someone to care for her. And really, she didn’t want the woman she’d come to consider like her own daughter to leave her.

Or maybe, honestly probably, it’s all of it at the same time.

Ruth and Naomi’s love for each other is more complicated than it can appear at first glance. It is tinged with desperation, of two women from different generations and different cultures, trapped in impossible circumstances trying to survive in a time and place where they were incredibly vulnerable. But ultimately, in the face of prejudice and discrimination, this love wins out.

When Naomi seems to fall into depression after reaching Judah,

Ruth stays by her side and works long hours to gather food so they can eat.

And when Ruth stumbles into the fields of Boaz, Naomi’s cousin, Naomi is the one to coach her through how to appeal to him for protection under Judah’s kinship laws. And how to, essentially, seduce him so he falls in love with her so he’s willing to advocate for them. Which he does, and they get married and have children. And Naomi takes on the role of their grandmother, helping to care for the children and raise them as if they were her own biological grandchildren.

Even though Ruth and Naomi are not related, are from different cultures and religions, they still choose to love each other as a family, through the difficult times and the good ones.

Ruth is one of four named women in the ancestry of Jesus, and her story is one marked by a courageous, stubborn love. One that does not let go even when things are not easy, one that is determined to see the people in their lives cared for, even if they are nothing like us.

Because we all have people in our lives that come from different backgrounds, have different life experiences, speak different languages and come from different cultures.

And sometimes, even if someone is just like us, they may not be the easiest people to get along with.

But even in those situations, Jesus still calls us to love our neighbor.

Which is why I think Paul lists love as the first fruit of the spirit - it is the commandment that Jesus says summarizes all of the law and the prophets, and it is the first fruit that has to sprout in order for the rest to come after it.

Because even in desperate times, love can and does grow and flourish. All we have to do is be courageous enough - and yes, maybe a little stubborn enough - to choose it and cling to it, no matter what the cost.

So may we carry with us the courage and stubbornness of Ruth’s love, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.