Sermon Tone Analysis

Genre: Narrative- Short Story.

Discourse.

Problem-Resolution.

Theme: Naomi restored to fullness.

A life of hesed.

A key theme is from emptiness to fullness.

A key theme in the book is the theme of children.

Look into the idea of a life of hesed being a distinguishing mark of God’s covenant people.

Yahweh alone redeems by the Seed of the woman.

Look at the garden curse.

They had food, blessedness, communion with God.

Compare Naomi to Sarah and Rachel, barren and without hope, yet Yahweh provides offspring.

Compare Abraham’s and Jacob’s flights to Egypt with this flight to Moab and why are they different.

Abraham went with all his household, leaving no one of God’s people behind.

As did Jacob.

Explain the purpose of the period of the Judges.

To show Israel their need for a king and the blessedness that would come from having a good king.

Talk about the sons marrying Moabite wives and what that would mean for the progeny (think uncircumcised males living in Moab versus circumcised living in Israel).

Good day,

So far I think I will deal only with 1:1-6 this week.

I’d like to get your thoughts on if I am way off in what I am seeing there.

As I have been reading and thinking about the text, it seems that the family should have remained with their people and endured God’s chastisement rather than leaving.

​I am thinking about connections to texts like , especially vv 15 and 17; , the covenant curses (especially in regards to food and children) in , and the promise of restoration in .

And also how the life of the covenant community should look, like and those who suffer according to God’s will entrusting their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.

I looked at commentaries to see if I was off and two were in line with how I saw things (Block, Duguid) and two were not (Hubbard, Bush).

Sin alienates from God and makes sin seem normal.

My bare bones study notes are below:

Genre: Narrative- Short Story.

Discourse.

Problem-Resolution.

Theme: Naomi restored to fullness.

A life of hesed.

Things to deal with:

The Time of the Judges, how does the story of Ruth contrast with Judges?

Describe the cycles of judgment, enslavement, famine, and deliverance in Judges and the people’s spiritual state in general; contrasting the behavior of the peoples in each book.Elimelech’s name meant My God is King, yet he acts as his own king just as they were doing in the time of the judges by going after bread outside of the land of promise.

(Promised land and a connection to Eden?)Heading to Moab: Describe the backwards nature of their journey.

They are moving from the promised land to a land that is pagan and God haters.

They are leaving the house of bread to seek bread in a foreign land.

They did not just sojourn there, like it says in verse 1, but they remained there (2).

Forsaking Their People: They left their people behind, they did not participate in the judgment that God brought for disobedience that should have driven them to repentance, but they left instead, forsaking their people for the sake of their own comfort.Forsaking Their God: Rather than repenting, rather than staying and working to urge the people to repent, they left.

They left God’s providential provision in the land of promise.

They left God’s priests, rulers, and prophets.

They left God’s worship.

And they stayed away until their lives ended.

God did not forsake HIs people when He sent famine, He used famine to draw them back to Himself.

It was quite clear that the Moabites were not to be joined with, yet they did and intermarried.

Does this indicate that the worship of God was neglected by this family, along with Naomi’s charge to return to their gods?The Death Blow: God leaves Naomi bereft of her husband and two sons.

All the males have died.

Where will she go to find provision?Naomi seems to be the principal subject of the story of Ruth, the main character.

What happens to her is the point, from being deprived of all, to being given a son by a redeemer.A key theme is from emptiness to fullness.A key theme in the book is the theme of children.Look into the idea of a life of hesed being a distinguishing mark of God’s covenant people.Some of what I still need to do:

Develop the main purpose of the bookDevelop my proposition for this lesson (what they call it at seminary, the main idea, what to do or think and why)Create an outlineDevelop teaching helps (participation, attention, organization)Create a manuscript

The Time of the Judges

das

Describe the cycles of judgment, enslavement, famine, and deliverance.

25 In those days there was no king in Israel.

Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

Elimelech’s name meant My God is King, yet he acts as his own king just as they were doing in the time of the judges.

They went into the country of Moab and remained there

They did not just sojourn there, like it says their intention was in verse 1, but they stayed there.

3 “No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the Lord.

Even to the tenth generation, none of them may enter the assembly of the Lord forever, 4 because they did not meet you with bread and with water on the way, when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you. 5 But the Lord your God would not listen to Balaam; instead the Lord your God turned the curse into a blessing for you, because the Lord your God loved you.

6 You shall not seek their peace or their prosperity all your days forever.

It was quite clear that the Moabites were a specially cursed people, yet they joined with them and intermarried.

This indicates that the worship of God was neglected by this family, along with Naomi’s charge to return to their gods.

ESV

“When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit."

Look at 1 Peter and consider how the family of Elimelech ought to have borne the trial that Yahweh had brought upon them.

12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.

13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.

14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.

15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler.

16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.

17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And

12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.

13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.

14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.

15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler.

16 Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.

17 For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? 18 And

“If the righteous is scarcely saved,

what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?”

19 Therefore let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), .

Heading to Moab

Describe the backwards nature of their exodus.

They are moving from the promised land to a land that is pagan and God haters.

Moab was specially cursed for not meeting Israel with bread and water but instead hiring Baalam to bring a curse against them.

Israel was not to seek their peace or their prosperity all their days forever ().

The prohibition on the Moabites and Ammonites contrasts with the prohibition levied upon the Edomites.

No Moabite to the tenth generation, forever, could enter the assembly of the Lord.

By contrast, the Edomites and Egyptians could do so after three generations.

They are leaving the house of bread to seek bread in a foreign land.

Numbers 22

22 Then the people of Israel set out and camped in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan at Jericho. 2 And Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites.

3 And Moab was in great dread of the people, because they were many.

Moab was overcome with fear of the people of Israel.

4 And Moab said to the elders of Midian, “This horde will now lick up all that is around us, as the ox licks up the grass of the field.”

So Balak the son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, 5 sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River in the land of the people of Amaw, to call him, saying, “Behold, a people has come out of Egypt.

They cover the face of the earth, and they are dwelling opposite me.