Adventures in Odyssey

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Focus on the Family: And now Adventures in Odyssey.

Connie: Okay everybody, quiet down. All right, a few days ago, Courtney, Jenny, and I started studying a very special story together. One of the most romantic stories ever written. Ladies, why don’t you bring everyone else up to speed about what we’ve learned so far?

Courtney: Us?

Connie: Sure. You do remember, don’t you?

Courtney: Yeah. I, Jenny?

Jenny: Thanks a lot, Courtney. Well, first we met a guy named Elimelech, his wife Naomi, and their two sons, Mahlon and Kilion.

Elimelech: No, we will not see a crop this year. We have no crop. We’ll starve.

Oran: Hello, cousin.

Elimelech: Greetings, Oran. When can I bring my men over?

Oran: You can’t.

Elimelech: Then why have you gathered us together? To tell you we’re leaving.

Guest (Male): Where are you going, cousin?

Elimelech: To Moab. Elimelech, you made it. Welcome. Ruth, this is my wife Naomi.

Naomi: Welcome to my family, daughter.

Elimelech: A toast. May Chemosh bless them. Elimelech? Elimelech!

Naomi: I want you to return to your parents’ homes.

Ruth: No, I’m staying with you. Where you go, I will go.

Jenny: So when Naomi saw that Ruth wouldn’t go back, they both got up and continued their journey to Bethlehem and a new life.

Connie: Thank you, Jenny. What happens next, Connie? Well, Naomi and Ruth came to Bethlehem and the whole village was stirred by their arrival. But it wasn’t the same pleasant Naomi who had left them ten years earlier. You see, she had changed.

Guest (Male): Look who it is. Can it be Elimelech’s wife? Is that Naomi? Who’s that with her? She wouldn’t bring a Moabite woman back here, would she? Naomi! Naomi, is it really you?

Naomi: No. I was once Naomi, but I am no longer.

Ruth: Mother.

Naomi: When I left here, my life was full, but the Lord has brought me home empty.

Ruth: Mother, don’t.

Naomi: You are my only joy now, Ruth. Why should I be called Naomi when the Lord has turned his back on me and dealt me such hardship and misery? Listen to me, all of you. Don’t call me Naomi any longer. Call me Mara—bitter—for Almighty God has dealt me many bitter blows.

Guest (Male): Now, Naomi.

Naomi: My name is Mara.

Ruth: Oh, Mother.

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Courtney: So Naomi changed from a sweet person to a bitter person, huh?

Jenny: Yeah, but I can see why. She lost her husband and both her sons.

Connie: And to make matters worse, it wasn't long before she and Ruth received a visit from a familiar and very unwelcome relative.

Oran: Naomi! Naomi!

Ruth: Can I help you, sir?

Oran: Who are you?

Ruth: I am Naomi's daughter-in-law, Ruth.

Oran: Oh, yes, the Moabite. Well, I am Oran, her husband's cousin.

Ruth: You are most welcome, cousin Oran.

Oran: I am not your cousin, seed of iniquity. Where is Naomi?

Ruth: She is resting.

Oran: Tell her I wish to see her.

Ruth: She has not been well. She is...

Naomi: It’s all right, Ruth. Hello, Oran.

Oran: Welcome home, Naomi.

Naomi: My name is Mara.

Oran: Oh, yes, I’ve heard about that. The women of the town have been talking about your sojourn among the heathens and with your sons’ heathen wives.

Naomi: Have they? Then they must have told you that my son's wife is no longer a heathen. She has made the Lord God of Israel her God.

Oran: So the women say. What do you want, Oran?

Naomi: To offer you my help. The barley is ready to be harvested. I bid you to come and glean in my fields.

Oran: Thank you for your offer. Of course, if your husband had allowed me to control his lands while you were gone, you’d have been harvesting your own fields. As it is, perhaps next year we can join our fortunes, hmm?

Naomi: No, Oran.

Oran: No?

Naomi: I'm not so naive as you believe. You sought my husband’s lands while he was alive. Do you think it will be so easy to acquire them now that he is dead? No, Oran.

Oran: You have no workers for your fields. You have no money to buy seed. Did you think because the famine is over, those things would just miraculously appear? You can still starve on this precious land of yours.

Naomi: If it is God’s will, so be it. But I will not lose my husband’s inheritance, and we will not glean in your fields either.

Oran: What?

Naomi: We have never accepted your charity, and we will not start now. As my husband used to say, it comes at too high a price.

Oran: I have tried to help you. I have acted toward you according to the customs and laws of our land. And now, by those same laws and customs, my obligation to you is finished. Make your own way if you can. I'll have nothing more to do with you.

Ruth: Mother, perhaps you shouldn’t have been so harsh with him.

Naomi: He’ll be back, Ruth. Believe me. Like a plague, he'll be back. He'll have nothing more to do with us until he can figure out some other way to get this land.

Ruth: You would know better than I, and I'm sure if we're careful, we can make do with the food we have left.

Naomi: Would you rather we take his charity?

Ruth: No, no, certainly not. Still, I suppose I could go out in the fields of some kind man, perhaps glean the free grain behind his reapers.

Naomi: Ruth, you are wise. Very well, dear daughter. Go ahead.

Jenny: Connie?

Connie: Yes, Jenny?

Jenny: What did Ruth mean, glean the free grain behind his reapers?

Connie: Good question. When reapers would gather the harvest from the field, some of the grain would fall from their hands onto the ground. According to the law of Moses, the poor and the widows were entitled to gather that grain for themselves.

Jenny: Well, Naomi and Ruth were certainly widows.

Connie: Yes, and poor. So Ruth went off to glean, and the field she just happened to find herself in belonged to another one of Elimelech's relatives.

Guest (Male): Master Boaz! Look, everyone, it’s the Master!

Boaz: Thank you, thank you. God be with you all.

Guest (Male): Master.

Boaz: God be with you, Caleb, my foreman and my friend.

Caleb: And with you. Did your trip go well?

Boaz: Oh, very well. The trade route is ours, secured by treaty. I just came from town. Everyone is saying my cousin Naomi has returned from Moab.

Caleb: It is true. My wife told me she arrived a few days ago with her daughter-in-law.

Boaz: And what of Elimelech?

Caleb: Your kinsman sleeps in Sheol with his fathers.

Boaz: Elimelech is dead?

Caleb: And his two sons with him. I am sorry, Master. He was old, and his sons were never very strong.

Boaz: You say Naomi is back with her daughter-in-law?

Caleb: Yes, Master.

Boaz: Well, I must go see her. Caleb.

Caleb: Master?

Boaz: That girl over there behind the gleaners. Who is she?

Caleb: Naomi’s daughter-in-law.

Boaz: What?

Caleb: Her name is Ruth. She is a Moabitess. She was married to Mahlon and came back here to live.

Boaz: Why would she do that?

Caleb: According to my wife, she came because of her love for Naomi.

Boaz: I don't understand.

Caleb: Naomi wanted Ruth to return to her family, but Ruth begged to stay with Naomi. "Wherever you go, I will go," she said. "Wherever you stay, I will stay. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God."

Boaz: She worships the Lord our God?

Caleb: So it would seem, Master. This morning she arrived at the fields and asked if she could glean behind the reapers. She has worked without resting ever since, except for a short break in the workers' shelter.

Boaz: Remarkable. From the look of things, though, the other widows aren't letting her gather very much.

Caleb: Well, she is from Moab, Master.

Boaz: Oh, of course. Caleb, have everyone come in for another rest. But gather the men over there. I have some instructions I want you to give them.

Caleb: It will be done, Master. Rest time! Everyone in and refresh yourselves! Men to the right, women to the left.

Ruth: Another break so soon? Boaz is good to us. Pardon me, please.

Sarabeth: Well, if it isn’t the Moabite. What do you want, foreigner?

Ruth: Only a bit of water.

Sarabeth: And why should you get any water? Why should you get anything? Go and gather somewhere else. This water is for God's children, and so are these fields.

Boaz: We are all made by God, Sarabeth.

Sarabeth: Master Boaz, I only meant that she's not one of the chosen.

Boaz: Are you so sure? At any rate, you know the laws concerning the fallen grain. It is for the widows, the poor, and strangers in our land. From what I understand, she is all three.

Sarabeth: Yes, Master.

Ruth: Perhaps I should go and glean in some other field.

Boaz: Oh, no, no, my child. Don't go, please. I'm not wanted here and I don't wish to cause any trouble. There’s no trouble. Stay here and glean with us. They won't bother you anymore. You can work behind my women.

Ruth: But when your men see me, they will surely chase me away.

Boaz: I have warned my men not to trouble you. Here, have some water. It will refresh you. It's all right. Drink.

Ruth: Thank you.

Boaz: Feel better?

Ruth: Yes, my lord. How is it that I have found such favor in your eyes that you should be so kind to me? I am only a foreigner.

Boaz: I know. I also know all about the love and kindness you have shown your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, and how you left your father and mother in your own land and have come here to live among strangers. "Your people shall be my people, and your God my God." Did you say these things?

Ruth: Yes.

Boaz: And did you mean them?

Ruth: I did, my lord.

Boaz: May the Lord God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge, bless you for it.

Ruth: I am not one of your workers, and yet you are most gracious to me. Thank you.

Boaz: Back to work! Everyone back to work!

Ruth: Well, I should get back.

Boaz: Yes. Oh, do you eat? I mean, will you be hungry for lunch?

Ruth: I'm sure I will.

Boaz: Then come and eat with me.

Ruth: With you?

Boaz: And my workers, of course. It's better than eating alone. Will you?

Ruth: Yes. If you desire it, my lord, yes.

Boaz: Oh, excellent. I'll see you then.

Ruth: Until then.

Connie: So Ruth sat with Boaz and his reapers, and he gave her more food than she could eat. And when she went back to work that afternoon, Boaz had more instructions for his workers.

Boaz: Caleb, tell the men to let Ruth glean right among the sheaves. Do not stop her.

Caleb: Yes, Master.

Boaz: And Caleb.

Caleb: Yes, Master?

Boaz: Tell them also to snap off some heads of barley and drop them for her to pick up.

Caleb: Yes, Master.

Boaz: And Caleb.

Caleb: Yes, Master?

Boaz: Tell them to do it in secret. Don't let her know anything about it.

Caleb: Yes, Master.

Boaz: Oh, and Caleb.

Caleb: Yes, Master?

Boaz: Tell them to definitely not tell her I told them to do it.

Caleb: Yes, Master. Well, what are you waiting for? Go, go, go! Oh, yes, Master!

Connie: Ruth worked in Boaz's fields all day. And in the evening, when she had beaten out the barley she had gleaned, it came to a whole bushel. She carried it and the leftover food from lunch back to Naomi.

Ruth: Mother! Mother, look! Here is what I gleaned, and here is what was left from lunch.

Naomi: So much! Where in the world did you work today?

Ruth: It was so wonderful, Mother. The owner of the field let me work among the sheaves. He protected me and defended me.

Naomi: May God be praised for his kindness. Who is this man?

Ruth: His name is Boaz.

Naomi: Boaz? Blessed be the Lord God who is still showing his mercy to us and to Mahlon.

Ruth: Why?

Naomi: Boaz is Elimelech’s cousin. He’s our close relative. He’s one of our redeemers.

Ruth: The Lord is good. Boaz said to come back and stay close behind his reapers until the entire field is harvested.

Naomi: This is wonderful. Do as he says. Stay with his workers through the whole harvest. You’ll be safer there than in any other field.

Connie: Ruth gathered in Boaz's field through the end of the barley harvest and the wheat harvest, too. Each night she came home to Naomi and told her of Boaz's great kindnesses. Little by little, Naomi began to lose her bitterness and regain her joy. And before long, a wonderful plan took shape in her mind.

Naomi: Ruth, my daughter, are you happy here?

Ruth: Yes, Mother, very happy.

Naomi: Have you ever considered getting married again?

Ruth: Oh, well, I cannot deny that I have thought about it. But I will not leave you. You know that.

Naomi: You may not have to. I know that you love Boaz.

Ruth: Mother!

Naomi: There's no use denying it. I can see it in your eyes and in your smile. Am I right?

Ruth: Yes, I do love him.

Naomi: And he loves you as well.

Ruth: Do you think so?

Naomi: Oh, yes. I see the way he looks at you and how kind he's been toward us for your sake.

Ruth: Then why hasn't he said anything to me?

Naomi: Boaz is an honorable man. And sometimes honorable men need a little coaxing. Do you want to marry him?

Ruth: Oh, yes, Mother, more than anything. But how can we coax him? He will be winnowing barley tonight on the threshing floor. Now, here's what you do.

Bathe and put on perfume and some nice clothes and go down to the threshing floor, but don't let him see you. When he has finished his supper, watch where he beds down for the night. When he's asleep, go and lift the cover off his feet and lie down there.

Ruth: At his feet? Isn't that rather forward of me?

Naomi: Well, we have no men to arrange this proposal, so what else can we do? Boaz is honorable. Once you're there, he will tell you what to do.

Ruth: All right, Mother. I'll do whatever you say.

Jenny: Connie?

Connie: Yes, Jenny?

Jenny: What happened? I don't get what's happening here.

Connie: Well, you see, according to Arabic tradition, by laying at his feet, Ruth was essentially proposing to him. It was risky because, well, Boaz could reject her and crush her heart forever.

Courtney: Oh, Ruth. Connie, what happened?

Connie: Well, it was just as Naomi said. After Boaz had finished his supper, he lay down contentedly beside a heap of grain and went to sleep. Ruth crept up to him through the darkness, quietly lifted the covering off his feet, and lay there.

The minutes crawled by, minutes that must have been torture for Ruth. The poor thing. Then suddenly, around midnight, Boaz awoke and sat up, startled.

Boaz: Who are you?

Ruth: It is Ruth, your maidservant, my lord.

Boaz: Ruth? Why are you here?

Ruth: My lord, if I have found favor in your eyes, spread your robe over your handmaid and make me your wife according to God's law.

Boaz: My wife?

Ruth: Yes. You are my close relative.

Boaz: Oh, Ruth. Ruth, blessed be the Lord God for bringing you here, for this kindness is even greater than the first.

Ruth: Kindness?

Boaz: Toward Naomi and me.

Ruth: But that's not...

Boaz: You have put aside your personal desires. Oh, I know you would prefer a younger man, even a poor one.

Ruth: No, not so, my lord. My heart's desire is for you.

Boaz: And I love you as well. Now, don't worry about a thing, my child. I'll handle all the details. Everyone knows what a good person you are. They'll all want to come to the wedding, and we will invite everyone—all our friends and relatives.

Ruth: Oh, Boaz.

Boaz: I just thought of a problem.

Ruth: A problem?

Boaz: It's true that I am a close relative, but there is someone who is more closely related to you than I am.

Ruth: There is?

Boaz: By our laws, he would have first claim on you.

Ruth: Who is it?

Boaz: Oran.

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Jenny: Ruth would have to marry Oran? I don't get it, Connie. Why?

Connie: Well, it has to do with the law of Moses. When a man died, his nearest male relative had the right and obligation to protect that man's property, which included marrying his wife.

Courtney: But Oran is so hateful and mean. Ruth can't marry him. She just can't.

Connie: Well, I think she probably felt the same way.

Ruth: Oran.

Boaz: I know, my dear, but the law is the law. I must at least talk to him about it.

Ruth: I understand.

Boaz: I'll see him in the morning. If he refuses to marry you, then as the Lord lives, I will. But if he will marry you, then we have no choice.

Ruth: May the Lord's will be done.

Boaz: Everything will be all right, my child. Now lie down and get some sleep.

Connie: She lay at his feet until the morning and was up early, before daybreak. Boaz tied up a bushel and a half of barley in her shawl as a present for Naomi. Then Ruth returned home and told her mother-in-law everything that had happened.

Naomi: We may have undone ourselves, Ruth. Oran will surely see this as a way to take our land.

Ruth: Oh, Mother, he will take me from you and you will have lost everything.

Naomi: No, no, we must be patient until we hear what happens. Boaz is wise and shrewd. He won't rest until the matter's settled. We must have faith.

Connie: Boaz went to the village gate at Bethlehem, where he found Oran and ten of the chief men of the village, whom he asked to sit as witnesses.

Oran: What do you want, Boaz? I'm a busy man.

Boaz: It is no secret that for some time now you have desired to acquire our brother Elimelech's land.

Oran: As you say, it is common knowledge.

Boaz: What is not common knowledge is that I am in control of Elimelech's land.

Oran: You? But I thought Naomi...

Boaz: Naomi did not know.

Oran: I don't believe you.

Boaz: Will you believe Elimelech's sandal?

Jenny: Wait a minute. Explain the sandal again.

Courtney: You remember, when a deal was made, the person making the deal would pull off his sandal and hand it to the other party.

Jenny: Oh, right, right. Okay, keep going.

Oran: So you are the one.

Boaz: Yes. And besides, Naomi now desires to sell Elimelech's property.

Oran: Does she? I'm glad she's finally come to her senses.

Boaz: I felt I should speak to you about it so you can buy it if you wish in the presence of these respected witnesses. As the closest relative, you have the first right to buy it.

Oran: Then I'll buy it.

Boaz: Are you sure?

Oran: Yes, I'm sure. I'll buy it.

Boaz: Very well. Because if you don't want to buy it, just say the word and I will buy it.

Oran: I want it. I'll buy it.

Boaz: Very well. Congratulations.

Oran: Thank you. Thank you, thank you very much. When is the wedding? Wedding? What wedding?

Boaz: Why, yours.

Oran: What are you talking about?

Boaz: Didn't you know? Your purchase of the land from Naomi requires your marriage to her daughter-in-law, Ruth.

Oran: Ruth? The Moabitess?

Boaz: Yes. You must marry her so that she can have children to carry on her husband's name and inherit the land.

Oran: I can't marry a Moabitess.

Boaz: You must. It's the law.

Oran: But if I do, her children will have a claim on my inheritance.

Boaz: Yes. Congratulations.

Oran: No! I won't do it.

Boaz: You won't?

Oran: No.

Boaz: Are you sure?

Oran: Yes. You buy the land. You marry the girl.

Boaz: Very well then. Give me your sandal.

Oran: Here. And gladly given.

Boaz: Thank you, Oran. Elders and leaders of Bethlehem, you have seen that today I have bought all the property of Elimelech, Kilion, and Mahlon from Naomi. And that with it, I have purchased Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, to be my wife, that she may have a son to carry on his family's name.

Guest (Male): We are witnesses, Boaz. May the Lord make this woman, who has now come into your home, like Rachel and Leah, from whom all the nations of Israel descended.

Boaz: I thank you, brethren. God be with you.

Guest (Male): And with you, Boaz. Now, go be with your betrothed.

Boaz: Yes! Yes! Ruth! Ruth! You are now bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh.

Ruth: The Lord God of Israel has made us one, beloved husband.

Boaz: Beloved wife.

Guest (Male): What God hath joined together, let no man separate. Amen!

Connie: So Boaz and Ruth were married, and the Lord blessed them and gave her a son. Naomi became the boy's nurse.

Ruth: What is the baby's name?

Boaz: He will be called Obed, a servant who worships.

Ruth: Well, Mother, you have a son again.

Naomi: Yes, a beautiful son. Praise be to God!

Connie: Naomi's joy was complete. Obed grew and became the father of Jesse, who was the father of the shepherd boy David, king of Israel and ancestor of the King of Kings, Jesus.

Jenny: Thanks, Connie. That was wonderful.

Courtney: Yeah. And you were right. Ruth’s story is one of the most romantic and beautiful stories I’ve ever heard.

Connie: And it’s a whole lot more. It teaches us about faith, perseverance, the importance of making proper choices, and how God works in our lives even when he seems far away. And most of all, it teaches us about the power of love.

Focus on the Family: Of all the classic love stories in literature, few come close to the tenderness and beauty of the story of Ruth, the young widow from Moab. It’s such a special story that it’s one of only two books in the Bible named after women. And Ruth was such a special person that she had the honor of being included in the direct family line of Jesus. Now, that’s special.

What do you think is the most beautiful story in the Bible? Write it down on a postcard or a letter and send it to me. The address is Adventures in Odyssey, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80995. Or in Canada, write to Box 9800, Vancouver, BC, V6B 4G3. And when you do, ask about how you can get your own copy of today's episode. It's called "Three Funerals and a Wedding".

Adventures in Odyssey is a presentation of Focus on the Family. "Three Funerals and a Wedding" was written and directed by Phil Lollar. Our production engineer was Mark Drury, and our music by John Campbell. And I'm Chris, hoping you'll join us again next time for more Adventures in Odyssey.