Skip to content
  • DONATE
Me
  • The Book of Ruth

Day Two – Difficult days

share

Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on whatsapp
Share on email

Welcome to your daily Bible 2020 reflection. Over this series we’ll be taking time to read, speak, pray and share God’s word.

The best way to access the daily readings is through the Bible 2020 app. Open it now for today’s reading, or download it via Apple or Google App stores.

Open BIble 2020
  • Download on the app store
  • get it on google play

Ruth 1:1-2 (NIVUK)

In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land. So a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab. The man’s name was Elimelek, his wife’s name was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to Moab and lived there.

The book of Ruth opens with difficulty.

 

It was the “days when the judges ruled”, a dark spiritual period in Israel when, “everyone did as he saw fit” (Judges 21:25). Though famines were common in Biblical times, the Bible makes a clear link between human sin and the productiveness of the land (Deuteronomy 28). There is irony in the text too: Bethlehem means “house of bread”, and their tribe’s name meant “fruitful”.

In these difficult times, Elimelek makes a difficult choice: he decides to take the family from the land God had given Israel, and instead, seeks food in Moab. Elimelek’s choice echoes that of Israel’s ancestors who left the land in times of famine (Genesis 12, 26, 42) – choices that had profound consequences.

But these are God’s people, and it’s a Biblical story, so we must ask, where is God in the story? What is to be done with a nation who are supposed to be God’s people, but who just do what they think is right? Will God come to the rescue of his nation, which is starving? And how will God act towards this family, who have left the promised land in search of food?

We may live in a context far removed from the setting of Ruth in the ancient near east. However, we too live on a planet impacted by human sin. And as with Ruth, so we ask of our own story, “Where is God?” What is God going to do in the midst of the difficulties we face?

These questions are grounded in Biblical truths. We approach life in a particular way because of who the Bible reveals God to be: our God is a God who is present and active in the world, a God who is the source of life and fruitfulness, a God who in his love longs to save.

Because we believe these things about God, we look for his presence and his activity amidst the brokenness of our lives and our world. And when faced with difficult circumstances we turn to God in expectancy, trusting in his love and salvation.

PrevPreviousDay One – There is no Rock like our God
NextDay Three – Tragedy StrikesNext

BIBLE 2020

The Book of Ruth

download the app

  • Download on the app store
  • get it on google play

subscribe to the podcast

  • Apple Podcasts
  • Spotify
  • RSS Feed


Copyright © 2021 The Scottish Bible Society
Scottish Charity No. SC010767
Registered Office: 7 Hampton Terrace, Edinburgh, EH12 5XU, United Kingdom
Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | Contact Us
Scottish Bible Society
CloseMenu

We have compiled resources which can help you and your loved ones stay in close relationship with God. These resources also equip all who are engaging in virtual community to stay close to one another.

Stay connected with us

ReAD GOD's WORD

  • WHERE YOU GO - AUDIO DRAMA
  • ADVENT READER
  • EQUIP
  • BEYOND DISASTER

SHARE GOD's WORD

  • BIBLE 2020
  • The Outspoken Bible
  • Gospel of Mark

children & families

  • Christmas Windows
  • Bible World Books
  • bible 2020 family resources