Superbook

Lesson:

Be loyal and kind in your relationships.

Extras

• Character Profiles

  • Ruth

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    Ruth

    

    Ruth was a Moabitess, who married into the Hebrew family of Elimelech and Naomi. Naomi decides that it is time to return to her homeland of Israel and Ruth insists on returning with Naomi.

    • Bible References

      • Ruth 1:16
      • Ruth 1:16
      • Leviticus 25:25
      • Deuteronomy 25:5
      • Ruth 4:17

  • Naomi

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    Naomi

    

    Naomi and Ruth are among the best-loved characters in history and their story still resonates because of their love and devotion to each other. Naomi decides that it is time to return to her homeland of Israel and Ruth insists on returning with Naomi.

    • Bible References

      • Ruth 4:9
      • Leviticus 26:14
      • Psalms 34:9
      • Ruth 1:20

  • Boaz

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    Boaz

    

    Boaz was related to Naomi and he ended up marrying Ruth.

    • Bible References

      • Ruth 4:9
      • Ruth 4:5
      • Matthew 1:5
      • Ruth 2:4

• Adventure Guide

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    Gizmo's Bible Adventures - Your New Journey with God

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    Ruth - Family Discussion Guide

• Videos

  Boaz Agrees to Marry Ruth

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    Boaz Agrees to Marry Ruth

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    Boaz Awakens to Ruth

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    Boaz Befriends Ruth

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    Boaz Notices Ruth

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    The Lineage of David

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    Naomi Directs Ruth

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    Naomi and Ruth Go To Bethlehem

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    Ruth Tells Naomi About Boaz

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    Ruth - Salvation Poem

• Q & A

  • How do we stay hopeful when bad things happen?

    You can stay hopeful when you chose to turn to your faith. The book of Ruth tells the story of the tragic circumstances that come to the family of Elimelech and Naomi. The family is first driven from their land in Israel by a severe famine that forces them to flee to neighboring Moab in order to survive. In that land, their two sons, Mahlon and Kilion fell in love and married the Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth. Not long after, tragedy strikes first with the death of Elimelech, and then with the deaths of Mahlon and Kilion. The name Naomi means "pleasant." But after losing her husband and her two sons she tells her friends to call her Mara, which means "bitter" -- as she tells her friend, "Don’t call me Naomi. Instead, call me Mara, for the Almighty has made life very bitter for me."
    In this fallen world, we are affected by the sin of mankind. No one is immune to tragedy in this life. Jesus declared, "Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows." But then he immediately gives this promise: "But take heart, because I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). Someone once said that the troubles of this life can either make us bitter, or it can make us better, depending on how we react to it. In the story of Ruth, we see that Ruth chose to come out of the bitterness of her tragedy by responding in faith, and that God responded in mercy by giving her a better life. Ruth stayed faithful, first to her mother-in-law Naomi, and then to God. Because of this faithful endurance in the midst of life's tragic circumstances, God turned her mourning into dancing when she met and married Boaz, and later gave birth to Obed, who became the grandfather of King David and an ancestor of Jesus Christ.
    
    
    Discover God's love and plan for you

    • John 16:33
    • Philippians 4:4
    • Philippians 4:8
    • Psalms 30:11

  • Why is it important to be faithful to fulfill our promises in life?

    The Bible says, “Just say a simple, 'Yes, I will,' or 'No, I won't.' Anything beyond this is from the evil one" (Matthew 5:37). Scripture also teaches, “If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones” (Luke 16:10). Every relationship in life is built and sustained on trust. If we do not do our parts to maintain that trust by our faithfulness to follow through and do the things we say we will do and fulfill our promises to those around us, then trust will be broken, and eventually the relationships will crumble. This is true on the job, in our church, in our communities, among friends, in our families, in our marriages, and even in our relationship with God.
    We see a tremendous example of faithfulness on the part of Ruth to Naomi and to God. While Orpah went back to her people and to her own religion, Ruth stayed true to the vows she made to her husband, and the promises she made to his family. She left her country and her gods in order to serve the God of the Bible. When Naomi encouraged the wives of her dead sons to return to their people, the Bible says that Orpah kissed her mother-in-law and went back to her home in Moab, but Naomi clung to Naomi. But Ruth replied, "Don't ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God" (Ruth 1:16). Ruth's words and actions are a tremendous example to us of a person who is faithful in family commitment, but also in commitment to God.
    
    
    Discover God's love and plan for you

    • Luke 16:10

  • Why is it important for believers to be kind to strangers and outsiders?

    Throughout the Bible we see a tendency of God's people to isolate themselves from outsiders. This is just as true of God's people today. We tend to isolate ourselves from those who are different from us, especially those who do not express faith in God or live according to biblical principles. But it was never God's intention for his people to be isolated from the world. In fact God's heart is just the opposite. Jesus said you are the light of the world (Matt. 5:14). And He encouraged those who walk in the light not to hide their light under a bushel basket, but to let their light shine so that the world can see the love and truth of the gospel (Matt. 5:15). In fact, God's covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob declared that through them and their seed, all the nations of the earth would be blessed (Gen. 22:18). Many in ancient Israel, and in the Church today, forget that God desires for us to be salt and light in this dark world. Boaz provides an excellent example of someone who welcomes a stranger from a foreign land in his hospitality and kindness to Ruth of Moab. We are to give the same kindness and hospitality to those we meet who do not know the Lord so that they can see a living example of his goodness, grace, mercy, and love.
    
    
    Discover God's love and plan for you

    • Matthew 5:15

  • What is the kinsman redeemer in the story of Ruth, and how does this idea relate to our lives today?

    In ancient Israel, the kinsman redeemer was a close family member, possibly a cousin or an uncle, who had the responsibility of stepping in after the death of a man and a family in order to to keep the land in the name of the family and to marry the widow and have a child that would bear the name of the deceased husband (Leviticus 25:47). The concept was to redeem that which was lost to the tragedies of this world. This would bring circumstances back into order within the family and community of God. Boaz serves as an Old Testament example of the redemptive work of Jesus Christ on the cross. By dying for our sins, Jesus redeemed us with the purchase price of his shed blood and restored us to our rightful place in the family of God. Jesus is our kinsman redeemer, for as the Son of Man he is our brother and as the son of God, he is our Lord and Savior.
    
    
    Discover God's love and plan for you

    • Leviticus 25:47
    • Psalms 82:4
    • Ruth 3:9
    • 1 Timothy 2:6

  • How do we see Jesus in the story of Ruth and Boaz?

    Throughout the Old Testament, we see patterns and examples that show us glimpses of the New Testament truths that would be revealed in Jesus Christ and the writing of the apostles. In the book of Ruth, we see Boaz as an example of the kinsman redeemer, which is what Jesus became for all mankind through His death and resurrection (Ruth 4:9). So we see Jesus in the compassion and in the redemptive act of Boaz toward Naomi and Ruth. But we also see early members of the royal Jewish bloodline through which Jesus would be born. Because Boaz acted as the kinsman redeemer to Ruth, he became her husband. They bore a child named Obed, who was then father to Jesse, who was father to King David. Because David was a man after God's own heart as a worshiper and lover of God, the Lord promised that David's descendants would sit on the throne of Israel forever. In the natural, it appeared as though this promise went unfulfilled when David's royal line ended with the Jewish captivity in Babylon. But Joseph and Mary, the parents of Jesus, were both a part of this royal Davidic line. So in fulfillment of prophecy and the covenantal promise to David, Jesus Christ was descended from this royal bloodline. As a descendent of Boaz and Ruth, Jesus is the promised son of David who sits forever on the throne of Israel.
    
    
    Discover God's love and plan for you

    • Ruth 4:13
    • Matthew 26:64
    • Daniel 7:13
    • Luke 22:69