SCRIPTURE
RUTH 1

But Ruth replied, “Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back
from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay.
Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where
you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal
with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and
me.” When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with
her, she stopped urging her.

—RUTH 1:16-18

Ruth’s whole story happens in a season of immense grief, transition, and uncertainty. It tells us about Naomi, a woman who experienced an extreme lack of shalom in her life: first in famine, then as a refugee, and finally as the lone survivor of her husband and adult sons. Furthermore, we are told that this story happens during the period of the judges, which is akin to painting the darkest background imaginable. Those were days of lawless chaos and violence for the people of Israel—an image as opposite to shalom as there could possibly be.

But somehow Ruth seems impervious to the despair that surrounds her. She is adamant about accompanying Naomi back to her homeland, a journey that will take Ruth away from hers. Ruth could end her own period of suffering and waiting, and move on with her life. But she chooses to unite her story to Naomi’s, joining in all Naomi’s troubles. She offers Naomi something like a marriage vow, giving us the strongest words of covenantal love uttered by a human in all of the Old Testament.

In the months that follow, Ruth lives out this commitment and then some. In her, we see a love that rolls up its sleeves and gets to work, literally doing manual labor to put food on their table. Ruth’s constant care for Naomi restores well-being little by little. Her work ethic also catches the attention of Boaz, the wealthy landowner who makes way for Ruth to harvest grain from his fields. While others may have run her off their property as a thieving immigrant, Boaz recognizes her as a woman of virtue who has dedicated her life to caring for Naomi.

The rest of the story unfolds as a chain reaction of chesed, each act laying another brick in the sturdy shelter of shalom. Boaz sees and celebrates what Ruth is doing and decides to bless her. He gives more than he is required, just as Ruth gave to Naomi. Ruth then recognizes Boaz as a co-conspirator in chesed and learns to trust him. Eventually she trusts him enough to offer a supremely risky marriage proposal, which Boaz agrees to. This was the ultimate way Ruth could provide a future not only for herself but also for Naomi, whose family line could continue through her, By the end of this short story, the heaviness of waiting is replaced by the joyful anticipation of a new child.

In Scripture, chesed is most often used to talk about the love God offers to us. But here we get a picture of what happens when humans are empowered to love like God loves. When we practice self-giving love with a willingness to take risks on behalf of the other, well-being and wholeness are restored in individuals and the community. The woman in deepest grief and despair is not left alone to fend for herself. The least likely person (the foreigner) defies all prejudices and is found to be the most virtuous and heroic of all. A man with privilege acts with generosity and uses his position to care for those who have none. A community learns to trust an outsider, extending belonging to the immigrant. All of this chesed made way for Jesus to be born from this lineage generations later in the very same town of Bethlehem, where angels declare the good news of peace on earth.

Chesed love brings about shalom peace. May it be so in us.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION, DISCUSSION, AND PRAYER

With which character in this story do you identify most—Naomi, Ruth, or Boaz? Why?

When have you seen a commitment to love (chesed) that restored well-being (shalom)?

How are you being invited to receive or bring peace through the work of love today?