After lament comes loyal love. God answers our sorrow with His promises and His presence—often wrapped in a person who refuses to leave.

Intro — What’s after lament? C.S. Lewis: “Pain is God’s megaphone.” Crisis cuts through noise and invites us to listen.

“At this they wept aloud again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth clung to her.”

“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 1:14, 16–18, NIV

Point 1 — Pain speaks; God gives promises (foreshadowed in Ruth’s vow)

• “Ruth clung” — Hebrew dābaq: covenant glue (cf. Genesis 2:24 “hold fast”). Not mood; marriage language.
• Naomi’s last words: “The Almighty has made my life very bitter.” God doesn’t argue; He answers with a person’s promise.
  • Hebrews 13:5 — “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
  • Romans 8:38–39 — Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ.

Point 2 — God wraps promises in people (presence that stays when explanations can’t)

• Contrast, v.14: “Orpah kissed… but Ruth clung.” Affection vs. allegiance. Goodbye vs. binding presence.
• Apologetic of the church: not clever answers, but patient presence. We don’t out-argue the dark; we outlast it with love.

Point 3 — The lament arc (Psalm 73): Shock → Sanctuary → Sure-footing

• Shock — “My feet had almost slipped” (Ps 73:2–3). Honest disorientation; faith on black ice.
• Sanctuary — “Until I went into the sanctuary of God” (v.17). Not escape; reframe. Presence clarifies perspective.
• Sure-footing — the cascade (vv.23–26):
  • “Nevertheless, I am continually with You.” — Presence when you feel alone.
  • “You hold my right hand.” — Grip when yours is weak.
  • “You guide me with Your counsel.” — Direction in fog.
  • “Afterward You will receive me to glory.” — The story ends in glory, not chaos.
  • “God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” — Enoughness when nothing else is enough.

Study Notes

[Naomi’s] acknowledgment that Orpah has gone back to her gods does not suit an orthodox Yahwist perspective, but it makes perfect sense within the context of ancient Near Eastern perceptions of national identity. In the biblical world nations tended to be distinguishable on the bases of ethnicity (hence “her people”), territory (hence “land of Moab”), kingship (hence “Eglon king of Moab” in Judg 3:12–17), language (Moabite, Hebrew, etc.), and theology. The last element is involved here. Just as the Israelites were known as “the people of Yahweh” (cf. ʿammô, “His people” in v. 6 above), so the Ammonites were known as the “people [ʿam] of Malkam” (Jer 49:1) and the Moabites as the “people [ʿam] of Chemosh” (Num 21:29; Jer 48:46). This does not mean that the Moabites, for example, worshiped only one god, Chemosh—they actually worshiped many gods. But being henotheists rather than monotheists, they venerated one god in particular because he was considered their divine patron. He was the god to whom they looked for protection, prosperity, and internal order. Since the Old Testament uses the plural form ʾĕlōhîm for both singular deity and a plurality of gods, it is impossible to know whether Naomi perceived Orpah to have returned to Chemosh or the gods of Moab in general. In either case her comment is troubling. Her theological perceptions at this point seem no more orthodox than those of many characters in the Book of Judges. If she represents the highest level of faith in Israel, it is no wonder Yahweh had sent a famine on the land.  – Daniel Block

1:16 Ruth’s decision had far-reaching spiritual implications (2:12; Mark 10:29–31). Her confession of faith, your people … my God, recalls the central covenant promise: “I will be your God and you shall be my people” (Gen. 17:7–8; Ex. 6:7; Deut. 29:13; Jer. 24:7; 31:33; Hos. 2:23; Zech. 8:8; 2 Cor. 6:16; Rev. 21:7). – ESV Study Bible

In the third stanza Ruth commits to remaining in Bethlehem long after Naomi’s death. Behind this third stanza is a deep understanding of the call of Israel’s God. If Ruth returns to Moab and the worship of Kemosh after Naomi’s death, then her commitment to Yahweh would be empty, shallow, just for the sake of human love. But Ruth puts God, not love, at the center of her love for Naomi. The form of her poem, with God at the center, mirrors the shape of her heart. She doesn’t idolize love. The disappointments we face in our quest for love are often formed by the quest itself. With public faith on the decline, people are hunting for new sources of life. What better form of life than love itself? That view leads to elevating love and marriage, thinking that finding the perfect mate will satisfy us. The Disney dream shapes how we approach marriage. So the perfect wedding is the new norm. Then when we realize we’ve married someone selfish, we discard the dream and become cynical about the possibility of love. We set ourselves up for failure by overloading love with far more than it can bear. Married love as a source of life crashes on the rocks of human depravity. The same happens with modern parenting. Parents want to be their kids’ best friends. They want their children to have a pain-free world. The result is the child-centered home where children are a source of life. But love and relationships were never meant to be the center. Love is not god. God is love.  –Paul Miller

Each of these statements (v.16ff) ratchets up the level of her commitment a notch higher. Ruth was not merely relocating her home to go somewhere geographically less pleasant, as if someone were willing to move from sunny Southern California to the unbearable heat of Death Valley. That would be noble self-sacrifice; this is far more. She is committing her life to Naomi, body and soul, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health. In so doing, she is also committing her life to Naomi's God, whom she calls as a witness by his personal name, the Lord. She is even willing to die and be buried in Naomi's land-the land of Naomi's God, not the gods of the Moabites. Given the intimate connection between land and deity in the ancient Near East, and the importance of proper burial for a restful afterlife, this was the ultimate commitment in the ancient world. She further binds herself to do this with an oath of self-imprecation. If she reneges on her promise, she invites the Lord-Naomi's God-to stretch out his hand to strike her down. Here is an astonishing act of surrender and self-sacrifice. Ruth was laying down her entire life to serve Naomi.  Ian Druguid

Pastor Sam Sutter // Sam@bbcconline.org

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