The Beginning:
During a famine in Bethlehem, Naomi’s family migrates to Moab. Naomi’s husband Elimelech dies, and later her sons also die, leaving Naomi and her Moabite daughters-in-law widowed. Hearing that food has returned to Judah, Naomi decides to go back to Bethlehem, urging her daughters-in-law to remain in Moab.
The Middle:
Orpah returns, but Ruth refuses to leave Naomi and commits herself to Naomi’s people and God. In Bethlehem, Ruth gathers leftover grain (gleaning) to provide for them and happens to glean in the field of Boaz, a relative of Naomi’s late husband. Boaz treats Ruth with protection and generosity, and Naomi recognizes that Boaz may act as their kinsman-redeemer (a close relative able to restore a family’s welfare). At Naomi’s direction, Ruth approaches Boaz, and he agrees to pursue redemption according to custom, while first addressing a nearer relative who has the prior right.
The End:
The nearer relative declines, and Boaz publicly redeems Naomi’s family line by marrying Ruth. Ruth bears a son, Obed, and the women of Bethlehem bless Naomi, whose emptiness is turned to renewed life within the community. The book closes by linking Obed to Jesse and David, placing Ruth and Naomi’s story within Israel’s wider redemptive history.
Ruth highlights God’s faithful providence in ordinary events, showing care for the vulnerable—widows, the poor, and the outsider. The story presents redemption not merely as personal kindness but as covenant-shaped restoration through lawful and public faithfulness. Ruth, a foreigner, is received into Israel and becomes part of the line leading to David, underscoring that God’s purposes extend beyond ethnic boundaries while remaining rooted in His covenant dealings with Israel.
Ruth’s gleaning reflects Israel’s agricultural provisions for the poor (cf. Leviticus 19:9–10; Deuteronomy 24:19–22), where landowners were to leave the edges and leftovers of fields for those in need. The “redeemer” role (Hebrew go’el) involved a close relative acting to restore family inheritance and security, and the narrative portrays this as a formal community matter handled at the town gate.
"Where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge." — Ruth 1:16
Answer the questions below. When you choose an option, you will see the result and an explanation.
1. Why did Naomi’s family migrate from Bethlehem to Moab?
2. What did the nearer relative do when Boaz first addressed the right of redemption?