Love that Clings
“At this they wept aloud again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law goodbye, but Ruth clung to her.”
Today’s Text: Ruth 1:1-14 (Living Life Daily Devotional)
In many ways, I wish the world today was more like the world back then—especially when it comes to people’s sense of selflessness and also loyalty.
Here, we have a comparison of three widows, one old and two young. For Naomi, there is no doubt that taking the two younger daughter-in-laws with her would have been helpful. Yet she acted selflessly and encouraged them to do what was best for them. Where can we find such selflessness today? It also gives us a tiny glimpse of the selfless of Christ going to the cross as a sacrifice for the sins of all humanity.
When we look at the two young widows, neither of them did anything wrong. They were each presented with Naomi’s offer to leave, and each acted according to their conscience. And we cannot blame Orpah for leaving. She acted blamelessly, because she was willing to go with Naomi.
But Ruth demonstrates for us an ideal human example of God’s hesed (covenantal mercy, love, kindness, and faithfulness). Despite the fact that she knew it would be better for her to start with a new husband, she “clung” to Naomi. It is the same word that is used of husbands and wives in Genesis 2:24, so that they will become “one flesh.”
Basically Ruth considered her life to be be bound to Naomi’s life, and in her heart, nothing would ever break that bond. Again, where can we find such hesed today? And her example, even more than the example of Naomi, gives us a picture of Christ’s hesed toward the Father and toward us, the church.
If there were a greater sense of selflessness and loyalty in the church today, I wonder how much sooner the full number of the elect would be evangelized and how much sooner our Lord would return.
Father, You established the earth in Your hesed. You created humanity to exercise hesed with You and with one another, especially between husbands and wives. Maybe that is where it starts. The hesed between husbands and wives has been breaking down, and so the hesed within society has been breaking down—even in Your church. But I know that You are sovereign. And even if our hesed breaks down, Yours never does. Thank You. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
