Thursday Bible Study

 [Read Ruth 3:14-15] Over recent months, it has been very sad (and disappointing) to hear the news about prominent Christian teachers and leaders... people like Ravi Zacharias and Carl Lentz. Where it has come to light about their fallen morality in the public eye... Boaz has woke up from a night of partying and drinking, to find himself in a potentially damaging situation... a situation that is ideal for gossip and scandal. It wasn't safe for Boaz to send Ruth back home alone and he himself couldn't escort her home without inviting all kinds of questions. What do we learn about Boaz's character in Ruth 3:14? If Ruth and Boaz were found together, who would likely get the blame? Naomi, Ruth or Boaz? Why? Naomi's plan to get Boaz and Ruth together, out them both in a compromising situation. As Romans 12:17 puts it, Naomi wasn't "careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone." and she failed to "abstain from all appearance of evil." (1 Thessal...

 Everyone has a different love-story to tell.  All love-stories are unique and truly amazing. But the same question in each unique story is "Who should you marry?" And the answer to that question is usually the person we're madly in love with. And we usually find that special someone who fulfils the qualities that we believe our life partner should have... In Ruth 3:11, what attracts Boaz to Ruth the most? What does this tell us about Ruth's reputation? Why are we, as humans, more attracted to physical beauty than inner character? How can we learn to value inner beauty more than external appearance? Boaz calls Ruth a hah-yil woman. This Hebrew word speaks of moral strength, good quality, integrity, virtue, comprehensive excellence. What has Ruth done to earn this name / description? This same Hebrew word is used in Ruth 2:1 to describe Boaz. What can this little detail tell us about their match-up? [Activity] The only other two times hah-yil is all the Hebrew Bible, i...

 In the Shakespeare play A Midsummer Night's Dream the two young lovers lament about how true love will always face great obstacles, especially when those involved come from very different ethnic, cultural, and social backgrounds. The love of Ruth and Boaz is all these and more... If Boaz was willing to marry Ruth (Ruth 3:11) why didn't he propose to Ruth first? What kind of things could be stopping him? Another obstacle to Boaz proposing to Ruth is there is someone else, who is a closer relative, with the first right to marry Ruth in this levirate marriage custom (Deuteronomy 25:5-10). Why has Boaz been waiting for this other 'guardian redeemer'? What might this show us about Boaz's character? In Ruth 3:13, we see Boaz is willing to be the 'kinsman redeemer' even though he's not obligated to do so. What does this show us? Ironically, in handling their relationship the proper way, Boaz and Ruth might have ended up losing everything... if the nearer relat...

 In life, there are times when we all have to make big decisions.  Maybe you come to a fork in the road, make that one decision, and your life veers off in a completely new direction... Ruth has come to that point. She has carried out the first part of Naomi's plan, but now she's doing things her way.  What was Naomi's plan and what could it mean? Given that the scene and the conditions were ripe for a sexual encounter, why was Ruth able to resist temptation? If you were in Ruth's situation, how would you have chosen to act? How can the words of Psalm 119:9 help? Instead of continuing with Naomi's plan, what does Ruth do instead? In verse 9, the Hebrew word used gets translated as "spread the corner of your garment over me" or "spread your wings over me"... both of these phrases are to be understood as a marriage proposal. [Activity] Read Ezekiel 16:8. What is God doing with Israel here? How does this shine a light on what is happening between R...