My God is King, Pleasantness, Sickly and Pining Ruth 1:1,2 - Equipped for Battle

We began our study in the book of Ruth yesterday by observing the time in which this story takes place, “when the judges ruled” and the conditions during the beginning of the story “there was a famine in the land.” Although there were many families affected by this famine, our attention is drawn to one, and the response of this man, his wife and two sons was to move to the country of Moab Today we shall continue the story by examining more closely who these people were, and discover there is something interesting concerning their names. We read in chapter one and verses one and two:

Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehemjudah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. And the name of the man [was] Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehemjudah. And they came into the country of Moab, and continued there.

The author of this book names this family beginning with the man, “Elimelech” which means, “My God is King”. Names often have meanings, and especially when we look at Bible characters there is usually meaning in their names. This man, Elimelech, was one who was deemed an Ephrathite of Bethlehemjudah. Bethlehem was located in the providence known as Ephratah and like a “Floridian” if you live in Florida, this man and his family were known as Ephrathites. As we proceed through this story we might wonder if Elimelech lived up to his name. Was God really his King might be our question.

Elimelech's wife was named, “Naomi” which means “pleasantness” or “my delight”. She appears to have willingly moved to Moab with her husband during this famine, and as a faithful wife and mother she followed what was deemed best for her family at the time.

Next we consider Elimelech and Naomi's two sons, “Mahlon” and “Chilion”. “Mahlon” means “sickly” and perhaps he was a sickly child when he was born, and “Chilion” means “pining” which doesn't sound like he was much more healthy. Nonetheless, Elimelech and Naomi took their two boys to a new land to avoid the famine that was devastating the land they were living in. The writer says, “they came into the country of Moab, and continued there” so they took up their existence and livelihood in a strange land and in a strange country.

Let's think about this for a moment. Here are “My God is King”, “Pleasantness” and their two boys “Sickly” and “Pining” traveling to and lodging within a new country. Their idea was to avoid the famine, and as we consider this family it is important to remember that God was watching them during their resolve to move.

The Bible says, “in the volume of the book it is written of me” in reference to Jesus Christ, and if we are looking closely enough, somewhere within this story we will find a type and reference to Jesus. However, we shall have wait until next time to take up more of the story, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow...there is more...

Look for the new devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ; www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore