As we continue with our
story in the book of Ruth, we have come to the time when Naomi is
returning to her homeland Judah. She is widowed, and she has her two
widowed daughters-in-law with her, Orpah and Ruth. As Naomi finally
reaches her actual time for leaving, she turns to her
daughters-in-law and says the following words found in Ruth chapter
one and verse nine:
The LORD grant you that
you may find rest, each [of you] in the house of her husband. Then
she kissed them; and they lifted up their voice, and wept.
If
verse eight from yesterday's study didn't have enough blessing in it
for the daughters-in-law (the LORD deal kindly with you, as
ye have dealt with the dead, and with me)
this verse certainly does. Let's look at each part of it together.
First,
“The LORD grant you that you may find rest, each of you
in the house of her husband.”
It is obvious that Naomi has knowledge that her daughters-in-law know
about the Lord. She has mentioned Him twice in two verses, and what
we see here is Naomi's attempt to release her daughters-in-law to the
Lord's care within new opportunities for husbands for Orpah and Ruth.
In other words, she is praying a blessing upon them as they would
find new husbands in their own land, and that the Lord would bring
rest upon their homes. What an emotional time this must have been.
Naomi, as hurt as she has been, with as much tragedy as she has
faced, continues to care for her daughters-in-law. Although they
might add some small amount of comfort to her, Naomi is willing to
release them and bless them with the Lord's rest as she leaves Moab.
Next
we read, “Then she kissed them.”
This was a farewell kiss no doubt as Naomi believed herself leaving
everything behind in Moab. Whenever we depart from someone for what
we believe is the last time, we tend to be more passionate about our
departure. No doubt this departure was extremely emotional as these
people had lived together for ten years or so. It does seem that the
longer people are together, the more difficult it is to leave each
other. This kiss was an emotional, passionate, and releasing kiss.
Finally,
we read, “and they lifted up their voice, and wept.” Oh
the crying, oh the sorrow, oh the deep felt compassion that these
ladies had for one another. They began to make loud noises in
anguish, and they cried heavy tears with one another. The human
emotions were at their peak during this difficult departure. Some
events that leave us wondering if we will ever see those we love so
dearly bring about this type of emotion within us, and for Naomi,
Orpah and Ruth, this was one of those times.
So
what do we learn from this? First, there is a place of unselfishness
that we find in Naomi. Rather than think of herself, her two
daughters-in-law were her priority. Second, it is wonderful to bless
those with the rest of the Lord when we depart from them. Third,
passionate displays of affection such as a kisses, warm handshakes or
hugs are useful tools for expressing ourselves when we leave those we
love. Finally, weeping is very natural when we feel a sense of loss.
However, who do we think of in our lives that we would be this way
with if we were to depart from them? Perhaps we should use all of
these ways before our time of departure from them, and allow rest,
kisses, and weeping to be a part of our lives just because we are
together.
Next
time we will discover the initial response from both Orpah and Ruth,
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
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