Threads and Knots

The Bible is a tapestry of God's grace. At every turn we find threads of promise throughout that meet and form a knot. One of these knots is found in the Old Testament book of Ruth. The book of Ruth brings together at least four threads to form a major knot in the masterpiece of God's story of redemption.

First, the Book of Ruth picks up the promise of a Savior son from the Book of Genesis. Ruth ends with a genealogy that runs from Perez to King David (Ruth 4:17-22). Genealogies serve as markers in the Book of Genesis. Each time the story progresses, a genealogy, called a “teledot” in Hebrew, is introduced. We read the generations of Adam, Noah, Abraham, and his sons (see Genesis 2:4, 6:9, 11:10, and 37:2 for examples). This is because the central hope of Genesis, and the whole Bible, is the Genesis 3:15 promise of a serpent crushing, curse reversing Savior born of a woman. Ruth is picking up the story and moving it forward. Consider also how Ruth mentions Perez, son of Judah, as part of their family tree (see Genesis 38 for more).

Second, the Book of Ruth ties together the thread of the law (Exodus-Deuteronomy). Behind much of the action in the book we see the obedience of God's law for the benefit of Ruth and her mother-in-law Naomi (see Ruth 2:1-3). They are allowed to glean in a field because Leviticus 19:9-10 made provision for the poor. Ruth, though a foreigner, is cared for by Boaz in obedience to Leviticus 19:34. Boaz even redeems the widows and their land, a dramatic act of kindness and mercy, in obedience to the redemption laws found in Leviticus 25 and Deuteronomy 25. Without the law, there is no story of Ruth.

Ruth even ties together the threads from the books of Joshua and Judges. Ruth's story takes place during the darkest days of Israel's history, the days the judges ruled (Ruth 1:1). While Boaz is an ancestor of Rahab, the Gentile woman who hid the spies and united herself with the people of God (see Matthew 1:5, Joshua 2). Ruth is like Rahab, a Gentile woman who took refuge “under the wings” of the God of Israel and united herself with His people (Ruth 2:12). This hints at the future inclusion of all nations in the plan of God.

Ruth ties together threads of the prior seven books in our English Bibles and prepares the way for a new section, the Kings of Israel. Yet her story doesn't end with David. Many scholars consider Ruth to be the “woman of worth” spoken of Proverbs 31 (see Ruth 3:11). Ultimately, Ruth's legacy is as an ancestor of a true and better redeemer Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5).

Every story and theme in Scripture is a thread. Yet the story God is writing is not about disconnected threads. God is knitting a tapestry of grace that is multifaceted and full of the most unlikely threads. He takes each of our stories, broken as they may be, and by grace makes them into a trophy of His power and grace (Ephesians 2:10). May His Word transform the way we view our lives and may the threads and knots point us toward the Savior that is the Author and Perfecter of every story.