Another Adam and Eve Confront Death

Biblical-Theological Threads in the Story of Ruth

On Sunday, I’m preaching Ruth 3 for our series on the book of Ruth. When our lead pastor began planning the series, he wanted the series to go longer, but I told him that we should probably stick to four weeks because “there just isn’t enough there” to extend the series.

I hate to admit that I was wrong, but I was! As I prepare for my sermon this Sunday, I am having a hard time choosing what to include and what to leave out. I’ve been surprised by the depth of the book, which I hadn’t before had the opportunity to study and meditate on deeply.

Of course, my mind automatically goes to biblical-theological connections. While the theme of the kinsman redeemer is hard to miss, as I’ve studied Ruth I’ve noticed some aspects of the story that you won’t necessarily get at first glance, which give even greater depth to this theme.

Below are a couple of unorganized observations on Ruth that hopefully become more organized before Sunday.

Photo by Jan Huber on Unsplash

Bareness and the Grave of Rachel

Ruth begins with two important facts. First, the main setting of the story is Bethlehem, and second, Ruth was married to one of Naomi’s sons for about ten years and is childless.

We all know that Bethlehem will become a place of importance in the Bible as the hometown of David and the birthplace of the Messiah. But at this point in history, its only significance is as the place where Jacob buried Rachel, who died while giving birth to Benjamin (Gen 35:16–21).

Rachel’s own story of infertility and then death during childbirth is set within the story of Genesis as an illustration of Genesis 3:16, “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children.”

When God says that the pain of childbearing is multiplied, he is not merely saying that the physical pain of labor and delivery will now be greater, although the fear of death does indeed make that the case. Rather, he is saying that the entire process of bearing and raising children, which was meant to be the way humans joyfully bore his image and exercised divine dominion over the earth (Gen 1:28), would now be tainted by the sorrows that sin and death bring into the world.

Childbearing was not the joy for Rachel that it should have been had sin and death never entered the world. First, she faced the sorrows of infertility in a world of brokenness, and then when she finally did bring children into the world, she died giving birth.

Genesis tells us that there was a pillar set up at Rachel’s tomb on the road to Bethlehem, a monument to the power of death in a world corrupted by sin.

It is no accident that God providentially brings another barren woman to the very town where Rachel is buried to bring about the miracle of restoring the cosmos through the birth of the Messiah.

Waking up to a bride

While keeping the previous thoughts in mind, there is another echo of Genesis in Ruth 3. I have to admit that the story of Ruth going to Boaz at the threshing floor at night and uncovering his feet is very strange. But if we step back for a moment, we see that the entire encounter is meant to echo Genesis 2.

A man goes to sleep in the midst of his agricultural labors, and when he wakes up, he sees his God-given bride. His response then is to pronounce a divine blessing upon her.

One of the major themes of Ruth is that God has providentially brought Ruth and Boaz together. When the author says, “She happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz,” he is cuing us to recognize God’s hand in guiding this woman of faith to the right place at the right time.

Again, that the climax of the story comes through the presentation of the bride to the man as he wakes up reminds us that the point of the story is the restoration of creation through a marriage that will bring forth the Seed of the Woman (Gen 3:15).

This story takes place during the time of the Judges. Israel has repeated the story of Adam. They have entered the promised land, but they have taken of the forbidden fruit of idolatry and rejected Yahweh their God. The growing chaos of Judges is historically equivalent to the downward spiral of sin and judgment in Genesis 3–11.

God’s redemption of Israel and through Israel of all creation will come through the Seed of the Woman, through the King that Israel is lacking, and surprisingly God is bringing that about in a town known for barrenness and death. There he will bring about birth and life through the establishment of an eternal dynasty, the line of David.

Ruth and Boaz are a repeat of Adam and Eve. Where Adam and Eve failed, Ruth and Boaz will succeed and ultimately bring about the restoration of the creation that was subjected to futility. Through their Adam and Eve-like union, the true Second Adam will come and make all things right.