The Little Town of Bethlehem Part 1

I like to think of the Book of Ruth like Christmas in July. It is a great way to start getting ready for Christmas. The book of Ruth is an Old Testament story that relates to the Christmas story with a number of amazing parallels which we will be looking at during this Advent season. It is also not a coincidence that both stories take place in the little town of Bethlehem.

Matthew 2:1-6 (NIV)
1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: 6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'”

Bethlehem is about five miles away from Jerusalem. It was a relatively small town that has a big impact on the Bible story. In Hebrew, “Bethlehem” means “House of Bread”. Throughout the Bible, bread carries a lot of literal and symbolic significance. Jesus says that He is the “the bread of life” (John 6:35;48) and that He is “the living bread that came down out of heaven…” (John 6:51).

A couple of other important things about Bethlehem: Gentiles were married into the Jewish nation (by the example of Ruth and Boaz), and the true Jewish king, Jesus, the “bread of life”, was born in Bethlehem to change the world forever.

We enter the story of Ruth as we leave the Book of Judges in the Old Testament. If you read the end of Judges 21, you will see that everybody was doing whatever they thought was right in their own eyes because there wasn’t a leader. There wasn’t a king in Israel. And then there’s a famine in the land.

Ruth 1:1-5 (NIV)
1 In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab. 2 The man’s name was Elimelech, his wife’s name Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to Moab and lived there. 3 Now Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4 They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, 5 both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband.

Elimelech (my God is King) decides to leave Bethlehem (the House of Bread) and go to Moab. Moab was not regarded as a great place, especially if you were from Israel. Moab was known historically for not being hospitable to Israel, having denied them bread and water during their wanderings. (Deuteronomy 23:4)

So Elimelech, instead of trusting in God to provide for him and his family leaves the house of bread. He takes his family, his wife Naomi which means pleasant or sweet, and his two sons, Mahlon, which means sick, and Kilion, which means failing, and he goes to Moab. While they’re in Moab the two sons marry two Moabite women. One is named Ruth, which means friend or companion, and the other one is named Orpah which means back of the neck. We read that they are there for 10 years. Neither of the couples have children and Elimelech, Mahlon and Kilion all die. Naomi is left with no way for the lineage of her family to move forward. So she decides to go back to Bethlehem.

At first, both of the daughters-in-law say they want to go with Naomi, but Orpah (back of the neck) goes back to Moab. Ruth (companion) on the other hand, clings to Naomi and the two of them go back to Bethlehem.

Naomi was in a dark place when she returned to Bethlehem. She was hurting and bitter. What she didn’t know was that God was working to bring good out of her situation. I love the hopeful tone in the last verse of the first chapter of Ruth:

Ruth 1:22 (NIV)
22 So Naomi returned from Moab accompanied by Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, arriving in Bethlehem as the barley harvest was beginning.

The barley harvest was beginning. Bread was on the way!

There are at least three amazing parallels to the Christmas story in this first chapter of Ruth. I will be looking at them this weekend at Keys Vineyard Church so if you aren’t able to attend in person make sure you watch the live stream!

Steve Lawes is a church encourager and the founder of the Online Bible Institute.