And Then There’s Ruth!

The reason we read the Bible over and over is because it’s living and active (Hebrews 4:12) and it always teaches us new things. I experienced this again recently in my chronological reading plan that I have now done multiple times. This is what we use in the D-Group I lead to study scripture. Most of my groups have never read the whole Bible chronologically so it’s very eye-opening for them…and for me!

Almost all my D-Group gals begin seeing the thread of the Gospel early in our reading and almost all get bogged down once in a while as we look at laws and repeated disobedience of the Israelites in the wilderness, Judges and Kings! So do I at times, except I know what’s coming! But this time when we ended the book of Judges, a new thing was revealed to me!

Right in between the mostly evil judges and the beginning of multiple evil kings, along with a few good ones, is the sweetest book of Ruth. I love this story as I’m sure so many of you do, but I’ve never really considered how God drops this story right in the middle of a lot of junk! Even though I understand it’s all part of God’s providential plan and I know the outcome, I’ve never considered the miracle of the timing of Ruth’s life…one that would lead to the very genealogy of Jesus! A moabite woman, not even a Jew, had a grandboy for her widowed mother-in-law Naomi (after marrying Naomi’s relative Boaz), and lots of years and babies later, Jesus is born through this line of David as prophesied! You see, that baby was Obed and Obed was King David’s grandfather.

Our group discussed this together: how sweet of God to drop this story into our reading that week after we completed Judges. I warned the girls that unfortunately, it’s not the end of the repeated sin cycles in the Old Testament, but it is so refreshing to jump from the last Judge to Ruth! It was like an oasis in a desert, and I’d just not noticed that about the order of these books before.

My big take away was being reminded again that God’s timing is always perfect, whether we see it or not. There’s a lot of “junk” around us day after day, especially in the last 12-14 months. But right in the middle, God shows up with His story, His presence, His love to remind us-He is in the middle of the yuck!

My other take away was this: we are so like the disobedient Israelites when we keep doing what is evil in the Lord’s eyes, yet, Jesus never walks away disgusted or surprised. As His children, when we repent and return to Him, He drops in to show us He still loves us, He still forgives us, He’s still sovereign and He still has a plan for our lives.

I challenge you to read the Bible chronologically. I’ve shared many times about this, so, sorry to be repetitive, but if you need a plan, take a look at Foundations which is a year long chronological plan through the Old and New Testament, and Foundations New Testament a year long read through the New Testament. I use both in my D-Groups, reading through the OT in the first one, then picking up the NT version to complete the 18-19 months our group will be together.

You will never regret reading chronologically, year after year, no matter the plan you choose! You will never learn all there is to know about God and His Gospel plan throughout all of the Bible no matter how many times you read it. And I know He will surprise and delight you with those sweet “dropped in” stories like Ruth just to remind you He’s still in charge!

Banner photo by Nicola Fioravanti on Unsplash