B.R.I—Ruth
1. Identify
what Author wrote for which Original Reader, and When
a. Author/Compiler
of the Book
i.
Internal
1.
1
Samuel 7:3-17 ‘Then Samuel said to all
the house of Israel...’
2.
1
Samuel 16:11-12 ‘Samuel said to Jesse,
“Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but he
is keeping the sheep...” The Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; for he is the
one.”’
a.
This
verse indicates the Samuel knew David as well as David’s father.
i.
1
Samuel 19:18 ‘Now David fled and escaped;
he came to Samuel at Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. He and
Samuel went and settled at Naioth.’
ii.
External
1.
The
author of the book is really unknown, but some scholars believe that the book
of Ruth was written by Samuel. (Nelson’s)
2.
The
author of Ruth is unknown. (ISBE)
iii.
Conclusion
I
believe that Ruth was written by Samuel, because he wrote Judges. I don’t
believe that they were written at the same time, because of 1:1, but the fact
that the 4:17b refers to David, makes me believe that it was in fact Samuel.
b. To
Whom was it Written
i.
Internal
1.
1
Samuel 7:3-4 ‘Then Samuel said to all the
house of Israel...’
2.
1
Samuel 12:1 ‘Samuel said to all Israel,
“I have listened to you in all that you have said to me, and have set a king
over you.’
ii.
External
1.
Megan Burmester says that the OR is the Israelites. (lecture)
2.
Emily Yoder said that the book of Judges was written to the Israelites, and if Ruth was
written during the same time period, then the OR would have to be the
Israelites. (lecture)
iii.
Conclusion
I
believe that the OR of the book of Ruth is the Israelites, the same generation
as the OR of the book of Judges. As with Judges, I believe that because of the
newness of the nation, the author wanted them to choose the right king. The
author obviously wanted David to be king, since he made a point to refer to
him. While Davie was a descendant of an Israelite man and a Moabite woman, the
author was trying to tell the OR that because of his great-grandfather’s traits
of kindness and obedience to God’s laws that David would be the better king.
c. When/where
was it Written
i.
Internal
1.
Ruth
1:1 ‘In the days when the judges
ruled...’
2.
Ruth
4:17b ‘They named him Obed; he became the
father of Jesse, the father of David.
ii.
External
1.
Since
it references David, it might have been sometime around 990 BC. (Nelson’s)
2.
In
the period of the judges. (ISBE)
iii.
Conclusion
While
some people believe that 4:13-22 were added after the composition of Ruth, I
believe that it was written by the actual author. It seems that in 1:1, the
author is looking back on the days of the judges. Both of these lead me to
believe that the book of Ruth could have been written, shortly after David
became king; while the events must have taken place during the time of the
judges of Israel.
2. Research
the Background of the Author, Original Audience, and Readers
a. Author’s
Background
Samuel
was a prophet of God, who anointed both Saul and David, as king over Israel.
i.
Political History
1.
Corrupt
levitical system
2.
Theocracy
3.
Beginning
of the monarchy
ii.
Religious History
1.
Prophet
of God
2.
In
service to God since early childhood.
b. Original
Audience’s Background
The
OA is the Israelites, who were the fourth generation; who did not know God and
his laws as they should have, causing them to turn to the pagan ways.
i.
Political History
1.
Corrupt
levitical system
2.
Theocracy
ii.
Cultural History
1.
Pagan
mindset caused depravity
iii.
Religious History
1.
Did
not know God
2.
Worship
of Baal and other pagan gods
iv.
Current Leaders
1.
Ehud
2.
Deborah
and Barak
3.
Gideon
4.
Abimelech
5.
Jephthah
6.
Samson
The
Judges of Israel; only a few of them were good role models and leaders, Deborah
and Barak. Even Gideon, who was called by God to defeat the Midianites, turned
to the Canaanite gods, and Samson, a nazirite since birth fell prey to
Philistine woman, and forgot what God had commanded him, believing that his
strength was his own.
v.
Current Enemies
1.
The
Canaanites
2.
The
Philistines
3.
The
Moabites
4.
The
Midianites
5.
The
Ammonites
vi.
Geography
1.
The
land of Canaan and the surrounding area
c. Original
Reader’s Background
The
OR is the generation after the generation of Judges.
i.
Political History
1.
Corrupt
levitical system
2.
Either
no king, or Saul, a bad king
ii.
Religious History
1.
Rejected
God as king.
iii.
Current Leaders
1.
Samuel
iv.
Geography
1.
The
former land of Canaan, now called Israel.
3. Reasons
Written
a.
To
show the OR how to love and how to care for those who are less fortunate than
themselves.
b.
To
show the OR that there is always hope.
4. Author’s
Literary Tools
a. Kind
of Writing
i.
Prose
ii.
Poetry
1.
1:16-17
2.
1:20-21
b. Type
of Literature
i.
Narrative
c. Structure
i.
Biological
d. Composition
Tools
i.
Climax
1.
The
death of Elimelech leads the Naomi returning; Naomi’s return to Bethlehem leads
to Ruth meeting Boaz, which led to the marriage of Ruth and Boaz and the birth
of Obed, David’s grandfather.
5. Main
Idea
a.
Loyalty
and love will, in return, bring love and loyalty.
