Document 701

The Buik o Ruth: 14 - Anent the Buik o Ruth

Author(s): A S Borrowman

Copyright holder(s): Mrs Lorna F Borrowman

The Hebrew Bible, our Auld Testament, is in fower pairts, the Law, the Former Prophets, the Latter Prophets, and the Writings. The Buik o Ruth is fun amang the Writings.

The Writings were scrievit owre monie a year, and werena acceptit intae the Hebrew Bible till 130 A. D. or thairanent.

In our Auld Testament the Buik o Ruth comes efter Judges and was pitten thair by the Gregians wha foundit on the Buik o Ruth itsel, whilk pits the tale 'in the time o the Judges'. (Ruth 1:1)

The Gregians translatit frae Hebrew intae Grewe.

The Buik o Ruth wasna scrievit in the twalt orlang-hunder B.C. but lang efter. Some fowk jalouse it was scrievit afore the Israelites were cairrit awa tae Babylon in 587 B.C.: ithers that it was scrievit in the days o Ezra and Nehemiah, efter the Israelites won hame tae their ain kintra. We maun cognose for the time o Ezra and Nehemiah.

Whatna prief hae we?

Whan Ezra and his feres won hame, the kinrick o Israel was in a unco guddle. The brugh o Jerusalem was dingit doon, alsweel its waas and ilka hoose. Forbye the fowk were disjaskit, alsweel discomfist.

It was a tapsalteerie warld, and fient a care had they for the Law o God whilk had gart them be a by-ordinar fowk.

Ezra and his feres pit stout herts tae a stey brae and walit for their dicton, 'Oursels alane'; nae merridges wi fremmit fowk; ill-wull tae the fremmit, and nae companionry wi fowk wha dinna belang tae the kintra or kin o Israel.

It was an orra gait tae gang, and we suld caa it in our ain day, 'racism'. Aabody didna haud tae siccan gait and aiblins the scriever o the Buik o Ruth was a saunt wha weel kent that the merciment o God wasna anerlie for the Israelites but alsweel for the Gentile fowk.

Albuist the politique o the Israelites was notour, and had the dooming o the scriever, the Buik o Ruth isna aboot flytin nar fechtin. It's aa anent landwart fowk: aboot craps, hairst; puirtith and sic like.

Famine drave a faimly owre Jordan intae Moab. The faither and the twa sons deed, and the mither, Naomi, ettlt tae win hame tae her ain kintra and jalousit her twa guid-dochters wald bide in Moab.

Ane, Orpah bides in Moab; tither, Ruth gangs wi Naomi tae Bethlehem o Juda. In Bethlehem, puirtith gars Ruth gaither frae the rigs. The tale has a guid aftercast.

Ruth gaithers in the rig o Boaz wha is sib tae Naomi's guidman. Naomi gars Boaz, blate and auld-young, merry the bonnie widow-wife Ruth. Algates, Naomi is fasht anent a paffle whilk her guidman Elimelech aucht.

Puirtith micht gar her sell it awa frae the faimly, but the paffle is coft by Boaz. The wont-tae-be o the kintra was that he wha coft the paffle, coft the widow-wife alsweel.

Lippen tae the scriever o Ruth! He was nae coof!

The son o Boaz and Ruth was caad Obed, the faither o Jesse, the faither o Dauvit. The michty Roy, Dauvit, neist in honner and glore tae Moses amang the Israelites, was oe tae a man whas mither was a Gentile.

Waesucks for 'oursels alane' and Israel for the Israelites'. Aither the michtiest o their roys is fylit wi Moabite bluid, als Moabites hae their pairt amang God's choicen fowk: ither fowk alsweel, for we ken that Tamar, (Genesis XXXVIII) and Rahab the hoor, (Joshua II) were Canaanites, and sib tae Dauvit: sae they were forbeers o the Messiah whilk we lear frae Mattha I: 3 & 5.

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The Buik o Ruth: 14 - Anent the Buik o Ruth