This story is about a family living in the land of Judah. There hadn't been any rain in Judah for a very long time and because it was so dry there was very little food growing. The trees had no apples and the fields had no grain.
It was a difficult time for Elimelek, his wife Naomi and their two sons, Mahlon and Kilion. There was no food to eat so they left their home and moved to a place called Moab. They had heard that in the land of Moab there was plenty of food to eat and they wouldn't be hungry anymore.
Now in Moab they had a lot of food to eat, but this place was not like Judah. In Moab the people worshipped idols and bronze statues that God didn't like. Elimelek and his wife Naomi continued to worship the true God and they raised their sons to worship and pray to the true God also.
Naomi's husband died and she had only her two sons left. These two sons married women from Moab. These women were named Orpah and Ruth. They lived in the land as a very happy family. Ruth, found favor with God because she didn't not worship the idols that other people in Moab worshipped. Instead, she worshipped the true God with her husband, Mahlon, and their mother, Ruth.
Then something very sad happened. Both of Ruth's sons, Mahlon and Chilion, died. The only family Naomi had left were the wives of her sons that had died. All three women were no widows, meaning their husbands had died. At this time, it was very difficult to survive as a widow and the women worried about what they would eat and how they would survive.
Naomi heard that the drought and hunger was over in her home of Judah. She wanted to return home. Our God has blessed our land with beautiful crops and food once again. I am going to return home, she said to Ruth and Orpah. They were both sad because they didn't want Ruth to leave.
Ruth and Orpah decided to go to Bethlehem with Naomi, but along the was Naomi changed her mind and told them they should both go back. Naomi was being kind and doing what she thought was best for her daughters-in-law. Naomi thought that they could find new husbands and be better off staying in Moab without her.
Although Naomi told Ruth to go back to Moab, Ruth did not want to do that. Ruth told Naomi that she loved her and wanted to stay with her. Ruth wanted to be with her mother-in-law and live in the land where the true God was worshipped, so she went to Bethlehem with Naomi.
Ruth would be richly blessed by God for her loyalty to her mother-in-law as well as her loyalty to Him, the one true God.
This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.
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