Judges-Ruth

If there's a book that lends itself to a quick reading it's Judges. I'll not lie, and tell you i'm pleased to read it in two days rather then three weeks. The constant refrain about there being no king, the ever downward spiral of (grosser and grosser) sin, the lack of anything beautiful. Get through it quick.

But you get through it quick, turn the page and uh-oh, 'in the days when the Judges ruled the land,' no thank you! At least it's only four chapters, we think, until we dive in and find the greatest short love story ever told. What a breath of fresh air Ruth turns out to be, and what a great companion to Judges it is.

Companion? The warm summers day of Ruth with the bitter polar vortex of Judges? Sure, like a calm sunrise for the storm tossed sailor, the sweetness of Ruth is only increased when you read it along with Judges.

In Judges everyone does what is right in his own eyes. Essentially murder, immorality, private religion and disobedience. Even the good guys aren't much good, Gideon the coward, Samson the, well, maniac. Even for the good these men do, they're clearly not the Judge and King Israel needs. Israel is a mess, the people do what is right in their own eyes.

But in Ruth, one man does what is right in the eyes of the Lord. Boaz owes Ruth nothing, and takes her, and Naomi on at great cost to himself. Why? Because God said so! And because he loves her, of course, but that doesn't explain his meeting at the gate with Mr No-name. The people sing, the hero gets the girl, Naomi is a sweet old lady nursing her grandson, because Boaz did what was right.

Judges shows us who we are. We hate authority don't we? That's why we're always cheering for the bad guys in movies. We don't want to be told what to do. A hundred times a day, when we sin, we despise God's Word. Our hearts run rampant as they pursue every idol of their fancy. Just like in Judges. Sure, there are bright spots, but we trend down, and things end up worse than we could ever imagine.

But in Ruth, we see who we could be. Whose the new girl in my field? Oh really? Well make sure she's looked after, and guys. don't touch her. You're an old man, but it's your wings i want to be under. He loves you, he'll do what's right, he won't let the matter rest. I mean come on! This is the best story ever. Boaz, Ruth and Naomi shows us how to live in the Spirit, how to live with God as our King, a life that says 'the Lord be with you.'

Judges leaves us in Gibeah. Benjamin is not supposed to be the front runner, the leader among God's people. See what happened's in Gibeah Israel? Why will you choose Saul? A King from Gibeah is no King, don't choose him because he's tall and looks like the nations' Kings, says Samuel. And we're faced with that same dilemma every day. Does the church want leadership like the nations? Do i want to worship what they worship?

But Ruth takes us to Bethlehem, to David and to Jesus. Israel, David is your King, and we must unite around him. Look what the men of Bethlehem are like, and compare them to the men of Gibeah. Judah has the scepter between his feet, Judah goes up first. Judah is where Kings comes from. And Judges and Ruth remind us that our king must be from Judah. Our King must be in Davd's line, our King must be from Bethlehem.

Look at what happens when he isn't.

Here's Your King

Probably the best way to read Judges is quickly. Move through it at pace, and then the awful themes become clearer. The repeated refrain that there was no king in those days, that everyone did what was right in their own eyes, the systematic moving through of the tribes of Israel, none of them left untouched by rebellion and poor leadership. Even the best of them are pretty rotten.

There are many things that these dark days of Israel's history teach us, but the desire of the author, probably Samuel, is to help us understand that without a King, the people perish. A Heavenly King of course, we need Jesus to be the King of our lives and passions and desires, but an earthly King as well.

And not the one that Samuel was serving under at the moment. If the sceptre was never to depart from between Judah's feet, why was there a Benjaminite on the throne! A Benjaminite, from the tribe spoken of in such despicable tones at the end of Judges. Samuel says no, he says that Kings don't come from Benjamin, they come from Judah. And then, as he dips his quill in his ink, and asks again for help, he turns the page, and tells us about Ruth. And he says, this Israel, this is where Kings come from.

I love the story of Ruth. It's a beautiful short story all on it's won. Love and romance, death and tragedy, intrigue and unexpected plot twists, it's got it all. It also has the coolest guy in the Old Testament for a hero. Boaz. Say it slowly and in a deep voice. Bo-az. So how is it about Kingship? Well has the end of the story ever confused you? It has me. Where do Ruth and Boaz go? Our two starcrossed lovers just disappear, and we're left with Naomi, sweetly bouncing her grandson on her knee. And a genealogy. One that takes us from Perez, though Boaz, to David. King David. This where your Kings come from Israel, Judah, not Benjamin. Where do Ruth and Boaz go? It doesn't matter, they've served their purpose in this tract on the benefits of  a Davidic King.

So Israel, that's where your King should come from, but what should he do? He clearly shouldn't be like a King od the other nations, to ask for a King like that was a sin, and Saul wasn't doing a great job in teaching his people the law. Israel, your king should be like YHWH, like Boaz in fact.

What does Boaz do? He greets his bride as she comes in from the wilderness. He provides for her and protects her. He spreads his wings over her, even though he has no cause to. He loves her. They are betrothed, and he goes outside the city (Outside. The. City!) to fight off other suitors. Then they marry, and they can look at each other and say, I am my beloved, and my beloved is mine. Israel, choose a King who will do these things, who will take, and love, and sacrifice and fight for you.

Israel had to choose a King like that, and so do we. We need a King who accepts us from the wilderness, hairy, sweaty and unattractive. A king who will spread His wings over us. Who will nourish and protect us. Who will take us to Himself, who will leave the comforts of the city to win us. Who will be married to us forever.

It's no wonder Spurgeon called Jesus 'our glorious Boaz.'