DOCSLIB.ORG

Ruth 2:1-23 (NIV) 1 Now Naomi Had a Relative on Her Husband's Side, from the Clan of Elimelech, a Man of Standing, Whose Name Was Boaz

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Ruth 2:1-23 (NIV) 1 Now Naomi Had a Relative on Her Husband's Side, from the Clan of Elimelech, a Man of Standing, Whose Name Was Boaz P a g e | 1 Third Presbyterian Church Tuesday Bible Study Old Testament Tour - Ruth Lesson 48 – Ruth Meets Boaz Ruth 2:1-23 (NIV) 1 Now Naomi had a relative on her husband's side, from the clan of Elimelech, a man of standing, whose name was Boaz. 2 And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, "Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor." Naomi said to her, "Go ahead, my daughter." 3 So she went out and began to glean in the fields behind the harvesters. As it turned out, she found herself working in a field belonging to Boaz, who was from the clan of Elimelech. 4 Just then Boaz arrived from Bethlehem and greeted the harvesters, "The LORD be with you!" "The LORD bless you!" they called back. 5 Boaz asked the foreman of his harvesters, "Whose young woman is that?" 6 The foreman replied, "She is the Moabitess who came back from Moab with Naomi. 7 She said, 'Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves behind the harvesters.' She went into the field and has worked steadily from morning till now, except for a short rest in the shelter." 8 So Boaz said to Ruth, "My daughter, listen to me. Don't go and glean in another field and don't go away from here. Stay here with my servant girls. 9 Watch the field where the men are harvesting, and follow along after the girls. I have told the men not to touch you. And whenever you are thirsty, go and get a drink from the water jars the men have filled." 10 At this, she bowed down with her face to the ground. She exclaimed, "Why have I found such favor in your eyes that you notice me--a foreigner?" 11 Boaz replied, "I've been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband--how you left your father and mother and your homeland and came to live with a people you did not know before. 12 May the LORD repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge." 13 "May I continue to find favor in your eyes, my lord," she said. "You have given me comfort and have spoken kindly to your servant--though I do not have the standing of one of your servant girls." 14 At mealtime Boaz said to her, "Come over here. Have some bread and dip it in the wine vinegar." When she sat down with the harvesters, he offered her some roasted grain. She ate all she wanted and had some left over. 15 As she got up to glean, Boaz gave orders to his men, "Even if she gathers among the sheaves, don't embarrass her. 16 Rather, pull out some stalks for her from the bundles and leave them for her to pick up, and don't rebuke her." 17 So Ruth gleaned in the field until evening. Then she threshed the barley she had gathered, and it amounted to about an ephah. 18 She carried it back to town, and her mother-in-law saw how much she had gathered. Ruth also brought out and gave her what she had left over after she had eaten enough. 19 Her mother-in-law asked her, "Where did you glean today? Where did you work? Blessed be the man who took notice of you!" Then Ruth told her mother-in-law about the one at whose place she had been working. "The name of the man I worked with today is Boaz," she said. 20 "The LORD bless him!" Naomi said to her daughter-in-law. "He has not stopped showing his kindness to the living and the dead." She added, "That man is our close relative; he is one of our kinsman-redeemers." 21 Then Ruth the Moabitess said, "He even said to me, 'Stay with my workers until they finish harvesting all my grain.'" 22 Naomi said to Ruth her daughter-in-law, "It will be good for you, my daughter, to go with his girls, because in someone else's field you might be harmed." 23 So Ruth stayed close to the servant girls of Boaz to glean until the barley and wheat harvests were finished. And she lived with her mother-in-law. P a g e | 2 QUESTIONS 1. After a devastating loss or tragedy in a person’s life, why is it so difficult to get back to work? Is getting back to work as soon as ruth did a bad thing? Some may question her love for her dead husband by her seemingly moving on so soon to creating a normal life again…what are your thoughts? Is it a certain time that has to expire before your love for your dead spouse is not questioned? 2. I believe Ruth showed faith to God in clinging to God and not being paralyzed by her situation and God rewards that faith. Share with the group an instance where you just trusted God above the pain of your circumstances and God rewarded that faith in Him. 3. What character traits of Ruth stand out to you that you have or are working to acquire? 4. It was not chance that led Ruth to the field of Boaz. It was the sovereign power of God. God was guiding Ruth, working all events out for good—all because she loved God and was totally committed to Him. Share with the group an instance that you look back and know you were being led by God and God worked a situation out for your good and God’s glory. 5. Boaz was a Kinsman-Redeemer - a person who buys back, redeems, saves, rescues a family member. In ancient days, it was the responsibility of the nearest relative to provide for the family and to protect the rights of all family members. The nearest relative was known as the redeemer or kinsman (goel). The kinsman-redeemer was responsible by law to save his relative from any trouble the relative faced. A. In our society today we don’t have such laws but at times some family members act like this law is in effect. How are you able to show love with helping and rescuing a family member without being taken advantage of? How are you able to show love without becoming an enabler? B. The spirit of the “kinsman-redeemer” is still alive. How have you been a help/rescuer for a family member and it was a truly appreciated blessing? How did that make you feel? How did God respond to your kindness? 6. How could you demonstrate your thankfulness to the Lord for His provision for you? 7. What can you do in the next few days to help a friend who is struggling to make ends meet? P a g e | 3 RUTH: DIVISION I C. Ruth Seeks Food and Meets Boaz: A Picture of God's Guidance, Arousing the Hope for Redemption, 2:1-23 (1:6-22) Introduction: poverty is a terrible thing. A poverty-stricken person often has little or no food to eat or decent clothes to wear. And far too often the poor person has no roof over his or her head or else lives in inadequate housing. A person who has no money or goods to barter or to swap for the necessities of life is destitute. The person has to live without the most basic necessities of life. Impoverished people have difficulty surviving in this world. Some are even forced to become the garbage people of the world, scavenging for food in the very garbage dumps of our cities. And others, including children, are forced to become sewage dwellers, living under the major cities of the world. They simply have no other place to turn for warmth and protection at night. This is a horrible scene and a terrible indictment against society as a whole, but in particular against the corrupt, greedy leaders of the world. Naomi and Ruth were poor, utterly destitute. But this was not the only problem they faced: they were also widows and childless, left all alone in this world to fend for themselves in a male-dominated society. There was no reasonable work, no good paying job for them to secure in order to feed themselves and provide for their necessities. The difficulties they faced were compounded by the fact that Ruth was a foreigner who was looked upon suspiciously by Naomi's neighbors. But in the midst of all their problems, God cared for them. Ruth had just made a total commitment to the Lord to follow Him with her whole heart. Because of her genuine commitment to God, she was placed under the wings of God. God was taking care of Ruth and Naomi, moving events in order to protect and meet the needs of these two dear believers. God's care, guidance, and provision are the important subjects of this important passage of Scripture. This is: Ruth Seeks Food and Meets Boaz: a Picture of God's Guidance, Arousing the Hope for Redemption, 2:1-23. 1. The introduction of Boaz: a suggestion that a savior's redemption might lie just over the horizon (v.1). 2. The strong initiative of Ruth in seeking food: a picture of being diligent, not slothful, in seeking to meet one's need (v.2-3).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • RUTH Chapters 3, 4 This Is Already Our Last Study of Ruth. While This
    RUTH Chapters 3, 4 This is already our last study of Ruth. While this book is very short, it gives us much insight into many important questions about life, such as where God is, in difficult times, and why sometimes He waits so long before He acts. Also, it is through two faithful women, that we learn so much about God’s workings in the believers’ lives. Naomi and Ruth, both teach us how to be patient and hopeful, in hard times. Throughout the tragedies of losing their husbands and being reduced to poverty, they did not believe that God had forsaken them. They often spoke of Him so reverently. Right in the midst of their ordeal, when Naomi told Ruth that it would be better for her to stay in Moab because she had nothing to offer her, she pronounced these words: The LORD deal kindly … (Ruth1:8), "The LORD grant that you may find rest (Ruth1:9). She was not mad at God for her situation. Ruth responded in like manner and said: Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried. The LORD do so to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me." (Ruth 1:17) These women knew their God well, and when the time was right, He responded to their faith. When He replied, He acted in wonderful ways and with great blessings. We have seen that when Ruth went out to find food, the Scriptures said: And she happened to come to the part of the field belonging to Boaz,(Ruth 2:3).
    [Show full text]
  • Augural Global Ambassador with the Organization
    Temple Israel of Great Neck Where tradition meets change Voice a Conservative egalitarian synagogue High Holy Days Services Temple Israel’s Yom Kippur Sunday, September 9 - Erev Rosh Hashanah Minhah and Ma’ariv 6:30 P.M. Jacob Stein Symposium Monday, September 10 - First Day Rosh Hashanah Speaker: Ruth Messinger Shaharit begins in the Sanctuary 8:15 A.M. Torah Reading: Genesis 21:1-34; Numbers 29:1-6 by Marc Katz, Editor Haftarah: I Samuel 1:1-2:10 Ruth Messinger, the former president and CEO of the American “The Days of Awe and the Workaday World: 10:00 A.M. Jewish World Service, will be the featured speaker at Temple Prayers That Connect Them” - Poetry Israel’s Jack Stein Memorial Symposium on Yom Kippur. A discussion led by Rabbi Marim D. Charry Tashlikh (Xeriscape) 6:30 P.M. American Jewish World Service is a non-profit international Minhah and Ma’ariv 7:00 P.M. development and human rights organization that supports community-based groups in 19 countries. It also works to Tuesday, September 11 - Second Day of Rosh Hashanah educate the American Jewish community about global justice. Shaharit begins in the Sanctuary 8:15 A.M. It is the only Jewish organization Torah Reading: Genesis 22:1-24; Numbers 29:1-6 dedicated solely to ending Haftarah: Jeremiah 31:1-19 poverty and promoting human “The Days of Awe and the Workaday World: 10:00 A.M. rights in the developing world. Prayers That Connect Them” - Prose A discussion led by Rabbi Marim D. Charry Rabbi Howard Stecker has been Minhah and Ma’ariv 7:10 P.M.
    [Show full text]
  • Ruth - a Case for Women, Or a Case for Patriarchy?
    40 Australian Religion Studies Review Ruth - A Case for Women, or a Case for Patriarchy? Robert Martinez University of New England This article analyses the Old Testament character, Ruth, in the social, historical, and religious context of the biblical book that bears her name. The study employs a feminist literary perspective to show that popular readings are misplaced in suggesting that both the character and the book of Ruth is emblematic for women s issues and concerns. It is also argued that it is naive to try to reclaim both the character and the book for feminism given the patriarchal ends which both serves. Like the other main characters in the book, Ruth is shown to be a complex figure with mixed motives and this prohibits any facile stereotyping of her character as a paradigm of virtue or the like. By any account, Ruth is a classic narrative. It has been described "an elegantly wrought classic version of the rags-to-riches story, of hard work and proper reward, told from the point of view of women" (Tischler, 1993: 151 ). To the degree that this book elevates and makes prominent women and their concerns it is an atypical Biblical narrative. Throughout, Ruth shows herself to be a loyal and courageous woman, being praised by the Bethlehemite women as being better "than seven sons" (Ruth 4:15, NIV) to Naomi, her mother-in-law. Nevertheless, despite Ruth's obvious strengths and virtues, there remains a deep ambiguity with regard to the place of women in general, and Ruth in particular, in this narrative.
    [Show full text]
  • THRESHING FLOORS AS SACRED SPACES in the HEBREW BIBLE by Jaime L. Waters a Dissertation Submitted to the Johns Hopkins Universit
    THRESHING FLOORS AS SACRED SPACES IN THE HEBREW BIBLE by Jaime L. Waters A dissertation submitted to The Johns Hopkins University in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Baltimore, Maryland August 2013 © 2013 Jaime L. Waters All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT Vital to an agrarian community’s survival, threshing floors are agricultural spaces where crops are threshed and winnowed. As an agrarian society, ancient Israel used threshing floors to perform these necessary activities of food processing, but the Hebrew Bible includes very few references to these actions happening on threshing floors. Instead, several cultic activities including mourning rites, divination rituals, cultic processions, and sacrifices occur on these agricultural spaces. Moreover, the Solomonic temple was built on a threshing floor. Though seemingly ordinary agricultural spaces, the Hebrew Bible situates a variety of extraordinary cultic activities on these locations. In examining references to threshing floors in the Hebrew Bible, this dissertation will show that these agricultural spaces are also sacred spaces connected to Yahweh. Three chapters will explore different aspects of this connection. Divine control of threshing floors will be demonstrated as Yahweh exhibits power to curse, bless, and save threshing floors from foreign attacks. Accessibility and divine manifestation of Yahweh will be demonstrated in passages that narrate cultic activities on threshing floors. Cultic laws will reveal the links between threshing floors, divine offerings and blessings. One chapter will also address the sociological features of threshing floors with particular attention given to the social actors involved in cultic activities and temple construction. By studying references to threshing floors as a collection, a research project that has not been done previously, the close relationship between threshing floors and the divine will be visible, and a more nuanced understanding of these spaces will be achieved.
    [Show full text]
  • Notes on Ruth 202 1 Edition Dr
    Notes on Ruth 202 1 Edition Dr. Thomas L. Constable TITLE This book received its title in honor of the heroine of the story. One writer argued that "Naomi" is the main character in the plot, "Boaz" is the main character in the dialogue, and "Obed" is the main character in the purpose of the book.1 The name "Ruth" may mean "friendship," "comfort," or "refreshment." It appears to have been Moabite and not Hebrew, originally, though its etymological derivation is uncertain.2 Another writer suggested it may derive from the Hebrew root rwh, meaning "to soak, irrigate, refresh."3 After Ruth entered Israel, and especially after the Book of Ruth circulated, the name became popular among the Jews, and later among Christians. The same title appears over the book in its Hebrew (Masoretic), Greek (Septuagint), Latin (Vulgate), and modern language versions. DATE AND WRITER It is safe to assume that the Book of Ruth was put in its final form after David became king in Hebron, in 1011 B.C., since he is recognized as a very important figure in the genealogy (4:17, 22). How much later is hard to determine. The Babylonian Talmud attributed authorship of the book to Samuel.4 This statement reflects ancient Jewish tradition. If Samuel, or someone who lived about the same time as Samuel, wrote the book, the final genealogy must have been added much later—perhaps during the reign of David or Solomon. Modern critical scholars tend to prefer a much later date, on the basis of their theories concerning the date of the writing 1Daniel I.
    [Show full text]
  • Scrolls of Love Ruth and the Song of Songs Scrolls of Love
    Edited by Peter S. Hawkins and Lesleigh Cushing Stahlberg Scrolls of Love ruth and the song of songs Scrolls of Love ................. 16151$ $$FM 10-13-06 10:48:57 PS PAGE i ................. 16151$ $$FM 10-13-06 10:48:57 PS PAGE ii Scrolls of Love reading ruth and the song of songs Edited by Peter S. Hawkins and Lesleigh Cushing Stahlberg FORDHAM UNIVERSITY PRESS New York / 2006 ................. 16151$ $$FM 10-13-06 10:49:01 PS PAGE iii Copyright ᭧ 2006 Fordham University Press All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, me- chanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Scrolls of love : reading Ruth and the Song of songs / edited by Peter S. Hawkins and Lesleigh Cushing Stahlberg.—1st ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8232-2571-2 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8232-2571-2 (cloth : alk. paper) ISBN-13: 978-0-8232-2526-2 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8232-2526-7 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Bible. O.T. Ruth—Criticism interpretation, etc. 2. Bible. O.T. Song of Solomon—Criticism, interpretation, etc. I. Hawkins, Peter S. II. Stahlberg, Lesleigh Cushing. BS1315.52.S37 2006 222Ј.3506—dc22 2006029474 Printed in the United States of America 08 07 06 5 4 3 2 1 First edition ................. 16151$ $$FM 10-13-06 10:49:01 PS PAGE iv For John Clayton (1943–2003), mentor and friend ................
    [Show full text]
  • Poems of Ruth
    Poems of Ruth woodcut by Jacob Steinhardt Shavuot 5772 / 2012 Poems by Marge Piercy, Rachel Barenblat, Alicia Ostriker, Tania Runyan, Victor Hugo, Kathryn Hellerstein, Anna Kamienska, Catherine Tufariello - 2 - THE HANDMAID'S TALE (RUTH) Time for a different kind of harvest. Sated with bread and beer Boaz and his men sleep deeply on the fragrant hay. The floor doesn’t creak. When Boaz wakes, his eyes gleam with unshed tears. He is no longer young, maybe forty; his face is lined as Mahlon's never became. Who are you? he asks and I hear an echoing question: who is it? what is it? who speaks? Spread your wings over me, I reply and his cloak billows high. Now he clasps my foreign hand and kisses the tips of my fingers now skin glides against skin and the seed of salvation grows in me the outsider, the forbidden we move from lack to fullness we sweeten our own story and as my belly swells I pray that the day come speedily and soon when we won't need to distinguish Israel from Moab the sun’s radiance from the moon’s Boaz’s square fingers from my smaller olive hands amen, amen, selah. Rabbi Rachel Barenblat - 3 - from NO ANGEL All that thou sayest unto me I will do. Ruth 3:5 I The story's strange. For once, God wasn't talking, Busy with some sacrifice or slaughter Somewhere else. No plague, cloud, gushing water, Dream, omen, whirlwind. Just two women, walking The dusty road from Moab to Judea, One, the younger, having told the other (Not her own, but her dead husband's mother) That she would never leave her.
    [Show full text]
  • Jacob's Ladder Program 3: Ruth and Naomi Teaching Plan for Youth
    Jacob’s Ladder Program 3: Ruth and Naomi Teaching Plan For Youth Summary: The Hebrew family of Elimelech and Naomi are facing difficult times. A severe famine has caused them to leave their home and venture to a new land where they are not welcome and new hardships await. Questions for discussion are in italics. Scripture: Ruth 1 Teaching Theme: Faith should guide us through trials. Strong, healthy communities support individuals and welcome new members. Take a Pulse (gauge the students’ understanding of some key words and get them thinking about the topic): 1. Insider/Outsider Activity: As students arrive, hand almost all the students a small bag of M&M’s. Choose several students to receive a small bag of puffed rice cereal instead. Group the students according to what they’ve got as a snack. Now have the kids with puffed rice try to convince the other kids to trade with them. 2. How is a community different from a neighborhood? Which word best describes our youth group? 3. How does it feel to leave a community and start over in a new one? Describe your experiences with changes in school, church, or neighborhood communities. View the 30 minute video. Discuss initial reactions and any points of confusion. Explore the Story: 1. What hardship had befallen Elimelech’s family, causing them to leave their homeland? Describe their emotions as they leave and head into the unknown. 2. What type of welcome did they receive in Moab? What is at the root of the hatred the Moabites feel towards the Hebrews? Why did most Moabites reject the Hebrews as members of their community? 3.
    [Show full text]
  • A Study of the Book of Ruth
    A Study of the Book of Ruth by Becky J. Case & Allyson M. Barrante For: Crux Bible Study Leaders Crux Bible Study is a Geneva College Community Bible Study Sponsored by the Staff of The Coalition for Christian Outreach and “The Call” Fall 2004 Dear Crux Bible Study Leaders, Welcome to the study of the book of Ruth. It’s with great excitement and eager expectation that we begin this study. This beautiful and eloquently written story is packed with truth about God and His workings in the ordinary circumstances of life. Our prayer is that as you dig into the Scriptures with a group of peers here at Geneva College that your lives will be transformed in new ways. Our hope is that this guide will be a helpful resource to you, and aid in developing your gifts as a small group leader while giving a clearer picture of the Word to students in your study. A few thoughts as you begin this journey: The Crux Bible study guide has been designed to be just that: a guide. Our desire is for you to develop it further, make changes that adapt it to your group, and make choices about how to use the questions we’ve developed. The last thing this guide has been prepared for is to make the job of the small group leader “easy”. Rather, it has been made to help create informed leaders. The book of Ruth is a beautiful story, and probably one you may have heard in Sunday School as a child. While we admire the creativity of our God to reveal himself through a variety of means, we must be careful to remember it is far more than an eloquently written love drama.
    [Show full text]
  • Ruth at a Glance
    Scholars Crossing The Owner's Manual File Theological Studies 11-2017 Article 8: Ruth at a Glance Harold Willmington Liberty University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/owners_manual Part of the Biblical Studies Commons, Christianity Commons, Practical Theology Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Recommended Citation Willmington, Harold, "Article 8: Ruth at a Glance" (2017). The Owner's Manual File. 38. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/owners_manual/38 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Theological Studies at Scholars Crossing. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Owner's Manual File by an authorized administrator of Scholars Crossing. For more information, please contact [email protected]. RUTH AT A GLANCE This is the story of two widows, the first a (temporarily) bitter and disillusioned woman named Naomi, and the second, her daughter-in-law, a new convert to Israel’s God, Ruth by name. In the providential plan of God Ruth meets and marries Boaz, a godly man from the tribe of Judah, which couple will later become the great grandparents of King David himself. BOTTOM LINE INTRODUCTION HOW ON EARTH DID A PAGAN WIDOW GET A BOOK IN THE BIBLE NAMED AFTER HER? Here is the thrilling story. Ruth is the first of two biblical books named after a woman. The other is Esther. Note the contrasts between these two women. Ruth was a Gentile who lived among Jews. Esther was a Jewess who lived among Gentiles. Ruth married a Jew.
    [Show full text]
  • Exploring Brexit Through the Lens of Ruth
    CROSSING BORDERS EXPLORING BREXIT THROUGH THE LENS OF RUTH A PUBLIC THEOLOGY INITIATIVE FROM CONTENTS READING THE STORY CHAPTER 1 — CROSSROADS DECISIONS After a life of successive tragedies Naomi decides to return home to Bethlehem and her own people. Her widowed daughters-in-law, both Moabites, seek to return with her, but Naomi tries to persuade them to stay, after all, what is there for them in a foreign country? One decides to return home, and one, Ruth, insists on continuing with her back to Judah, and will not be persuaded otherwise. Important decisions are made at the crossroads. CHAPTER 2 — THE MIGRANT WORKER The two women reach home at the beginning of the barley harvest and Ruth finds work gleaning in the fields of a man called Boaz. We are introduced to the fragile lives of those who are poor and to the potential dangers that face those who are migrant workers. And we are surprised by the kindness of Boaz, the landowner, who is moved to be generous by the character and kindness of Ruth. Nevertheless, there is no permanent fix to the economic and social circumstances of the two women. CHAPTER 3 — WHO IS FAMILY? Naomi takes charge now to try and fix their plight and we are exposed to the risks vulnerable people often have to take to survive. Ruth takes the physical and reputational gamble of visiting Boaz at the threshing floor in the dead of night and a curious encounter takes place. The result is that Boaz is finally persuaded to act to restore Naomi and deal finally with Ruth’s status in the community.
    [Show full text]
  • 9.2011.Compassion.Pdf
    WITNESSES OF THE Word Third in a series Relentless COMPASSIONMore than a beloved figure in an ancient love story, Rachel is the voice of holy perseverance as she cries for God’s deliverance. MICHELLE CLIFTON-SODERSTROM Thus says the LORD: tory gains him not only one of these a deep hope that God will restore A voice is heard in Ramah, blessings, but a new divine appella- his children, despite the fact that her lamentation and bitter weeping. tion—Israel. oracle is more haunting than Jacob’s. Rachel is weeping for her children; In the shadow of Genesis’s focus Her tears and her refusal to be com- she refuses to be comforted for her on Jacob, it is tempting to forget that forted serve as intercessory cries for children, because they are no more. Rachel is a pillar herself. She, too, deliverance—a blessing for a beloved, (Jeremiah 31:15) stands for her people. She, too, is the sinful people. Rachel is the matriarch ancestor of the nation of Israel. More- who wrestles with God from the verybody loves Rachel. Her over, even in her death, she perseveres. tomb, and this distinction casts her in story is one that has roused an From the prophets all the way into the a light unmatched in the Old Testa- abundance of creative work Gospels, Rachel can be heard weep- ment account and in the eyes of the in art, literature, mysticism, ing for her children in the midst of Jewish people. Eand midrash. When Sunday-school exile and slaughter. She refuses to be girls are asked to name their favorite comforted.
    [Show full text]