Five Chosen In A Line Unbroken – Part 4 continued

Five Chosen In A Line Unbroken –

Part 4 continued from…

 https://www.minimannamoments.com/five-chosen-in-a-line-unbroken-part-4/

In Bethlehem, Ruth looked after her aging mother-in-law Naomi, as if she were her own mother; and to keep them from going hungry, Ruth gleans grain in the field of Naomi’s relative, Boaz.

Boaz בעז

Meaning:

In Strength, By Strength

From the prefix ב – be, in,

and

the verb עזז – ‘azaz,

to be strong, powerful or strong.

Boaz = fleetness.

Strong’s Hebrew: 1162.

בֹּ֫עַז

Boaz — quickness.

Here while gleaning in the fields of Bethlehem, Ruth meets Boaz.

He was a wealthy Bethlehemite,

a rich land-owner

and kinsman to Elimelech the husband of Naomi.

Ruth 2:3 says that

‘as it happened’

Ruth went to the field of Naomi’s rich relative, Boaz.

This phrase

as it happened

is often used in the Bible to suggest that God is setting the scene for something significant.

It also implied, with a touch of Jewish humour, that Naomi and the people of Bethlehem saw a good match for Ruth and edged her into meeting Boaz. (Matchmaking!)

Naomi knew that Ruth was beautiful and respected, Boaz was the ideal choice. He was available, childless, well respected and rich. and she knew that a rich husband for Ruth would solve all their problems.

He was also a relative of Naomi’s through her husband’s family, (see Leviticus 19:9-10). so he had a legal obligation to help Naomi and to redeem the estates of her deceased husband Mahlon. (Ruth 4:1)

Boaz was second in line to the position of go’el in Naomi’s, and therefore Ruth’s, family.

In English, the word go’el

is often translated as ‘nearest kin’,

but in ancient Judah it meant much more than that.

A go’el was a close male relative with the duty of looking after a family when the male head of the family was absent.

In earlier times, the go’el of the family was expected to marry the widow of an Israelite man if she wished it

Deuteronomy 25.

Ruth, who may not have understood the formalities of Israelite law,

called Boaz – go’el =

Kinsman Redeemer.

It seems to have been love at first sight for him, and he ordered his workers to treat Ruth well when she worked in his fields. picking up leftover grain

Ruth 2:1-23    

He went to great lengths to get extra grain for Ruth, to protect her from young men who might harass her, and to see that she was properly fed.

 

‘At mealtime Boaz said to her “Come here, and eat

at some of this bread, and dip your morsel in the sour wine”.

So she sat beside the reapers, and he heaped up for her some parched grain. She ate until she was satisfied, and she had some left over.’

Naomi saw immediately what had happened, and encouraged Ruth to keep on working in Boaz’s fields. who has heard about her kindness to Naomi.

Ruth 2:11,12

Boaz replied, “I have been made fully aware of all you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband, how you left your father and mother and the land of your birth, and how you came to a people you did not know before. May the LORD repay your work, and may you receive a rich reward from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have taken refuge.”

Following Naomi’s guidance, Ruth visits Boaz at night.

When Boaz finally lay down and is

fast asleep after winnowing barley on the threshing floor,

she approached

and lay down at his feet.

Someone always slept there at night until the grain was removed, to guard against thieves.

Ruth 3:1-18

‘When Boaz had eaten and drunk, and he was in a contented mood, he went to lie down at the end of the heap of grain. Then she came stealthily and uncovered his feet, and lay down.’

The threshing floor is the same that David bought from and it became the site of the Temple!

It is Mount Moriah the scene of many meetings and sacrifices.

The Threshing floor and

the significance of threshing:

The context of King David’s initiative to purchase that threshing floor was the need to stop the Angel of Death, who was exacting the punishment for sin.

2 Samuel 24:15-16

As believers this connection makes sense – it’s the place of God’s victory over sin and where the power of spiritual death was stopped.

King David purchases the threshing floor of

Araunah the Jebusite

and, according to one classic rabbinic opinion,

the entire city of Yerushalayim /Jerusalem.

That threshing floor,

the place where he intends to offer sacrifices,

is now called the

Har HaBayit –

Temple Mount in Yerushalayim/Jerusalem.

Araunah in Hebrew: אֲרַוְנָה ‎

’Ǎrawnāh was a Jebusite mentioned in 2 Samuel,

who owned the threshing floor on Mount Moriah

which David purchased and

used as the site for assembling an altar to God.

1 Chronicles, a later text, renders his name as

Ornan – in Hebrew: אָרְנָן ‎ ’Ārənān.

David built an altar on Ornan’s – Araunah’s threshing-floor

2 Samuel 24:18-24 1 Chronicles 21:18-27,

which later became the site of the Temple.

2 Chronicles 3:1.

David probably chose this place for his altar because it was elevated, and the ground was already level and prepared by the rolling action from all the threshing activity.

It is very significant that the threshing floor of Araunah was on 

Mount Moriah–the Temple Mount–

where the temple was built because it was

where Messiah was also threshed/beaten for us:

2 Chronicles 3.1

Then Solomon began to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. It was on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite, the place provided by David.

The angel of Adonai

was then by the threshing floor

of Araunah the Jebusite.”

2 Samuel 24:15-16

So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for 50 shekels of silver. Then David built there an altar to Adonai , and offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings.

A threshing floor like that sold by Araunah, would have been a large, open, elevated area to facilitate threshing and winnowing.

A threshing floor was a large, open, hard surface, so threshing floors were often located on hilltops. After bundles of stalks were laid on the surface of the floor, oxen were repeatedly led over the piles until the dried plants were broken up. Then it was thrown up in the air to separate and remove the chaff as the wind blew upon it.

More details at:

https://www.minimannamoments.com/why-a-threshing-floor/

He awakes to find Ruth at his feet.

Why did Ruth do this? Her action would seem strange unless you knew that in ancient times ‘foot’ was a euphemism for the male reproduction, as ‘sandal’ was for the female.

Threshing floors at harvest time were often the scene of intimate misconduct but not in Ruths case. Lying beside Boaz, Ruth suggested that he, as the go-el of Naomi’s family, should ‘cover her with his blanket’, a euphemism for marriage, And this would no doubt have been his prayer shawl which even in present day is used as a canopy over a couple getting married.

It is also a reference to the healing in His wings of Isaiah of the future Messiah and the place of safety under those wings which is the name given to the corners of the Tallit/Prayer shawl

Click links below for more on the Tallit Prayer Shawl.
https://www.minimannamoments.com/life-on-the-fringe/
https://www.minimannamoments.com/knot-just-another-string-theory/

Ruth had the right to demand marriage of the go-el of her family. Following Jewish customs, Ruth lets Boaz know he is a kinsman-redeemer and that she is eligible to marry him –

Ruth 3:1-18.

 Yeshua/Jesus is our Go’el and He says the same to each of us today and we can put our name in here ……… I will redeem you!

So…

Do not fear, for I have redeemed you [g’al’tika]; 

I have called you by name; you are Mine!

Isaiah 43:1-3a

Boaz happily agreed, but pointed out to her that there was another man who had that right, a closer relative even than himself.

Boaz promises to act as kinsman-redeemer for her if the one closer male relative will surrender his right to the position.

Ruth stayed beside Boaz until morning, leaving before first light to return to Naomi.

Boaz had to give him the option first, before he could marry Ruth. He was careful to do everything correctly, so that there could be no question about the legality of the marriage.

Ruth 4:1-12    

To fulfill the laws of inheritance, another kinsman – who is more closely related to Ruth than Boaz – is given the option of buying the land, but he cannot afford it. So Boaz buys the land from Naomi and then marries Ruth in order to keep the ownership of the land within Elimelech’s family.

Boaz negotiates with the other man and obtains the right to redeem Ruth and Naomi.

Kindness and loyalty permeated Ruth’s character. Further, she was a woman of integrity, maintaining high morals in her dealings with Boaz.

As a relative, Boaz agrees to help Ruth and Naomi by buying a plot of land which belonged to Naomi’s husband Elimelech. 

Leviticus 25:25.

Naturally as people in small towns usually are, the people in Bethlehem were well aware of what was happening. When Boaz went next morning to the meeting place at the gate of the town, he was met almost immediately by the official go-el of Naomi’s family – and probably by a good many interested onlookers as well.

Some complicated negotiation went on regarding a small parcel of land that Naomi either owned outright or had put up for sale at some previous time, but this was just a formality.

Ruth 4:9-10
Then Boaz announced to the elders and all the people, “Today you are witnesses that I have bought from Naomi all the property of Elimelek, Kilion and Mahlon. I have also acquired Ruth the Moabite, Mahlon’s widow, as my wife, in order to maintain the name of the dead with his property, so that his name will not disappear from among his family or from his hometown. Today you are witnesses!”

‘So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. When they came together, the Lord made her conceive, and she bore a son.

Then the women said to Naomi “Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without next of kin. May his name be renowned in Israel! He shall be to you a restorer of life and a nourishment for your old age. For your daughter-in-law who loves you, who is more to you than seven sons, has borne him”.

Then Naomi took the child and laid him in her bosom, and became his nurse.’ Ruth 4:1-22

  Boaz marries Ruth;

together they care for Naomi.

Ruth and Boaz have a son Obed,

He becomes the father of Jesse,

the father of King David.

In due course, Bethlehem becomes the ‘City of David’.

Book of Ruth 4:16-17
Then Naomi took the child in her arms and cared for him. The women living there said, “Naomi has a son!” And they named him Obed. He was the father of Jesse, the father of David. 

The women of Bethlehem exalted Ruth as the loving daughter-in-law who meant more to Naomi than seven sons, the ideal number.

Ruth 4:15. 

Although people from Moab were often hated by the Jews, God selected Ruth to be a direct ancestor of Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach.

The book of Ruth is a beautiful illustration of God’s impartiality and faithfulness to those who are true to Him.

She had little idea that her decision would affect the future of multiplied millions and 

that a sequence of God ordained events that had been unfolding 1000’s of years before, were dependent on her choice!

Gods’ promise of a Savior in Genesis, through the promise to Abraham, that all families would be blessed through him and his offspring – encompassed her, a foreigner, a widow, a Moabite, a gentile, heathen, goyim…

She would have had no idea at that point that her choices and subsequent actions would lead her into a country where she would meet a relative of Naomi named Boaz.

This man would become her

kinsman redeemer

according to Israelite law and would

restore the lost heritage.

Just as we saw in the story of Tamar.

The truth is that her great grandson would become the king of Israel; and David was called the man after Gods own heart and was the royal line that eventually brought forth the long awaited and long promised Messiah. (The phrase man after Gods own heart was due to his repentant attitude.)

Remember that Boaz is Rahabs son

and his great grandmother was Tamar!

As we have seen, Ruth was a Moabitess and her ancestors were called Moabites because Moab was the incestuous son of Lot and one of his daughters after the destruction of Sodom and Gororrah. See charts…

Ruth and Boaz become the parents of Obed, the grandparents of Jesse and the great-grandparents of David, the king of Israel, and finally the ancestors of Jesus/Yeshua the Nazarene.

Matthew 1:5

 Ruth is spelled Ρουθ, Rhouth in Greek.

Strictly speaking, therefore, Yeshua/Jesus

was not only a son-by-law of Joseph,

he was also a son-by-law of Mahlon and not of Boaz.

It is interesting that the word love never appears in the book of Ruth, even though it is story full of love. The love is recorded in the words and action, rather than being cited as an emotion or feeling. Love is action its doing and being. God is a God of love and of unconditional love, not the same kind as our feelings and emotions dictate to our flesh life.

Its this unconditional love that God extended to all the heathens, gentiles and Goyim when He sent His Son Jesus/Yeshua to show by action the ultimate act of love; by dying in our place, by sacrificing His life on our behalf… how many individuals do we know today that would lay down their own lives for another, for us; and would we do that for someone else?

 

Its always a good time to reassess what Jesus/Yeshua did for us to remember where we came from,

where our Moab was;

and where we are today….

grafted in by grace and mercy, forgiven, redeemed, sanctified, justified, by His precious Blood that continually cries Mercy from that kapporet in heaven mercy seat –

the throne of grace in Hebrews 9:23–26

 

Hebrew כפורת , Kaporet, meaning atonement seat.

What manner of love is this??…

it’s beyond our comprehension –

how marvelous – how wonderful

is our Saviors love for us.

the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 1 John 3.

Lets return to our first love and ask Him to renew the joy of our salvation and strengthen our resolve like Ruth; to follow Jesus/Yeshua, the One we love above all else. To make Him the focus of our life and the director of our future.

Let our steps along the WAY to the house of Bread – Beth lechem – be guided by the One who was The Bread from Heaven and whose life began in that very town; fulfilling the words of the prophets so many millennia ago.

In an age when childbearing was seen as the highest honor for women, Ruth played a key role in the coming of the promised Messiah. Ruth, being one of Messiahs’ Gentile ancestors, showed that Yeshua/Jesus came to save all people whosoever will.

Ruth’s life seemed to be a series of timely happenstances/ coincidences, but her story is really about the perfect plan and providence of God. In His loving way, He orchestrated natural circumstances toward the birth of David, then from David to the birth of Yeshua/Jesus. In the natural course of events, it took centuries to put in place, and the result was God’s plan of salvation for the world.

Ruth and Naomi were rare female heroines at a time when women were often consigned to a secondary role and status. To survive as outsiders, they had to remain true to themselves and their God.

The main themes of Ruth’s story?

Friendship: Ruth was poor and a foreigner, but she listened to the advice of an older, wiser woman. In turn, Naomi was rewarded by Ruth’s unfaltering loyalty.

The message?

Courage and loyalty – triumph over misfortune.

Family:  The story of Ruth celebrates the family and the way it continues through many generations. Ruth, a childless widow at the beginning of the story, became the great-grandmother of Israel’s great king, David.

God’s plan: The story of Naomi’s family and the way it endured is a universal theme. Even Ruth, a foreigner from the despised Moabites, could move God’s plan towards fulfillment.

Faithfulness 

kindness

honor

and

redemption

are key themes of this book.

We see Ruth’s faithfulness to Naomi,

Boaz’s faithfulness to Ruth,

and everyone’s faithfulness to God.

In return, God rewards them with great blessings.

These characters’ faithfulness led to

kindness toward each other.

Kindness is an outpouring of love.

Everyone in this book showed the type of selfless love toward others that God expects from His followers.

By this all people will know that you are my disciples,

if you have love for one another.

Romans 5:8

There is a great sense of honor that is also highlighted as Ruth was a hardworking, morally chaste woman. Boaz treated her with respect while fulfilling his lawful responsibility showing examples of obeying God’s laws.

She was also a hard worker in the fields, gleaning leftover grain for Naomi and herself.

Finally, Ruth’s deep love for Naomi was rewarded when Boaz married Ruth and gave her love and security.

Book of Ruth 2:11-12

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. 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.” (NIV)

A sense of safekeeping is emphasized too.

Ruth took care of Naomi, Naomi took care of Ruth, then Boaz took care of both women, and God took care of all of them, blessing Ruth and Boaz with a child they named Obed, who became the grandfather of David.

From David’s line came Jesus /Yeshua of Nazareth, Savior of the world.

Finally, redemption is the underlying theme.

As Boaz, the kinsman-redeemer, saves Ruth and Naomi from a hopeless situation, he illustrates how Yeshua/Jesus redeems our lives.

Some thought provoking facts:

Ruth worked in the field belonging to her relative Boaz and ultimately became his wife.

The reputed site of this field –

the Field of Ruth –

can still be seen at 

Beit Sahur 

Village of the shepherds

near Bethlehem!

Where the lambs were raised for the sacrifices!

For more on the shepherds field links below

 

https://www.minimannamoments.com/a-lambs-tale-and-a-mysterious-tower/ 

https://www.minimannamoments.com/because-he-came/

Bethlehem is also the site of the tomb of Rachel, the wife of Jacob, who had died here about six hundred years earlier, in c.1690 BC.

Rachel’s tomb can still be visited today, on the main road leading from Jerusalem to Bethlehem.

Almost a thousand years after the death of Rachel

Genesis 35:16-20,

the prophet Micah, writing between 747BC and 722BC, declared,

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are too small to be among the army groups from Judah, from you will come one who will rule Israel for me”

Micah 5:2.

This prophesy was fulfilled seven hundred years later when Yeshua/Jesus – a descendent of Isaac, Jacob and Judah, and of Ruth and Boaz – was born at Bethlehem in Judaea

Matthew 1:2 & 5 and Genesis 49:10.

The kinsman redeemer it’s a story again of salvation

Yeshua/Jesus is our kinsman redeemer.

Yeshua/Jesus said

Follow Me…

Ruth said

wherever you go I will follow you.

 

For Ruth, it led to her salvation…

we must be ready,

willing and

available

to follow Him

wherever He goes;

and Ruth was loving not her life unto death,

she said, where you die I will die.

She had to follow up her words with actions

and was faithful to do so.

Can we say the same?

Ruth’s words are so remarkable that they are still echoing today  through several thousand years and for good reason.

They indicate a love so faithful and strong that she would stay with Naomi always and that only death would separate them. She was prepared to leave everything behind abandoning her old life in every aspect.

Jesus/Yeshua said He called us friends and yet He requires that we leave all behind to follow Him.

And again I say unto you, my friends, for from henceforth I shall call you friends, it is expedient that I give unto you this commandment, that ye become even as my friends in days when I was with them, traveling to preach the gospel in my power; John 15:15.

When we are called, He also equips or qualifies us: it has a twofold meaning; one, that He has given us giftings to match our callings and second, He establishes and strengthens us.

Romans 8:30; Ex.4:10-11; Hebrews 13:21.

By bringing tests and trials into our lives that qualifies us to become what He has destined for us. Ruth once more encourages us that whatever our background,

wherever we have come from,

and whatever we have done

there will be a situation or a person

that points us to Yeshua/Jesus,

which in turn leads us to salvation.

It is our choice to accept the gift of all gifts;

but like Ruth

we too will have to leave the past behind,

take up new family,

new land,

and become the bride of the heavenly bridegroom –

our kinsman redeemer..

Ruth was one of five in a line unbroken

as she would not let Naomi go without her…

let’s hold onto Yeshua/Jesus

with even greater hope and love in our hearts .

Do not fear,

for I have redeemed you [g’al’tika]; 

I have called you by name;

you are Mine!

We would still be spiritually destitute, heathen, gentile, goyim, dead in our sins, poor in spirit and without hope…without Messiah….

BUT now…

Ephesians 2:12 -14, 18-19.

Ruths decision for the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob/Israel led her to being grafted into the family of God. The second of the gentiles incorporated into the line of the Tribe of Judah.

When we decide for the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob/Israel, we too are grafted in and through Yeshua/Jesus the Messiah/Yeshua HaMashiach. We are saved by Him our Kinsman Redeemer; Who cared enough to make sure the gentiles are included in His plan of the ages.

Let’s not simply discard the monumental actions of Ruth

because her descendent was and is

our Savior, Lord and soon returning king.

Ruth was indeed one of five,

another brave woman sealed into

the line unbroken

another story connected to the

House of Bread

and of Him, who when we eat of,

we will never hunger again for

He is the Bread of Life!

 

Don’t leave this page until you are certain this is true for your life too….

Shalom, shalom, mishpachah!

You are loved and appreciated and prayed for daily.

Please don’t leave this page without the knowing in your heart you are totally His.

You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.

Its all about Life and Relationship, not Religion.

NOT SURE? YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name. Amen.

Five Chosen In A Line Unbroken – Part 4

Next in the unbroken line is

Ruth –  רות  – Rooth – Rut

Strong’s Hebrew: 7327. רוּת (Ruth) — friendship

From the noun:

רע – rea’,

friend, companion, associate.

From the noun:

ראות – re’ut,

a looking or understanding.

 The name Ruth   רות

as a contraction of the noun

 ראות – re’ut,

meaning:

Look; perhaps Vision/View would be better.

Scholars who follow this root group see the name

Ruth as a feminine derivation of the root

 רעה – ra’a 

meaning:

to associate with, or be a friend of;

therefore the name Ruth means 

(Lady) Friend or (Lady) Companion

The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

2 Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;

3 And Judas begat Phares and Zara

of Thamar;

and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram;

4 And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon;

5 And Salmon begat Booz

of Rachab;

and Booz begat Obed of

Ruth;

and Obed begat Jesse;

6 And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias;

7 And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa;

8 And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias;

9 And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias;

10 And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias;

11 And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon:

12 And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel;

13 And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor;

14 And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud;

15 And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob;

16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband

of Mary,

of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

Ruths’ story begins in

Bethlehem!

House of Bread

Beit Lechem –

where Yeshua/Jesus,

the Bread from Heaven,

came into this earthly realm.

In Bethlehem of Judea,

(Land of tribe of Judah)

there was a man called

Elimelech

אלימלך

Strongs 458

There is only one Elimelech in the Bible,

and means:

My God is King.  

El-imele-ch  is pronounced as

iy-L IH MMeh-LehK 

Elimeleck, Elimelek, Elymelech, Elymeleck,

and Elymelek are variant spellings.

אל  אלה

The name Elimelech consists of two elements.

The first part is the word

אל    El ,

In names אל – ‘el

usually refers to 

אלהים –‘Elohim,

 or God,

also known as 

אלה –‘Eloah.

The name applied to the God of Israel.

In English, the words ‘God’ and ‘god’

exclusively refer to the deity but in Hebrew the words

 אל -‘l and אלה -‘lh are far more common

and may express approach and negation,

acts of wailing and pointing,

and may even mean oak or terebinth.

The second part of the name comes from the noun

מלך – melek,

meaning king:

and a king is not merely a glorified tribal chief

but the alpha of a complex, stratified society,

implying a court and a complex government.

Elimelech was a member of the clan of Ephrath, a native of Bethlehem of tribe of Judah, a man of wealth and probably head of a family or clan (Ruth 1:2,3; 2:1,3).

He lived during the period of the Judges and had a hereditary possession near Bethlehem, and he is chiefly remembered as the husband of Naomi.

Ephrath: For those of the tribe of Ephraim are also called Ephrathites,

Judges 12:5,

Art thou an Ephrathite 1 Kings 11:26; 1 Samuel 1:1.

David is called the son of an Ephrathite,

that is, a Beth-lehemite.

(לְאֶפְרָיִם): Ephraimites

אֶפְרַיִם ‎, ʾEfrayim pronounced like Ef•ra•yim) meaning: fruitful, fertile, productive.

Genesis 35:19; Micah 5:2; either from Caleb’s wife of that name, 1 Chronicles 2:19; 4:4, or from the fertility of the soil about it; which title may therefore be used here, to show the greatness of the famine, which affected even fertile parts.

Recall that Ephraim and Manasseh were the sons of Joseph and his Egyptian wife.

Genesis 41:52

Ephraim was the second son of Joseph and Asenath. Asenath was an Egyptian woman whom Pharaoh gave to Joseph as wife, and the daughter of Potipherah, a priest of On. These 2 were absorbed into the 12 Tribes of Israel/Jacob. Genesis 48:2

Later Ephraim became the name of:

The half-tribe Ephraim (Joshua 16:5).

The hill country in Palestine (1 Samuel 1:1).

The scripture records that 3000 years ago there was a famine in the land and because of the famine affecting nearby Israel.

Elimelech and his family had traveled from Bethlehem Ephrathah to escape its ravaging effects; moving to a pagan country bordering Canaan called

Moab מוֹאָב

located east of the dead sea in Israel.

Moab is the historical name for a mountainous strip of land in modern-day Jordan running along the eastern shore of the Dead Sea.

Moab is the area shaded in pink is the territory known across from the wilderness of Judah.

A flat and arid plane extends east from the banks of the Dead Sea before ascending sharply some 4,000 feet to the plain above. The upper plain is a more fertile stretch of land that extends about 15 miles from the escarpment east to the Arabian Desert. Dibon, the capital city of Moab in the biblical era, is located in the northern region of the upper plane.

In ancient times, it was home to the kingdom of the Moabites, a people often in conflict with their Israelite neighbors to the west.

Strong’s Hebrew: 4124. מוֹאָב (Moab) — a son of Lot

 From a prolonged form of the prepositional prefix m-

and ‘ab; from (her (the mother’s)) father; 

Moab, an incestuous son of Lot;

also his territory and descendants 

Which is why the Israelites were forbidden by law to marry a Moabite.

This name is pronounced mo-ahv in Hebrew.

The base word is ahv meaning father.

The prefix mo means from.

Combined these mean: from father. 

 

Mo’av was the son of Lot’s oldest daughter and Lot himself (Genesis 19:35), the product of an incest relationship; implying that the similarity in Hebrew between

Mo’abi /Moabite and me’abi – from my father

was no coincidence Gen 19:37.

According to the Torah, no descendent of Mo’av is allowed in the assembly of Israel (Deuteronomy 23:3).

Moab, Moabites, pronounced: 

Moh´ab, moh´uh-bits.

So reading the biblical narrative, it describes the Moabites’ origins in terms of both kinship and disdain. They are blood relatives of the Israelites, but their forefather was born as a result of incest. According to the Genesis 19:30-38 story, Moab was the son of Abraham’s nephew Lot, through his own eldest daughter, with whom he had a child after the destruction of Sodom.

The Bible clearly explains the etymology of Moab as meaning “of his father.” Nevertheless, there was considerable interchange between the two peoples, They were closely linked with their northern neighbors, the Ammonites (descended from Moab’s half brother, Ben-ammi), with whom they later shared a border.

So from this account, clearly, Israel and Moab shared kinship, history, language, institutions, and theology, and that this closeness often led to competition and strife between the two peoples. Being “just like us” made the Moabites dangerous to Israelite identity and assimilation was always a threat. 

It shows that there was incest, disobedience and gentile heritage in the mix.

In Moab, a child was probably raised in a culture that worshipped an ungodly idol named Chemosh. This entity was worshipped by the Moabites sacrificing their children to it. This child knew no other way of life and may have witnessed family or friends being offered as sacrifices to this pagan god.

In this Biblical account this young woman was called Ruth and one day a new family came to her home town.

This family of four people were father Elimelech his wife Naomi and their 2 sons Mahlon and Chilion.

As noted earlier,

the name Elimelech means my God is King

which is indicative of him being a believer in

Yahweh/The God of Israel.

Naomi – נָעֳמִי

means:

pleasant or my pleasantness.

The sons names Mahlon and Chilion

were indicative of their characters

Mahlon מַחְלוֹן

meant:

Is sick sickly ‘sickness’ sorrowful. 

Strong’s Hebrew: 4248. מַחְלוֹן (Machlon)

Transliteration: Machlon
Phonetic Spelling: makh-lone’ 

Chilion  כליון  

The name Chilion is not very cheerful

he was a complainer and it is spelled the same way as,

but pronounced slightly different from,

the noun כליון ( killayon ),

meaning failing or annihilation,

Also

כִּלְיוֹן    Ḵilyōn

further meaning is:

Wasting Away

 Pining

Coming To An End,

Man Of Finality

Used up, consumed, finite.

From the verb כלה – kala,

to come to an end.

Chilion is pronounced kil-yone’

Strong’s concordance H3630

And they came Judges. 5:30 into the country of Moab, and continued (Hebrew) were there.

[They continued there]

While the famine continued, they could remain, which was lawful: However, it was not lawful to abide for ever in a foreign land, both because of the danger of idolatry; and on account that they may become forgetful of the covenant and appointed times of the Law.

Remember, all the males were required to go up three times in a year to the Temple, Appointed Times/Feasts.

Ruth 1:3

tells us that Elimelech died in Moab leaving Naomi with her 2 sons

Mahlon married Ruth and Chilion /Kilion married Ruth’s sister Orpah.

Strong’s Hebrew: 6204. עָרְפָּה (Orpah)    

Ruth   Orpah עָרְפָה

Phonetic Spelling: or-paw’ ‎ ʿorpā,

meaning neck or fawn or

back of the neck; she turned her back on Naomi.

The name Orpah comes from the verb ערף ( arap ).

The added letter he is a common feminization form:

The verb ערף ( ‘arap) means to drip or drop.

Noun עריף ( ‘arip) means cloud and ערפל ( ‘arapel) describes a heavy cloud mass.

The noun ערף ( ‘orep) means neck.

Hebrew Strongs #06204: hpre `Orpah Orpah = “gazelle” 1) a Moabite woman, wife of Chilion, the son of Naomi, and sister-in-law of Ruth 6204 `Orpah or-paw’ feminine of 6203; mane; Orpah, a Moabites:-Orpah.

It is highly probable that during the 10 years of marriage Naomi would have recounted the stories of her homeland and of the God in whom she believed.

This God who created the universe and brought her people out of slavery performing mighty miracles while leading them for 40 years through the wilderness to the promised land where they had come from. She may have told them the history of Jerichos walls falling down the other side of the Dead Sea and of Rahabs courage to save her family with Joshuas men and the scarlet cord in her window. She may have shared how her God had provided guidelines that helped His people and stopped them from hurting one another opposite to the demands of their false god to sacrifice children as a form of worship.

Sadly, about ten years later, both of Naomis sons died.

It would be interesting to know why all three died; it’s unusual for all the men in a family to die at more or less the same time. However God had a plan and the timing was crucial had they not died the women would probably have remained in Moab.

So Mahlon and Chilions wives, Ruth and Orpah tragically became widows; they were alone and they faced certain poverty and a future of destitution as they had no one to support them. Their death leaves Naomi, Ruth and Orpah stranded, without protection, they had to find a refuge, or starve.

Not long after that, probably towards the end of the period of the Judges, in c.1060BC/1050BC, news came to Naomi that the famine in Israel was over and that God was blessing her people; this made her want to return to Bethlehem.

Ruth 1:6-18   

Naomi decides to return alone; assuming that Ruth and Orpah would not want to return to Bethlehem with her, even though the women respected and loved each other.the main problem for Ruth and Orpah was that they were Moabite women, not Israelites.

The Moabite people were traditional enemies of the Israelites. There was frequent warfare between the two groups. As previously mentioned according to the Israelite belief, Moabites came from the act of incest between Lot and his older daughter (Genesis 19:30-38), and to them the whole nation was tainted and inferior.

At first both Ruth and Orpah wanted to go with her.

Naomi loved the women but she reminded them that if they did leave with her, they would become the foreigners and so she encouraged them to return to their mothers house.

Verse 8.

Naomi did not want a bad future for them and said to them; the lord deal kindly with you as you have dealt with the dead and with me.

Her genuine desire was for them to remarry into their own people and to be at peace.

They lifted up their voices and wept v.9

Then in verse 10 they insisted on accompanying her because they didn’t want to leave her. Naomi told them she had no more sons for them to marry. Obviously she loved them v13 and crying with loud sobbing Orpah kissed Naomi goodbye; however Ruth clung onto her and what Ruth says at this moment is recorded in verses 16-17 and are without doubt some of the most touching and beautiful words in the Bible.

But Ruth said: “Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.

This is a prophetic reference to the heathen, goyim, gentile nations being grafted in as they believe in the God of Israel.

Orpah, decided to return to her people and the Moabite way of life, but Ruth could not be budged.

She had shared loneliness, anxiety and grief with Naomi, and now that the older woman was completely alone, Ruth stood by her and out of love and loyalty to her mother-in-law, accompanied Naomi back to Bethlehem, while Orpah stayed in Moab.

This revealed that not only is she is devoted to Naomi but that she was also willing to totally submit her life and future to Naomis’ God, the God of Israel. Ruth abandoned her lifelong home and her pagan gods and she became a Jew by choice.

The scriptures show that she had some understanding of what she was doing and that she had a relationship with Him, as she uses the proper name of the God of Israel saying; the existing one/ Yahweh /Lord.

The last part of verse 17 was her promise to Naomi. This was more than Naomi could resist and they headed towards Bethlehem together along the dusty road.

This young womans decision 3000+ years ago was more than a step towards Bethlehem it was a momentous decision to both follow Naomi and Naomi’s God who had also become her God.

The extraordinary modern painting (below) of Ruth and Naomi captures the essence of the story: the mutual dependence of people within a family. It shows the younger woman, Naomi, sheltering and protecting the elderly woman (billowing cape as shield against harsh weather, supportive arm around the shoulder) and the older woman leading the way (staff in her hand, grey hair signifying both wisdom and experience).

Together, the figures form a single unit, stronger together than they would be if they had gone their separate ways.

Ruth 1:19-22    

The two women arrive in Bethlehem 

meaning ‘house of bread’

at the start of the barley harvest in April.

Barley was used to make bread.

Jewish holiday of Shavuot – Weeks.

The Book of Ruth also functions liturgically, as it is read during the Jewish holiday of Shavuot – Weeks.

The book is divided into four chapters;

and takes place at the beginning of

barley harvest

which is Passover Pescah

and the story goes through to

wheat harvest

which is Pentecost Shavuot

and covers the

counting of the Omer

over 49 days = 7 weeks.

Barley was used to make bread….

and Who is the Bread of Life?

Feasts of the Lord in Hebrew is

סעודות האל

Chag means feast or festival,

and has its root in the word chah-gog,

that, in the Hebrew mindset, means:

to circle, as in to circle dance or feast.

By definition, these three feasts

are to be celebrated before the Lord

in a joyous, party atmosphere with singing, dancing,

and processions.

Hebrew verb

יעד – ya’ad

meaning: to appoint.

 moadim – moe-ah-DEEM.

Appointed times – mo’ed. מעֵד

Passover (Pesach),

Weeks (Shavuot), and

Tabernacles (Sukkot).

Pesach

פֶּסַח Pesaḥ

Chag HaMatzot

חג המץ

Hag Hamatzot  – Feast of Unleavened Bread,

חג המצות

Unleavened bread – מצה, matzah, plural matzot,

 Strong’s #4682 

חג המצות

 Yom HaBikkurim  י ום הביכורים 

Feast of First Fruits or

the Day of Firstfruits,

or

Reshit Ha’Katzir  ראשית הקציר

the first of the harvest.

Yom HaBikkurimm – Reishit Qatzir . ראשׁית קציר. 

Shavuot – Pentecost, Shavuos,

Hebrew: שבועות, literally = Weeks

The Hebrew word sheva means seven,

shavu’ah means week, and

shavu’ot means weeks. 

Passover: The Death of Our Lord Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach.

Passover is the 1st feast commanded by the LORD for Israel to observe. In Old Testament Israel, it commemorated Israel’s deliverance from Egyptian bondage.

Feast of Unleavened Bread: The Burial of Our Lord Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach.

The Feast of Unleavened Bread

Hag HaMatzah

in modern Israel

is the 2nd of the 7 feasts

that the LORD commanded Israel to celebrate.

Feast of Firstfruits: The Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach.

The Feast of Firstfruits

called Bikkurim

in modern Israel

is the 3rd of the 7 Feasts of Israel

commanded by the LORD to be celebrated by Israel.

NOTE: When Ruth appealed to his kinship, he redeemed the property in Ruth 3:9.

In consequence of this he had to marry Ruth, in order

to raise up the name of the dead!!

Pentecost: The Giving of the Holy Spirit to the Church and the First “Come Up Hither”.

The feast of outpouring called

Shavuot

in modern Israel

4th of the 7 Feasts of Israel.

Gleaning was a common practice in ancient Israel.

It was a form of charity for the disadvantaged

(see Leviticus 23:22 and Deuteronomy 24:19).

Recognized groups of the poor, such as widows, orphans and foreigners, could walk behind the harvesters, picking up what was left. This is what Ruth did.

They knew that women took an active part in all stages of food production – and Ruth decided she would help to glean the barley in the fields, to feed herself and Naomi and to get a store of grain for winter.

So to keep them from starving to death, Ruth gleans grain in the field of Naomi’s relative, Boaz.

For Ruth, this course of action behind her words led to her salvation…

Don’t leave this page until you are certain of your salvation.

Conclusion coming in next post….

Shalom, shalom, mishpachah!

You are loved and appreciated and prayed for daily.

Please don’t leave this page without the knowing in your heart you are totally His.

You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.

Its all about Life and Relationship, not Religion.

NOT SURE? YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name. Amen.

Five Chosen In A Line Unbroken – Part 3

The book of Matthew opens with the genealogy of Jesus/Yeshua

This post is not intended as an in depth study, this is a look at the next woman in the line of 5.

1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 

3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by

TAMAR,

and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram,[a] 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon

,5and Salmon the father of Boaz by 

RAHAB,

and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth,

and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king.

And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, Bathsheba

7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph,[b]8 and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, 9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos,[c] and Amos the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel,[d] and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, 15 and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of

Miryam/Mary,

of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

17 So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.

 Rahab in Hebrew:

רָחָב

Rachab

Rahab; meaning: broad, large;

From the verb  רחב  (rahab), to be wide or spacious.

This courageous woman is really the second in line, as from Genesis; remembering we highlighted Mary/Miryam first even though she is the last one mentioned in the scripture.

Rahabs’ story begins in the book of Joshua, the children of Israel were ready to take possession of the land they had been promised after they had been in the wilderness for 40 years.

Moses’s successor Joshua send two spies secretly to check out the first City of Jericho. Joshua 2:1 tells as they came to a house of a woman named Rahab.

“And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, ‘Go, view the land, especially Jericho.’ And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there”

Joshua 2:1.

The scripture says she was a harlot, or prostitute.

But was she really?

Three times Rahab is referred to as

the harlot,

the Hebrew term zoonah,

and the Greek word porne

these words have never meant anything else but

harlot

dictionary defined as:

a woman who yields herself indiscriminately to every man approaching her.

Some branches of Jewish tradition emphasize Rahab as an innkeeper, who, may or may not have found other ways of bringing in revenue, as she was a businesswoman. 

The Hebrew word, zōnâ, is interpreted in the Septuagint as pórnē. 

The women are designated in the Hebrew text as zōnōṯ (זוֹנוֹת), which is the plural form of the adjective zōnâ (זוֹנָה), prostitute. However, some propose a different meaning for this word in the context of the story, such as:

tavern owner or innkeeper.

Below an example of a medieval tavern/inn.

The Hebrew zōnâ may refer to secular or cultic prostitution, and the latter is widely believed to have been an invariable element of Canaanite religious practice, although recent scholarship has disputed this. However, there was a separate word, qědēšâ, that could be used to designate prostitutes of the cultic variety, (referenced in Part 2).

Another example of the use of this word is in the story of Samson; (Hebrew: שִׁמְשׁוֹן ‎, Shimshōn‎, man of the sun);  showing it can also symbolize the fickle love and loyalty shown by the children of Israel. His night with the prostitute (זנה zōnâ) recalls God’s charge against the Israelites for prostituting (זנה zānâ) themselves with all manner of foreign gods in spiritual unfaithfulness, fornication and adultery.

Judges 12-16.

 It may very well have been that Rahab was a religious prostitute in connection with the canaanite pagan practices.

The Hebrew term

bayith-ishahah

בּיִת  אִשָּׁ֔ה

The Hebrew word for woman is אִשָּׁ֔ה

(ishshah, also transliterated ishah).

It normally means woman, female, or wife.

The Hebrew word for house is בּיִת bayith (beit/beth/bet)

Phonetic Spelling: (bah’-yith) a house, a. dwelling, habitation.

so

bayith-ishahah

literally means:

house woman,

could also mean innkeeper.

The word translated harlot, zona

from the root word zanah,

which normally means: to act as a harlot or commit fornication; could also indicate a woman who had legitimate commercial associations with men.

It was probably a rowdy place, frequented by unscrupulous and idle men. Notoriously bars, and red light districts have often functioned as infamous meeting places for military and other forms of espionage.

So, we should not be surprised that Joshua’s spies knew to go to Rahab’s Place. It is possible that the men hid there because people would be accustomed to seeing strangers come and go at all hours of the night. So their arrival would not have been suspicious.

Picture above: The city itself was surrounded by an inner and an outer wall, as most cities were at the time above, a picture of a reconstruction, of ancient Jericho, with outer and inner walls, walls in bad repair, and houses/rooms built into the outer wall itself; the collapsed walls made it much easier for Joshua and the Israelites to gain access to the city.

The outer walls surrounded the whole city, protecting it from foreign intruders. The inner wall enclosed a central administrative compound for palace, temples, and large-scale food storage. Wealthier people lived in the central compound. Apparently, those considered, poor and disreputable people (like Rahab) lived in the outer compound, between the two walls. They could be filled with earth in times of siege to make a strong defense against battering rams and similar siege engines. They also formed an inner ring road circling the town, in several Palestinian cities houses were built up along it close to the inner wall, and the inside of the wall used for storage or housing.

This would explain why they lodged/stayed in her house as it was an inn where people would stay when they came to the city, it was situated right by the walls, probably close to the city entrance with easy access and why it was in, as in attached/built into, the city wall which were up to 60feet/20 metres thick. 

Houses had flat roofs, often shaded with a thick woven cloth; women used this space as a work and storage area.

Other occurrences of words from the root word zanah (nearly 100), are clearly meant to imply physical or spiritual harlotry. Again this kind of harlotry often referred to worshiping false idols and foreign gods and was often termed adultery meaning unfaithfulness to the one true living God.

The New Testament/Brit Chadashah, associates the word porne with Rahab. Interesting as that is the beginning of our word for pornography which we usually shorten to the word porn.

This word porne in Greek means prostitute as in Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25, however again, it can refer to spiritual unfaithfulness.

But that’s not all, Rahab was also a Canaanite, who were the hated enemies of Israel.

The grace of God can transform lives,

however sinful,

however seemingly impossible,

often taking the most unlikely of candidates for His purposes to be fulfilled and revealed!

Paul was a great example calling himself the chief of sinners 1Timothy 1:15

We need to remember that in

Ephesians 1:4-6 we are accepted in the beloved because of the sacrificial blood of Jesus/Yeshua.

Why?

Because

He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world!

Their lives became endangered when the king heard about them, when, during the night there was a banging on the door of her inn. When she answered, two soldiers stood there.

They were looking for Hebrew spies and the men sent to seize the spies asked Rahab to bring them out.

Stalks of flax drying.

Instead, Rahab covered them under bunches of flax on the roof, protecting them from being captured

and she said to the spies:

“I know that the LORD has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. “Now then, please swear to me by the LORD that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.” 
Joshua 2:9-13

Joshua means ‘Yahweh/God is my salvation’

Rahab lied when asked where they were, telling the inquirers..

vrs 4-5

sending them on a wild goose chase in the wrong direction.

Vrs 9,11-14

seem to indicate that she had come to believe in the God of Israel.

Rahab recognized the God of Israel.

She trusted in Him for the righteousness she could not produce in her own life!

Click link below for more on the Biblical meaning of the color scarlet.

https://www.minimannamoments.com/the-secret-of-how-a-worm-preached-the-gospel/

When Joshua ordered the attack against the city and Jericho fell, because of Rahab’s agreement with the spies she and her entire family were saved.

Meanwhile the two men were still in mortal danger, trapped in a hostile city.

The resourceful Rahab took care of that too.

Maybe her house had small rooms, which were enough to house a family, built into the otherwise solid mass of the city wall.

One of these rooms must have had a window large enough for a man to pass through, and she, presumably with some help from her family members, let the two men down on a rope through this window to the ground below.

She told them to escape into the hills and stay there for three days, by which time the coast would be clear.

15 So she let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall. 16 She said to them, “Go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way.”

After escaping, the spies agreed to spare Rahab and her family after conquering the city, even if there were to be a slaughter

IF

she would mark her house by hanging a red/scarlet cord out of the window.

This was just a beginning because she was then joined by marriage into the tribe of Judah and her family were included among the Jewish people and Rahab became a part of the genealogy of the Messiah, Yeshua/Jesus.

In the chart below we see that Salmon was destined to become great, great, grandfather of King David.

He married Rahab, their child was called Boaz,

he in turn became Ruth’s husband.

All the people in the genealogy of Messiah Jesus/Yeshua show the grace and mercy of God in lives down through the generations.

Boaz, her son, was one of the main characters we read about in the book of Ruth, and it’s clear that Rahab had raised a very godly son. He was a wealthy well respected businessman who was a righteous man; being a leader in the town of

Bethlehem in Judea!

He showed great compassion concerning Ruth’s situation, even though she was a downtrodden foreign widow.

Rahab would have had no idea what the future impact of her decision to help the spies sent by Joshua would be. In fact it is true to say the future of the world was at stake!

The faith and courage of a canaanite woman saved herself and her entire family. She was a pagan idol worshipper and yet she became inserted directly into the genealogy of God’s Beloved Son. There is no reference to her raising Boaz in the Scriptures;  to those who serve the Lord in ways that the world cannot see; it is an encouragement that the Lord sees and He rewards every act of devotion and service in His Will, plan and purpose.

It is not normal practice for families to hang skeletons on their front doors for everyone to see, scandals are normally kept hidden in the closet; yet here in scripture we have the facts for all to read.

Whether Rahab was a Canaanite prostitute, or an inn keeper; Our Heavenly Father chose her to become part of the genealogy of our savior; to be included in the Royal line of Israel’s Messiah Matthew 1:1 -6, remembering that this gospel was originally intended for Jewish readers.

Rahab left a red cord at her window to save herself and her family. There are echoes here of the red blood on the doorways of the Hebrew slaves in Egypt, when the Angel of Death passed over their house so that the family within was safe.

This was a condition of attaining her salvation just as the blood on the door posts of the Israelites and also for every believer the blood of Messiah is our scarlet cord of redemption IF we will accept His conditions.

Joshua the agent of her deliverance was a type and shadow of Jesus/Yeshua, the meaning also in their name; plus the fact he was the first of a generation to step into the promised land.. we too are on our WAY into the promised land…Messiahs blood on the doorposts of our hearts.

Here on the first page of the Brit Chadashah/New Testament in Matthew, she is clearly in Jesus/Yeshuas’ genealogy placed here as a respected member of Israel and in Hebrews 11:31 she is raised as an example together with the great people of faith.

James associates her with the faith of Abraham whose willingness to sacrifice His son is probably one of the greatest examples of faith in Hebrew Scriptures. In both the references the true nature of faith is reflected Rahab’s actions.

We may wonder how her lie James 2:25 could be considered justified by works. Rahab did what she probably had done hundreds of times to protect herself, she was a very new believer and although it was wrong, according to the 10 Commandments; we all continue the process of Gods transformation by His grace and mercy, and as we mature we throw off the habits that are in direct contradiction to the Word of God.

James was not talking about the faith that saves us from sin but the faith that delivers and saves us from failing the test in trials that come in every believers life. Those trials which is the testing of our faith is how we react to the situation.

It would seem that Rahab was being shown to be already righteous because she received the messengers and sent them out another way James 2:25 she had already acknowledged to God of Israel as the God in heaven above and on the Earth beneath.

Joshua 2:11

The Greek word for justify is used in 2 ways one is

to declare righteous, dikaioo, in

Romans 3:23-24; 27 – 30.

There’s a second meaning in Luke 7:29 and James 2

to show to be righteous.

Genesis 22

Abraham was shown to be already righteous because he was

willing to sacrifice Isaac

so he was declared righteous by God.

Interesting after the events at Jericho, Rahab is not mentioned again in the Tenach, the final Scripture concerning her is in Joshua 6:25 and the Tenach does not indicate her fate. so the only direct reference to her inclusion in the royal lineage comes in Matthew chapter 1 although the Jewish genealogy do mention the family into which she married they never mentioned her specifically.

Whatever Rahab was before Israel crossed into the land of the Canaanites, she became someone new in the promised land.

For Rahab believed.

She not only believed in God but she also acted.

For Rahab trusted in the God who fulfilled the covenantal promise to Abraham, that he would be given land from which would bring a nation, and a descendant, who would bless the earth.

And we must always remember that this woman, Rehab, was chosen by the Creator of His universe to be a chosen instrument in bringing about salvation to the ends of the earth.

“And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way”  James 2:25

Rehab became a central, strategic figure of incomparable courage as she helped Israel to enter the promised land and subdue her own people.

When the army of Israel entered Canaan,

Rahab acted

according to a prearranged plan and

hung out a scarlet cord from her window.

Thus, she and her family were saved.

It is significant that a scarlet cord, likely, an emblem of ill-repute, became a sign of salvation. In the same way it is a beautiful thought that it is a scarlet cord of the covenant of God’s grace that binds all of the Word of God together; and in Messiah Yeshua/Christ Jesus, the blood-stained, crimson cross of shame became the gleaming symbol of faith hope and salvation for whosoever will.

Rahab’s faith in Israels’ God engrafted her into a new family.

Rahab’s husband is chronicled in both the Old and New Testaments

1Chronicles 2:10-11,Ruth 4:20-21, Matthew 1:4-5 and Luke 3:32

The woman who had been called a harlot became a godly wife and mother in Israel. She and her husband became the parents of a boy named Boaz. And that boy would one day marry a widow woman by the name of Ruth. Ruth 4:5,10.

Thus, as God worked all things together for the good, using the humble and the most unlikely,

God raised up a harlot to become the great-great-grandmother of King David.

From the line of Rahab came the Messiah of Israel, the Savior of the world, our God and King, the Lord Jesus Christ.

There is no more touching story of God’s glorious grace than the genealogical introduction to the birth of Yeshua/Jesus by faith through the line of Joseph in the first chapter of Matthew. Among the many stories that are interwoven in that wonderful section of the Bible, the woman of the scarlet cord takes her honored place.

If we ask how could Almighty God, the Holy God of heaven, use  sinners like us?  We need look no further than the woman with the scarlet cord, the relative of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ/Yashua HaMashiach.

She is not remembered for her sin.

She is remembered for the remarkable transformation in her life

and her womb/racham, became a carrier of His line.

Rahab – one of five chosen in a line unbroken…

The word harlot is undoubtedly repeated so that we will know that whatever we have done…. God will forgive us if we come to Him by faith in His Son Jesus/Yeshua. Rahab is the ever-present message of God to each of us:

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come”  2 Cor.5:17

 This genealogy is in the Bible to let us know that He had forebears with backgrounds a lot like ours.

He called himself the friend of sinners, and He said He

didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

He said,

The Son of man has come to seek and to save that which is lost Luke 19:10

The same grace that Rahab experienced is now available to each and every one of us.

Isaiah 55:6-7 Seek the Lord while He may be found, call you upon Him while He is near. 7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.

Shalom, shalom, mishpachah!

You are loved and appreciated and prayed for daily.

Please don’t leave this page without the knowing in your heart you are totally His.

You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.

Its all about Life and Relationship, not Religion.

NOT SURE? YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name. Amen.

Let Our Hearts Be Fixed

Shalom Shalom Family…

almost finished part 3 following on from last week..

however, it seems our Heavenly Father has some more encouragement for us today; and being impressed while praying/preparing that He wanted these words to go forth and to settle our hearts and minds in Him.

Be comforted in the knowledge that

He knows who and where you are…

 

So in obedience to His loving request,

family,

friends,

visitors and

whosoever finds themselves on this page

please…

Let not your heart be troubled

John 14 1-6 27

His Ruach HaKodesh/Holy Spirit has instructions for

the person who hears bad news.

A good man shows favor, and he lends:

he will guide his affairs with discretion.

Surely he shall not be moved for ever:

the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance.

He shall not be afraid of evil tidings:

his heart is FIXED,

trusting in the LORD

(Psalm 112:5-7).

We do indeed seem to be living in days of evil tidings!!

These are days of disclosure, demonstration and decrees which are determined by our Lord and are for our final deliverance.. so be determined and disciplined daily for we may soon hear things we never dreamed we would…don’t be moved off the ROCK of our salvation and stay under the Blood of the Lamb.

 We are to be

FIXED

and unable to be moved from the rock of our salvation. Test all things by the TRUTH of HIs Word….

Psalm 112 –

Praise the LORD.

Blessed are those who fear the LORD, who find great delight in his commands.

Their children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed.

This life is a

test

but more than that

it is the real thing!

There is NO RESET button,

it is the only life we get

So we could say…

This is not a drill!

 

Life is summed up in

Ecc. 12:13

13 Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.

The Fear of God is Utmost … (reverent respect the true awe!)

12 And by these, my son, be further warned: There is no end to the making of many books, and much study wearies the body.

13 When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is this: Fear God and keep His commandments, because this is the whole duty of man.

14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, along with every hidden thing, whether good or evil.…

Let him who has ears to hear

is in both

Mark 4:23 and Rev.3:22

We serve a great and mighty God, the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMasiach

Listen to the great voice of our Heavenly Father…

in

Psalm 29:3-9.

To Him who rides upon the highest heavens,

which are from ancient times;

Behold, He speaks forth with His voice, a mighty voice.

The voice of the Lord is upon the waters;

The God of glory thunders,

The Lord is over many waters.

The voice of the Lord is powerful,

The voice of the Lord is majestic.

There is a battle in the heavens which has been in progress for a long, long time; and whatever is transpiring in the heavens is outworking in the natural earthly realm and this is worldwide.

Ephesians tells us clearly what is happening and it behooves us to pay attention.

There is a war under way and prayer is the weapon of our warfare.

The words of scripture coming out of our mouth as the sword of His Spirit is what we are called to do.

The Lord gave us a spirit of Love, power and a sound mind.

2Tim.1:7

Be ready, be prepared, gird your loins, take your place and having done all stand in Jesus/Yeshua’s name.

Be FIXED… that is: be not moved by anything our 5 senses tell us in the physical realm..Instead,

trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not to your own understanding.

Trust in our Father and believe also in Me said Yeshua.

Above all do not be anxious or troubled in your mind when we hear of evil tidings.

Our Father is in control and all things are purposed for our ultimate deliverance and salvation.

Keep your armor in place

stay under the Blood of Jesus/Yeshua

standing in the secret place of the Most High

under the shadow of His wings..

Psalm 91 is pertinent as with the last post….

In any emergency we are to cry out to our Father, look to Him always and in all circumstances.

He loves each and every one of you and

will not lose one

that that the Father has given into His hands.

Yeshua/Jesus says to us…

John 6:39

And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything that he has given me, but should raise it to life on the last day.

He is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and we are His children lets trust in Him becoming as a little child.

Have no fear nor be anxious Our Father sees it all…

Everything is in His hands and

He has already been in our tomorrow

because

He is the same

yesterday

today

and forever.

Galatians 5:1

Shalom, shalom, mishpachah!

You are loved and appreciated and prayed for daily.

Please don’t leave this page without the knowing in your heart you are totally His.

You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.

Its all about Life and Relationship, not Religion.

NOT SURE? YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name. Amen.