Finding Safety in God's Care, the Story of RuthSample

Escaping God's judgment?

“A man of Bethlehem in Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons.” (Ruth 1:1)

When God punished His people with famine or other adversity, it was always for the purpose of getting them to repent. The punishment was at the same time a warning. However, the book of Ruth tells of a family that tried to escape the famine by moving to a neighboring country. This move had great consequences. The land of Moab had traditionally been an enemy of Israel. The Moabites did not serve the Lord God, but the idol Kamos. They had treated the Israelites badly and seduced them into idolatry when they were on their way to their land, and they were also at war with each other at the time of the Judges. The gap between the two peoples was so deep that God said, “No Ammonite or Moabite may enter the assembly of the Lord. Even to the tenth generation, none of them may enter the assembly of the Lord forever” (Deuteronomy 23:3). So, this was not a good place to move to!

It seems very likely that this family wanted to run away from God and His punishing hand. Do you understand that? What would your reaction be if God punished your country?