Lesson 11: Ruth and Esther (Ruth 1-4, Esther 3-9)
Introduction: How many books of the Bible are named after
women? For Protestants, the answer is “two, Ruth and
Esther.” We have them for our study this week. Why would a
series of lessons on prophecy include these two books? Women
are powerful prophetic religious symbols. Women are
representatives of both the true church and religious powers
that are evil. How do Ruth and Esther generally fit into
those symbols? Let’s plunge into our study of the Bible and
find out!
I. Naomi and Ruth
A. Read Ruth 1:1-2. This little family from Bethlehem
is forced to leave their home because of a famine.
Bethlehem means “House of Bread,” according to the
David Guzik commentary. It was a rich agricultural
area. Is this just bad luck? (Read Deuteronomy 11:13-17.
This is not bad luck, this is national
disobedience. The Ancient Christian Commentary
goes further and tells us that Hebrew tradition is
that the husband, because he was foremost in the
disobedient tribe of Judah, was expelled from the
land.)
B. Read Ruth 1:3. Was it a good decision to go to the
country of Moab? (No. They moved to avoid dying,
yet Elimelech dies and leaves his wife and two
sons.)
C. Read Ruth 1:4. Is it a good decision to marry
Moabite wives? (Not as a general matter. A
marriage to a Moabite was not forbidden, but
Deuteronomy 23:3-6 prohibited Moabites from
worshiping with God’s people.)
1. Why would you marry someone who could not
worship with you? (The supposedly brief trip
has now become ten years and the sons might
have decided that they were never going back.
If their father had been expelled, that could
be seen as a further barrier to returning.)
D. Read Ruth 1:5. Now the two sons die. Is this
because they married Moabites? Because they failed
to return to Judah? (The Bible does not say. But
God is not blessing them because neither of the
sons produced any children.)
E. Skip down and read Ruth 1:13 and Ruth 1:20-21. How
does Naomi view the adversities of her life? (She
says that God’s hand is against her. She even
thinks her name should be changed to reflect that
disfavor.)
F. Read Ruth 1:6-9. How does Naomi view her
daughters- in-law? (She says that they have been
kind to her.)
1. Is Naomi being kind to them? (Yes, they could
help support Naomi, but instead she suggests
they will have a better life back in Moab.)
G. Read Ruth 1:14-16. Is Ruth being self-sacrificing?
Is she determined to follow the God of Judah?
1. Notice the comment in which Naomi suggests
that turning to the pagan gods is a reasonable
choice. How would that impact Ruth’s
thinking?
H. Read Ruth 1:17-18. Tell me how you think Ruth
became so firmly in favor of the true God in the
midst of all of these adversities?
II. Boaz and Ruth
A. Read Ruth 1:22 and Ruth 2:1-2. We won’t get into
the details of the laws of gleaning. Just know
that widows had the right to gather what the
farmer’s workers dropped or failed to gather. What
is important about Boaz? (He is a relative.)
B. Read Ruth 2:20-23 to find Ruth’s report of the
day’s activities. Has Boaz noticed Ruth?
C. Read Ruth 3:2-5. What is Naomi suggesting to Ruth?
D. Read Ruth 3:7-10. Boaz is a little drunk but wakes
up to find a woman at his feet. How does he react?
1. How would you interpret Ruth’s words in verse
9? (She is invoking the Levirate Law. See
Deuteronomy 25:5-6.)
2. What is Boaz’s understanding of Ruth’s words?
(He realizes that she is pursuing him.)
E. Read Ruth 3:11-13. Is this a contingent wedding
proposal?
1. Is God blessing Ruth?
F. Read Ruth 4:1-4. The closer relative agrees that
he will purchase the land owned by Elimelech,
Naomi’s deceased husband. How are the plans of
Boaz and Ruth going now?
G. Read Ruth 4:5-6. Is this a negotiation strategy of
Boaz? “Just a tip, when you buy the land you also
acquire an obligation to Ruth the Moabite.” (I
think this is what Boaz planned.)
1. Is planning ahead a good thing? Or is Boaz
simply meddling in God’s plan?
H. Read Ruth 4:13-17. How has Naomi’s life changed?
How has Ruth’s life changed?
1. What is the reason for the change? (I say it
is Ruth’s faithfulness to the true God. Naomi
now has a grandson!)
2. Is this just any grandson? (No! He is the
grandfather of King David!)
3. Consider this story in the context of this
being the Messianic line. Do certain decisions
take on greater importance?
4. Friend, how important is being faithful to
God?
III. Esther
A. Read Esther 3:1-2. Why did Mordecai not bow down
to Haman? It was a command of the king!(Read
Esther 3:3-4. It is because Mordecai is Jewish.
This is a religious liberty issue.)
B. Read Esther 3:5-6. How does Haman react? Is it a
reasonable reaction?(No. He not only wants to kill
Mordecai, but he wants to kill all the Jews in the
entire kingdom!)
1. What kind of a man is Haman?
C. Read Esther 3:8-11. Why does Haman present this as
a financial issue?
D. Read Esther 3:13. What would be the result of
killing all the Jews throughout the entire
kingdom? (That would include the Jews who had
returned to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. It
would have threatened the Messianic line.)
E. Read Esther 4:1. Is Mordecai thinking this is all
his fault?
F. Read Esther 4:13-14. Mordecai wants Esther to
intervene for them with the king. But that puts
her life in jeopardy. See Esther 4:11. What
argument does Mordecai make to Esther? (He says
that her life is in danger regardless of what she
does. He suggests that God has placed her in this
position.)
1. Is Esther’s position a divine appointment?
G. Read Esther 4:16. For what does Esther ask?
(Prayer!)
H. Read Esther 5:1-4. If this is a divine
appointment, is Esther’s life really at risk?
I. The special feast for the king, Queen Esther and
Haman takes place. Let’s pick up the dialog. Read
Esther 7:3-6. Do you think Haman knew where this
conversation was going? Did he know Esther was
Jewish?
J. Read Esther 7:7-10. Should Esther have tried to
intervene for Haman’s life?
K. Read Esther 9:1-2 and Esther 9:4-5. Also read
Esther 9:13-14. Is this justice?
1. Let’s look at this in the light of the
controversy between good and evil. What was
Satan’s goal is destroying the Jews? (He hates
God’s people. He wanted to stop the coming
Messiah.)
2. What happens instead? (God’s people are
elevated, Satan’s people are destroyed.)
L. Read Esther 4:14. How important is Esther’s
courage to this story?
1. Is Mordecai correct in saying that if Esther
failed God would find another way to save His
people?
M. Friend, these two women changed the course of
history. Or did they? God is looking for
champions. He is looking for people to change the
course of history. Will that be you? Will you
stand for God even though it might not be
comfortable? Even though it might put your life at
grave risk? Why not determine today to stand for
God. Don’t make Him find someone else.
IV. Next week: Precursors.
Copr. 2025, Bruce N. Cameron, J.D. Scripture quotations are
from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version ), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing
ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All
rights reserved. Suggested answers are found within
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