Scripture Series: Ruth 1:16-17

Looking for scripture to use for your ceremony readings? Today we will look at Ruth 1:16-17 and hopefully feel more connected to it. I'm hoping that this series helps you to build a truly meaningful ceremony!

Source: dayspring.com via Melina on Pinterest

For the last few months, I spent time diving into probably the most popular scripture read at ceremonies, 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, and I had a blast looking at the definitions of what Love is! Let me tell you, when I sat down to look at today's reading, I was just as excited! I tend to get lost in the everyday trying to find my place in this world and figuring out what God wants for me, but when I look at Scripture, I feel rooted.

Now on to Ruth 1:16-17:

But Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you. Where you go, I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your People will be my people and your God my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me."

Sounds great for a bride or a groom to speak to each other. But let's look at what really is happening in this passage.

Ruth is actually speaking to her Mother-in-law.

That is right. It isn't a wonderful speech from one lover to another. It is from a woman in deep emotion to another woman.

In this story we see that Ruth followed her Mother-in-law to the promise land, the land of Judah. Her mother-in-law, Naomi, lost her husband and her sons, and was left with only her daughters-in-law, Ruth and Orpah. Orpah chose to stay behind while Ruth said the passage I posted above.

Ruth isn't from the land of the Lord but yet she follows her Mother-in-law into that land. Do you know what happens when we give all up and just follow the Lord?

He leads us where we are meant to be.

Ruth followed blindly based on Love and loyalty. By doing so, she was led into the land of God. She remarried and bore a son who continued the genealogy line to Jesus. She was able to build a new life based on what God had desired for her all because she followed.

Now knowing this, I definitely can imagine this as being a wife following my husband as Ruth followed her mother-in-law. May the Lord deal with me severely "if anything but death separates you and me."