February 8
Verse of the Day for February 8
And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:Ruth 1:16 KJV
The Key of Love · Day 8 of 29
Reflection · 4 min read
Whither Thou Goest
Naomi has lost her husband and both sons, and she does the decent thing: she releases her daughters-in-law. Go back to your mothers, find husbands, do not tie your life to mine.
Orpah goes, and the text does not blame her. She is doing exactly what she was told.
And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God:
Ruth is a Moabite. She is committing to a bitter widow, an unfamiliar country, a foreign God and no visible future, and the language she uses is covenant language.
Where thou lodgest. Thy people. Thy God. Where thou diest, will I die. It escalates from address to identity to death, in one breath.
Naomi's response is recorded plainly: when she saw that she was stedfastly minded to go with her, then she left speaking unto her. She stopped arguing. There are commitments that end a conversation.
She was released.She stayed anyway.
Loyalty that only holds while it is convenient is not loyalty; it is agreement. Ruth shows up when the sensible advice is to leave.
Somebody near you has been released by everyone. Go back.
Carry this today
Who has everyone else reasonably walked away from?
Pray
Read Ruth 1:14–18
14And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her. 15And she said, Behold, thy sister in law is gone back unto her people, and unto her gods: return thou after thy sister in law. 16And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: 17Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me. 18When she saw that she was stedfastly minded to go with her, then she left speaking unto her.
Keep praying
Reflection by Collins Asein, from the daily devotionals in the PrayerKey app. Bible text: King James Version.