Ruth

"Ruth" is an in-depth examination of the text of Ruth along with a discussion of what the reader was probably intended to understand from it. For example, why was the book of Ruth included and placed where it is in the various cannons?

The author started by discussing the various possibilities of who wrote the book and when. He then examined the Hebrew text for overall sentence structures (A B C C B A patterns and such) as well as Hebrew words and sentence constructions that have significance but which don't translate well into English.

You don't have to know Hebrew to understand this analysis, but you'll probably get more out of it if you do. I know only a little Hebrew, but I still found the discussion very interesting. Some parts of the discussion really made me think, and others helped to clear up my thinking about conflicting opinions I've heard. For example, I always felt that "feet" literally meant "feet" in this story, and the author's analysis confirmed that this was true.

The author also gave some application points. These Zondervan Exegetical Commentaries tend to get more in-depth than most laymen (like me) need, but I've always learned new and interesting things from them. I'd recommend this commentary to teachers, students, pastors, and anyone who wants an in-depth look at Ruth.

The Biblical book known as "Ruth" is one of my favorites to read and preach through. Therefore I was delighted to see that Daniel I Block, Gunther H. Knoedler Professor of Old Testament, Wheaton College, has crafted a unique commentary on Ruth titled "Ruth: The King is Coming". It is part of the "Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the Old Testament," a series that Block is general editor for. This 304 page hardback is meant for seminary professors, preachers, and knowledgeable Bible teachers. The Hebrew and Hebrew grammar is presented in such a way that a mild knowledge of Biblical Hebrew will make the commentary even more valuable.

Block looks at the authorial style of "Ruth" in which the initial recipients of the story are "hearers" not essentially "readers. The author of this commentary approaches his work through discourse analysis, which is not only to understand what the text says, but also how it is said. He thinks through the placing of Ruth in the canonical corpus, and the connection it makes to the Pentateuch as well as the prophetic writings of Judges, and 1 and 2 Samuel. Block continues to hearken back, through ears attuned to the story, to the canonical flow of Ruth. The Biblical depth is robust, and Block's directional reminders - how Ruth takes us to David, and ultimately the greater son of David - makes the commentary solid and sound.

The commentary's format has an all-out translation of Ruth, an introduction to the Biblical material, and an extended commentary. In the commentary itself the pattern follows a simple approach; there's the main idea of the passage; it's literary context; translational and exegetical outline; the structure and literary form found in the passage; and rich and in-depth explanation of the text; and finally the canonical and practical significance.

The commentary's time looking at the canonical and practical significance asks and answers five questions, very similar to worldview questions. What does the passage tell the listeners about God? What are we told about the world and society broadly? How does this text address the human condition, the nature of sin and the destiny of humankind? What does a particular section tell us about how God relates to humans? And finally, what, in the passage, is our appropriate response ethically and spiritually, to the work of God? This is a delightfully enriching approach to Ruth.

The commentary's author, out of a desire to restore "listenership" to a congregation or audience has an appendix piece that maps out a sample dramatic reading of Ruth. It is detailed enough to be easily picked up and employed. Thought there is some staging and gesturing, the focus is to be on the reading out-loud, and attuned hearing.

"Ruth: The King is Coming" is a technical commentary is well worth the time and cerebral sweat. The reader will find devotional material for themselves, as well as sermonic substance for their parishioners. While reading the commentary I thought to myself several times, "I think Ruth would make a great Advent series next year!" I gladly recommend this book.

My gratitude to Zondervan Academic and Netgalley for the loan of an electronic copy used for this review.

This book is not just an explanation about the book of Ruth, it explores who authored the book, when the book was written, and the chronological and cultural suppositions to support the author's findings.
The author divides the book of Ruth into three parts:
1. First a detailed and thorough narrative account is discovered (1:6 –4:21). 2. This is followed by short introduction (1:1 –5). 3. Finally it is crowned by a genealogical account (4:18 –22).
The position of Ruth as one of David's ancestors and the providence of God in not letting his bloodline die out is thoroughly discussed and explained.
The author uses a number of Hebrew and Greek words in the text to explain the meanings of words in the text such as names, places, intentions and sources which are painstakingly referenced on each page.
This is a well-researched book which will give deeper meaning to scholars, pastors and laymen who enjoy learning about and researching the Book of Ruth.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading the explanations and Hebrew words that were liberally sprinkled throughout this book!