Thursday, June 5, 2014

Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Reading Ruth

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In Hebrew, Pentecost is called Shavuot. It is pronounced as three syllables, like shaw-voo-oat. 

The Hebrew word means "weeks" and this is why we sometimes call Pentecost "The Feast of Weeks." This comes from counting off seven weeks from the Feast of Firstfruits, which, of course, is forty-nine days, and the next day, the fiftieth, is Pentecost or Shavuot. (Tweet that!) 

In Israel, Shavuot is celebrated by reading Exodus 19 – 20, which is the account of God giving the Torah, or the Law. (See the May 27, 2014, post: 38 Omer – Feast of the Lord #4 – Pentecost Before the book of Acts. Link below.)

Also, in Israel it is traditional to read the book of Ruth to celebrate Shavuot. (Tweet that!) This is because we are counting up fifty days from the harvest of Firstfruits, which was the barley harvest, to the wheat harvest. (Tweet that!)  Sheaves of these grains were waved by the priests during the celebration at the Tabernacle or Temple.

If you're familiar with the story in Ruth, you know she was gleaning grain for her and her mother-in-law to eat from the fields of Boaz. Ruth was gleaning from the barley to the wheat harvest.

Also, if you remember our discussion about the Year of Jubilee Part 1, on May 31, 2014, we talked about God's instructions that if a person could not redeem his own land, a relative could redeem the land for him. This person would be the kinsman redeemer. This is what Boaz did for Naomi and for Ruth. He redeemed their land, and he married Ruth and took care of her.  (Tweet that!) 

Ruth then became the great-grandmother of King David, earthly ancestor of Jesus Christ, and is one of only three women listed in the genealogy of Jesus.  (Tweet that!) 

The Kinsman Redeemer is a picture of what Jesus has done for all who believe in him as Messiah: He buys us back. He redeems us. He takes us to be his bride. He has redeemed a "land" for us which is heaven and we will live there with him forever.  (Tweet that!)

Why not take the time to read the book of Ruth in the coming days with this new, or reviewed, information?

If you don't have your own Bible handy, read it on BibleGateway.com here: Ruth.

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