The Book of Ruth has enjoyed many varied interpretations over the years. Probably the most prevalent of these is that it is a short story of romance (lost love and death), intrigue (lost hope of finding a mate), mystery (multiple suitors), and the happy ending (marriage and children), very similar to the pagan stories of Walt Disney’s Cinderella and the Fairy God Mother. The difficulty with these interpretations is that they are missing one very important tenet. That principle is that the short story contained in the Book of Ruth is simply an episode in a larger story, and that episode does not have enough information in it to interpret it correctly. The very nature of this story is that it is part of the larger and complete narrative of “The Biblical Story” that flows from Genesis to Revelation. Like a scene in a play is non-understandable without finding its place in the larger story, so also Ruth must be seen in the larger movement to which it contributes a part.

There are two things that must be known in order to interpret the Story of the Book of Ruth, or any other story occurring in the Grand Narrative of the Bible. First, it must be seen in its place in the Biblical plot, and then its own plot will reveal its part, its contribution to the overall plot.

The second thing that should be noticed is the standard by which the characters are to be judged. The movement of the characters through the story always determines the plot. But characters are not to be judged by the standard that the reader brings to the text, but by the standard that the author requires. That standard is found in the Pentateuch, the five books of Moses. It is there that the character of God required by the story is revealed.