It was time for Naomi's two sons to marry. She had probably prayed for the right girls to come along. Now both of the two young men had fallen in love.
These two, though living in Moab, thought like Hebrews. That leads to the question of whether or not the two girls they wanted to marry were required to convert to Judaism. Since both girls were from Moab; one has to wonder what was automatically expected of them upon marriage?
WERE ORPHA AND RUTH CONVERTS?
Neither of these girls would have known The God of Abraham. How would these two young men expect them to respond to their religion and their way of life?
On doing the research for these questions; the answers were a bit surprising. Experts tell us that the Torah does not call the Israelites a "religion" at all.
If you think about it; neither do the holy scriptures of our Christian bibles of today contain a word called "religion." Israel was merely considered to be a "nation."
The concept of conversion, though very important to the Jewish people of today, is not even mentioned in the Torah. So it seems that Ruth and Orpha would only have had to decide in their hearts to marry the two boys that Naomi had raised with Hebraic traditions.
THE DECISION TO MARRY A STRANGER
In the days of Ruth the world "proselyte" as well as the word "ger" simply meant "a stranger." Israelites were instructed to be kind to strangers. The role was reversed when Naomi and her family moved to Moab. They became the strangers.
Foreign marriages had been established and declared successful by previous generations of Israelites. Abraham had married Keturah after Sarah's death. Judah married a Canaanite woman. Joseph and Moses actually married daughters of foreign pagan priests. Samson married a Philistine. David and Saul had wives from many nations.
Foreign marriages were not encouraged; but they were not forbidden. It was always hoped that the wives would come to the Hebraic way of life and not the other way around for the husbands.
THE WORK OF A GOOD MOTHER-IN-LAW
So it is doubtful that either of the young sons of Naomi married girls who were eager to learn and follow a Hebraic lifestyle. Probably neither Orpha or Ruth were converted when they first married.
If these girls were to become Hebraic thinking women before they raised Naomi's grandchildren; the hard part of these commitments were not from those getting married; but from Naomi; the Mother-In-Law.
The boys were going to be busy. When they were well they most-likely worked in the salt mines from daylight until sunset. They would have tedious work to do every day. Some times they might have had to travel to other mines and to be away for awhile. If these girls were to be influenced in the true and sure ways of God; the important job of helping them to realize the benefits of God's ways would fall to Naomi.
However; if an example could be set for a perfect Mother-in-Law. Naomi would definitely be the role model.
LIFE WITH NAOMI
Unlike the nosey, overbearing, bossy, commanding, condescending mother-in-laws we joke about today; Naomi had one sincere and endearing quality that made her perfect mother-in-law material.
She loved.
Naomi accepted her daughter-in-laws without question. She loved them because her sons loved them.
Not only did she love them, she probably spent many hours a day teaching them anything they wanted to know about life. Naomi did not judge; she simply came along side of these two young girls who had been raised pagan and lived out a godly example.
HAPPY DAUGHTER-IN-LAWS
Because of the loving, non-judgmental attitude of Naomi; both of her daughter-in-laws probably felt comfortable enough to always be open and honest with her. I'm sure they often ran to Naomi when they had problems and wanted to talk.
They probably picked up on the fact that Naomi prayed for them. Perhaps they saw through her actions that Naomi's God was a good and gracious God.
Actions always speak louder than words.
It seems that Naomi knew if you loved someone for exactly who they are; they become free to become even more than they are. This is something that we all should take to heart and learn to exercise in our own families. I'm sure this made the long hours that the sons had to be away from home much easier for both daughter-in-laws as well as filling the otherwise lonely hours that Naomi would have experienced without them.
THE BLESSINGS OF A FULL HOUSE
It seems a full house is always better than an empty house. Naomi was happy to share her resources with her daughter-in-laws. They, in turn; brought her many hours of joy and pleasure.
Ruth and Orpha became two of Naomi's greatest blessings as she traveled through the hard and bumpy road called widowhood.
Little did she know what new turns in the road would follow. Trouble was brewing down the road, but for this moment in time; Naomi cherished her little family that was left from her life with Elimelech.
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