Part 19 of the David Pawson 'Unlocking the Bible' Podcast series 

In the book of Judges, David Pawson observes that God is very prominent even though the people are in a downward spiral. He heard their prayers and sent them someone to rescue. God delivers to evil as well as from evil. A whole generation grew up who did not know the Lord and what He had done for Israel. They weren’t grateful for their salvation.  Because there was no king, there was no continuity of leadership. The people wanted a visible king, not just their heavenly King. God was going to provide a king and the book of Ruth tells us where he was going to come from. The book of Ruth is a romance and is the answer to the book of Judges. Ruth made the right choice at the right time and went down in history as an ancestor of Jesus Christ. She not only chose to stay with Naomi, she chose Naomi’s people and Naomi’s God. Loyalty is a very precious quality to the Lord. Love without loyalty isn’t real love. The family tree of Jesus contains some unlikely people. Individual Christians can learn a great deal from the characters in the book of Judges. We’ve got a King, and if we all did what is right in His eyes, the church would be united tomorrow, but we are following men instead. The marriage of Ruth and Boaz is a perfect picture of Christ and His Gentile bride.