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Document 701

The Buik o Ruth: 14 - Anent the Buik o Ruth

Author(s): A S Borrowman

Copyright holder(s): Mrs Lorna F Borrowman

Text

The Hebrew Bible, our Auld Testament, is in fower pairts, the Law, the Former Prophets, the Latter Prophets, and the Writings. The Buik o Ruth is fun amang the Writings.

The Writings were scrievit owre monie a year, and werena acceptit intae the Hebrew Bible till 130 A. D. or thairanent.

In our Auld Testament the Buik o Ruth comes efter Judges and was pitten thair by the Gregians wha foundit on the Buik o Ruth itsel, whilk pits the tale 'in the time o the Judges'. (Ruth 1:1)

The Gregians translatit frae Hebrew intae Grewe.

The Buik o Ruth wasna scrievit in the twalt orlang-hunder B.C. but lang efter. Some fowk jalouse it was scrievit afore the Israelites were cairrit awa tae Babylon in 587 B.C.: ithers that it was scrievit in the days o Ezra and Nehemiah, efter the Israelites won hame tae their ain kintra. We maun cognose for the time o Ezra and Nehemiah.

Whatna prief hae we?

Whan Ezra and his feres won hame, the kinrick o Israel was in a unco guddle. The brugh o Jerusalem was dingit doon, alsweel its waas and ilka hoose. Forbye the fowk were disjaskit, alsweel discomfist.

It was a tapsalteerie warld, and fient a care had they for the Law o God whilk had gart them be a by-ordinar fowk.

Ezra and his feres pit stout herts tae a stey brae and walit for their dicton, 'Oursels alane'; nae merridges wi fremmit fowk; ill-wull tae the fremmit, and nae companionry wi fowk wha dinna belang tae the kintra or kin o Israel.

It was an orra gait tae gang, and we suld caa it in our ain day, 'racism'. Aabody didna haud tae siccan gait and aiblins the scriever o the Buik o Ruth was a saunt wha weel kent that the merciment o God wasna anerlie for the Israelites but alsweel for the Gentile fowk.

Albuist the politique o the Israelites was notour, and had the dooming o the scriever, the Buik o Ruth isna aboot flytin nar fechtin. It's aa anent landwart fowk: aboot craps, hairst; puirtith and sic like.

Famine drave a faimly owre Jordan intae Moab. The faither and the twa sons deed, and the mither, Naomi, ettlt tae win hame tae her ain kintra and jalousit her twa guid-dochters wald bide in Moab.

Ane, Orpah bides in Moab; tither, Ruth gangs wi Naomi tae Bethlehem o Juda. In Bethlehem, puirtith gars Ruth gaither frae the rigs. The tale has a guid aftercast.

Ruth gaithers in the rig o Boaz wha is sib tae Naomi's guidman. Naomi gars Boaz, blate and auld-young, merry the bonnie widow-wife Ruth. Algates, Naomi is fasht anent a paffle whilk her guidman Elimelech aucht.

Puirtith micht gar her sell it awa frae the faimly, but the paffle is coft by Boaz. The wont-tae-be o the kintra was that he wha coft the paffle, coft the widow-wife alsweel.

Lippen tae the scriever o Ruth! He was nae coof!

The son o Boaz and Ruth was caad Obed, the faither o Jesse, the faither o Dauvit. The michty Roy, Dauvit, neist in honner and glore tae Moses amang the Israelites, was oe tae a man whas mither was a Gentile.

Waesucks for 'oursels alane' and Israel for the Israelites'. Aither the michtiest o their roys is fylit wi Moabite bluid, als Moabites hae their pairt amang God's choicen fowk: ither fowk alsweel, for we ken that Tamar, (Genesis XXXVIII) and Rahab the hoor, (Joshua II) were Canaanites, and sib tae Dauvit: sae they were forbeers o the Messiah whilk we lear frae Mattha I: 3 & 5.

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APA Style:

The Buik o Ruth: 14 - Anent the Buik o Ruth. 2024. In The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. Retrieved 29 March 2024, from http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=701.

MLA Style:

"The Buik o Ruth: 14 - Anent the Buik o Ruth." The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. Glasgow: University of Glasgow, 2024. Web. 29 March 2024. http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=701.

Chicago Style

The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech, s.v., "The Buik o Ruth: 14 - Anent the Buik o Ruth," accessed 29 March 2024, http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk/document/?documentid=701.

If your style guide prefers a single bibliography entry for this resource, we recommend:

The Scottish Corpus of Texts & Speech. 2024. Glasgow: University of Glasgow. http://www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk.

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Information about Document 701

The Buik o Ruth: 14 - Anent the Buik o Ruth

Text

Text audience

Adults (18+)
General public
Informed lay people
Males
Females
Audience size 100+

Text details

Method of composition Typed
Year of composition 1974
Word count 620
General description Explanation of the context and content of the Book of Ruth

Text medium

Book

Text publication details

Published
Publisher Gordon Wright
Publication year 1979
Place of publication Edinburgh
ISBN/ISSN SBN 903065 30 4
Edition 1st
Part of larger text
Contained in The Buik o Ruth and ither wark in Lallans
Editor Author: Alex S. Borrowman
Page numbers 41-42

Text setting

Religious/ceremonial

Text type

Prose: nonfiction

Author

Author details

Author id 755
Forenames A
Initials S
Surname Borrowman
Gender Male
Decade of birth 1910
Educational attainment University
Age left school 17
Upbringing/religious beliefs Protestantism
Occupation Parish Minister
Place of birth Stirling
Region of birth Stirling
Birthplace CSD dialect area Stlg
Country of birth Scotland
Father's occupation Shop assistant
Father's place of birth Stirling
Father's region of birth Stirling
Father's birthplace CSD dialect area Stlg
Father's country of birth Scotland
Mother's occupation Dress maker
Mother's place of birth Dunblane
Mother's region of birth E & SE Perthshire
Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area Per
Mother's country of birth Scotland

Languages

Language Speak Read Write Understand Circumstances
English Yes Yes Yes Yes all circumstances
French Yes Yes Yes Yes
German Yes Yes Yes Yes
Scots Yes Yes Yes Yes for literary purposes

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