May 5, 2025 • 26 mins
# 142 - Naomi's Tragedy - In this episode of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein, Naomi and Elimelech face famine, displacement, and devastating loss as they flee Bethlehem for Moab. Amid sorrow and shattered hopes, Naomi’s quiet faith becomes the anchor for a future she cannot yet see.
Episode 142 of The Chosen People with Yael Eckstein is inspired by the Book of Joshua.
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For more information about Yael Eckstein and IFCJ visit https://www.ifcj.org/
Today's opening prayer is inspired by 1 Peter 5:10, “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”
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Show Notes:
(00:36) Intro with Yael Eckstein
(01:39) Naomi's Tragedy
(19:43) Reflection with Yael Eckstein
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Previously on the Chosen People. Before the breaker of chains came,
the Lord would send lesser heroes, fractured and broken images
of the Deliverer to come.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
They would be.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Imperfect vessels in God's hands, crafted to lead Israel out
of its self inflicted destruction.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
None of the good promises the Lord had made to
the House of Israel failed.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Everything has been fulfilled. I suppose humble things can accomplish
great works.
Speaker 4 (00:38):
Happiness takes years to build, but tragedy can strike in
an instant shell. Oh, my friends, from here in the
holy Land of Israel, i'm l Extein with the International
Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and welcome to the Chosen People.
It's the age of Judges, where everyone is doing what
(00:59):
seems right in their their own eyes. The Chosen People
are vulnerable and suffering, oftentimes under the weight of their
very own sin. But in the middle of the reign
of Judges, where kings clash and heroes rise and fall,
we get the story of a family, A humble family
with modest beginnings. Naomi and Elie Melech, two parents just
(01:22):
trying their best to make it work in a very troubling,
trying world. Will they make it, Will they endure? Is
their hope for the underdogs? Well, the journey of Ruth
begins right here.
Speaker 1 (01:41):
Naomi carefully and slowly shut the door behind her so
the creek didn't wake the sleeping boys. Her husband, Elimelech,
came in while she was putting the children to bed,
long after the sun has set. He was seated at
their modest table, defeat etched on his broad shoulders, resignation
(02:04):
weighed him down and slumped him forward, his forehead in
his hands. Naomi softly padded to his side, careful not
to wig the boys, and sat in the chair beside him.
She gently pulled his hands away from his face and
met his gaze. Naomi was determined that whatever he said
(02:25):
would not break her, but when his eyes found her,
her heart ached at the broken pride and sheer failure
she found there.
Speaker 5 (02:34):
It's all gone, isn't it?
Speaker 1 (02:38):
Elimelek nodded in confirmation. Alimelek felt as though he had
failed his family. It was not his fault that Israel
faltered into famine. The clear and sunny skies seemed to
mock him, and the fields turned to dust in his hands.
That he was burdened with the responsibility anyway. Elimelek had
(03:00):
already sold off all but one of their fields, and
he had let all of the workers go to attempt
to buy food for his family. But no one else
was having better luck. There was no more food to
buy in Bethlehem. He toiled alone in a barren mockery
of a field, futilely trying to coax anything to grow
(03:20):
from the scorched earth. He had to watch his wife
and young sons wither away from malnutrition before his very eyes.
Despite the gnawing hunger that gripped her, Naomi's fierce loyalty
bore up at him as he sadly smiled down at her.
Elimelech would never speak the words aloud, but felt he
(03:42):
did not deserve her love when he could not provide
for her and the children.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
Another family left her Wellham.
Speaker 5 (03:51):
Today ay Nashan's family.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
Aye, they just abandoned. Therefore, the same as the others,
no one will buy the land anymore. The Redeemers can't
help either.
Speaker 5 (04:08):
I suppose we were fortunate to sell the land we
did a few years back.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
A lot of good that did us well. We should
have packed up and left.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Then, but now oh, Naomi's eyes widened. They had discussed
following their neighbors and leaving Bethlehem, but she and Elimelech
had never been able to imagine leaving the land of
their ancestors, the land of the tribe of Judah.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
Naomi, I love you, and our boys are more precious
to me than even my father's ancestral home. I I
never thought this day would come, but I just don't
(04:54):
see a way around it. We will go to the
land to Boap. I hear the territory is still hilding crops. Yeah,
it seems there gods had not abandoned them. Perhaps we can.
We can make a new start, wait out the famine there,
and then return home.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
After a while, Elimelech sighed deeply and clenched his eyes shut,
trying in vain to compose himself and mask his profound disappointment.
Swallowing against the tightness in her own throat, Naomi copped
her husband's face between her hands. When he opened his
eyes and met hers, they were brimmed with tears.
Speaker 2 (05:39):
My only regret is that we did not go sooner.
I fear the years ahead will be hard. We will
have no money in a foreign lamp. We'll have only
what I can grow with the strength and skill of
(06:01):
from my weakened hands. I'm sorry, my love, this was
never the life I wanted for you. From ael On
and kill Leon that there will be no future at
all if we stay here.
Speaker 1 (06:19):
Naomi could taste the saltiness of the tears she hadn't
realized with falling down her face. However, she denied the
pull to succumb to them and held Elimelek's face firmly.
Speaker 5 (06:31):
Then we will hold fast to that future. If you
say there is a life for us in Moab, then
that's where we'll go. You are my family, Illimelech. Wherever
you go, I will go too. We will find that
future for our sons, even if it means leaving behind
the land of our ancestors. I pray that the Lord
(06:52):
will find us again in Moab and bring us favor there.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
I don't know how you can still cling to the
hope of our people's God after all we've seen. If
Israel is dying all around us, I mean, every day
more and more ancestral homes are abandoned, to the very
land the Lord gave us is dying and the people
have turned corrupt and cruel.
Speaker 5 (07:16):
I'm not sure, but the Lord gave me you. He
gave us Meilan and Chilian. That's all I need. As
long as I have you, my faith will endure.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
Thaomi, your name means pleasant. You well, what gives me
hope in these dark days.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
The family set out from Bethlehem and settled in Moab
for what they thought would be a short time. Elimelek
erected a simple structure made from the region's ample, bustled stones,
and Naomi wove reeds and long grasses together for their
thatched roof. It wasn't much, but it would suffice until
(07:57):
the first of Elimelek's crops could be harvested and sold.
They could then fill the spaces between the stones and
reeds with mud, bricks, or other durable materials. Elimelech tilled
the land, fretting and laboring over reaping the scant seeds
he could purchase with what was left of their former wealth.
(08:18):
The young boys helped their father and mother as they could,
but it would be many years until they were grown.
Slowly but steadily, the family built a new life in Moab.
Naomi made their stone house a home, and Elimelech worked
the land until timid sprouts joyfully sprang from the earth.
(08:39):
Marlon and Kilian delighted in chasing hungry crows from the
vulnerable plants, and absorbed their father's lessons as best as
possible with their youthful minds and attention spans.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
Oh, oh, finally, I can see why the Morbites praised
this god, bab. It appears he has not turned us
back on this country.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Naomi celebrated alongside her husband, but remained wary of this
foreign god. The teachings of her upbringing of the God
of Israel were planted deeply in her heart, even if
she did not often acknowledge why. She saw her young
sons soak up their father's words and promised herself she
(09:24):
would redouble her efforts to teach them about the God
of Israel. They had been in the land for about
three years. Elimelech gingerly warped the fields, admiring how it
had grown. This year's harvest would be triple last year's.
He walked the fields with his sons, pointing at each
(09:45):
stone that needed removing and each weed that needed plucking.
The grain hushed in the slight breeze masking the sound
of a rattlesnake coiled beside a stone.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
See, boys, large stones like these need to be to him.
Out every inch of our field count stand up.
Speaker 1 (10:04):
Elimelech froze mid reach as he saw the snake. Its
fangs bore deep into his hand, and he fell back,
clasping his hand and screaming in pain. He swore and
kicked away, crushing its head with his heel. Thinking the
danger was behind him, he quietly thanked the god of
the field this ball, that it had bitten him and
(10:27):
not one of his young children.
Speaker 5 (10:29):
Should we go home and see mother? Are you all right?
Speaker 1 (10:32):
Elimelex stooped over and examined his hand. The skin was
red and irritated around the two puncture wounds from the fangs,
but that was to be expected. He wiped away the
blood and tried gripping his staff. He winced, but the
pain was bearable enough to keep working. Elimelex squinted up
at the position of the sun in the sky, and
(10:54):
then swept his gaze over the field, calculating how much
work they could get done before it set.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Don't worry, don't worry, boy, sob I'll be all right.
We should harvest the rest of these rows before the
day darkens.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
The trio worked until nightfall, and it wasn't until Elimelek
stopped moving that he realized the shortness of breath and
the tightness in his chest was not due to the
exertion of the day's work. The boys ran into the
house and excitedly chatted at their mother's elbow as she
prepared their evening meal at the table in the one
(11:30):
room of their house. She smiled down at them, talking
a mile a minute about the snake their father had killed.
Naomi turned that radiant smile to Elimelek in the entryway,
but her smile fell as she saw Elimelech sway and
grip the stones for balance.
Speaker 5 (11:48):
Slimak.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
Naomi rushed to her husband's side and nudged her shoulder
under his arm to support his weight. She helped him
lay back on their bed roll and examined his hand.
The blood and pass had scabbed over, sealing what was
surely venom inside. Elimelek was shallow, breathing and struggling to
maintain consciousness. Panicked, Naomi fumbled around the ingredients she had
(12:13):
on the minimal shelving on the side of their dwelling
curdled milk. She hoped that would soothe the swelling and
calm the infection, but as for a medicinal solution, she
needed to think. Calian, their youngest, frightened by his parents panic,
began to cry. Marlon stared, paralyzed and wide eyed.
Speaker 5 (12:34):
Think think, Maelan, take your brother outside, Go and find rue.
It's an herb. Look for a bush with bluish green
leaves and yellow flowers. It should remedy the poison. I hope,
Go hurry.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Marlon grasped his little brother's hand and pulled him outside
to look for the plant. Naomi pressed the cool kurds
to Alimelech's wounds. Elimelech let out a sigh of relief.
Skin beneath the curds was hot to the touch, his
face was flushed, and a fever was inevitably ravaging his body.
(13:08):
Elimelech suddenly grabbed Naomi's forearm with surprising strength.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Go go tell them the tailgates raiders. We scare them off.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
Naomi's heart sank. Elimelek was hallucinating about events years past. Shakily,
she reached her hand out to his forehead, but he
jerked away in fear and confusion. She then noticed that
his skin and fingers were beginning to take on a
bluish sheen as he labored to breathe and jerk, as
(13:46):
if his limbs were no longer his to control. His
breath was jagged, and there was a deep rattle from
within his lungs, the telltale sign of a fluid that
should not be there. This poisoning was too far gone
and beyond her skill to heal. Choking back a sob
at the realization of what would likely be her husband's
(14:09):
final hours, Naomi gently but firmly pushed past Alimalex's protestations
and propped him up against the stone wall of their
house to ease his breathing.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
The reader's her They'll be back again. My wife was pregnant.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
I have to protect her.
Speaker 5 (14:32):
You have protected her, Naomi and the voice are safe.
You can rest now.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
Elima Lex's eyes narrowed on her face before him, and
he finally registered who she was. He struggled for breath
and struggled to maintain consciousness, keeping his eyes fixed on
his wife before him. Marlon and Keelian returned with handfuls
of the herb. Naomi bitterly wished she could shield the
(14:59):
boy from this horror. She plucked the leaves from her
son's and carefully laid them across the wound, allowing the
oils from the plant to absorb into the skin directly.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
Yes, my little I'm here. I will stay with you
now rest.
Speaker 1 (15:27):
Elimelek nodded in a muddled acceptance, but seemed comforted by
her words. He didn't fight her as she reached for
his face again and traced the familiar laugh lines in
his cheeks and the deep contemplative lines of his forehead.
His eyes fluttered shut, and though his breathing was still
ragged and irregular, he seemed to calm to her touch. Eventually,
(15:53):
Elimelek lost consciousness, but the rattle from within his chest
became deep and difficult. Naomi spoke soothing words to Marlin
and Kellian and pulled them close so they would not
be afraid. True to her word, Naomi stayed at a
Limelech's side until he breathed in his last labored breath
(16:14):
on this side of heaven. When the sun rose the
following day, casting its warm rays across the plains of Moab.
Naomi found herself to be a widow, but in her loss,
she was burdened with an even greater purpose. She was
all Marlin and Kelian had in the world now, and
(16:35):
so they became her purpose. The years marched on, and
though it was harder than Naomi ever could have imagined,
she made a life in Moab for her small family.
Her young boys had grown into young men, and though
the farm never flourished, they were able to make a living.
(17:00):
Naomi's eyes swept across the wedding feast and up to
the radiant, beaming couple at the center of it all.
Their joy was so contagious that Naomi found her lips
tugged upward into a rare smile. It was perhaps only
the second time she smiled since Elimelech died, she remembered
(17:20):
the first time well. Marlon had left that morning uncharacteristically
fidgety and distracted, but determined, and when he returned to
tell her that his bride price had been accepted, she
had never seen her son so triumphant. A young woman
in town by the name of Ruth caught Marlon's eye,
(17:41):
and he worked tirelessly to earn enough money for the
bride price. Naomi was so proud of her son. She
knew that Marlon's offer was likely not the highest Ruth's
father could have gotten, but he was impressed by his
determination and work ethic in winning his daughter's hand. Ruth's
deep brown eyes seemed to sparkle under her veil in
(18:03):
the glow of the torches, and she couldn't take them
off her new husband. Her winning smile never faded through
the weeks of their betrothal, the wedding ceremony, and even
the days of the feast. The girl adored Marlin. Naomi
was grateful that her son had found such an adoring wife.
(18:25):
She prayed to the God of their homeland that her
loyalty would be a blessing to her husband and their family.
Naomi scanned the feast again and found her younger son, Kelian,
grinning at another local girl from town Upah. She blushed
and timidly smiled back at Kellian. Naomi once more allowed
(18:46):
a smile to grace her lips. Perhaps she would be
blessed with a second wedding soon enough. It would be bittersweet,
though her sons were no longer children but men grown.
Naomi had loved them faithfully and fiercely, clinging to the
hope of the land she and Elimelech had fled to.
(19:08):
It would be difficult to see her sons start their
own families, but in that endeavor, they would carry their
families hope forward through her husband's family line. Their father's
memory would live on through them, And so Naomi found
herself praying once more amid the wedding feast. She prayed
(19:31):
that the hope that brought her family to this land
in the first place would be rekindled, and that all
the tragedy and strife would be redeemed.
Speaker 4 (19:45):
The story of Ruth begins with this verse. In the
days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in
the land. Right away we're thrust into suffering, and in
the midst of this suffering and famine, we meet elimele
a wealthy and influential leader in Bethlehem. As the famine
and the promised land progressed, Elimelech left with his wife
(20:08):
and his two sons to live in mob But even
with the famine threatening, why would this seemingly comfortable Israelite
leave the Holy land that he'd been promised by God. Well,
the Jewish Aga suggests that Elimelech had a selfish streak.
They teach that he was afraid that all the hungry
people would knock on his door for help during the famine.
(20:32):
Tradition doesn't actually look favorably upon Elimelech because a bedrock
of faith of the Chosen People is to help those
in need, especially if you have the means.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
To do so.
Speaker 4 (20:44):
If you see Jewish people who succeed after a lifetime
of hardships, they don't leave their communities. Rather, they stay
and invest in making their communities stronger. They invest in
the schools, they invest in feeding program, they invest in
everything that the poor community needs, which now that they
have a way to help build them up, they do so.
(21:07):
They take that seriously. And it's not just the Jewish community,
it's the Christian community as well. I am so proud
of the work that we do at the International Fellowship
of Christians and Jews, the organization that I lead, because
we do what Elimelch did not do. The Fellowship, because
(21:29):
of Christians who give so sacrificially, is able to help
people in need on a huge basis We help hundreds
of thousands of elderly Holocaust survivors, young children, orphans who
don't have food.
Speaker 5 (21:46):
And we're able to.
Speaker 4 (21:47):
Do that because of the generosity of our Christian friends
who make it possible. We do that together right here
in the Holy Land, Jews and Christians together, we do
it here in Israel, this same land that Elimelech and
his family deserted in a time of need. I think
(22:08):
this is a fixing, a repentance. We're coming back to
this land that Alimelech left, and we're bringing the food.
We're bringing the aid. Ironically, Bethlehem means house of bread
in Hebrew. You say it bit Lachen and Naomi's family
left because there was none, And when they do, tragedy follows.
(22:33):
Naomi's husband dies, her son's Mary, but soon after they
die as well. In just four short verses, Naomi's world unravels.
Her happiness, carefully woven together over years, collapses in an instant.
She's left broken, she's left empty, she's bitterly alone. We
(22:57):
look at Naomi's story and it's difficult to find hope.
Her beginning doesn't hint at redemption. It's drenched in loss,
sorrow and despair. Like Israel her self under slavery in
Egypt or the dry wilderness, Naomi is a portrait of need,
(23:18):
desperately longing for redemption. There's a lesson hidden within this darkness,
and it's that happiness is fragile. Happiness can take years
to build and only moments to shatter. In the later episodes,
we'll meet Job, whose life was rich in blessings until
(23:40):
it wasn't. In an instant, everything vanished, health, family, wealth, gone,
and Job, like Naomi, was left to question and grieve.
We often cling tightly to happiness, don't we. Sometimes we
even trick ourselves into believing it's proof of God's goodness.
(24:00):
But happiness isn't guaranteed, and it's not necessarily God's ultimate
goal for us either. His purpose is often much greater.
Do you remember in an earlier story when God laid
out his purpose for Abraham with these words, I will
make you into a great nation, and I will bless you.
I will make your name great, and you will be
(24:22):
a blessing. God's plans for the chosen people have always
been great. All of us are called to be a
blessing to the nations like Naomi, We too face moments
when hope seems distant, when happiness seems elusive. But redemption
doesn't depend on our circumstances. It depends on God's faithfulness.
(24:46):
Maybe today, my friends, your happiness feels fleeting, fragile, or
entirely absent. But take heart. Though happiness may falter, redemption
does not. Trust God to transform your pain into his
greater purpose. Your story, like Naomi's, isn't finished yet. Cello,
(25:08):
my friends, from here in the Holy Land.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
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(25:32):
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(25:56):
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Previously on the Chosen People. Before the breaker of chains came,
the Lord would send lesser heroes, fractured and broken images
of the Deliverer to come.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
They would be.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Imperfect vessels in God's hands, crafted to lead Israel out
of its self inflicted destruction.
Speaker 3 (00:22):
None of the good promises the Lord had made to
the House of Israel failed.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Everything has been fulfilled. I suppose humble things can accomplish
great works.
Speaker 4 (00:38):
Happiness takes years to build, but tragedy can strike in
an instant shell. Oh, my friends, from here in the
holy Land of Israel, i'm l Extein with the International
Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and welcome to the Chosen People.
It's the age of Judges, where everyone is doing what
(00:59):
seems right in their their own eyes. The Chosen People
are vulnerable and suffering, oftentimes under the weight of their
very own sin. But in the middle of the reign
of Judges, where kings clash and heroes rise and fall,
we get the story of a family, A humble family
with modest beginnings. Naomi and Elie Melech, two parents just
(01:22):
trying their best to make it work in a very troubling,
trying world. Will they make it, Will they endure? Is
their hope for the underdogs? Well, the journey of Ruth
begins right here.
Speaker 1 (01:41):
Naomi carefully and slowly shut the door behind her so
the creek didn't wake the sleeping boys. Her husband, Elimelech,
came in while she was putting the children to bed,
long after the sun has set. He was seated at
their modest table, defeat etched on his broad shoulders, resignation
(02:04):
weighed him down and slumped him forward, his forehead in
his hands. Naomi softly padded to his side, careful not
to wig the boys, and sat in the chair beside him.
She gently pulled his hands away from his face and
met his gaze. Naomi was determined that whatever he said
(02:25):
would not break her, but when his eyes found her,
her heart ached at the broken pride and sheer failure
she found there.
Speaker 5 (02:34):
It's all gone, isn't it?
Speaker 1 (02:38):
Elimelek nodded in confirmation. Alimelek felt as though he had
failed his family. It was not his fault that Israel
faltered into famine. The clear and sunny skies seemed to
mock him, and the fields turned to dust in his hands.
That he was burdened with the responsibility anyway. Elimelek had
(03:00):
already sold off all but one of their fields, and
he had let all of the workers go to attempt
to buy food for his family. But no one else
was having better luck. There was no more food to
buy in Bethlehem. He toiled alone in a barren mockery
of a field, futilely trying to coax anything to grow
(03:20):
from the scorched earth. He had to watch his wife
and young sons wither away from malnutrition before his very eyes.
Despite the gnawing hunger that gripped her, Naomi's fierce loyalty
bore up at him as he sadly smiled down at her.
Elimelech would never speak the words aloud, but felt he
(03:42):
did not deserve her love when he could not provide
for her and the children.
Speaker 2 (03:47):
Another family left her Wellham.
Speaker 5 (03:51):
Today ay Nashan's family.
Speaker 2 (03:55):
Aye, they just abandoned. Therefore, the same as the others,
no one will buy the land anymore. The Redeemers can't
help either.
Speaker 5 (04:08):
I suppose we were fortunate to sell the land we
did a few years back.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
A lot of good that did us well. We should
have packed up and left.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Then, but now oh, Naomi's eyes widened. They had discussed
following their neighbors and leaving Bethlehem, but she and Elimelech
had never been able to imagine leaving the land of
their ancestors, the land of the tribe of Judah.
Speaker 2 (04:34):
Naomi, I love you, and our boys are more precious
to me than even my father's ancestral home. I I
never thought this day would come, but I just don't
(04:54):
see a way around it. We will go to the
land to Boap. I hear the territory is still hilding crops. Yeah,
it seems there gods had not abandoned them. Perhaps we can.
We can make a new start, wait out the famine there,
and then return home.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
After a while, Elimelech sighed deeply and clenched his eyes shut,
trying in vain to compose himself and mask his profound disappointment.
Swallowing against the tightness in her own throat, Naomi copped
her husband's face between her hands. When he opened his
eyes and met hers, they were brimmed with tears.
Speaker 2 (05:39):
My only regret is that we did not go sooner.
I fear the years ahead will be hard. We will
have no money in a foreign lamp. We'll have only
what I can grow with the strength and skill of
(06:01):
from my weakened hands. I'm sorry, my love, this was
never the life I wanted for you. From ael On
and kill Leon that there will be no future at
all if we stay here.
Speaker 1 (06:19):
Naomi could taste the saltiness of the tears she hadn't
realized with falling down her face. However, she denied the
pull to succumb to them and held Elimelek's face firmly.
Speaker 5 (06:31):
Then we will hold fast to that future. If you
say there is a life for us in Moab, then
that's where we'll go. You are my family, Illimelech. Wherever
you go, I will go too. We will find that
future for our sons, even if it means leaving behind
the land of our ancestors. I pray that the Lord
(06:52):
will find us again in Moab and bring us favor there.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
I don't know how you can still cling to the
hope of our people's God after all we've seen. If
Israel is dying all around us, I mean, every day
more and more ancestral homes are abandoned, to the very
land the Lord gave us is dying and the people
have turned corrupt and cruel.
Speaker 5 (07:16):
I'm not sure, but the Lord gave me you. He
gave us Meilan and Chilian. That's all I need. As
long as I have you, my faith will endure.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
Thaomi, your name means pleasant. You well, what gives me
hope in these dark days.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
The family set out from Bethlehem and settled in Moab
for what they thought would be a short time. Elimelek
erected a simple structure made from the region's ample, bustled stones,
and Naomi wove reeds and long grasses together for their
thatched roof. It wasn't much, but it would suffice until
(07:57):
the first of Elimelek's crops could be harvested and sold.
They could then fill the spaces between the stones and
reeds with mud, bricks, or other durable materials. Elimelech tilled
the land, fretting and laboring over reaping the scant seeds
he could purchase with what was left of their former wealth.
(08:18):
The young boys helped their father and mother as they could,
but it would be many years until they were grown.
Slowly but steadily, the family built a new life in Moab.
Naomi made their stone house a home, and Elimelech worked
the land until timid sprouts joyfully sprang from the earth.
(08:39):
Marlon and Kilian delighted in chasing hungry crows from the
vulnerable plants, and absorbed their father's lessons as best as
possible with their youthful minds and attention spans.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
Oh, oh, finally, I can see why the Morbites praised
this god, bab. It appears he has not turned us
back on this country.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Naomi celebrated alongside her husband, but remained wary of this
foreign god. The teachings of her upbringing of the God
of Israel were planted deeply in her heart, even if
she did not often acknowledge why. She saw her young
sons soak up their father's words and promised herself she
(09:24):
would redouble her efforts to teach them about the God
of Israel. They had been in the land for about
three years. Elimelech gingerly warped the fields, admiring how it
had grown. This year's harvest would be triple last year's.
He walked the fields with his sons, pointing at each
(09:45):
stone that needed removing and each weed that needed plucking.
The grain hushed in the slight breeze masking the sound
of a rattlesnake coiled beside a stone.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
See, boys, large stones like these need to be to him.
Out every inch of our field count stand up.
Speaker 1 (10:04):
Elimelech froze mid reach as he saw the snake. Its
fangs bore deep into his hand, and he fell back,
clasping his hand and screaming in pain. He swore and
kicked away, crushing its head with his heel. Thinking the
danger was behind him, he quietly thanked the god of
the field this ball, that it had bitten him and
(10:27):
not one of his young children.
Speaker 5 (10:29):
Should we go home and see mother? Are you all right?
Speaker 1 (10:32):
Elimelex stooped over and examined his hand. The skin was
red and irritated around the two puncture wounds from the fangs,
but that was to be expected. He wiped away the
blood and tried gripping his staff. He winced, but the
pain was bearable enough to keep working. Elimelex squinted up
at the position of the sun in the sky, and
(10:54):
then swept his gaze over the field, calculating how much
work they could get done before it set.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Don't worry, don't worry, boy, sob I'll be all right.
We should harvest the rest of these rows before the
day darkens.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
The trio worked until nightfall, and it wasn't until Elimelek
stopped moving that he realized the shortness of breath and
the tightness in his chest was not due to the
exertion of the day's work. The boys ran into the
house and excitedly chatted at their mother's elbow as she
prepared their evening meal at the table in the one
(11:30):
room of their house. She smiled down at them, talking
a mile a minute about the snake their father had killed.
Naomi turned that radiant smile to Elimelek in the entryway,
but her smile fell as she saw Elimelech sway and
grip the stones for balance.
Speaker 5 (11:48):
Slimak.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
Naomi rushed to her husband's side and nudged her shoulder
under his arm to support his weight. She helped him
lay back on their bed roll and examined his hand.
The blood and pass had scabbed over, sealing what was
surely venom inside. Elimelek was shallow, breathing and struggling to
maintain consciousness. Panicked, Naomi fumbled around the ingredients she had
(12:13):
on the minimal shelving on the side of their dwelling
curdled milk. She hoped that would soothe the swelling and
calm the infection, but as for a medicinal solution, she
needed to think. Calian, their youngest, frightened by his parents panic,
began to cry. Marlon stared, paralyzed and wide eyed.
Speaker 5 (12:34):
Think think, Maelan, take your brother outside, Go and find rue.
It's an herb. Look for a bush with bluish green
leaves and yellow flowers. It should remedy the poison. I hope,
Go hurry.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Marlon grasped his little brother's hand and pulled him outside
to look for the plant. Naomi pressed the cool kurds
to Alimelech's wounds. Elimelech let out a sigh of relief.
Skin beneath the curds was hot to the touch, his
face was flushed, and a fever was inevitably ravaging his body.
(13:08):
Elimelech suddenly grabbed Naomi's forearm with surprising strength.
Speaker 2 (13:12):
Go go tell them the tailgates raiders. We scare them off.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
Naomi's heart sank. Elimelek was hallucinating about events years past. Shakily,
she reached her hand out to his forehead, but he
jerked away in fear and confusion. She then noticed that
his skin and fingers were beginning to take on a
bluish sheen as he labored to breathe and jerk, as
(13:46):
if his limbs were no longer his to control. His
breath was jagged, and there was a deep rattle from
within his lungs, the telltale sign of a fluid that
should not be there. This poisoning was too far gone
and beyond her skill to heal. Choking back a sob
at the realization of what would likely be her husband's
(14:09):
final hours, Naomi gently but firmly pushed past Alimalex's protestations
and propped him up against the stone wall of their
house to ease his breathing.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
The reader's her They'll be back again. My wife was pregnant.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
I have to protect her.
Speaker 5 (14:32):
You have protected her, Naomi and the voice are safe.
You can rest now.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
Elima Lex's eyes narrowed on her face before him, and
he finally registered who she was. He struggled for breath
and struggled to maintain consciousness, keeping his eyes fixed on
his wife before him. Marlon and Keelian returned with handfuls
of the herb. Naomi bitterly wished she could shield the
(14:59):
boy from this horror. She plucked the leaves from her
son's and carefully laid them across the wound, allowing the
oils from the plant to absorb into the skin directly.
Speaker 5 (15:20):
Yes, my little I'm here. I will stay with you
now rest.
Speaker 1 (15:27):
Elimelek nodded in a muddled acceptance, but seemed comforted by
her words. He didn't fight her as she reached for
his face again and traced the familiar laugh lines in
his cheeks and the deep contemplative lines of his forehead.
His eyes fluttered shut, and though his breathing was still
ragged and irregular, he seemed to calm to her touch. Eventually,
(15:53):
Elimelek lost consciousness, but the rattle from within his chest
became deep and difficult. Naomi spoke soothing words to Marlin
and Kellian and pulled them close so they would not
be afraid. True to her word, Naomi stayed at a
Limelech's side until he breathed in his last labored breath
(16:14):
on this side of heaven. When the sun rose the
following day, casting its warm rays across the plains of Moab.
Naomi found herself to be a widow, but in her loss,
she was burdened with an even greater purpose. She was
all Marlin and Kelian had in the world now, and
(16:35):
so they became her purpose. The years marched on, and
though it was harder than Naomi ever could have imagined,
she made a life in Moab for her small family.
Her young boys had grown into young men, and though
the farm never flourished, they were able to make a living.
(17:00):
Naomi's eyes swept across the wedding feast and up to
the radiant, beaming couple at the center of it all.
Their joy was so contagious that Naomi found her lips
tugged upward into a rare smile. It was perhaps only
the second time she smiled since Elimelech died, she remembered
(17:20):
the first time well. Marlon had left that morning uncharacteristically
fidgety and distracted, but determined, and when he returned to
tell her that his bride price had been accepted, she
had never seen her son so triumphant. A young woman
in town by the name of Ruth caught Marlon's eye,
(17:41):
and he worked tirelessly to earn enough money for the
bride price. Naomi was so proud of her son. She
knew that Marlon's offer was likely not the highest Ruth's
father could have gotten, but he was impressed by his
determination and work ethic in winning his daughter's hand. Ruth's
deep brown eyes seemed to sparkle under her veil in
(18:03):
the glow of the torches, and she couldn't take them
off her new husband. Her winning smile never faded through
the weeks of their betrothal, the wedding ceremony, and even
the days of the feast. The girl adored Marlin. Naomi
was grateful that her son had found such an adoring wife.
(18:25):
She prayed to the God of their homeland that her
loyalty would be a blessing to her husband and their family.
Naomi scanned the feast again and found her younger son, Kelian,
grinning at another local girl from town Upah. She blushed
and timidly smiled back at Kellian. Naomi once more allowed
(18:46):
a smile to grace her lips. Perhaps she would be
blessed with a second wedding soon enough. It would be bittersweet,
though her sons were no longer children but men grown.
Naomi had loved them faithfully and fiercely, clinging to the
hope of the land she and Elimelech had fled to.
(19:08):
It would be difficult to see her sons start their
own families, but in that endeavor, they would carry their
families hope forward through her husband's family line. Their father's
memory would live on through them, And so Naomi found
herself praying once more amid the wedding feast. She prayed
(19:31):
that the hope that brought her family to this land
in the first place would be rekindled, and that all
the tragedy and strife would be redeemed.
Speaker 4 (19:45):
The story of Ruth begins with this verse. In the
days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in
the land. Right away we're thrust into suffering, and in
the midst of this suffering and famine, we meet elimele
a wealthy and influential leader in Bethlehem. As the famine
and the promised land progressed, Elimelech left with his wife
(20:08):
and his two sons to live in mob But even
with the famine threatening, why would this seemingly comfortable Israelite
leave the Holy land that he'd been promised by God. Well,
the Jewish Aga suggests that Elimelech had a selfish streak.
They teach that he was afraid that all the hungry
people would knock on his door for help during the famine.
(20:32):
Tradition doesn't actually look favorably upon Elimelech because a bedrock
of faith of the Chosen People is to help those
in need, especially if you have the means.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
To do so.
Speaker 4 (20:44):
If you see Jewish people who succeed after a lifetime
of hardships, they don't leave their communities. Rather, they stay
and invest in making their communities stronger. They invest in
the schools, they invest in feeding program, they invest in
everything that the poor community needs, which now that they
have a way to help build them up, they do so.
(21:07):
They take that seriously. And it's not just the Jewish community,
it's the Christian community as well. I am so proud
of the work that we do at the International Fellowship
of Christians and Jews, the organization that I lead, because
we do what Elimelch did not do. The Fellowship, because
(21:29):
of Christians who give so sacrificially, is able to help
people in need on a huge basis We help hundreds
of thousands of elderly Holocaust survivors, young children, orphans who
don't have food.
Speaker 5 (21:46):
And we're able to.
Speaker 4 (21:47):
Do that because of the generosity of our Christian friends
who make it possible. We do that together right here
in the Holy Land, Jews and Christians together, we do
it here in Israel, this same land that Elimelech and
his family deserted in a time of need. I think
(22:08):
this is a fixing, a repentance. We're coming back to
this land that Alimelech left, and we're bringing the food.
We're bringing the aid. Ironically, Bethlehem means house of bread
in Hebrew. You say it bit Lachen and Naomi's family
left because there was none, And when they do, tragedy follows.
(22:33):
Naomi's husband dies, her son's Mary, but soon after they
die as well. In just four short verses, Naomi's world unravels.
Her happiness, carefully woven together over years, collapses in an instant.
She's left broken, she's left empty, she's bitterly alone. We
(22:57):
look at Naomi's story and it's difficult to find hope.
Her beginning doesn't hint at redemption. It's drenched in loss,
sorrow and despair. Like Israel her self under slavery in
Egypt or the dry wilderness, Naomi is a portrait of need,
(23:18):
desperately longing for redemption. There's a lesson hidden within this darkness,
and it's that happiness is fragile. Happiness can take years
to build and only moments to shatter. In the later episodes,
we'll meet Job, whose life was rich in blessings until
(23:40):
it wasn't. In an instant, everything vanished, health, family, wealth, gone,
and Job, like Naomi, was left to question and grieve.
We often cling tightly to happiness, don't we. Sometimes we
even trick ourselves into believing it's proof of God's goodness.
(24:00):
But happiness isn't guaranteed, and it's not necessarily God's ultimate
goal for us either. His purpose is often much greater.
Do you remember in an earlier story when God laid
out his purpose for Abraham with these words, I will
make you into a great nation, and I will bless you.
I will make your name great, and you will be
(24:22):
a blessing. God's plans for the chosen people have always
been great. All of us are called to be a
blessing to the nations like Naomi, We too face moments
when hope seems distant, when happiness seems elusive. But redemption
doesn't depend on our circumstances. It depends on God's faithfulness.
(24:46):
Maybe today, my friends, your happiness feels fleeting, fragile, or
entirely absent. But take heart. Though happiness may falter, redemption
does not. Trust God to transform your pain into his
greater purpose. Your story, like Naomi's, isn't finished yet. Cello,
(25:08):
my friends, from here in the Holy Land.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
You can listen to The Chosen People with Yile Eckstein
ad free by downloading and subscribing to the prey dot
com app today. This preydog comproduction is only made possible
by our dedicated team of creative talents. Steve Katina, Max Bard,
Zach Shellabarger and Ben Gammon are the executive producers of
(25:32):
The Chosen People with Yile Eckstein, edited by Alberto Avilla,
narrated by Paul Caltafianu. Characters are voiced by Jonathan Cotton,
Aaron Salvato, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan, Stephen Ringwold, Sylvia Zaradoc,
Thomas Copeland, Junior, Rosanna Pilcher, and the opening prayer is
voiced by John Moore, music by Andrew Morgan Smith, written
(25:56):
by Aaron Salvato, bre Rosalie and Chris Baig. Special thanks
to Bishop Paulinier, Robin van Ettin, Kayler Burrows, Jocelyn Fuller,
and the team at International Fellowship of Christians and Jews.
You can hear more Prey dot com productions on the
Prey dot com app, available on the Apple App Store
and Google Play Store. If you enjoyed The Chosen People
(26:18):
with Yile Eckstein, please rate and leave a review.
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