The second character in our story about the fabulous destiny of Ruth is called Naomi. Naomi was a woman of good birth who had to emigrate with her husband and two sons to a distant land because of the bad economic situation in her country.
From there, a series of unfortunate events befell the unfortunate Naomi. She first lost her husband and became a widow. Fortunately, she found a small consolation in her old age when her two sons married women from their adopted country. Naomi was chomping at the bit for the day when she could finally hold her future grandchildren in her arms. But after a year of marriage, nothing. Two years of marriage, still nothing. No descendants in sight. After ten years of marriage, none of his sons had given birth to Naomi. She was beginning to think that fate had definitely decided to go after her.
Unfortunately, poor Naomi hadn’t hit rock bottom yet. Of the two sons died suddenly one after the other.
Ah, what despair for sweet Naomi. Why had fate decided to go after her like this?
What could she have been doing in heaven?
Normally, it is the children who bury their parents and not the other way around. But in her case, she not only lost one but every two children she had. Naomi has become very bitter about life. His future looked bleak. She was resigned to end her old age in bitterness and in the memory of the happy days of yesteryear. She was also plagued with regrets. Ah if only there hadn’t been this severe economic crisis which forced us to come to this cursed country where only misfortune awaited us. !
To make matters worse, the economic crisis continued. Naomi was long past working age. His worries about the future were all the greater. Could she at least find someone merciful to feed her? It wasn’t sure, the crisis having hit every household.
So was Naomi’s situation: a woman already old, hard hit by the grief of her widowhood, the loss of her sons, no descendants and moreover without financial resources and no way to obtain them.
Naomi had hit rock bottom! Difficult to fall lower, other than perhaps by adding health problems. But grief and bitterness can quickly deteriorate a person’s health.
Let me tell you about Naomi’s end of life. No, Naomi did not die of grief in a foreign land. She ended her days with the consolation of having descendants. She also had a wealthy family and lacked nothing financially. Naomi’s last days were happy and peaceful. Naomi also became famous and generations later still talk about her.
But how can we explain this other reversal of the situation?
What did she do to turn her situation around 180 degrees?
Let’s leave the whole suspense and proceed first to the introduction of the third character of our story.