Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehemjudah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons. (2) And the name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehemjudah. And they came into the country of Moab, and continued there.
It is not so very material at what period during the commonwealth of Israel the events here recorded took place, as it is to make particular remarks on the events themselves. And here the first thing to be noted is the famine which prevailed in the land. Famine was one of the four sore judgments of God, which the Lord bad decreed to punish Israel with, when the land sinned by trespassing grievously, to break the staff of the bread thereof. Ezekiel 14:13-21. And what rendered a famine of bread more peculiarly afflicting, and carrying with it a decided mark of a divine judgment, was, that this famine was in Bethlehem; for the very name of Bethlehem signifies the land, or house of bread. Reader! do not forget, that Bethlehem is the hallowed spot of the birth of thy Redeemer. Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea. See Matthew 2:1. How awful must a famine be when it carries with it a testimony that it is a divine judgment! But how infinitely more awful must be a spiritual famine: not of bread, and of water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. And is not this the case with Bethlehem now? I mean the descendants of ancient Bethlehem, the Jews. The Lord by his servant Amos threatened this judgment. And for how many generations hath it been fulfilled? Precious Jesus! how sweet is it to my soul, that thou breakest thy bread to me in secret. How delightful is it to know thee to be the bread of life, which came down from heaven, of, which whosoever eateth shall live forever! Lord! evermore give me this bread. See Amos 8:11; John 6:33, etc.
There is somewhat very striking in the manner in which the Holy Ghost hath introduced this man and his family. He is styled, A certain man. And his name is not less so: Elimelech, which is compounded of two words, Eli and melech, signifying my God, and king. Naomi means pleasant. Mahlon and Chilion conveyed very different ideas; the former intimating a sick and weakly one, and the latter a wasting. But the most remarkable circumstance was their removal from the house of Cod, to the idolatrous country of Moab. Alas! do we not see in this certain man and his family, our nature strongly pictured? Did not Adam, our first father, induce a spiritual famine by transgression, and entail sickness and disease upon all his children, so that our whole nature may well be called Mahlon and Chilion? And did he not leave the Lord, and his mercies, and ever since, in his poor, blind, and fallen race, have we not all by nature sought fulness in the Moabs of the world, and the idols thereof?