By Maria Merola אריאל
© Copyright Double Portion Inheritance, August 2002-2023
In the story of Ruth, we see a Gentile woman who became a friend of Israel, and that qualified her to marry a man by the name of Boaz. As a result of this union, Ruth also earned a place in the genealogy of the future King David and the Messiah of Israel (see Matthew 1:5).
Many followers of Messiah declare that they are his “bride,” and yet they do not meet the criteria to be the bride. I am going to make a bold statement that may offend you, but it is nonetheless true and accurate: “Unless you are a friend of Israel, you cannot become the bride of Messiah.”
I am going to illustrate from the Book of Ruth, what is required to become the bride of Messiah. Remember, our Messiah taught “Many are called, but few are chosen....” (Matthew 22:14).
In order to be “chosen,” you must be the one to make a choice first!
What do I mean by that? Ruth had a choice to make. She could go back to the land of her family in Moab, (which also included the idols of that culture), or she could follow her widowed mother-in-law, Naomi back to Bethlehem-Judah to follow the Creator, and the Elohiym of Israel.
Ruth chose the latter, and because of her wise choice, she was married to Boaz who also became the Kinsman Redeemer for both, herself, and her mother-in-law.
The Book of Ruth, is about a family who made some very bad choices, that cost them their lives. The husband of Naomi moved his family to Moab because there was a great famine in the land of Bethlehem-Judah. He did not place his trust in YaHuWaH, but he trusted in his own abilities. His decision to move his family to Moab, (where idolatry was rampant) would result in his early death, and the death of his two sons.
Naomi’s name means “pleasant, beautiful,” and her husband’s name was “Elimelech,” (Elohiym of the King). The names of their two sons are prophetic of what happened to this family, for “Machlon” means “sickness” and “Chilion” means “destruction.”
After Naomi’s husband died in Moab, and then her two sons died also, she had no male heirs so that she could claim the land of her inheritance in Israel. She was left with two daughters-in-law: “Ruth,” whose name means “friend” and “Orpah,” whose name means “to backslide.”
*Note: Here is an interesting fact. Oprah Winfrey’s name was supposed to be “Orpah” but it was misspelled on her birth certificate, and her family never attempted to change it!
Naomi heard that YaHuWaH had blessed his people in her hometown with bread, so she began her journey back to Bethlehem-Judah, and her two daughters-in-law began to follow after her. Naomi, however, urged them to go back to Moab with their families, but Ruth insisted on going with her:
Ruth 1:15 And she said, Behold, your sister in law is GONE BACK unto her people, and unto her gods: return you after your sister in law.
Ruth 1:16 And Ruth said, Intreat me not to leave you, or to return from following after you: for wherever you go, I will go; and where you lodge, I will lodge: your people shall be my people, and your Elohiym my Elohiym.
This statement was the defining moment in Ruth’s life, for it was her “CHOICE” to follow Naomi that would bring into focus her destiny in this life and in eternity!
This reminds me of another prophecy that parallels to what Ruth did in following Naomi to Bethlehem-Judah:
Zechariah 8:23 Thus says YHWH of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt [kanaph, tzitzits] of him that is a Yahuwdiy (Jew), saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that Elohiym is with you.
The Hebrew word in the above passage for “ten” is “eser” meaning “an accumulation to the extent of the digits.” It also comes from a root word “asar” meaning “to tithe, to accumulate, to give a tenth part.”
This prophecy is obviously speaking of the Ten Northern Tribes of the Kingdom of Israel who were divorced by YaHuWaH in Jeremiah 3:8.
These from the Kingdom of the Ten Northern Tribes have become known today as “Gentiles,” as they have forgotten their heritage with Israel, and their true identity. However, in the last days, those who call themselves “Gentiles,” will be gathered back to the faith of Israel through the Messiah who is from the House of Yahuwdah (Judah) and they will follow the Towrah!
As you can see from the prophecy, these ten men (symbolic of the lost sheep) will grab hold of the corner of the garment (kanaph in Hebrew), which is where the Jewish people attach the “fringes,” aka “tzitzits.” These fringes are to remind us to obey the commandments in the Towrah! (see Numbers 15:38 & Deuteronomy 22:12).
This also reminds me of a woman who had an issue of blood for twelve years and she had to be quarantined from Israel (Matthew 9:20, Mark 5:25, Luke 8:43-44). Why twelve years? I believe it is to illustrate that this woman symbolizes the lost sheep from the Ten Northern Tribes of Israel who were divorced, exiled and cast out of the land. This woman with the issue of blood was also an outcast, and was deemed as “unclean,” according to the Law of Moses (Towrah).
This woman did exactly what Ruth did in grabbing hold of the “hem” of the garment of our Messiah, and in doing so, she was healed of her uncleanness!
The Greek word for “hem” in these three gospel accounts is “kraspedon,” and it literally means “the fringes that the Jews wear on the four corners of their garments.” What we learn from these gospel accounts is that this woman with the issue of blood was like Ruth in grabbing hold of “a Jew” (Naomi) and sojourning with her to Bethlehem-Judah.
Like the woman with the issue of blood, Ruth was deemed “unclean,” by the Israelites because she was a Moabite. Moab is called “my washpot” by Elohiym in Psalm 68:8 & 108:9). Imagine a dirty vessel of water where you have washed the dirt off of your body. The vessel of water would be unclean!
Both Ruth, and the woman with the issue of blood became clean when they grabbed hold of the fringes of a “Yahuwdiy” (Jew), which is symbolic of returning back to the commandments!
Now, here is an interesting fact that makes this story all the more compelling. The Towrah says that nobody from Moab would be allowed to enter the Congregation of Israel forever:
Deuteronomy 23:3 An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of YHWH even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the YHWH forever.
What this means is that ten generations would have to pass before any Moabite would be allowed to enter the Congregation of Israel. This is primarily because the Moabites would not allow Israel to pass through their country on the way to the Promised Land. Any Moabite prior to the tenth generation, would not be allowed to enter Israel “forever.”
This tenth generation requirement is somehow connected to the Ten Northern Tribes of Israel, and the “ten men” from the Gentile Nations who will grab hold of the fringes of a “Yahuwdiy” (Jew) in Zechariah 8:23.
That one “Yahuwdiy” (Jew) who the Gentiles are going to follow after is the Messiah, who is from the Tribe of Yahuwdah (Judah). Revelation 14:4 describes them as “The 144,000 who follow the lamb wherever he goes!”
To learn more, see my other blog entitled: “Who Are the 144,000?”
Now, it is unclear whether or not Ruth had surpassed that “tenth generation” requirement, but we can speculate that she did, because she was able to enter the land of Israel with her mother-in-law. Not only did she enter, but she also “crossed over” and became a Yahuwdiyah (Jewess) by making the declaration: “Your people shall be my people, and your Elohiym my Elohiym.”
This is what happens when we truly become a “new creation!”
2nd Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Messiah, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
However, once the caterpillar goes into a cocoon, he begins the process of dying to his “old nature” only to emerge as a completely different creature, transformed and beautiful. Not only is a butterfly beautiful, but he has wings to fly with, and he is free from his former state of being earthbound. The butterfly exemplifies what it means to be “born again.” For, if we belong to Messiah, we will one day be resurrected and no longer bound to an earthly, mortal body.
From the moment that Ruth uttered these words from her mouth: “Your people shall be my people, and your Elohiym my Elohiym,” she ceased to be a “Gentile” and she was converted in her heart.
She was no longer a Moabite in the eyes of the Father, she was now an Israelite from the Tribe of Yahuwdah (Judah). You may be thinking to yourself “Do you mean she didn’t have to go to a Synagogue and convert to Rabbinical Judaism?”
The answer to that question is a resounding “No!”
Scripture gives “strangers” the opportunity to inherit the same covenant promises of Israel by simply “sojourning with” the Tribe of their choice:
Ezekiel 47:22 And it shall come to pass, that you shall divide it by lot for an inheritance unto you, and to the strangers that sojourn among you, which shall beget children among you: and they shall be unto you as born in the country among the children of Israel; they shall have inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel.
Ezekiel 47:23 And it shall come to pass, that in what tribe the stranger sojourns, there shall you give him his inheritance, says YHWH Elohiym.
Ruth joined the Tribe of Judah, (the same tribe that our Messiah was born into) and she also became the great grandmother of our Messiah! (see Matthew 1:6). Our Messiah is the “Lion of the Tribe of Yahuwdah” (Judah), see Revelation 5:5.
Therefore, if you ever hope to become the bride, you must do what Ruth did, by joining the same tribe as her bridegroom! In other words if we are “sojourning with” (walking with) the Lion of Judah, we are considered a Yahuwdiy or a Jew!
By sojourning (walking with) a Jew, it does not mean that you must join religious Judaism. It means that we must repent of our sins, and we must begin to obey the Towrah. And in doing so, we join the tribe from which our Messiah would be born into. The Tribe of Judah has been entrusted with the instructions of the Covenant, which is the Mosaic Law (Towrah) according to Genesis 49:10 and Romans 3:2.
Why do you think our Messiah said in John 4:22, to the Samaritan woman “Salvation is of the Yahuwdiym (Jews)?”
Did he mean that she had to follow the fabricated traditions of the Pharisees?
No, he was conveying a deeper truth to her.
The Tribe of Judah is the tribe from where the “Kinsman Redeemer” would come from, (like Judah, who redeemed Tamar, and like Boaz who redeemed Naomi & Ruth).
Judah is the same tribe of Melchizedek (see Hebrews 7:14), the immortal High Priest who can never die behind the veil!
In the story of “Ruth,” she was a Moabite, (a Gentile), yet she “crossed over” and went back to Bethlehem-Judah with her mother-in-law Naomi, and she joined the Tribe of Judah (she became a Jew). That is what qualified her to be married to Boaz!
Boaz is a “type” of Messiah, “Kinsman Redeemer” for Ruth and her mother-in-law, Naomi. The name “Boaz” means “Pillar in front of the Temple.”
Ruth’s name means “friend” and she is a “type” of the Gentile Christian Church. Naomi’s name means “beautiful, pleasant” and she is a “type” of the House of Israel & Judah.
When Naomi returned to Bethlehem-Judah, she said to the women of her hometown, “Don’t call me Naomi, call me ‘Mara’ for YaHuWaH has dealt bitterly with me…” (Ruth 1:20).
Israel was once a beautiful and pleasant bride to YaHuWaH, but she became “bitter” yet, she dried up, and lost her ability to bear children (see Ezekiel 19:10-14 and Isaiah 54:1-4).
Like Israel, Naomi was too old to bear children, she could not marry her dead husband’s close relative (Boaz) as the Levirate Marriage requires (Deuteronomy 25:5-10).
However, Ruth became like a biological daughter to Naomi when she joined the Tribe of Judah and “crossed over.”
Ruth made it possible for Naomi to redeem the land of her dead husband’s inheritance!
When Ruth & Boaz were married, they gave birth to a son, and named him “Obed,” which means “SERVANT” in Hebrew!
Matthew 20:28 “….the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to SERVE, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
Ruth is like the Christian Church after they “crossover” from being a Gentile, and becoming a “friend” of Israel.
When those in the Church become like Ruth, (by leaving behind all their pagan holidays to join Israel), this will enable Israel (typified in Naomi) to redeem their inheritance!
The “Woman” who is pregnant in Revelation 12 is the bride of Messiah, and she will give birth to a “MANCHILD” or the resurrected and redeemed ONE NEW MAN! (see Ephesians 2:15).
Even though Naomi could not bear a son of her own, her daughter-in-law gave her a “male heir” so that she could inherit her land again. Naomi needed Ruth, and Ruth needed Naomi in order for them to both get what they wanted!
The Christian Church needs Israel, but they must first leave behind all their pagan traditions, and join the House of Israel in order to marry the bridegroom.
Like Ruth, the bride of Messiah must join his tribe “BEFORE” she marries him!
And thus, you can see why I made the declaration “Unless You are a Friend of Israel, You Cannot Be the Bride of Messiah!”
We live in a time in history where all nations of the earth are turning their backs on the nation of Israel. Many people who call themselves “followers of Messiah” are even turning against the nation of Israel and claiming that they are not the true “Israel” of the scriptures.
They claim that because the Zionists, the Rothschild family, the Global Elite bankers, and the Illuminati are responsible for funding the rebirth of Israel in 1948, that it cannot be the true Israel of the scriptures.
Some people argue that “Israel” comprises the people who belong to the Messiah, worldwide, and to that, I say “Yes, absolutely!”
But Israel also comprises the “LAND” that was given to Abraham and to his descendants----that is the earthly descendants (those who are literally from his lineage) and those who are “born from above” or “born-again.”
Remember that Abraham has two kinds of seed according to Genesis 22:17 & Genesis 32:12:
1.) Sands on the seashore, which represents earthly descendants.
2.) Stars in the heavens, which represents those who are born from above.
So when we speak of Israel, we must realize that it includes the LAND, AND THE PEOPLE OF THE COVENANT WORLDWIDE!
Pictured below are two illustrations showing the true borders of Israel promised to Abraham and his descendants:
Genesis 15:18 In the same day YHWH made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto your seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates.
Who Qualifies to Inherit the Land Borders Given to Abraham?
Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Messiah Yahuwshuwa.
*Note: The above words of Paul the Apostle are often taken out of context to mean that nobody gets to call themselves a “Jew” or a “Yahuwdiy,” now that we belong to Messiah. To apply this interpretation would defy the same words of Paul where he said the following:
Romans 2:28 For he is not a Yahuwdiy (Jew), which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
*Note: this verse is often taken to mean that being a Jew ethnically, religiously or by DNA disqualifies you from being a true Jew. That is not what Paul is saying! He is saying that it is not enough to qualify you in the end. Even if you are a Jew ethnically, religiously and by DNA, ultimately, you will not be counted as a Jew if you are not ALSO “born from above” or born again!
It means that you can be a true Jew by ethnic background, by DNA or religious conversion, and yet, if you don’t have the Messiah Yahuwshuwa as your savior, all the other qualifications won’t matter!
The final and ultimate qualification that trumps all the other qualifications is that you must have your heart circumcised or in other words “born again” by the Spirit of YaHuWaH!
This means that you must have “good works” to show that you have repented of sin:
Romans 2:29 But he is a Yahuwdiy (Jew), which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of Elohiym.
Our Messiah made the comparison between “True & False” Jews to only two Assemblies in the book of Revelation: Smyrna & Philadelphia.
In Revelation 2:9 & 3:9 he said to both of these Congregations:
Revelation 2:9 I know your works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but you are rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Yahuwdiym (Jews), and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.
Revelation 3:8-9 I know your works: behold, I have set before you an open door, and no man can shut it: for you have a little strength, and have kept my word, and have not denied my name. Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Yahuwdiym (Jews), and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you.
Why did our Messiah compare Smyrna & Philadelphia to TRUE JEWS?
Because they had GOOD WORKS!
They obey his WORD & they know him by NAME!
Paul also explains that if you belong to Messiah you are Abraham’s “seed” or his physical descendant! The Greek word for “seed” is “sperma” which means we literally become Abraham’s DNA through Messiah, Yahuwshuwa! Remember, Abraham entered into a “blood covenant” with YaHuWaH, and if you also enter into that same “blood covenant” through Messiah, you are related to Abraham by blood!
Galatians 3:29 And if you be Messiah’s, then are you Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Those who make the claim that the Modern State of Israel is illegitimate because it was largely funded by the Global Elite Bankers such as the Rothschild family are using faulty logic and reasoning. We read in Exodus 12:35 that the wealth of the Egyptians paid for the Exodus of Israel “And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment.”
Proverbs 13:22 tells us that the “Wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.”
And finally, if you are in the company of those who hate, slander, and disqualify all the Yahuwdiym (Jews) who live in the land of Israel, then you should be aware that you are in the company of those who will be destroyed:
Zechariah 12:7 YHWH also shall save the tents of Yahuwdah (Judah) first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Yahuwdah (Judah).
Zechariah 12:8 In that day shall YHWH defend the inhabitants of Yerushalayim (Jerusalem); and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as Elohiym, as the Messenger of the YHWH before them.
Zechariah 12:9 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Yerushalayim (Jerusalem).
Zechariah 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Yerushalayim (Jerusalem), the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.
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See these blogs: 
Trump also called the “Vaccination,” “A GREAT CHRISTMAS MIRACLE” (Revelation 13:14-18; 2nd Thessalonians 2:9).
See these links:
18.) The “Beast” shall suffer a deadly wound by a sword, and shall live (recover).
The Greek word for “sword” (machaira) means “Judicial Punishment.” 
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