Lesson 20: “All the City … Doth Know That Thou Art a Virtuous Woman” - Scriptures and Quotes

Lesson 20: “All the City … Doth Know That Thou Art a Virtuous Woman”

Scriptures and Quotes

Reading 1 – Ruth 1:1-2

Reading 2 – Ruth 1:3-8

Reading 3 – Ruth 1:14-17

Reading 4 – 2 Nephi 26:33

Ruth 1:19-21

Reading 5 – Elder Richard G. Scott has said: Just when all seems to be going right, challenges often come in multiple doses applied simultaneously. When those trials are not consequences of your disobedience, they are evidence that the Lord feels you are prepared to grow more (see Prov. 3:11-12). He therefore gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain (Elder Richard G. Scott, C.R., Oct 1995, p.18).

Reading 6 – Ruth 2:1-3

"Harvesting was difficult work and demanded long hours. Young men moved through the fields grasping handfuls of the grain and cutting through the stalks with sickles. These small bunches of grain were then bound into bundles called sheaves. As the men worked rapidly, a number of stalks fell to the ground. If the men were careful and took the time, these too could be gathered up. However, any stalks that dropped were allowed to remain where they fell. Poor people, following the reapers, were permitted to 'glean,' or gather, the random stalks--possibly all that stood between them and starvation. In addition, the edges of the field, where the sickle was not as easily wielded, were left unharvested. The poor were welcome to that portion, as well." (Old Testament Student Manual, pp262-263)

Reading 7 – Ruth 2:5-7, 11

Ruth 2:20

Reading 8 – Bible Dictionary - Levirate marriage - The custom of a widow marrying her deceased husband’s brother or sometimes a near heir. The word has nothing to do with the name Levi or the biblical Levites but is so called because of the Latin levir, meaning “husband’s brother,” connected with the English suffix -ate, thus constituting levirate. This system of marriage is designated in Deut. 25:5–10 (see also Gen. 38:8), is spoken of in Matt. 22:23–33; it also forms a major aspect of the story of Ruth (Ruth 4:1–12).

Ruth 3:6-12

Ruth 4:13-15

Reading 10 - President Thomas S. Monson stated:  "In our selection of heroes, let us nominate also heroines. First, that noble example of fidelity--even Ruth. Sensing the grief-stricken heart of her mother-in-law, who suffered the loss of each of her two fine sons, and feeling perhaps the pangs of despair and loneliness which plagued the very soul of Naomi, Ruth uttered what has became that classic statement of loyalty: 'Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God.' Ruth's actions demonstrated the sincerity of her words. There is place for her name in the Hall of Fame." (Ensign, Nov 1974, p108)

Reading 11 – 1 Samuel 1:1-2

Reading 12 – 1 Samuel 1:9-12, 17, 20

1 Samuel 1:24-29

Reading 13 – Elder Matthew Cowley said - You remember Hannah who wanted a child and she went to the sanctuary to pray . . . a prayer from her heart to God that she might bear a child. And how earnest she was in that prayer, so earnest, so sincere, that she said, "If God will give me this child, I will lend him to the Lord for this life." (See 1 Sam. 1:11.) How well the mothers know that life is eternal. How well she knew that in lending this child to the Lord for this life, that beyond and down through the ages of eternity, he would be her child, and she would be his mother (Matthew Cowley, Conference Report, October 1953, pp. 106-109).