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God faithfully answers when believers call to him out of need, or to meet the needs of others, and he is the sovereign one over creation with the power to do so (Is 30:19; 58:9; Mat 6:7-8; Phil 4:6-7; 1 Tim 2:1-3; 1 Jn 5:15.

Closely linked to God's work through answered prayer is the idea of providence, or divine intervention within circumstances. This concept has been made famous by the story of Esther, the second of only two books of the Bible to be named after women. God's intervention that saved the exiles from mass genocide came about through one Jewish girl's marriage and rise in power. The Lord's divine handiwork becomes clear when Esther realizes she has been put into place "for such a time as this" (Esther 4:14).

Another idea found in Ruth is the concept of hesed or loving-kindness. Found throughout the Old Testament, the idea of God's hesed becomes very closely linked to his covenantal loyalty.

"The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of [hesed] love" (Dt. 7:7-9).

Therefore, hesed cannot be properly expressed outside of relationship. It also cannot be properly expressed without action. One author has said it is, "a voluntary act of extraordinary mercy and generosity". Only God is capable of showing perfect loving-kindness, but those who have experienced hesed from God, can extend the same active, relational loving-kindness to others. In the book of Ruth, hesed is only used to describe the actions of people towards one another. However, this "contagious" kindness prompts extraordinary acts of kindness from others as well, and implicitly, through God's treatment of Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz, one sees that God is acting out of loving-kindness as well.

Finally, the book of Ruth subtly opens to the door to a theological theme that comes to light particularly in the book of Galatians: the idea of law and grace. For while Jewish law explicitly forbade Moabites from being admitted into the people of God (Dt 23:3), here we see Ruth not only being accepted, but God's ultimate purpose being accomplished through her! This story shows, as one author notes, that God's work "is greater than the law," and it should cause some reflection as to how one treats people.

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