This book was, in a word, amazing. The full title of the book is "A Sweet and Bitter Providence: Sex, Race, and the Sovereignty of God", and it's by John Piper. You know when you have Piper writing about the sovereignty of God, you're in for a soul-stirring treat. It's a subject he seems to be particularly gifted at teaching on.
This book is based on a series of sermons Piper preached on the book of Ruth. (Coincidentally, just prior to picking up this book I had finished Francine Rivers' novella "Unshaken", which is a fictionalized version of Ruth. It appropriately set the stage for my digging deeper into this beautiful, amazing, story).
I've read the story of Ruth countless times, and thought I knew the story. Piper's book covers the familiar ground of the story, but then really digs into what is being taught - that it is not just a story about a widow in a strange land who benefits from the kindness of a "kinsman redeemer". Instead, Piper helps reveal what is really happening in the story: God's providence in all things (even when we don't recognize it as such), God's sovereignty over all things, God's "strategic righteousness", how all things are for His glory alone, and our call as followers to find refuge under His wings.
I highly recommend this book. It's short, and not a difficult read.
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