Ruth & Esther are two of the most fascinating and unusual books in the Bible. They are the only books that focus on the lives of women and reveal the way God is at work in their situations. There are aspects of these books which are difficult for us to understand in 21st Century Scotland as they occur in a different culture from us, with practices we often don’t fully understand. David Strain has done a great job of opening up this culture to us and helping us to understand what is going on in these books. He is honest about the difficult situations we meet in the lives of Ruth and Esther – for example he exposes Naomi’s awful plan in Chapter 3 of Ruth for what it is and at the same times shows the integrity of Ruth and Boaz. He constantly shows us the connections between the events in these books and our lives today – seeing both in light of Jesus. David Strain’s book is a wonderful commentary on the books of Ruth & Esther that should be read both by the preacher of God’s word and the ordinary believer who wants to understand God’s word better.

Stephen Allison, Kiltarlity Free Church