"Matthew 24: 19 And woe unto them that are
with child, and to them that give suck in those days!"
There are many warnings written about the end times in Matthew 24. Within it, there is the description that "woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck." In contemporary language, we would say those who nurse a child, or those who breast feed. Why is this warning given?
The end days are actually days of hardship and flight. Therefore, women with child or nursing a child will have the added difficulty of not only fending for themselves but a child besides. The Bible describes it as a time of "woe," which refers to a time of judgment.
But, why does the Bible single out nursing women? As I already mentioned, women with child or nursing a child may actually have a more difficult time. Because they have to care for the child as well as themselves. If she must carry a suckling, she can not flee quickly. If the enemy comes into her town, it may take too much time to run away to another town. But, we know there are other kinds of people who would find it even more difficult to run away. Old people may have weak legs and take way too much time to flee. How about developmentally disabled people who use crutches or wheel chairs? They would take more time. Not only them, but how about the sick who are bedridden and unable to move? They would face a greater woe, wouldn't they?
But, the Bible only mentions women who are pregnant or those who support a nursing child and it seems to do this intentionally. And it does not bring up other people like the disabled, the aged, or the sick. Therefore, we can imagine there is something special deposited in the phrase "them that are with child, and to them that give suck". I think this word is also a parable, like some other words in Matthew chapter 24. If so, let's understand this parable. The common point between a pregnant woman and a woman who has a suckling is the baby (child). What is the meaning of baby or child in the Bible? A child comes from human parents. But, the Bible talks about one other parent-child relationship. That is to say, the relationship between a spiritual father and son relationship.
For instance, Paul wrote "in Christ Jesus I have begotten you" about his child in Christ, that is a person he lead to Christ personally.
" 1 Cor.4:15 For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel."
That is to say, a new born again Christian is the child, and the person who leads him to salvation is his father or mother. And a believer just saved is the nursing baby, and the people who seek for Jesus but not yet saved would be the child in its mother's womb.
The Epistle Of Peter Talks About Sucklings.
1 Peter 2:2 "As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby."
From this verse we can see that newborn babes-newly saved believers are sucklings. It says to us, "desire the sincere milk of the word." Please pay attention to this phrase "milk of the word." For new borns it is necessary for them to have their sweet milk, the word of God.
The tribulation days mark the period when God's word will not be available. This is the condition that the Lord is describing through the phrase "them that are with child, and to them that give suck." In the book of Amos it tells about this day:
Amos 8:11 "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD."
In this famine of the word, just as a baby cannot grow without milk, neither can a spiritual new born grow without God's word. I think the time will come when we can no longer hear the true message of God's word as we have already witnessed in this century in some communist countries. Therefore, we have to know the real meaning hidden in the word "them that are with child, and to them that give suck."
Let's do the will of God in these last days.
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