Devine Scripture

Matthew 24:19

What does Matthew 24:19 mean?

A plain-English look at Matthew 24:19 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.

What Matthew 24:19 means

Jesus expresses deep concern and warns, "But woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days!" This highlights the immense difficulty and added suffering that pregnant women and nursing mothers will face during this rapid and desperate flight. Their physical limitations and the needs of their infants will make immediate escape and survival exceptionally challenging. It underscores the severity of the tribulation and evokes compassion for those in particularly vulnerable circumstances.

Parallel translations

WEB

World English Bible · 2000

But woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days!

KJV

King James Version · 1611

And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!

ASV

American Standard Version · 1901

But woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days!

BBE

Bible in Basic English · 1949

But it will be hard for women who are with child and for those with babies at the breast in those days.

YLT

Young's Literal Translation · 1862

`And woe to those with child, and to those giving suck in those days;

DRA

Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752

And woe to them that are with child and that give suck in those days.

DBY

Darby Bible · 1890

But woe to those that are with child, and those that give suck in those days.

Context

Following the urgent commands for flight and the illustrations of necessary haste, this verse expresses a particular lament for those who will face extreme difficulty in fleeing. It specifically highlights the vulnerability of pregnant and nursing women, adding another layer of gravity to the harsh realities of the impending tribulation and leading into a prayer request for mitigating circumstances.

v.18and let him that is in the field not return back to take his cloak.

v.19This passage

v.20And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on a sabbath:

Cross references

Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

  • 2 Samuel 4:4

    Now Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel; and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.

  • Luke 23:29

    For behold, the days are coming, in which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the breasts that never gave suck.

  • Deuteronomy 28:53

    And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, whom Jehovah thy God hath given thee, in the siege and in the distress wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee.

  • 2 Kings 15:16

    Then Menahem smote Tiphsah, and all that were therein, and the borders thereof, from Tirzah: because they opened not to him, therefore he smote it; and all the women therein that were with child he ripped up.

  • Luke 21:23

    Woe unto them that are with child and to them that give suck in those days! for there shall be great distress upon the land, and wrath unto this people.

  • Lamentations 4:3

    Even the jackals draw out the breast, they give suck to their young ones: The daughter of my people is become cruel, like the ostriches in the wilderness.

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