Luke 23:29

Tears bring consolation not to those who suffer willingly, but to those who suffer unwillingly. Therefore He forbids them to weep for Him, and urges them to turn their attention to the future calamities and to weep over those calamities, when women without pity will …

Fourth, as regards the prediction of imminent calamities, he adds: For behold, the days shall come in which they shall say: Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that have not borne, and the breasts that have not nursed. And this can be referred to …

For behold the days are coming,.... The time is hastening on; yet a little while, a few years more, and such times of distress will be: in the which they shall say; or it shall be commonly said; it will be in every one's mouth: blessed are the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps that never gave suck; that is, happy wilt those persons be who have no children, to be starved to death, for want of bread; or to be killed with the sword before their eyes, which must greatly enhance their own miseries.

These words must have sounded particularly terrible to the ears of a Jewish woman. To her, it was always a disgrace to be childless. The idea of a time coming when it would be a blessing to have no children — must have been a strange and fearsome thought to her mind. And yet within fifty years, this prediction of Christ was literally fulfilled! The siege of Jerusalem by the Roman army under Titus, brought down on all the inhabitants of the city the most horrible sufferings from famine and pestilence that can be conceived.

CAN you picture the scene? Jesus is given up by Pilate to the Jews that they may do their will with Him and, led by a small band of soldiers, He is conducted into the public street, bearing His Cross upon His shoulders. Perhaps they judged Him to be weary with His night of watching and worn with His suffering from the scourge, and they feared lest He might die upon the road and, therefore, with a cruel mercy, they laid hold upon one in the crowd who had too loudly expressed His sympathy, impressed him into military service and compelled him to assist in carrying the instrument of execution. You see the haughty scribes and the ribald throng—but the center of the spectacle, and the cause of it all was our Lord Himself—Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. We cannot paint Him. All who have ever attempted to do so have, to a large extent, been unsuccessful, for there was upon His face a mingled majesty and meekness, loveliness and lowliness, sanctity and sorrow which it would not be possible to express upon canvas or to represent in words. About His Person there were abundant marks of cruelty. He had been scourged. Everyone could see it. His own garments, which they had put upon Him, could not conceal the marks of the Roman lash. The traces of the crown of thorns were on His brow and the rough treatment of the soldiers had left its tokens, too, so that His visage was more marred than that of any man. And His form more than the sons of men. And now He is being led away to be put to the shameful death of the Cross. There were some glad eyes there, delighted that, at last, their victim was in their power and that the eloquent tongue which had exposed their hypocrisy would now be silenced in death. There, too, were the unfeeling Romans, to whom human life was a trifle. And all around, gathered in dense masses, the brutal mob, bribed to shout against their best Friend.

CAN you picture the scene? Jesus is given up by Pilate to the Jews that they may do their will with Him and, led by a small band of soldiers, He is conducted into the public street, bearing His Cross upon His shoulders.

These words must have sounded particularly terrible to the ears of a Jewish woman. To her, it was always a disgrace to be childless. The idea of a time coming when it would be a blessing to have no children — must have been a strange and fearsome thought to her mind. And yet within fifty years, this prediction of Christ was literally fulfilled! The siege of Jerusalem by the Roman army under Titus, brought down on all the inhabitants of the city the most horrible sufferings from famine and pestilence that can be conceived. Women are reported to have actually eaten their own children during the siege for lack of food. Upon none did the last judgments sent upon the Jewish nation fall so heavily, as upon the wives, the mothers, and the little children. Let us beware of supposing that the Lord Jesus holds out to man nothing but mercy, pardon, love, and forgiveness. Beyond all doubt, He is plenteous in mercy. His mercy is like a mighty stream. He "delights in mercy." But we must never forget that there is justice with Him — as well as mercy . He is preparing punishments for the impenitent and the unbelieving. There is wrath revealed in the Gospel, for those who harden themselves in wickedness. The same cloud which was bright to Israel — was dark to the Egyptians. The same Lord Jesus who invites the laboring and heavy-laden to come to Him and rest — declares most plainly that unless a man repents — he will certainly perish; and that he who does not believe — shall be damned. (Luke 13:3; Mark 16:16.) The same Savior who now holds out His hands to the disobedient and rebellious — will come one day "from Heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God, and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.