My online friend, Val, has some wise words to share on her study of the barren womb never being satisfied. Do these verses apply only to women who have never had a child or are these verses applicable to women who have intentionally closed their wombs to more children? Read on to learn more in the study of God's Word! I wrote some follow up comments following Val’s commentary on Proverbs 30:15-17.
~ Lisa Metzger
To share some of what I've studied as to what the term 'barren womb' means in Prov. 30:15-17, I think it's very important to point out that we need to study its meaning by the context in which the words are found.
Proverbs 30:15-17 says, "The horseleach hath two daughters, crying, Give, give. There are three things that are never satisfied, yea, four things say not, It is enough: The grave; and the barren womb; the earth that is not filled with water; and the fire that saith not, It is enough."
From reading the context of this verse, I believe that it means exactly what it says about the barren womb being 'unsatisfied', rather than 'never having borne a child'(although it doesn't necessarily exclude that either). It also literally means, 'the closed womb', a phrase which is found in other places in scripture that refers to both the wombs of those who have born children, as well as those who have not.
The 'barren womb' here is compared with the grave, which, rather than being seen in this passage as something that has never been occupied, is rather, a thing that is always seeking to be filled with the bodies of those who die. The grave has 'never been satisfied' since death first entered into the world by Adam's sin, though it is filled day after day with dead people in an 'insatiable' way.
Again, 'the barren womb' in Prov. 30 is compared with fire that's always seeking more to consume, or earth that continues to soak up water. Neither of these other 'insatiable' examples given in the context of the verse about the barren womb are things that had nothing to start with, such as a womb that has 'never' had a child. There can be no fire without first providing the fuel to start one, after which there is 'no satisfying' the 'desire' of the flames for more fuel. Neither do we picture the earth in this verse as a desert that has never felt a drop of water, but rather a place that continues to seek for water time and again through the amazing water cycle that God has ordained to sustain life on earth.
Another way to perhaps grasp the meaning of this verse better is to think of it in relationship to eating. If a person never even gets a bite of food, you wouldn't likely refer to them as 'never being satisfied', because they're not even having a chance to be filled. We're more likely to refer to a glutton in the process of eating as someone who is 'never satisfied' no matter how much they are given to eat (or in this case of 'the barren womb', no matter how many children it has been filled with), rather than to say of a starving person who is without food that they are someone who 'is never satisfied'. It makes more sense to use this type of terminology with someone in the process of eating and being filled, than with someone who never even begins to eat. In the same way, the context suggests that no matter how many children one bears, their 'barren womb' is never satisfied.
The context even clarifies its meaning further by saying there are four things that never say 'it is enough', rather than referring to things that never have had the satisfaction of being filled with anything to begin with. I think the reference to fire really removes all doubt about its meaning here because you simply can't have fire without starting from the first spark, or flame, after which it will continue to consume as long as there is fuel to feed it. If compared identically to the other insatiable things in this verse, the empty womb will continually desire to be filled, no matter how many babies it holds. I hope I'm making sense in how important it is to study the scriptures in context and by how the word is used along with other words.
This is not to say that a womb that has never experienced conception is any less insatiable than one that has, but from the context, it seems that it's definitely referring to all empty wombs, whether of those who have never had children, or those who have. I just wanted to share my thoughts on this subject since another poster made it sound as if this passage only refers to those who have never had a child.
Blessings,
Val
Music That Encourages the Heart
www.valhalloran.org
www.valhalloran.com
To add to what was already said, I looked up the meaning/direct translation of the word "satisfied", and it means "to fill to satisfaction (literally or figuratively) - have enough, fill, be (to the) full (of), have plenty of, be satiate, satisfy (with), suffice." The term "barren" directly translates as "closure, constraint, close up, restrain, shut, withhold, keep (self-close; still) to hold back".
To me, that is crystal clear.....the womb is closed whether it was done intentionally or un-intentionally; temporarily or permanently, because of how barren is translated. When using birth control/sterilization, we are "self-clos[ing]" or "hold[ing] back" our wombs, and therefore, they are never satisfied. So, after looking at the original text, it is quite clear...the barren (closed) womb is never satisfied!
Also, on a side note, I have noticed very often that women who have decided to close their wombs temporarily or permanently through sterilization or by using birth control, mention how they need to hold my baby to get their "baby fix". I think this is an example of a barren womb that is never satisfied. They're intentionally closing their wombs and denying its satisfaction as God created it to be satisfied. That said, a woman should always submit to her husband's authority in this area, as long as she is not taking a life through hormonal birth control or surgical abortions, of course.
Very cool, Val! Thanks for sharing that Scripture!
~ Lisa Metzger
 Subscribe to God's Plan For Families
|
May. 12, 2009 - this blog
Thank you for these posts.