“‘Before she was in labor,
She gave birth.
Before her pain came upon her,
She delivered a son.
Who has heard of such a thing?
Who has seen such things?
Shall a land be born in one day?
Shall a nation be delivered in one moment?
Yet as soon as Zion was in labor
She delivered her children.
Shall I open the womb?
Shall I not deliver?’
Says Yahweh.
‘Shall I,
The one who delivers,
Shut the womb?’
Says your God.”
The birth or rebirth of Jerusalem will be miraculous. It will be like a woman who gives birth to a son before she has labor pains. Has anyone heard or seen such a thing? Can a country or nation come into existence in a moment? Yet Zion will deliver her children. Who would open her womb? Who would try to shut her womb? Yahweh, the great deliverer, will not shut the womb, but deliver Jerusalem and Israel in a new birth.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 