She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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Revelation 12:2
What does Revelation 12:2 mean?
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Revelation 12:2
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The verse emphasizes not just the pain of giving birth, but the anguish and torment that accompany it, highlighting the profound struggle involved in bringing forth something new and significant into the world. This isn't merely discomfort, but a deep, agonizing process, suggesting the immense cost and spiritual labor required for divine purposes to be realized.
She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This vision depicts a woman, symbolizing God's people or the church, who is pregnant and in the intense pain of labor. This imagery suggests a period of great struggle and anticipation, hinting at the imminent birth of a significant figure or the emergence of God's kingdom amidst suffering and opposition. It sets the stage for the appearance of a formidable enemy who will seek to thwart this divine purpose.
Why is the church described as 'crying out' and in 'birth pains'? This isn't just about external persecution.
This imagery speaks to the profound struggle involved in bringing God's kingdom into reality. It's the tension between God's eternal purposes and the brokenness of the world.
A Cosmic Struggle
The woman, representing God's people, is pregnant with a divine purpose. Her cries are not just groans of pain, but the fervent prayers and deep longings of the saints for God's will to be done on earth.
The Cost of Creation
Just as childbirth is a painful, demanding process, so too is the spiritual birth of God's purposes in the world. It requires immense effort, suffering, and persistence, echoing the primal curse but transformed into a force for new life.
This powerful image of childbirth draws on ancient experiences of both struggle and hope.
The depiction of the woman in agony connects to deep-seated biblical themes:
Genesis 3:16 and the Fall
There's a clear echo of God's words to Eve after the fall: 'I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; you shall bring forth children in pain' (Genesis 3:16). This signifies that bringing forth new life, whether physical or spiritual, in a fallen world is inherently costly.
Ancient Hope for a Redeemer
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This pain also mirrors the longing of the faithful in Old Testament times for the promised Messiah. Like a woman in prolonged labor, they yearned for the deliverance that only God's Anointed could bring. This verse captures that intense anticipation for the coming of God's kingdom and its King.
This imagery of agonizing childbirth speaks to the intense spiritual labor and suffering involved in the birth and expansion of God's kingdom, highlighting that new life in faith often comes through deep struggle.
c. 1st century AD— this verse
Church's Early Growth and Suffering
The early Christian church, symbolized as a woman, experiences rapid growth but also intense persecution from Roman authorities, leading to suffering and spiritual travail.
c. AD 64-313
Roman Persecutions of Christians
A series of severe persecutions against Christians occur across the Roman Empire, most notably under emperors like Nero and Diocletian, testing the faith and endurance of believers.
c. AD 313
Edict of Milan
Emperor Constantine grants religious tolerance throughout the Roman Empire with the Edict of Milan, effectively ending widespread persecution of Christians.
c. 4th-5th centuries AD
Rise of the Papacy
The Bishop of Rome begins to assert increasing authority, leading to the development of the Papacy within the Christian church.
This passage uses the imagery of a woman in labor pains to describe the suffering and travail of God's people, mirroring the agony depicted in Revelation 12:2.
Isaiah 66:7This prophecy describes a nation being 'born' in a day, with a sense of sudden, painful birth, resonating with the intense labor pains of the woman in Revelation.
Micah 4:10Similar to Revelation, this verse depicts a woman in Zion going out into the field and experiencing labor pains, highlighting the suffering that precedes deliverance.
John 16:21Jesus Himself uses the analogy of a woman's travail to explain the suffering that precedes joy, a concept that deeply informs the understanding of the woman's pain in Revelation.
Romans 8:22Paul speaks of all creation groaning and travailing in pain together, an echo of the cosmic struggle and suffering that seems to be represented by the woman's birth pains.
ellicottRevelation 12:2: "And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered."
(2) And she . . . —Better, And being with child , she crieth, travailing , and tormented to bring forth. All life dawns in anguish, according to the ancient fiat ( Genesis 3:16 ); but this is not all. There is an anguish of the Church which Christ laid upon her; it is the law of her life that she must bring forth Christ to the world; it is not simply that she must encounter pain, but that she can…
clarkeRevelation 12:2: "And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered."
And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, etc. - This, when taken in connection with the following verses, is a striking figure of the great persecution which the Church of Christ should suffer under the heathen Roman emperors, but more especially of that long and most dreadful one under Diocletian. The woman is represented as Being with child, to show that the time would speedily arri…
The verse emphasizes not just the pain of giving birth, but the anguish and torment that accompany it, highlighting the profound struggle involved in bringing forth something new and significant into the world. This isn't merely discomfort, but a deep, agonizing process, suggesting the immense cost and spiritual labor required for divine purposes to be realized.
This vision depicts a woman, symbolizing God's people or the church, who is pregnant and in the intense pain of labor. This imagery suggests a period of great struggle and anticipation, hinting at the imminent birth of a significant figure or the emergence of God's kingdom amidst suffering and opposition. It sets the stage for the appearance of a formidable enemy who will seek to thwart this divine purpose.
This vision depicts a woman, symbolizing God's people or the church, who is pregnant and in the intense pain of labor. This imagery suggests a period of great struggle and anticipation, hinting at the imminent birth of a significant figure or the emergence of God's kingdom amidst suffering and opposition. It sets the stage for the appearance of a formidable enemy who will seek to thwart this divine purpose.
"She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth." — The verse emphasizes not just the pain of giving birth, but the anguish and torment that accompany it, highlighting the profound struggle involved in bringing forth something new and significant…
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Last reviewed October 2026