Woman Behold Your Son!

Today is Good Friday and April is National Poetry Month.
Taking the two into consideration, I approached this week’s article with rhyme and rhythm.

This poem is based on John 19:26 (NKJV) which is said to be the third say of Jesus during the crucifixion. It reads as follows – When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!”

Woman behold your son!
Some might say My tone was not respectful
When I called you woman, instead of mother
Yes, I was out-of-pocket when I stepped outside the realm of our bond
So that even through My broken pieces you’d hear the peace within My spirit
And not be tranced by the visible trauma of My condition.

I saw you see Me.
I saw the pain in your eyes.
I saw you there, shaken by the tears of your grief, trying to hold it together
And that’s when I mustered up the strength to speak

Woman behold your son!
I spoke these four words to create the opportunity for the continuity of a familiar relationship
With the concentrated understanding that family goes beyond blood
And since mine had been shed, pouring the life out of Me
I wanted to pour life back into you and assure you that there would be someone
To assist you on this newfound journey without Me

Woman, behold your son!
This is not to say that I am no longer one
It’s just that now you have another to whom you can be a mother

Woman, behold your son!
Receive the offering of connection, consolation, and care
By way of one who will be present for you
In even greater ways than you have been for others

Woman behold your son!
Behold the one who will give you safe space to process the unbelievable reality
That I was indeed crucified and gave My life
Woman behold your son!
It wasn’t just a statement of encouragement then
It’s an invitation to engage in now.

Woman behold your son!
Be aware that the steps you take when you make decisions
Will shape the way he operates in the future.

Behold your son!
Behold the words you speak into his life
That determine when he takes flight
Or if he experiences a failure to launch into destiny

Behold your son!
Be the example of healthy emotional expression
So that he does not repress his feelings or feel that anger is the only way

Behold your son!
Behold his dreams, behold his ideas, and that which makes him smile
Behold his tears, his hurt, and the things that frown his brow

Woman behold your son!
Woman, see your son!
See his heart and how he puts effort
To attain and maintain success in all his endeavors

Woman behold your son!
Woman here is your son!
Here is hope realized
Here is the promise fulfilled
That I will never leave nor forsake you or him.

Woman behold your son and be held by love.

©2026 RaeKarim

Contact Rev. Rae Karim at rae.karim@gmail.com.

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RAE KARIM

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