Situation:  Two women are talking/confiding with each other and one shares her perspective about some marital challenges she and her husband are experiencing.  The other woman responds, "at some point you have to put the well-being of the children first."

I'm interested in your interpretation of the quoted comment.

I think it would be difficult to interpret the meaning of that statement without knowing more of what difficulties were being discussed.

One is telling the other to eject...for the sake of the children.

Sure. The husband seems like he tries to be a good man, but comes across as totally whipped when it comes to his marriage.  That makes this particular conversation I heard more interesting.

Part of the conversation:
The wife: "He says that he refuses to be a doormat anymore."
The other woman: "When he says that he refuses to be a doormat anymore it really means, 'You are the doormat!'"
...
The other woman: "You're hard on yourself, and (the husband) is even harder on you."

She's giving the other woman the moral support to eject.

bump for new week.

First, keep in mind that there maybe far, far more to this conversation (marriage) that you know about.
Second: some people have a very good talent for portraying themselves as martyrs ("...seems like he tries to be a good man,...comes across as totally whipped..."), when, in actuality, they are controlling, mind-f***ing, psychologically abusive narcisists (sp?)...
Third: if you keep in mind that point 2 may be true, then the other woman advising the wife to get out of the marriage for the kids' sake really isn't that shocking or hard to interpret.
But, that's just one scenario.  Marriages and people are complex, so who knows what that one conversation really meant...

Thank you.  I appreciate your insight.

Based on the limited stuff of that conversation I would conclude that these two women have talked at length about whatever issues there are before and the one may believe that the husband is abusive - or potentially abusive in some way and that the other woman should consider this issue/s is already impacting their kids.

I wish to thank everyone for their replies.  I don't desire to involve myself in the situation but just appreciate the insight you've provided.  Hopefully the one woman and her husband will be able to find a productive solution, one way or another.

I suppose that overhearing the conversation just got me wondering what I can do to avoid finding myself in a similar situation someday.