What is the meaning of Luke 7:31? To what, then Jesus has just affirmed John the Baptist (Luke 7:24-28) and noted how tax collectors accepted God’s purpose while the Pharisees rejected it (Luke 7:29-30). Turning to the crowd, He says, “To what, then,” signaling that He is about to give an illustration that rightly evaluates their spiritual stance—much like He does in Matthew 11:16 with the same words. The phrase calls everyone to pause and listen for heaven’s verdict on their response to both John and Jesus. can I compare The Lord frequently uses comparisons to expose hearts (Mark 4:30; Isaiah 40:18). • Comparison sheds light: by placing something alongside, He reveals what might otherwise stay hidden. • Comparison demands decision: the listener must agree with His assessment or resist it. In this setting, comparison separates those who justified God (Luke 7:29) from the religious who nullified His counsel (Luke 7:30). the men of this generation? “Generation” refers to the people then living—especially the religious leaders who rejected both the Baptist’s call to repentance and the Messiah standing before them (Luke 9:41; 11:29-32). • They prided themselves on spiritual insight yet refused the clearest revelation. • Their pattern echoes the rebellious company Moses described: “They are a perverse and crooked generation” (Deuteronomy 32:5). Jesus’ question is not curiosity; it is indictment wrapped in invitation, giving them space to recognize their condition. What are they like? Verse 32 answers: “They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling out to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’” The point: • Childish fickleness—refusing both joyful and mournful tunes—mirrors how that generation dismissed John’s austerity (“he has a demon,” v.33) and Jesus’ gracious table fellowship (“a glutton and a drunkard,” v.34). • Hardened hearts set the terms, then fault God for not meeting them (Proverbs 14:6; John 3:19-20). • Constant exposure to truth without submission produces spiritual insensitivity (2 Timothy 3:7). summary Luke 7:31 captures Jesus pausing to compare His hearers to something recognizable so they cannot escape a verdict on their unbelief. By asking how to compare “the men of this generation,” He highlights their restless resistance to every divine overture—calling us to embrace, not critique, the varied ways God still reaches out through His Word and His Son. |
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