Luke 7:31

31 "To what then shall I compare the men of this generation, and what are they like?

Luke 7:31 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 7:31

And the Lord said
This clause is not in the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic versions, nor in some copies, nor in Beza's most ancient copy; and being omitted, more clearly shows, that the two former verses are the words of Christ, and not an observation the evangelist makes, on the different behaviour of Christ's hearers, upon the commendation he had given of John:

whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation;
or "to what men shall I liken them", as the Persic version: the phrase "men of this generation", is Rabbinical; so (yvwa awhh ard) , the men of that "generation", are more beautiful in work than these, says the Targumist on ( Ecclesiastes 7:11 ) . "And to what are they like?" To that which follows.

Luke 7:31 In-Context

29 When all the people and the tax collectors heard this, they acknowledged God's justice, having been baptized with the baptism of John.

30 But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God's purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John.

31 "To what then shall I compare the men of this generation, and what are they like?

32 "They are like children who sit in the market place and call to one another, and they say, 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.'

33 "For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, 'He has a demon!'