Matthew 11:16

Whereunto shall I liken? A common Jewish formula for introducing a parable. In vs. 7-15 Jesus directed the thinking of the people to the nature and purpose of John’s mission; now (vs. 16-24) He turns to the reception accorded His own mission by the people of Israel, in comparison with the reception accorded John and his work.

This generation. Luke says, “the men of this generation” (Luke 7:31). Christ refers, of course, to the people of Israel living at the time He spoke, particularly to all who had heard John and later Jesus Himself announce the Messianic kingdom, and had witnessed the “mighty works” (Matt. 11:21, 23) that accompanied its proclamation. “This generation” had been accorded privileges far greater than those of any generation of OT times. But despite these unprecedented opportunities very few had “ears to hear” (see on v. 15), to perceive the true significance of the mission of John the Baptist and that of Jesus. For their part, the scribes and Pharisees openly rejected Christ and proclaimed Him an impostor (see DA 213), though they still hesitated to take the same attitude toward John the Baptist, openly at least (see ch. 21:23-27). The common people “counted John, that he was a prophet indeed” (Mark 11:32); later they heard Christ gladly (see Mark 12:37), and eventually many of them concluded that He too must be a prophet (see Matt. 16:13, 14). Christ’s remarks here and in succeeding verses are, accordingly, applicable to the Jewish leaders in particular, and in a more general sense to Israel as a whole.

John the Baptist is the bridge between the OT and the NT (see DA 220). The OT closed with a prophecy that he would come (see on Mal. 3:1; 4:5, 6), and the NT opens with a record of a fulfillment of that prophecy (see Matt. 3:1-3; Mark 1:1-3). The prophetic messages of the OT prophets all focus on the coming of the Messiah and on the preparation of a people ready to meet Him (see Matt. 11:13, 14). With John, the old reached its climax and gave way to the new. The same generation that heard John also witnessed the coming of Messiah and the establishment of His kingdom; furthermore, it was this same generation that eventually witnessed the complete fulfillment of all that the OT prophets had predicted concerning Jerusalem and the Jewish nation (see on chs. 23:36; 24:15-20, 34).

Children. Literally, “little children.” The scene here described is familiar to any Oriental town or village, where the street serves as a playground as well as a thoroughfare and market place.

Markets. Gr. agorai, “assemblies,” or “places of public assembly,” and hence gathering places for trade and talk. Originally the “market place” had nothing to do with buying and selling, but eventually, when buildings were provided for the transaction of civic affairs, it became primarily a place of trade. In cities there would be a large public square, while in the villages the “market place” would be simply the village street.