Boys and girls grew up together within the family, but they did not always prepare for the same adult responsibilities. As children became older, differences between the expected lives of men and women became more important.
Young boys and girls shared the same household world. Both needed care and both learned from the adults around them.
As they grew, their upbringing increasingly reflected the responsibilities they were expected to have as adults.
These expectations were shaped by family circumstances as well as by custom.
First-century Jewish society generally gave adult men and women different responsibilities.
Those differences affected the upbringing of children. Boys could be prepared for the work expected of adult men. Girls learned skills important to the work commonly performed by women.
This does not mean that every family divided work in exactly the same way.
Children learned much by watching adults of both sexes.
As they grew older, boys and girls could spend more time learning tasks connected with their expected adult roles.
The needs of the household could also require children to help wherever they were needed.
Archaeology rarely allows us to identify an ordinary household object as belonging specifically to a boy or a girl.
Written evidence therefore plays an especially important role in understanding gender expectations.
Jewish writings reflect different expectations for males and females. They also show that women played important roles within household and economic life.
We should be cautious about assuming that later rabbinic ideals describe every first-century family exactly.
Scripture speaks about both sons and daughters as members of the household.
Parents had responsibilities toward all their children, while some biblical laws and family customs distinguished between males and females.
The Gospels show Jesus responding with compassion to both boys and girls.
Jairus comes to Jesus because his daughter is dying. A father brings his suffering son to Jesus for help.
Both stories show the deep concern parents could have for their children.
Boys and girls grew up within the same family setting. Gender became increasingly important as they moved toward adult responsibilities.
Ancient Jewish society generally expected different adult roles from men and women.
We should not turn broad social expectations into rigid rules for every household.
Family resources and individual circumstances could affect the responsibilities given to a child.
Understanding the different expectations placed on boys and girls helps us picture ancient family life more clearly.
It also keeps us from simply projecting modern childhood patterns onto the families of the Gospels.