Jesus pictures children calling to one another in a marketplace: they play the flute but receive no dancing, and they sing a dirge but receive no mourning.
Jesus in Context
Children Playing in the Marketplace
Jesus compares His generation to children who imitate celebration and mourning but complain when their companions refuse to respond.
Introduction
Historical and Cultural Context
The marketplace was a public area in which community as well as commercial life occurred. Children could observe and imitate familiar adult activities. Jesus' two scenes reproduce opposite social occasions—celebration accompanied by music and mourning accompanied by lamentation.
Why It Matters
The cultural contrast explains Jesus' comparison. His contemporaries find fault both with John's austere manner and with Jesus' more socially engaged ministry, responding appropriately to neither.