He Paid the Ultimate Tax with the Only True Coin

“You Are True”

(Matthew 22:15-22, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, March 30, 2008)

Matthew 22:15-22 ¹⁵ Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his talk. ¹⁶ And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone's opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. ¹⁷ Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" ¹⁸ But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, "Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? ¹⁹ Show me the coin for the tax." And they brought him a denarius. ²⁰ And Jesus said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" ²¹ They said, "Caesar's." Then he said to them, "Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." ²² When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.

Introduction – Pharisees, Herodians, Romans, Sadducees, Scribes, Crowds, and a Few Disciples

John’s gospel tells us in the opening verses that when Jesus came to His own people, they did not receive Him. Jesus was a Jew. There were various groups of Jews in the first century that we read about in the New Testament. These groups can easily become very confusing to us. The Pharisees, often associated with the scribes, who were teachers of the law, are mentioned in the Bible more than any other group. They came into significant conflict with Jesus concerning their additions to divine law through their traditions and interpretations. The Herodians were a group associated with the family of Herod, and who had a favorable attitude toward the dynasty of Herod. The two groups, Pharisees and Herodians, did not necessarily have much in common, but they found something to agree upon in their opposition to Jesus Christ.

All of these groups had to live within the context of Roman rule, and all of them had some connection to the politics of the day. It has always been a temptation among religious leaders to use the power of the state against their enemies. In today’s passage we see the Pharisees and Herodians trying to do just that. As Jesus is willingly moving toward the cross in a matter of days, these two groups are considering ways to get the Roman authorities involved in condemning Jesus. That will happen. Jesus will be killed by the Romans, but not according to the plan of the Pharisees.

The Plot (15)

We are told that it was the Pharisees that came up with the plot. The passage talks about something that a group of people did together. They plotted about how to get him into trouble. They took counsel together. It is bad enough to think of the things that we dream up when we are alone. It is an uglier evil when these things are shared with others and discussed until a plan emerges. Capabilities that God has given us for good that involve reasoning and discussing options can also be harnessed for some evil outcome. A State Department official once told me that incompetence can look very much like corruption. It is also true that not everything that looks like a conspiracy is necessarily an evil plot involving a group of people. This one was.

The plan was to trap him in His words with the right observers there in order to make a case to the Romans that He was a dangerous subversive that had to be eliminated. We should remind ourselves at this point that the eternal Son of God became man in order to die for sinners the death that they could not bear. This was His willing resolution known from before the foundation of the world, and expressed in various ways throughout the Old Testament Scriptures. There are so many things to say here. They are trying to kill the man that may soon save them by His death. They are attempting to trap God by surprise. Think about that. It cannot be done. God has planned something for our eternal good from before the creation of the world, and some religious people are meeting a few days before his death to make a plot. If they insist on plotting against God, they are sorely mismatched. They were going to get Him to say the wrong word. He is the Word that holds everything together throughout the universe, and who created all things. One thing He never has is a mistaken Word. His Word keeps all creation going. His Word is the thing that keeps the church together. How many times has His Word rescued You out of hopelessness or given You a fresh sense of purpose? He is not going to say the wrong thing.

The Complement (16)

After agreeing on a plan, they go with the Herodians, hoping for success. They begin with a complement. People do this to take someone off their guard. They pose as supporters so that the speaker will let his guard down, and then they can come in with a key point that will draw some blood. He has the advantage. The end of John 2 tells us that Jesus knew what was in a man. He did not need anyone to tell him about people. He knew their malice.

Nonetheless, they gave Him a very interesting complement. It has four points. 1. We know that you are true. 2. You teach the way of God truthfully. 3. You don’t speak to win the approval of powerful people. 4. You are not swayed by appearances. All four of these points are absolutely true. Jesus is the Truth, all of His words are from God and are true, He is not afraid of what people can do to Him, and He does not do things based on outward appearances or some system of partiality. They could not have believed all these things, or they would not be trying to trap Him with their plot.

The Question (17)

The question that follows is the key to their plot. When people in Philippi wanted to be rid of the Apostle Paul they said that he and Silas were disturbing the city by advocating customs that were not lawful for Romans to accept or practice. They needed to employ the civil authorities, the ones who have prisons and swords, against their religious enemies. Let them do the killing. When Paul is brought before the civil authorities in Judea, a representative of the Jews claims that Paul stirs up riots among all the Jews. In these and other cases in the Bible, the hope is to make your religious opponent look like an enemy of the state.

The question they have come up with is perfect for the entrapment. “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” The specific tax in question was a poll tax. The Romans had made use of the temple tax in the biblical law, and they commanded the payment of this tax to the imperial treasury. Naturally this was deeply offensive to religious Jews. In addition, the tax was to be paid with a coin that bore an inscription that gave religious titles to the emperor. Reasonable people debated whether it was even lawful to participate in this. It is likely that many of the Pharisees think that it is not lawful to pay the tax, and that many of the Herodians think that it is both lawful and required. The purpose of the question, and the reason for the presence of the Herodians, is to get him to say that the tax was against the law of God. This will make him an enemy of the state. Of course, if He says that it is lawful to pay the tax there will be many people who will be against Him for that position. The flattery that introduced the question seems designed to push him into speaking out against the tax. “You don’t care what the powerful and oppressive Romans think. You always tell the truth, no matter what. You speak up for God’s way, not for some tax supporting pagans. Come on, Jesus. Speak up. Is it lawful to pay the poll tax to the Romans, a tax based on God’s law?”

The Truth (18-21)

The Lord knows that they hate Him. They are hypocrites. They are only playing a part. They are testing him with the hope that He will fail in such a way that He will be gone. His answer is wonderful. He asks for the coin that had to be used when paying the tax, the coin with that pagan inscription ascribing great religious titles to Caesar. “Whose image is this?” When Jesus starts asking you questions, you know the game is over. “It is Caesar’s image and inscription.” “Well then it must be his coin. Caesar has made claims about himself on that coin. You should give that back to him, but when you do that, don’t forget to give to King of kings the things that are His.”

A key word in the interchange is the Greek word from which we get the word icon. It means “image” and it is translated “likeness” here. It is the word used in the Greek Bible to speak of the image of God. The Apostle Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 4 that Jesus is the image of God. As we see Him in the Word, we are made more and more like Him. When man was created, Adam and Ever were made in God’s image. Even though sin has marred that image, it is still part of human dignity that every person, from the moment of conception, is made in the image of God. People don’t belong to Caesar. They belong to God. Give Caesar his money. I guess that is his due. We submit to lawful authority. But make sure that you give yourself wholly to God, for you were made in His image.

The Response (22)

What a question they asked to the man who came to die for our sins. He does not have to be forced to the cross. He is going there willingly. He is going there as the perfect image of God. The coins of the realm don’t hold up very well. Throughout history, when coins were made with precious metals, dishonest people would try to shave off something from the edge of the coin. That’s why our coins often have special ridges on them so that you can see quickly if you are getting a “true” coin. Coins get tarnished, and after a long time the inscription may become faded to the point where you need an expert to even see what it says. When Jesus paid the debt for our sin, that coin of the perfect image of God had to be perfect and full. Sin is what mars the image of God. Jesus had none of that.

What a question they asked Him, but what an answer He gave. In just a few days He was going to give His life to God for us. He calls us to give our lives to God. They had nothing they could say to Him. They left Him. We are not of those who leave Him. We are of those who are kept by Him, and so we stay with Him… forever. He is true.

Questions for meditation and discussion:

1. What are some things about which the Pharisees and Herodians could have disagreed? Why do they agree upon?

2. Is what the Pharisees are saying and doing in this passage sinful? How so? Consider the Ten Commandments?

3. Can a tax by the civil authorities be sinful? If so, can we rightly participate in such a tax? How about this tax?

4. How has Christ fulfilled His instruction in this passage? What are the implications of this for us? Civil? Moral?