Paying Caesar’s Tax

As you know, Jesus has slowly been gaining the support of the common people, often at the cost of antagonising those in power. And so there’s this tension that’s been building in the gospel story so far. The Pharisees and the Herodians, who by the way hate each other, would love to get rid of Jesus but know that if they do anything the people will rise against them. So their plan in this passage is actually ingenious.

Mark 12:13 And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk. 14 And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” 

Rome had conquered Israel at this point and everyone was living under Roman rule. The Pharisees are the religious leaders who are anti-Rome. The Herodians are like the political leaders who are pro-Rome. That’s where they get their power from. Pharisees are anti-Rome; Herodians are pro-Rome. This is why you often find the Pharisees and Herodians don’t get along well. But for Jesus, they do. They get together to figure out how to get rid of Jesus.

And they use the Roman imperial tax. Now you need to know that this is not like the tax we pay to the ATO today. Ordinary people paid taxes back then. There were civil taxes and temple taxes. No one questions those taxes. This tax to Caesar is on top of that. It’s a tiny amount but that’s not the point. The point is it reminds you who’s in charge. You pay it to show loyalty to Caesar.

Should we pay or should we not? And if Jesus says yes, then he’ll lose the support of the people. If he says no, then he’ll offend the Romans. So yes or no, you still lose. You guys all get that right? That’s not actually the trap. If you think it is, you’ve already fallen for it. It’s so easy to read this and miss what the real trap is. And you’ve got to admire their plan – these are not amateurs. They are all politicians. They know how the game is played.

What they come up with is actually brilliant. The question is not so much designed to get Jesus in trouble with one side or the other, but to undermine his character. Verse 14 is really telling.

14 And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone's opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” 

What they say in verse 14 is true. Jesus is known as someone who tells the truth and doesn’t care about what others think. Everyone knows that. So the Pharisees and Herodians are not trying to flatter Jesus because why would someone who doesn’t care about people’s opinion be flattered by your opinion of him? Verse 14 is not a hypocritical attempt at flattery. It is what they are attacking. They don’t really care if Jesus is pro-Rome or anti-Rome. What they want is for people to see Jesus as part of the political game. And they’ll use that to attack his character.  

If Jesus says yes pay the tax, then they can say see Jesus is pro-Rome. He doesn’t actually teach the way of God. If Jesus says no don’t pay the tax, then they can say see Jesus is just like any other political party of the day. He has a political agenda. The goal is to undermine his character you see. You can’t trust what Jesus says.

This is why this passage is so relevant to us as well. Verse 14 is the context for what they want to attack.

Imagine someone says to Jamie Oliver so you’re a famous chef right. You’re always talking about eating fresh food and heathy and all that right? Tell me, why do you own so many Mac Donald’s restaurants? You see what that does?

This is about Jesus’ character. Is he genuine or is it just a front? Does he really teach the way of God or is everything just a show? We live in a world of TV evangelists, celebrity endorsements, social media influencers. Don’t you think this question is so relevant? Can you trust Jesus? If you get this wrong, then it doesn’t really matter what Jesus says or does. If you can’t trust Jesus, it doesn’t matter if he’s pro or anti-Rome. So what if he died on the cross? Who knows maybe he’s getting paid to do it? You see how ingenious the trap is? You can undermine everything Jesus will say or do in the future. Look how Jesus responds.

15 But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 

Stop here and think about this. This is mind blowing. Jesus says a lot of crazy things and this is right up there. I don’t know if you noticed it, but Jesus says bring me a denarius. A denarius is like the average day laborers wage at the time; it’s not a lot of money. And Jesus has to ask for one. Did you notice that? He doesn’t even have a single denarius on him. Think about that for a minute.

Why do you think the poor and the homeless were so attracted to Jesus and the rich and powerful felt so threatened by him? It’s because the poor could see that Jesus wasn’t in it for the money, and the rich could see that Jesus can’t be bought with money. Look at him – he doesn’t even have a single denarius. When he died, he left nothing behind because he had nothing.

That’s why this question about taxes is so important. Because if they can get Jesus to pick a side, then they’ll have something to use against him. Otherwise, they have nothing on him. He doesn’t care about money – he doesn’t even have a single denarius. And so look at verse 16.

16 And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar's.” 17 Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” And they marveled at him.

There is a play on words here. Because now it’s Jesus’ turn to lay a trap. Can you spot it?

When Jesus asks whose likeness and inscription is this, the word he uses is the word for image. Who’s image is this? This is important because Jesus then says give to Caesar the things that are Caesars. Give to Caesar what was made in Caesar’s image. Give to God the things that are God’s. What things? You! Give to God what is made in God’s image. You see where Jesus is going with this?

It’s a trap because if you were a Pharisee and you were against paying the tax, the question is why do you still carry around something that belongs to Caesar? It’s like you claim the system is corrupt and bad, but still want to enjoy the benefits of it. It’s hypocritical.

If you were a Herodian and were in favor of the tax, the question is do you also honor God with not just your money, but everything else?

Let’s look at the last verse again.

17 Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” 

What things belong to God? You! That’s the point for us.

Give yourself to God because you belong to him.