Monday 10/20/14

This week’s Monday Morning Bible Breakdown is on the Gospel: Matthew 22:15-21.

The Pharisees went off
and plotted how they might entrap Jesus in speech.
They sent their disciples to him, with the Herodians, saying,
"Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man
and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.
And you are not concerned with anyone's opinion,
for you do not regard a person's status.
Tell us, then, what is your opinion:
Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?"
Knowing their malice, Jesus said,
"Why are you testing me, you hypocrites?
Show me the coin that pays the census tax."
Then they handed him the Roman coin.
He said to them, "Whose image is this and whose inscription?"
They replied, "Caesar's."
At that he said to them,
"Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar
and to God what belongs to God."

Unfortunately, Father Chris didn’t get much of an opportunity to talk about the Gospel last night. The good news is, that means I get to write about it!

There are a few bits of background information that unlock a lot of the meaning in this passage. The first is the identity of the major players. First, we have Jesus. We all know Jesus. We like Jesus. We can safely expect that Jesus is going to be the hero of this story and not be disappointed. Next is Caesar. The Caesar mentioned here is not the same Caesar who was murdered on the senate floor. The Caesar on the coin was most likely Caesar Augustus. However, most timelines put Tiberius (Caesus Augustus’ successor) in control of the Roman Empire at the time of this story. It is also possible that the author of Matthew was using Caesar as a general term to refer to the Roman Emperor, since that was common practice at the time of Matthew being written. The other two main characters (really groups of characters) are the most interesting. The Pharisees were very strict interpreters of Jewish law. This was the same group that got angry when Jesus healed people on the Sabbath and thought it shameful that Jesus would eat with sinners and unclean men. They did not believe in compromise or “watering down” the law. They patently rejected Roman occupation because they felt it forced people to pray and behave in ways that were against Jewish law. They were hardcore. On the other hand, we had the Herodians. These people followed Herod. They believed that there were some advantages to Roman rule, and that it was better to compromise and “play ball” with the Romans than to risk losing the Jewish faith all together. Needless to say, the Herodians and the Pharisees did not see eye to eye.

Except when it came to Jesus.

Jesus was upsetting social norms. The ideas he taught were dangerous to both the Pharisees and the Herodians, and both groups wanted to see him out of the public sphere. There is a proverb that came from the ancient Middle East which says, “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” Apparently, the Pharisees and the Herodians had heard it.

Together they came up with a plan. They would ask Jesus a question which would be impossible to answer. The question does not seem impossible to us. In fact, it seems pretty straightforward, but that is because we are not well versed in the politics of ancient Israel. The census tax was required by the Romans. If Jesus answers that the census tax is unlawful, then Roman authorities could deem him a rebel and arrest him. However, if Jesus says that the tax is lawful, he will upset the people who do not like being ruled by the Romans. Further, the Romans forced the Jews to make sacrifices to the Roman Emperor as though he were a god. The Jews saw this as idolatrous (and it was) which made money bearing the emperor’s face idolatry as well.

The actual showdown is almost painful to read. The Pharisees and Herodians are overly confident in their plan, and their arrogance becomes clear when they approach Jesus with praises that neither group really believes. They call him Rabbi, teacher, and praise his ability to teach the truth, even though they do not believe what he says. Jesus sees through this empty flattery with ease. When the question is finally asked, he challenges them, calling them hypocrites. When he takes the coin and asks whose face is on it, the Pharisees get excited. They think that he is going to agree with them and say that it is idolatrous. The Herodians too, get excited, because they are going to be able to report him.

Then Jesus stuns them all.

He treats the money, not as an idol, but as a piece of worthless metal. He instructs the people to pay it back to Caesar. He uses the opportunity to point out that money is not what really matters. Who cares if you have to pay a tax to Caesar? Not God. God is not concerned with taxes. God is concerned with the spiritual life of His people. God is concerned with your soul.

The Romans had tried to make the Emperor a god through worship and icons. Jesus refuses to even acknowledge the deification of the Roman state. To him, Caesar is just the guy on the money. The Herodians were disappointed, and so were the Pharisees. Jesus pointed out that a good Jew could pay the tax without breaking the law. He showed the idolatry was not necessarily a physical action, but a way of thinking; a way of ordering priorities.