Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words.  They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are.  Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not?”

But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me?  Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

 “Caesar’s,” they replied.  Then he said to them, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”

When they heard this, they were amazed. So, they left him and went away.

Matthew 22:15 – 22

It seems as though every Jewish political or religious party was intent on attacking Jesus. Here, in his final days before his crucifixion, the Jewish leaders who should have been backing Jesus as Messiah, in fact tried to “trap him.”

This incident or conversation punctuates the problems of the Jews.  They were not independent but were under Roman rule.  They were reminded of this constantly.  Their dear Jerusalem sat on a hill, alone, so to speak, while the center of commercial life was the Roman city, Caesarea, not far from Jerusalem.  It was a powerful, growing city on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, a constant reminder to the Jews that they were just a province of the mighty Roman Empire.  Being ruled by Rome was a daily irritant.

That gives added meaning to Jesus’ story of the coin.  Representatives of two groups collaborated on their attempt to discredit Jesus. One of them, the Pharisees, were more interested in religious purity than politics and the “Herodians” who were Jews who wanted to compromise with the mighty Roman Empire instead of resisting them.  I believe the question they raised was a central issue of the Herodians, not the Pharisees.  And it had to do with how Israel should relate to Rome.

Remember the story – after they lathered up Jesus with nice words they unsheathed a sword in the form of a question, “Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not?”  Of course, this was the law of the land but highlighted the Jewish dilemma.  Under Roman rule they used the Roman currency, each with an inscription of Caesar.  They also had their own Jewish money that they used for religious purposes.  Jesus called for a Roman coin with Caesar’s face on it, then said “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”

Jesus had little time to discuss taxes.  His whole ministry concentrated on giving to God what is God’s.  His questioners did not ask about that.  The story ends with Jesus’ critics leaving the scene, bewildered.