The Life of Christ

They seemed afraid to ask Him to elaborate further on something they didn’t want to hear.

• Human nature loves to escape pain by entering the closet of denial!

SECTION 126

Mt. 17:24 And when they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter, and said, “Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?” It was a well-known fact that according to Ex. 30:13 every male in Israel from twenty years on up was required to annually contribute to the temple treasury the sum of one-half shekel (2 days wages).

This was above the normal tithe.

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• When Peter was asked this regarding Jesus, Peter naturally assumed the tax would be paid.

Mt. 17:25-26 He said, “ Yes. ” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?” 26 And upon his saying, “From strangers,” Jesus said to him, “Consequently the sons are exempt.”

Jesus tries to stress to Peter that the temple is His Father’s house, therefore making Jesus a son rather than a subject.

• A king obviously doesn't receive tribute money from his own immediate family, but rather from the subjects in his kingdom.

• This therefore exempts Jesus from the temple tax.

• To pay the tax would actually insinuate that Jesus wasn't the Son of God.

• To refuse to pay this tax, however, could also cause some to think Jesus was no more than a rebellious Jew, guilty of breaking the Mosaic Law.

This appears like an impossible situation; to pay the tax is wrong, and to not pay the tax is wrong in that it presents an “appearance of evil.”

Mt. 17:27 “But lest we give them offense, go to the sea, and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a stater. Take that and give it to them for you and Me.” Jesus always demonstrated amazing ways of extricating Himself from impossible situations.

• Peter ’s catching a fish with the full silver shekel lodged in its mouth solved this theological dilemma.

• Jesus technically did not have to personally pay the money owed, and yet His obligation was covered.

• A stater, or silver shekel, was the equivalent of four day’s labor; a denarias was worth 1 day’s labor.

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