Hear that Christians? Straight from the horse's mouth. You need to pay your taxes. Not only do you need to pay them, but the Bible implies that they rightfully belong to the government.
“Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's"
Matthew 22:21 (partial) (ESV)
...or so the popular argument goes. But let's dig into the text and see what we can find.
If you haven't been following this series, you can start at the beginning by reading:
- Can a Christian Be an Anarchist?
- All Christians Should Be Socialists
- What Does the Bible Actually Say About Government?
Reading the Verse in Context
This is one of the most misapplied and misused verses in the Bible. Matthew 22:21 doesn't exist in a vacuum. Here is the complete story:
15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words. 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.[b] 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.[c] 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.
Matthew 22:15-22 (ESV)
The Pharisees (the religious leaders of the time) were always trying to trip up Jesus and get him to say or do something that they could prosecute or something that would reveal him as a sinner.
Oh you sneaky Pharisees, trying to butter Him up with flattery before stabbing him in the back. In this instance, they were setting a trap by posing a no-win question. If Jesus were to answer that they should submit and pay taxes to the Roman authorities His Jewish followers would turn on Him. If Jesus told them that they needn't pay any taxes to Caesar the Romans would have him arrested.
Jesus saw through their trap and instead of giving a simple "yes" or "no" He gave a complex, layered response that all parties would scratch their heads over and that none would hate (or arrest) him for. Well, except maybe the Pharisees because he ruined their trap.
Jesus' answer to the Pharisees suggests that some things do belong to Caesar while others belong to God. But as Henry David Thoreau wrote in his book Civil Disobedience, he left them "no wiser than before as to which was which; for they did not wish to know."
The Pharisees had no interest in gaining wisdom from some small-time Rabbi. Their only goal was to hurt their competition.
For a deeper examination of the meaning of Jesus' words, we'll need to take a few steps back in time...
Historical Context
i. Jewish Tax Resistance
Rome was not a kind master to the Jews. History would later prove just how cruel they could be...
In 63 BCE, Israel was conquered by Rome and turned into a "client state." They were unwilling and unhappy subordinates of the Empire. Roman taxation had led to riots and revolts. Those who worked as tax collectors for Rome were hated by the people.
I hope now it is abundantly clear that the Pharisees thought they had backed Jesus into a corner. Tensions were high. If Jesus said the wrong thing, he would have to face the wrath of the Romans or the Jews.
ii. The Denarius
After the Pharisees had issued their challenge, Jesus asked them to produce a Denarius. The coin would have borne the image of Tiberius along with this inscription:
This is so significant, I can't believe it gets left out of most discussions of this passage. The Romans considered their Emperor a god. The coin displayed a graven image of the Roman god-king Tiberius son of the previous god-king Augustus.
Jesus' answer cleverly undermined the deity of Caesar and gave the glory to the only true God. Give to Caesar what is Caesar's? Caesar is no more than a man. He is owed nothing. Nothing belongs to Caesar. Everything belongs to God.
Even if we are forced into paying tribute, Caesar can have the money. Jesus can have my life. And as for any property that wrongly ended up in the hands of the government, God can still use evil for good. He is the ruler. He is in control.
While I don't think this verse is there for the purpose of telling us that we ought to pay our governments, Jesus did make allowance for the act of paying taxes. It isn't strictly evil to give our money to those demanding it at gunpoint. Right now I pay purely as an act of pragmatism - I'd rather not be thrown in a cage. But I don't pay because I think my property belongs to the politicians. As I said above, it's pretty clear what belong's to God and what belongs to Caesar (even if Jesus' answer was shrouded in mystery), but even if I'm wrong and there is some doubt about what belongs to which, I'm going to do as the Mennonite Reverend John K. Stoner and "give the benefit of the doubt to God."
Fun side note
Jesus drew attention to the fact that the Pharisees were using money in the Temple bearing the image of a false God. This direct violation of the 2nd Commandment would have embarrassed the Pharisees and given Jesus all the power in the discussion.
In Conclusion
This passage is not a command to pay taxes. It doesn't legitimize the act of taxation or the leadership of any governing authorities. In fact, it directs our attention to our only Lord and true Authority - God.
I hope this article was illuminating. I'm going to be out of town for a friend's wedding this weekend so I don't think I'll get around to writing Part 5 until Monday. But please follow me @sethlinson and check back in a few days when I'll be examining the most challenging passage that Christian Anarchists have to face: Romans 13.
~Seth
