Mazmur 2:2

2:2 The kings of the earth ¹  form a united front; ² 

the rulers collaborate ³ 

against the Lord and his anointed king. ⁴ 

Markus 12:13-17

Paying Taxes to Caesar

12:13 Then ⁵  they sent some of the Pharisees ⁶  and Herodians ⁷  to trap him with his own words. ⁸  12:14 When they came they said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are truthful and do not court anyone’s favor, because you show no partiality ⁹  but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. ¹⁰  Is it right ¹¹  to pay taxes ¹²  to Caesar ¹³  or not? Should we pay or shouldn’t we?” 12:15 But he saw through their hypocrisy and said ¹⁴  to them, “Why are you testing me? Bring me a denarius ¹⁵  and let me look at it.” 12:16 So ¹⁶  they brought one, and he said to them, “Whose image ¹⁷  is this, and whose inscription?” They replied, ¹⁸  “Caesar’s.” 12:17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” ¹⁹  And they were utterly amazed at him.

Lukas 20:20-26

Paying Taxes to Caesar

20:20 Then ²⁰  they watched him carefully and sent spies who pretended to be sincere. ²¹  They wanted to take advantage of what he might say ²²  so that they could deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction ²³  of the governor. 20:21 Thus ²⁴  they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach correctly, ²⁵  and show no partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. ²⁶  20:22 Is it right ²⁷  for us to pay the tribute tax ²⁸  to Caesar ²⁹  or not?” 20:23 But Jesus ³⁰  perceived their deceit ³¹  and said to them, 20:24 “Show me a denarius. ³²  Whose image ³³  and inscription are on it?” ³⁴  They said, “Caesar’s.” 20:25 So ³⁵  he said to them, “Then give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” ³⁶  20:26 Thus ³⁷  they were unable in the presence of the people to trap ³⁸  him with his own words. ³⁹  And stunned ⁴⁰  by his answer, they fell silent.

[2:2]  ¹ sn The expression kings of the earth refers somewhat hyperbolically to the kings who had been conquered by and were subject to the Davidic king.

[2:2]  ² tn Or “take their stand.” The Hebrew imperfect verbal form describes their action as underway.

[2:2]  ³ tn Or “conspire together.” The verbal form is a Niphal from יָסַד (yasad). BDB 413-14 s.v. יָסַד defines the verb as “establish, found,” but HALOT 417 s.v. II יסד proposes a homonym meaning “get together, conspire” (an alternate form of סוּד, sud).

[2:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “and against his anointed one.” The Davidic king is the referent (see vv. 6-7).

[12:13]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[12:13]  ⁶ sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.

[12:13]  ⁷ sn Pharisees and Herodians made a very interesting alliance. W. W. Wessel (“Mark,” EBC 8:733) comments: “The Herodians were as obnoxious to the Pharisees on political grounds as the Sadducees were on theological grounds. Yet the two groups united in their opposition to Jesus. Collaboration in wickedness, as well as goodness, has great power. Their purpose was to trip Jesus up in his words so that he would lose the support of the people, leaving the way open for them to destroy him.” See also the note on “Herodians” in Mark 3:6.

[12:13]  ⁸ tn Grk “trap him in word.”

[12:14]  ⁹ tn Grk “and it is not a concern to you about anyone because you do not see the face of men.”

[12:14]  ¹⁰ sn Teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Very few comments are as deceitful as this one; they did not really believe this at all. The question of the Pharisees and Herodians was specifically designed to trap Jesus.

[12:14]  ¹¹ tn Or “lawful,” that is, in accordance with God’s divine law. On the syntax of ἔξεστιν (exestin) with an infinitive and accusative, see BDF §409.3.

[12:14]  ¹² tn According to L&N 57.180 the term κῆνσος (khnso") was borrowed from Latin and referred to a poll tax, a tax paid by each adult male to the Roman government.

[12:14]  sn This question concerning taxes was specifically designed to trap Jesus. If he answered yes, then his opponents could publicly discredit him as a sympathizer with Rome. If he answered no, then they could go to the Roman governor and accuse Jesus of rebellion.

[12:14]  ¹³ tn Or “the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[12:15]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “Aware of their hypocrisy he said.”

[12:15]  ¹⁵ tn Here the specific name of the coin was retained in the translation, because not all coins in circulation in Palestine at the time carried the image of Caesar. In other places δηνάριον (dhnarion) has been translated simply as “silver coin” with an explanatory note.

[12:15]  sn A denarius was a silver coin stamped with the image of the emperor and worth approximately one day’s wage for a laborer.

[12:16]  ¹⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate their response to Jesus’ request for a coin.

[12:16]  ¹⁷ tn Or “whose likeness.”

[12:16]  sn In this passage Jesus points to the image (Grk εἰκών, eikwn) of Caesar on the coin. This same Greek word is used in Gen 1:26 (LXX) to state that humanity is made in the “image” of God. Jesus is making a subtle yet powerful contrast: Caesar’s image is on the denarius, so he can lay claim to money through taxation, but God’s image is on humanity, so he can lay claim to each individual life.

[12:16]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “they said to him.”

[12:17]  ¹⁹ sn Jesus’ answer to give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s was a both/and, not the questioners’ either/or. So he slipped out of their trap.

[20:20]  ²⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[20:20]  ²¹ tn Grk “righteous,” but in this context the point is their false sincerity.

[20:20]  ²² tn Grk “so that they might catch him in some word.”

[20:20]  ²³ tn This word is often translated “authority” in other contexts, but here, in combination with ἀρχή (arch), it refers to the domain or sphere of the governor’s rule (L&N 37.36).

[20:21]  ²⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “thus” to indicate the implied result of the plans by the spies.

[20:21]  ²⁵ tn Or “precisely”; Grk “rightly.” Jesus teaches exactly, the straight and narrow.

[20:21]  ²⁶ sn Teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Very few comments are as deceitful as this one; they did not really believe this at all. The question was specifically designed to trap Jesus.

[20:22]  ²⁷ tn Or “lawful,” that is, in accordance with God’s divine law. On the syntax of ἔξεστιν (exestin) with an infinitive and accusative, see BDF §409.3.

[20:22]  ²⁸ tn This was a “poll tax.” L&N 57.182 states this was “a payment made by the people of one nation to another, with the implication that this is a symbol of submission and dependence – ‘tribute tax.’”

[20:22]  ²⁹ tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[20:23]  ³⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[20:23]  ³¹ tn Or “craftiness.” The term always has negative connotations in the NT (1 Cor 3:19; 2 Cor 4:2; 11:3; Eph 4:14).

[20:24]  ³² tn Here the specific name of the coin was retained in the translation, because not all coins in circulation in Palestine at the time carried the image of Caesar. In other places δηνάριον (dhnarion) has been translated simply as “silver coin” with an explanatory note.

[20:24]  sn A denarius was a silver coin worth approximately one day’s wage for a laborer. The fact that the leaders had such a coin showed that they already operated in the economic world of Rome. The denarius would have had a picture of Tiberius Caesar, the Roman emperor, on it.

[20:24]  ³³ tn Or “whose likeness.”

[20:24]  sn In this passage Jesus points to the image (Grk εἰκών, eikwn) of Caesar on the coin. This same Greek word is used in Gen 1:26 (LXX) to state that humanity is made in the “image” of God. Jesus is making a subtle yet powerful contrast: Caesar’s image is on the denarius, so he can lay claim to money through taxation, but God’s image is on humanity, so he can lay claim to each individual life.

[20:24]  ³⁴ tn Grk “whose likeness and inscription does it have?”

[20:25]  ³⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate that Jesus’ pronouncement results from the opponents’ answer to his question.

[20:25]  ³⁶ sn Jesus’ answer to give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s was a both/and, not the questioners’ either/or. So he slipped out of their trap.

[20:26]  ³⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “thus” to indicate the implied result of Jesus’ unexpected answer.

[20:26]  ³⁸ tn On this term, see BDAG 374 s.v. ἐπιλαμβάνομαι 3.

[20:26]  ³⁹ tn Grk “to trap him in a saying.”

[20:26]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “amazed.”