Today felt like a good day to "offend" the "Wallers" (those "separation" fanatics who get all uptight when religion and politics get commingled in a conversation) ...
Actually, I just wanted to address a fundamental misunderstanding many Christians have regarding their relationship with government.
One of the most abused passages in the Bible directly addresses taxation.
Mark 12:17 (New American Standard Bible):
And Jesus said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they were amazed at Him.
The standard lesson we're supposed to learn from this passage is:
Jesus paid his taxes, so should you. Case closed.
Let me explain why this blanket interpretation is wrong.
Historical Context:
This episode took place some 2000 years ago, during the expansion of the Roman Empire. Caesar had claimed everything ... horse, goat, denarius (dollar), whatever ... Caesar owned it all! And when Caesar claimed Israel and Jerusalem, the Jews became an occupied people. The Jews had their own dollar, called the shekel, but Rome required their taxes to be paid in denarius.
In his day, Jesus was an outsider, a radical. He associated with sinners - tax collectors, prostitutes, gentiles, the unclean and the sick. In other words, those who weren't allowed to enter the Temple. This (among other things) threatened the religious leaders (Pharisees), and His messages of a "Kingdom of God," and reputation as the "King of the Jews," threatened the Roman Empire as well.
"Authority" was not fond of Jesus.
Jesus Answers the Pharisees and Herodians:
Mark 12:13-17
Then they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Him in order to trap Him in a statement. They came and said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You are truthful and defer to no one; for You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay a poll-tax to Caesar, or not? "Shall we pay or shall we not pay?" But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, "Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius to look at." They brought one. And He said to them, "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" And they said to Him, "Caesar's." And Jesus said to them, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they were amazed at Him.
The Pharisees were the religious authorities, while the Herodians were the secular advocates of government (we call them Democrats or Progressives today). Both were out to get Him, so they asked Him a trick question:
Shall we pay or shall we not pay?
In their arrogance, they thought they had Him trapped. If He answered "yes," the Pharisees would immediately trounce on His betrayal of the Jews. On the other hand, if He answered "no," the Herodians would haul Him off to court as the criminal antagonist of the Roman Empire they were determined He was.
But Jesus wasn't about to give either the satisfaction ...
So He says to them:
Why are you testing Me? Bring Me a denarius to look at. Whose likeness and inscription is this?
And they answered "Caesars," to which He replied:
Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.
Jesus was clearly poking fun at His critics here. Remember, the Jews already had their own money, the shekel. He already knew what the denarius looked like, but He made His critics say it, in ridicule of their belief that because Caesar's picture was on the coin, he therefore owned it.
Let's put it this way ... George Washington's picture is on the quarter in your pocket. Does that mean George Washington owns that quarter and you should pay taxes on it accordingly?
In addition to poking fun at their coin, He, as an occupied Jew, also makes it clear that not everything belongs to Caesar, while at the same time not denying that Caesar may own something. In other words, He neither denies His people as the Pharisees had hoped, nor set Himself up as an enemy of the Empire as the Herodians desired.
His answer itself, "Render to ...," is circular and provides no actionable answer. For example, let's say Tom and Jerry went to court both claiming ownership of a television set. If the judge's determination was "Render unto Tom what is Toms, and to Jerry what is Jerrys," would that settle the case? I didn't think so.
After all ... what is Caesars?
His Contemporaries:
To further look into the meaning of this statement, we can take a look at how His contemporaries interpreted the meaning of His words by reading Luke 23:1-2 (New American Standard Bible):
Then the whole body of them got up and brought Him before Pilate. And they began to accuse Him, saying, "We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a King."
This passage tells us when Jesus made this statement, His contemporaries considered it a statement of rebellion against paying taxes, not in favor of paying them. We also find throughout the Bible that tax collectors are equated to sinners. See Matthew 9:10, Mark 2:16 and Luke 18:13 for examples.
In Summary:
I believe there are many lessons to be taken from this passage, both spiritual and Earthly. I'm not here to discuss the different interpretations, only to put to rest this silly notion that Jesus wanted you to surrender to the State whatever the State desires.
When reading and interpreting the Bible, don't forget to enjoy the good-humored nature of Jesus, as well as His use of snark, when critics attempted to bait Him. Jesus had a good laugh at the expense of His critics, let's not forget to do the same.
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