What is the Christian response to taxes?

Today Bible Study:

What is the Christian response to taxes?

In Mark 12:13, the Pharisees and the Herodians came together to try to catch Jesus off guard by a seemingly sincere question: “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?” The Herodians were a political party of Jews who backed Herod Antipas, who in turn was but a puppet of Rome. The Greek word for “taxes” was borrowed from the Latin word that gives us the English word “census.” The Romans counted all the citizens and made each one pay an annual poll tax of one denarius.

Jesus was fully aware of their hypocrisy, using a feigned interest in His teaching to hide their true intention to trap Him. “Why do you test Me?” (v. 15), He asked, and His response was to ask for a denarius. This small silver coin, minted by the Roman emperor, was the equivalent of a day’s wage for a common laborer or soldier. On one side of the denarius was likely the image of the current emperor, Tiberius. If the coin was minted by Tiberius, it would have read, “Tiberius Caesar Augustus, the son of the Divine Augustus” on one side and “Chief Priest” on the other.

Based on the image on the denarius, Jesus answered, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s.” The Greek word for “render” means “to pay or give back,” which implies a debt. All who lived within the realm of Caesar were obligated to return to him the tax that was owed him. It was not optional. Thus Jesus declared that all citizens are under divine obligation to pay taxes to whatever government is over them (see Rom. 13:1–7; 1 Pet. 2:13–17).

©BY PASTOR JUDAH OLATUNDE