The Bible Book

222

See also: A Child in the Temple 188 ■ Jesus Embraces a Tax Collector 242–43 ■

Cleansing the Temple 244–45

I

n addition to the taxes that

were imposed on the people

of Judea by Rome, a voluntary

Temple tax was levied on Jewish

males over the age of 20 to pay

for sacrifices and incense in the

Temple. In Matthew 17, the Apostle

describes Jesus and His disciples

arriving in Capernaum, where Peter

is confronted by the collectors of

the Temple tax. When the officials

ask Peter if His master pays the

tax, Peter affirms that He does.

A little later, Jesus challenges

Peter, asking if taxes are paid by

the children of the “kings of the

earth” (Matthew 17:25). In response,

Peter grants that taxes are not paid

by the children of kings. Then, in a

miraculous twist, Jesus tells Peter

to catch a fish and open its mouth.

There he will find a four-drachma

coin with which he is to pay both

his own tax and Jesus’s.

The tax is paid

When Jesus speaks of the children

of kings, He casts Himself and His

disciples as sons of God who are

therefore exempt from the taxation

that is imposed on the house of

God. Yet Jesus instructs Peter to

fish for the coin, explaining it must

be done “so that we may not offend”

the tax collectors (Matthew 17:27).

Jesus’s actions suggest that it

is sometimes necessary to comply

with the views of others in order

to keep the peace. However, they

do not pay from their own pockets:

the miracle of the coin in the fish’s

mouth shows God’s generosity and

His capacity to lovingly provide for

both His Son and His people. ■

IN BRIEF

PA S SAGE

Matthew 17:27

THEME

God’s provision

SETTING

c. 27–29 ce Capernaum

at the Sea of Galilee.

KEY FIGURES

Jesus The Messiah and Son

of God during His ministry

in Galilee.

Peter A fisherman by trade

and one of Jesus’s most

favored disciples.

Tax collectors State officials

generally disliked for their

corrupt practices.

FROM WHOM DO

THE KINGS OF THE

EARTH COLLECT

DUTY AND TAXES?

MATTHEW 17:27, THE TEMPLE TAX

Peter finds a coin in the mouth of a

fish on the shores of Lake Capernaum,

in a 17th-century Dutch engraving

by Salomon Savery after a painting by

Peter Paul Rubens.

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223

See also: Parables of Jesus 214–15 ■ The Good Samaritan 216–17 ■

The Prodigal Son 218–21

T

he parable of the workers

in the vineyard is one that

many readers with modern

notions of fairness struggle to

accept. However, it functions very

well as a demonstration of how God

deals with people on the basis of

grace, rather than works.

In the parable, a landowner goes

out early one morning to recruit

workers. He agrees to pay each of

the laborers a denarius for the day.

Later in the day, the vineyard

owner goes out again four times—

at 9 am, midday, 3 pm, and 5 pm.

Each time he leaves, he encounters

more men doing nothing and offers

them work in his vineyard too,

which Jesus says represents “the

kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 20:1).

When evening comes, the

landowner gathers the workers. He

pays all of them the same amount—

one denarius each. The men who

worked longer hours are outraged.

The landowner, however, brushes

away their objections, saying that

he is generous and has the right to

use his money as he sees fit.

Interpreting the tale

The story of the workers in the

vineyard shows us that God’s grace

can supersede human logic. One

interpretation of the parable is that

those who turn to God late in life

are just as worthy of salvation as

those who have always believed.

Other theologians go further,

presenting the first laborers

as Jews, and the latecomers as

Gentiles—both equally deserving

of God’s love and salvation. ■

THE GOSPELS

SO THE LAST WILL

BE FIRST, AND THE

FIRST WILL BE LAST

MATTHEW 20:16, WORKERS IN THE VINEYARD

IN BRIEF

PA S SAGE

Matthew 20:16

THEME

God operates through

unending grace

SETTING

c. 27–29 ce The region

of Galilee.

KEY FIGURES

Jesus The Messiah and Son

of God during His ministry

in Galilee.

The landowner Owner of

the vineyard and the purveyor

of God’s grace.

The workers The employees

of the landowner gathered

from the marketplace.

These who were hired last ...

you have made ... equal

to us who have borne the

burden of the work and

the heat of the day.

Matthew 20:12

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