Commentary - Luke 20:19-26

Bird's-eye view

In this passage, we see the religious leaders, having been thoroughly routed by Jesus' parable of the wicked tenants, attempt a new line of attack. Their goal is not understanding, but entrapment. They want to force Jesus into a position where He either alienates the patriotic Jews by endorsing the Roman tax, or commits sedition against Rome by denouncing it. This is a classic pincer movement, a political trap designed to be inescapable. But Jesus, as always, is more than a match for their worldly craftiness. He doesn't just evade the trap; He dismantles it and, in doing so, lays down a foundational principle for the relationship between God's kingdom and earthly governments for all time. He establishes that Caesar has a legitimate, but limited, claim. God, on the other hand, has an absolute claim on all things, particularly on those who bear His image.

The core of the passage is the distinction Jesus makes between the realm of Caesar and the realm of God. By pointing to the image on the coin, He acknowledges the reality of civil jurisdiction. But by following it up with the command to render to God what is God's, He puts Caesar firmly in his place. Caesar is a creature, and his authority is a delegated authority. The state is a deacon, a servant of God (Rom. 13), and it has no authority to claim what bears the divine image, which is to say, man himself. This is not a retreat into a sacred/secular dualism, but rather the establishment of a hierarchy. God is sovereign over all, including Caesar. Our ultimate allegiance is to God, and our allegiance to Caesar is a subset of that higher allegiance, never a rival to it.

Outline

Context In Luke

This confrontation occurs during Passion Week, immediately following Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem and His cleansing of the temple. His authority has been directly challenged by the chief priests, scribes, and elders (Luke 20:1-2), and He has responded with the parable of the wicked tenants (Luke 20:9-18). That parable was a direct indictment of them as the corrupt leadership of Israel who had rejected God's prophets and were about to reject and kill His Son. Verse 19 tells us they knew this parable was spoken against them. So, this attempt to trap Him over taxes is not an isolated incident. It is a direct, retaliatory strike from a leadership that has been publicly exposed and condemned. They are desperate, and their desperation drives them to collaborate with their usual opponents, the Herodians (as Matthew and Mark note), to try and eliminate this threat to their power.

Verse by Verse Commentary

v. 19 And the scribes and the chief priests tried to lay hands on Him that very hour, but they feared the people. For they understood that He spoke this parable against them.

The reaction is immediate and visceral. They don't want to debate Him; they want to arrest Him. The only thing holding them back is not a guilty conscience or a fear of God, but a fear of the crowd. This is the mark of tyrants and frauds everywhere. Their power rests on popular opinion and coercion, not on truth. They understood the parable perfectly. Jesus wasn't being subtle. He had pointed the finger directly at them as the wicked husbandmen who were about to murder the heir. Their response is not repentance, but a doubling down on their murderous intent. They are fulfilling the very parable they just heard.

v. 20 So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, so that they might catch Him in some statement, in order to deliver Him to the rule and the authority of the governor.

Having failed to challenge His authority directly, and being afraid to use force openly, they resort to subterfuge. Notice the strategy: they want to hand Him over to the "governor," Pontius Pilate. They are the religious authorities, but they are looking to the pagan state to do their dirty work. This is a profound abdication of any moral authority they claimed to have. They want to trap Him in His words. The spies pretend to be "righteous," meaning they feign sincere piety and a genuine desire to know the right thing to do. It is the age old tactic of the enemy: to approach with a mask of sincerity, asking what appears to be a legitimate ethical question, when the intent is pure malice.

v. 21 And they questioned Him, saying, “Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth.”

Here comes the flattery, laid on thick. Every word they say here is, ironically, true. Jesus does speak and teach correctly. He is not partial. He does teach the way of God in truth. But when truth is spoken by liars for the purpose of deception, it becomes the most potent form of a lie. They are trying to flatter Him into a corner, to force Him to live up to the fearless reputation they are ascribing to Him. They are saying, in effect, "You are a man of principle, unafraid of powerful men. So, give us a straight answer, regardless of the consequences with Rome." It's a setup, pure and simple.

v. 22 Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?

And here is the blade. This was a fiercely debated issue. The poll tax to Caesar was a constant, galling reminder of Israel's subjugation to a pagan empire. For many Jews, particularly the Zealots, paying it was an act of treason against God, the true king of Israel. To say "yes, pay the tax" would be to alienate the patriotic masses and discredit Himself as a collaborator with Rome. To say "no, do not pay the tax" would be to commit sedition, giving them the exact charge they needed to hand Him over to Pilate. The trap seems perfect. There is no middle ground. Or so they thought.

v. 23 But He perceived their craftiness and said to them...

Jesus is never fooled by outward appearances or smooth words. He sees the heart. He knows this is not an honest question but a malicious trap. He sees their "craftiness," their wicked cleverness. His omniscience is on full display. He is not just a clever rabbi who is good at debate; He is the Son of God who knows the thoughts and intents of men.

v. 24 “Show Me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar’s.”

Jesus moves the debate from the abstract to the concrete. He doesn't engage with their question on their terms. He asks for a coin. The fact that they have one readily available is itself telling. They are participating in the very economy they are questioning. The coin itself, a denarius, was the standard day's wage for a laborer, and it bore the image of the emperor, Tiberius, and an inscription that often declared him to be divine, the son of the "divine Augustus." By asking whose image is on it, Jesus makes them state the obvious: this coin belongs to Caesar's economic system. It is his. It is stamped with his claim of ownership.

v. 25 And He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

This is the master stroke. He affirms a limited and legitimate role for the civil magistrate. If you use Caesar's money, operate in his economy, and receive the benefits of the civil order he maintains, then you owe him his due. Give him back his coin. This is the basis for a Christian understanding of taxes. The state has God-given authority to tax for its legitimate functions (punishing evil, praising good). But then He immediately pivots to the far greater claim. "And to God the things that are God's." What, then, are the things of God? The question hangs in the air, and the answer is implicit in the logic He just used. If the coin belongs to Caesar because it bears his image, what belongs to God? That which bears His image. And what bears His image? Man. You. (Gen. 1:27). You were made in the image of God. Therefore, you must render your entire self, your heart, soul, mind, and strength, to God. Caesar can have his pocket change. God claims your very being. Jesus is not creating two parallel kingdoms of equal weight. He is establishing an absolute hierarchy. God is sovereign over all, and Caesar's authority is a small, delegated, and temporary stewardship under God. Caesar is not Lord; Christ is Lord.

v. 26 And they were unable to catch Him in a word in the presence of the people; and marveling at His answer, they became silent.

The trap is sprung, but it is empty. They are utterly defeated. They cannot accuse Him of sedition, for He said to pay the tax. They cannot accuse Him of collaboration, for He subordinated Caesar to God in the most profound way possible. His answer was so wise, so unexpected, so perfect, that it left them speechless. They could do nothing but marvel. They came expecting to see a man cornered, and instead they witnessed divine wisdom that completely reframed the world. They were silenced, but not converted. Their marveling was not the wonder of faith, but the stunned amazement of thwarted conspirators.

Application

The principle Jesus establishes here is of permanent importance. Christians have a dual citizenship, but not a divided allegiance. Our ultimate allegiance is always to King Jesus. We are to be good citizens of our earthly nations, honoring the king, paying our taxes, and obeying the laws of the land (Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Pet. 2:13-17). The civil magistrate is God's deacon, established to maintain civil order and punish wickedness. When it does its job, we should be the most cheerful and compliant taxpayers there are.

However, the authority of the state is limited. It has authority over the things that bear its image, things like currency and civil justice. But it has no authority over the things that bear God's image. Our children, our families, our consciences, and our worship belong to God, not to the state. When Caesar attempts to overstep his bounds and claim what belongs to God, when he commands what God forbids or forbids what God commands, our duty is clear: we must obey God rather than men (Acts 5:29).

This means we must not render our children to Caesar's schools to have their minds shaped by secularist dogma. We must not render our worship to the dictates of the health department. We must not render our definition of marriage or morality to the Supreme Court. We render to Caesar the tax, and we render to God our whole lives. And we do this knowing that one day, every Caesar will bow the knee to the one whose image we bear, the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of kings and Lord of lords.