angfrayle | 
10 9th, 2008| 
The pericope is cut off from the previous section by the phrase “then” (v. 15), the beginning of a new action by the Pharisees who decide to trap Jesus in what he says, and the arrival of new interlocutors: the students (mathetas) of the Pharisees with the Herodians. The episode closes with their departure (v. 22)
The present debate with the lay leaders of Jerusalem are to be understood within the series of confrontations that began with the elders and high priests in Matthew 21:23. The interrogations will end in 22:46 but Jesus will have something to say about these confrontations in Matthew 23, when as Son of Man he pronoounces judgment on the representatives of Jerusalem’s power groups, both lay and priestly.
In Matthew 21:23, the chief priests and elders which are also mentioned in Jesus’ predictions about his death begin the series of interrogations about his authority. At the end of 21:45 the Pharisees are mentioned together with the chief priests as those who react to Jesus is implying in his parables. It is the group of Pharisees who initiate the action to trap Jesus sending to him their disciples and the Herodians. Following them (Matthew 22:23-33) are the Sadducees who belong to the priestly class and enemies of the Pharisees. After them (Matthew 22:34-45) the Pharisees themselves will interrogate Jesus.
After Jesus’ parabolic answer that he has come with the authority of the Son sent to look for fruits in God’s vineyard, Israel (see the Parable of the Wicked Tenants), the questions put forward to him are about taxes paid to Caesar (22:15-22), the Resurrection (22:23-33) and finally about the Son of David, the Christ (22:34-45). The answer to this last implies Jesus’ understanding that the Christ is not only Son of David, but also Son of God. In Matthew’s Gospel, “Son of God” is also “Son of Man”, the title that Jesus uses for himself. Thus, the pronouncements of Jesus in Matthew 23-24 where as Son of Man he pronounces judgment over the leaders of Jerusalem, Jerusalem itself, and the Temple. We have described how the titles “Son of Man” and “Son of God” are used in the Gospel of Matthew in the article The Disciple and the Cross of Christ.
The Pharisees, while hatching the ploy to trap Jesus in his words do not confront him directly at first. They send to him their students who come in the company of the Herodians. The Herodians, like the Pharisees were lay. They were not just a political party but a sect that distinguished themselves from the Pharisees and the Sadducees in that they promoted the idea that Herod the Great’s dynasty is Messianic. See the Wikipedia article on the Herodians
The question that they put forward is a question about taxation. It is double-pronged: If Jesus answers “No”, then he can be accused of treason. If Jesus answers “Yes”, however, he can be accused as a lover of the Empire, one who acknowledges a foreign deity and numbered among those who collaborate with the enemy, like the tax collectors. The interlocutors preface this with a statement intended to hide their duplicity.
It is to be noted that this is the second time in Matthew’s gospel that Jesus deals with a question about taxes. The first time (Matthew 17:24-27), the issue is raised to Peter and Jesus, without being asked about it, tells Peter to pay the tax for the both of them, taking money from the mouth of a fish. The idea behind this is conciliatory: while Jesus thinks that they should not pay — they are exempted from it — they still have to so as not to scandalize anyone. The question about the temple tax existed while the Christians were still considered Jews. It was of particular interest to Matthew’s community since it was in Palestine and lived in the shadows of the Temple. The paying of the Temple tax then was the community’s way of living in communion with the Jews. The matter about the tribute to Caesar was different, because of its religious and political implications.
Continue reading “Give to Caesar… Give to God”
