He Returns to Capernaum; the Half-shekel Tax

["Click here for Matthew's account"]

Leaving the northern part of Galilee, the little band goes back to Capernaum, a town on the N-W coast of the Sea of Galilee. Here, in Matthew only, we have an account of Jesus paying tribute.
At first reading, this account has many questions. Lets break it down and see if we can answer some of them.

What was the half-shekel tax? This was not a Roman tax as we might expect. This tax was a Jewish tax and it was for the use of their Temple. It was required from every person of age and went to defray the expenses of running the Temple. It was a very modest tax, the value in 1960 was 32 cents.
The question from the Tax Collectors bares some explanation. They went up to Peter and said, "Does your Teacher pay the tax?" Were they trying to ensnare Him? Jesus was a "radical" in His day, His teachings seemed contrary to everything else, perhaps He didn't like the tax either. Some believe they were sincere in their question, asking in respect, wanting to know if He was exempt on the basis of being a Teacher, and if so, they would not insist upon Him paying it.

Notice that it is Peter who responds to the Tax Collector question, "Yes, certainly, my Master pays His tax." Why? Because His birth fulfilled the Law, under the Law, He was "paid for" when He was 40 days old (Luke 2:22). Now Jesus would pay for Himself.
Lets look at this tax and see if Jesus really should have paid it. This tax, paid to the Temple, was called an "Atonement for the Soul" (Ex. 30:15). Jesus, being without sin, did not need atonement for the soul. He was to be the "atonement" for all souls. But... He did this for three reasons:

To appear in the likeness of sinners.

To be human.
To be one if us.
to show understanding.

To set an example.

Render to all their just due.
Contribute to the support of public worship.
If Christ paid tribute, who would be exempt.

Notice that it was Peter who answered the Tax Collectors in the affirmative, but now he questions why Jesus did it. This gave Jesus an opportunity to explain "freedom versus responsibility". Certainly Jesus, being the Son of God, was free not to pay the tax. But, He asserts, He had a responsibility to the Civil Government, yes He even considered it a privilege to pay that which was due. Thus He asserts His right to pay the tax.

He further applies a lesson to this. We, as God's children, are free, by Grace and adoption, from the slavery of sin and Satan, but not from being subject to civil government. "Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's and unto God the things that are God's." So Jesus paid the tax so that He might appear in the likeness of sinners and so that He might set an example and lastly, so that they, those who watched His ever move might not gain something to charge against Him. Already there was prejudice against Him. Matthew Henry writes, "We must never shirk out duty in fear of offending someone but likewise we must sometimes deny ourselves a freedom rather than offend someone."
Notice how Jesus paid the tax considering He had no money. He sent Peter to the Sea of Galilee to catch a fish, then he was to open the fishes mouth and there he would find the shekel with which he would pay the tax.
What do we learn from this?

The poverty of Christ. Though He cared and blessed the lives of many, He did it all for free.
The power of Christ. The way in which He got the shekel was evidence of His divinity. Even the creatures of the sea were under His power.
The necessity of working for what we get. Jesus could have down and literally picked up a shekel from the ground but this would have been a poor display of His power and would not have tought the lesson that we must work for what we want. Jesus required Peter to do what he did best, and that was to fish for he was a fisherman by trade. Thus Peter worked that he and Jesus might pay their tax.
Finally, we might learn something about the amount of money found in the fish. It was just enough to pay the tax. Jesus died "penniless", yet in this world He never wanted for any material thing.

Perhaps this teaches us something about building up treasurers on earth. Perhaps having enough for our present needs is what Jesus was teaching here, thus trusting God for the future, not to give us our needs, but as He did for Peter, supply a way in which we can work for them.
One question remains unanswered. Why did Jesus pay for Peter's tax only? What about the other 11 Disciples? Perhaps they had not been born under the Law. Perhaps they did not worship at the Temple, after all they were Galileans.

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