Day 6 of 10
Render to Caesar
The question that refuses to be resolved
Scripture Readings
Today's Reading
Read Matthew 22:15-22 and Mark 12:13-17 side by side. The Pharisees and Herodians join forces to trap Jesus with a question about paying taxes to Caesar. Notice the trap: if he says yes, he alienates the nationalists; if he says no, he commits treason against Rome.
Reflection
We encountered this passage briefly on Day 2, but it deserves a day of its own. The "render to Caesar" encounter is among the most misunderstood passages in the New Testament — and among the most politically significant.
The setup is a masterclass in political entrapment. The Pharisees (nationalists who resented Roman taxation) and the Herodians (collaborators who supported it) — normally bitter enemies — temporarily unite to corner Jesus. "Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" Any straight answer destroys him politically.
Jesus asks for a coin. "Whose likeness and inscription is this?" Caesar's. "Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." The answer sounds like a neat division: give Caesar his money and give God his worship. But the depth of the statement runs far deeper than that.
N.T. Wright explains the subversive logic: "Jesus's answer was not a simple division of life into sacred and secular, spiritual and political. It was a devastating counter-question: if Caesar's image on the coin means it belongs to Caesar, whose image do you bear?" The coin bore Caesar's image — fine, give it back. But human beings bear the image of God (Genesis 1:27). And if the image determines ownership, then every human being belongs entirely to God. Caesar's claim is real but limited. God's claim is total.
Tim Keller made the political implications explicit: "Caesar's image on a coin gives him a claim to that coin. God's image on a human being gives God a claim to that human being. The political implications are enormous." If every person bears God's image, then no state can claim ultimate authority over human beings. There is always a higher court of appeal. Government has a legitimate role, but it is never ultimate.
This passage has been used throughout history to justify very different political positions — submission to the state, resistance to the state, the separation of church and state, the integration of faith and public life. The fact that it has been claimed by all sides suggests that Jesus's answer is not a simple policy statement. It is a reframing of the question itself.
The real question is not "how much do we owe Caesar?" It is "how much do we owe God?" And the answer to that question — everything — puts every other allegiance in its proper, limited place.
Going Deeper
Think about the various "Caesars" in your life — government, employer, culture, party. What do you legitimately owe them? Now ask: what do you owe God that no Caesar can claim? Your conscience, your worship, your ultimate loyalty, your identity. When these two obligations conflict, Jesus has already told you which takes priority.
Key Quotes
“Jesus's answer was not a simple division of life into sacred and secular, spiritual and political. It was a devastating counter-question: if Caesar's image on the coin means it belongs to Caesar, whose image do you bear?”
“Caesar's image on a coin gives him a claim to that coin. God's image on a human being gives God a claim to that human being. The political implications are enormous.”
Prayer Focus
Ask God to help you discern what rightfully belongs to earthly authorities and what belongs to him alone — and to give you courage to render each to its proper owner.
Meditation
If you bear God's image, then you belong wholly to God. How does that ultimate allegiance shape what you owe — and what you refuse to give — to earthly powers?
Question for Discussion
Jesus's 'render to Caesar' saying has been used to justify everything from paying taxes to separating church and state. What do you think Jesus actually meant — and is it possible that his answer was designed to raise harder questions rather than settle easy ones?