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22 As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man will be given over into the hands of men. 23 They will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day.” This greatly upset them.

24 As they were arriving at Capernaum, tithe collectors came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher pay the Temple tithe?” 25 He said, “Yes.” When he went into the house, before he could speak, Jesus said, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect taxes and tribute? From their own sons, or from other people?” 26 When Peter answered, “From other people,” Jesus said, “Then sons are except. 27 But lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast a hook, and take the first fish you catch. Open its mouth and you will find a silver coin worth enough to pay the tithe for you and me. Take it and give it to them.”

Comments

As Jesus and the disciples return to Capernaum, he tells them for a second time that he will suffer, die, and rise. The disciples do not know how to take this news.

In Capernaum, Peter is approached by tithe collectors. At that time, every Jewish man was expected to pay once a year one half-shekel, or its Greek equivalent, two drachmas, for the upkeep of the Temple in Jerusalem. This was not a legal obligation, but an expected cultural practice. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus appears ambivalent about the Temple. He does genuinely seem to regard it as a divinely ordained institution and a valid part of the religious life of the people (cf. Mt 12.5, Mk 12.41-44, Lk 2.41-52, Lk 18.9-4), but he also identifies himself as greater than the Temple (Mt 12.6), regards its priesthood as rife with corruption (Mt 21.12-17) and prophesied its destruction (Mt 24.1-2). In this passage, he seems to think he should be exempt from paying the tithe. He is, after all, the Son of the King. At the same time, he does not want to offend the tithe collectors. These men were not like the civil tax collectors who worked on behalf of the Romans and were backed by the power of the state. They were likely pious volunteers who were simply trying to do their religious duty as they saw it. (Good modern US comparisons would be Salvation Army bellringers at Christmas time or Knights of Columbus collecting money for disabled children.) Jesus did not hesitate to disagree with people (16.1-4 as one example among many), but when no compelling religious or moral principle was at stake, he did not want to scandalize or offend people.