“718. THE TRIBUTE MONEY—MATTHEW 17:22-18:35; MARK 9:30-50; LUKE 9:43-10:16”

The Tribute Money—Mat_17:22 to Mat_18:35; Mar_9:30-50; Luk_9:43 to Luk_10:16

Jesus had, at the foot of the Mount, joined the general body of his disciples, and, after the cure of the demoniac, proceeded on his way. Aware that this remarkable miracle, and the manner in which his mere presence had silenced the scribes, were likely to exalt the ordinary expectations of his disciples; and conscious that the three favored apostles had gathered nourishment to the like expectations from what they had witnessed on the Mount, our Lord again spoke very plainly of his betrayal, his death, and his resurrection. Nothing could be plainer than his words, to which He bespoke their earnest attention: “Let these sayings sink deep into your ears.” But it is said that “they did not understand”—mainly, no doubt, because they were not willing to understand—how it was possible that such humiliation, which would seem to frustrate all their hopes and expectations, could consist with the earthly greatness of the Messiah in which they expected to share. This idea they could not dismiss, and they could not make it compatible with the other, which was not so strenuously enforced upon them. Their master could have explained; but “they were afraid to ask Him,” having in remembrance the strong rebuke which Peter had received; and Peter himself, usually so forward, being further restrained by the fresh impression of what he had witnessed on the Mount. It is also to be recollected, that in these distressing intimations their future benefit, still more than their present enlightenment, was what Jesus had in view. When the events should occur, it ought to prevent them from concluding that all was lost—that the object of his coming had been frustrated—or that unfounded pretensions had been advanced by himself; for they would perceive that nothing had happened which He had not foreseen, and expected, and declared to be inevitable and necessary. And after all had passed, their faith would be strengthened by remembering his declarations, that this humiliation was not only consistent with the purpose for which He came into the world, but was the very purpose itself. Conceive how it would have been with them, if what afterwards took place—the betrayal, the agony, the torture, the death—had seemed to them to have taken Him by surprise—had manifestly been contrary to his expectations, and against his will. Could they, then, have reached any other conclusion than that He had either imposed upon them or deceived himself? All this was prevented by these previous declarations to the disciples, and although more covertly, to the multitude: by which He shut out for ever those doubts and cavils which would have filled the mouths of his enemies, had not these precautions been taken.

The disciples understood enough, however, at this time, to be “very sorry.” They loved not less than they reverenced their Lord, and the bare idea that He might possibly be exposed to ignominy, maltreatment, and suffering, filled their hearts, with grief. This was natural. They had not been worthy to walk with Him, had they felt otherwise.

But nothing our Lord could say, however plain, made any permanent impression during his lifetime. As the stomach assimilates that which is congenial to it, and rejects that which is not, so they were always ready in forgetting these intimations of his humiliation, while they zealously seized at, and treasured up, all the ideas of Messianic glory which circumstances afforded, or which any of his acts and sayings appeared to present.

This must be heedfully remembered, by those who would rightly understand the remainder or our Lord’s career in relation to his disciples.

The next incident in that career requires to be introduced by the statement, that there was payable from every adult male among the Jews the sum of half a shekel yearly for the treasury of the temple. There is a regulation to this effect in Exo_30:11-16, but it is far from certain that it was intended to be a yearly payment. It came, however, to be so understood, and was in general paid very willingly to the appointed collectors by all Jews, even by those who dwelt in foreign parts. The sum may be taken as equal to fifteen pence. It was at first, like all other payments, made in weighed silver. But the Maccabees having coined money into shekels, half shekels, etc., the temple dues were paid in this coinage. In our Lord’s time, however, these coins had become scarce, and for the purpose of this payment the Greco-Roman didrachmon (doubledrachma) was taken to represent the half shekel, and was so generally used for this purpose that the tax itself came to be distinguished by the name of the coin in which it was paid. It should be observed, however, that, although the people usually paid the collectors in this coin, the coin itself could not be paid into the temple on account of the symbols and effigies, deemed idolatrous, with which it was charged, and had to be changed for Jewish money at Jerusalem. Hence the vocation of the “money changers” whom our Lord expelled from the temple. It should be added, that it was in a great measure a voluntary impost—that is, no one was forced to pay it, or punishable for not paying it; but he who neglected it would be considered a bad Jew, and an irreligious person.

The Didrachmon, or Double Drachma

Now, the payment of this temple tribute accrued by the time our Lord returned to Capernaum. As they passed through the street, the collectors—who were respected men, and not contemned like the publicans who collected the Roman taxes—accosted Peter, who was some way behind, and asked him if his Master paid the didrachmon. With characteristic haste he answered in the affirmative, thus virtually pledging Jesus to pay a tax to which, on his part, some serious objections might reasonably be entertained. It was important that this matter should be put on a right footing before the minds of the disciples. When, therefore, they had entered the house, and Peter was about to explain this circumstance, Jesus anticipated him, and showed that He already knew all that had passed, by asking the question: “Of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute: of their children [sons] or of strangers?” Peter said, “Of strangers:” to which Jesus rejoined, “Then are the children free.” Here the argument is very clear—Kings do not take tribute of their sons; but the temple was his Father’s house, and, therefore, no claim could be rightly made upon Him for this payment. Still it was his purpose to pay it, to avoid giving needless offence—and lest it should be imputed to Him that He was an enemy of the temple, and sought its ruin, by setting the example of withholding the tax on which its maintenance chiefly depended. But He had not the money—not fifteen pence! Still there is no question that this small sum might have been procured in some way without much difficulty, and there was no positive need of a miracle to supply the want. But our Lord saw fit to connect in the minds of his disciples, this voluntary humiliation on his part, with an act which might re-assert the dignity which might, by this concession, seem to have been somewhat compromised. He desired Peter to go down to the lake and cast in a hook, and in the first fish that came up to it, he would find a stater—a coin equal to four drachma—and therefore to double the amount required for a single person. “That take, and give them for Me and for thee.” In this single instance we are not informed of the result of the procedure; but we cannot doubt, that it is sufficiently indicated in the directions thus given. Fish are easily caught in this mode in the same lake at this day, and it is not unusual for travellers at Tiberias to order a dinner of fish, and presently to see a man returning from the lake with an ample supply, which he has taken by hook and line from the shore. It is also the nature of most fish to catch at anything bright; and hence there are numerous anecdotes of articles in precious metal being found in fishes. The wonder is not here, but in the fact that, as foretold by his Lord, the first fish that came to Peter’s hook contained the precise sum that had been indicated. It was also not merely our Lord’s foreknowledge of the fact—though He did foreknow it—but it was the purpose of his will—of that will to which all creation was obedient, that impelled the fish containing this coin, and that one only out of the myriads in the lake, to the hook of Peter.

When this matter of the tribute-money had been disposed of, our Lord inquired of the apostles what it was that they had been so earnestly discussing upon the road. He needed not this information, but wished to appeal to their own consciousness, which was so effectually awakened by the question, that they held down their heads and returned no answer. They had in fact been contending which of them was the greatest in claims and services, and might therefore expect the highest place, and most important offices, in the splendid kingdom they still persisted in supposing their Master was about to establish. Perceiving by their silence that the object of his question had been answered, our Lord did not directly reprove them further, but in a few words, rendered doubly impressive by a vivid illustration, He set before them the worthlessness of their contention, and its utter antagonism to that spirit which must rule in the kingdom of God. Taking a little child, He placed him in the midst, and told them to make this child, in its unassuming ingeniousness, their model; he among them who was most childlike and unassuming, who thought least of himself and his worth—he would be of most importance in the kingdom of God. He then tenderly embraced the child, and said: “Whosoever shall receive one such little child in my name, receiveth Me; and whosoever receiveth Me, receiveth Him that sent Me.” By this He struck at the root of the contention among the disciples, teaching them that it is not merely what a man does that constitutes the worthiness of his deeds, but the spirit in which he does them. The act may be great or small; its worth depends upon its being done in the name of Christ, and for his sake.

The apostles do not seem to have entered into the depth of our Lord’s meaning; for John proceeded to mention an instance that seemed to him inconsistent with the rule thus laid down. It appears that the miracles of Christ, and those wrought by the apostles during their recent tour, by calling upon his name, had induced others who were not within the immediate circle of the disciples, to call upon the name of Jesus for the healing of demoniacs. This came under the notice of the apostles in at least one instance; and, displeased that any one out of their circle, and without authority from their Lord, should try in this way to make himself equal with them, they forbade the act. Although some taint of selfish motives may have intruded, the apostles felt so sure of having done right, that they distrusted a rule which would seem to make it wrong. For if the smallest action done in the name of Christ were so valuable, they must have erred in forbidding this. Jesus accepted this conclusion, and told them they had indeed erred in this interdiction. If a man in sincerity believed that, by thus using the name of Christ, works so great could be accomplished, this would show that he had good thoughts of Christ, and had at least those beginnings of faith which might lead to better things. And if he had actually wrought a miracle by this means, that was in itself a sign that he had spoken in faith, and that God had accepted and responded to his faith; and therefore he ought not to be forbidden to act, because he was not within the inner circle of Christ’s disciples.

Soon after this a question of Peter afforded our Lord an opportunity of laying down the law of Christian forgiveness, in the beautiful parable of the Unmerciful Servant.

It was shortly after this that our Lord chose out from the larger body of his disciples, the number of seventy, that they might go on a missionary tour, in pairs, to the towns and villages He intended himself afterwards to visit. Why He chose this precise number is not known. Perhaps there was no special reason; but some have thought that there may have been a general reference to the seventy elders, or to the seventy members of the Sanhedrin; or to the notion common among the Jews that there were seventy languages and nations upon the earth. The instructions given to them were very similar to those formerly impressed upon the twelve; but since the opposition of the Pharisees had greatly increased in violence, the conduct they were to observe under persecution was carefully pointed out, and the sustainments they were entitled to expect were fully declared, while strong denunciations were uttered against those places which should refuse to receive their testimony.

Autor: JOHN KITTO