Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God, the things that are God’s.” Mark 12:17 ESV¹

Read Matthew 22:15-22, Mark 12:13-17 & Luke 20:20-26

To faithfully render something is to accurately represent it. But one can faithfully render something without rendering faithfully at all. To explain this phenomenon, let’s turn to an account recorded in the synoptic Gospels.

“The Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle [Jesus] in His words” (Matthew 22:15). “So, they watched Him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch Him in something He said so as to deliver Him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor” (Luke 20:20). “They sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, ‘Teacher, we know that You are true and teach the way of God truthfully and You do not care about anyone’s opinion’” (Matthew 22:16a) “‘and show no partiality’” (Luke 20:21), “‘for You are not swayed by appearances. Tell us, then, what You think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?’ But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, ‘Why put Me to the test, you hypocrites? Show Me the coin for the tax.’ And they brought Him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, ‘Whose likeness and inscription is this?’ They said, ‘Caesar’s.’ Then He said to them, ‘Therefore, render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God, the things that are God’s’” (Matthew 22:16b-21). 26 “And they were not able in the presence of the people to catch Him in what He said, but marveling at His answer, they became silent” (Luke 20:26). “And they left Him and went away” (Matthew 22:22b).

The Rendering of Truth

Religious leaders are supposed to faithfully render, or accurately represent, God. They are responsible for correctly interpreting and relating God’s requirements and the truth about Him to His people. They are intended to be examples to those around them of how followers of God should act. But the religious leaders of Jesus’ time on Earth were not faithful representatives of the LORD; they were hypocrites.

“Jesus said to the crowds and to His disciples, ‘The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach but do not practice. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger” (Matthew 23:1-4).

The Pharisees were infuriated with Jesus because He frequently made statements about them, like the one above, to reprimand them for their hypocrisy. Instead of considering that Jesus could be a Man of God with a message from Him, they rejected Him. Instead of repenting with respect to Jesus’ chastisements, they sought to get rid of Him. Time and time again, they tried to trick Him, trap Him, capture Him, and even kill Him. But their efforts had been thwarted. Little did they know they would never be able to overcome Jesus until the Father allowed it for His purposes.

“They were seeking to arrest Him, but no one laid a hand on Him because His hour had not yet come” (John 7:30).

“He taught in the temple, but no one arrested Him because His hour had not yet come” (John 8:20b).

When His hour did come, Jesus would willingly give Himself up.

“‘No one takes [my life] from Me but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from My Father’” (John 10:18).

Jesus had said much to offend the Pharisees but they were unable to punish Him as they saw fit. Since they primarily had influence in religious matters, the Pharisees realized, if they were to eliminate Jesus, they might need the help of a different kind of power. If they could get Jesus to say or do something to offend the governing authorities, the Romans might be more successful in taking care of their competition than they had been. So, the Pharisees banded together with another group of powerful Jews who had ties to the government—the Herodians.

The Pharisees had already sacrificed their responsibilities of faithfully rendering truth to God’s people. To join with the Herodians, they would have to set aside others of their beliefs and obligations. But once they had compromised in one area, conceding in another area came easily. To the Pharisees, the enemy of their Enemy began to look like a friend.

The Rendering of Justice

Those in power have the obligation to faithfully render, or dispense, justice.

“At the time of Jesus, there were certain groups … [who] held power in either religious or political matters. The Herodians held political power, and most scholars believe that they were a political party that supported King Herod Antipas, the Roman Empire’s ruler over much of the land of the Jews from 4 B.C. to A.D. 39. The Herodians favored submitting to the Herods, and therefore to Rome, for political expediency. This support of Herod compromised Jewish independence in the minds of the Pharisees, making it difficult for the Herodians and Pharisees to unite and agree on anything. But one thing did unite them—opposing Jesus … so they joined efforts to achieve their common goal.”²

Additionally,

“Many scholars believe that the Herodians looked to Herod as a messiah, a savior of sorts who would put the Jewish land in favor with the Roman Empire and bring blessings to them. Jesus’ presentation of Himself as the Messiah was a threat to the Herodians’ attempt to make Herod the influential political power in the land.”²

Though the Pharisees opposed Jesus as much as the Herodians did, there was no way that they would have ever believed that Herod was the Messiah. The Pharisees were experts in the Law of Moses. They had memorized large portions of the Old Testament. They were intimately aware of the hundreds of Messianic prophesies and Herod did not fulfill such prophecies!

Also, several Pharisees opposed anything Roman.

“Among the Pharisees were two schools of thought, based on the teachings of two rabbis, Shammai and Hillel. Shammai called for a strict, unbending interpretation of the Law on almost every issue, but Hillel taught a looser, more liberal application. Followers of Shammai fostered a hatred for anything Roman, including taxation—Jews who served as tax collectors were persona non grata. The Shammaites wanted to outlaw all communication and commerce between Jews and Gentiles.”³

Both the Pharisees and the Herodians were influential Jews who held comfortable positions of authority within their chaotic and divided world. They each, in their own spheres of influence, had the power to faithfully render justice with the help of Almighty God. But because they were equally troubled by the way that Jesus disturbed the status quo, they sacrificed their convictions and their responsibility to faithfully represent the LORD in the positions that He had placed them and actively opposed the Messenger God had sent to them.

The Rendering of a Plot

The Pharisees and the Herodians had been conspiring for quite some time to render, or create, a plot to get rid of Jesus. In fact, they had been working together for about three years. This is the backstory. Early in His ministry, as was Jesus’ habit,

“He entered the synagogue and a man was there with a withered hand. And [the Pharisees] watched Jesus, to see whether He would heal him on the Sabbath so that they might accuse Him. And He said to the man with the withered hand, ‘Come here.’ And [Jesus] said to [the Pharisees], ‘Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?’ But they were silent. And He looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ [The man] stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against Him, how to destroy Him” (Mark 3:1-6).

I imagine, with all their differing beliefs, it would have taken some time for the Pharisees and the Herodians to come together in unity on anything. (Perhaps, all of this working together shows they did have some ability to faithfully render). Eventually, they settled on something about which they actually disagreed—paying taxes to the Roman government. But, in their minds, this was the perfect trap. By forcing Jesus to make a choice for or against paying taxes, He would be subject to either religious or governmental consequences.

The Rendering of the Plan

Once the plot trap Jesus was created, it was time to render, or adequately deliver or present, it. But before we consider how faithful some of those who were hostile to Jesus were at this rendering, let’s first consider why they may have rendered such a plot in the first place.

In Jesus’ time on Earth, taxes weren’t just being collected for the Roman empire but Jewish Law also required a tax for the upkeep of the temple.

“‘Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel [approximately 2 drachmae] according to the shekel of the sanctuary …, half a shekel as an offering to the LORD. Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the LORD’s offering. The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you give the LORD’s offering to make atonement for your lives. You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the LORD, so as to make atonement for your lives’” (Exodus 30:13-16).

Those who were against Jesus were constantly spying on Him to gain fuel for their fires of hatred toward Him. Catching Jesus in something He said about taxes may have seemed possible because of an event that happened just a short time before the disciples of the Pharisees and Herodians landed on their plan of trapping Jesus by asking His opinion on paying taxes.

“When [Jesus and His disciples] came to Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax went up to Peter and said, ‘Does your Teacher not pay the tax?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, ‘What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take a toll or tax? From their sons or from others?’ And when he said, ‘From others,’ Jesus said to him, ‘Then the sons are free. However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for Me and for yourself” (Matthew 17:24-27).⁴

The sly listening ears that lurked in the shadows may have perceived in Jesus’ words to Simon Peter a negative attitude toward paying taxes. But, then again, one of Jesus’ closest disciples, Matthew, was a former tax collector (see Matthew 9:9; Mark 2:14). And Jesus had often been seen fraternizing with tax collectors (see Matthew 9:10-12, 11:18-19; Mark 2:15-17; Luke 15:1-2, 19:2-6). Those who hated Him might not have been able to discern Jesus’ position on taxes, but this was something that their razor-sharp teeth set on vengeance could sink their teeth into. And a plan to trap Him emerged.

The Rendering of Disciples

A disciple is one who adheres to the doctrines of another. Jesus wasn’t the only One who had followers. Other groups had supporters who were devoted to their causes. Both the Pharisees and Herodians had disciples who were supposed to realistically represent, their leaders, to faithfully render the wishes of those whom they served.

Presuming the success of their plan, in stealth, neither the leading Pharisees nor Herodians came to Jesus. Instead, they sent to Him their disciples, ones whom Jesus may not recognize. Those that were sent were good actors. Pretending to be sincere, they flattered Jesus with,

“‘Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality, but truly teach the way of God’” (Luke 20:21).

Flattery is often an effective technique when it comes to manipulating someone. Those who are filled with pride, assuming it is true, readily accept false praise. Once a person is seduced by the bait of flattery, they can easily be trapped in almost any scheme. Though the disciples of the Pharisees and Herodians indicated so with their words, the conspirators failed to realize that Jesus was not motivated by the same things that they themselves desired. Therefore, He did not respond as they expected.

Jesus couldn’t be caught because He didn’t take sides as they expected. His response baffled them.

“Jesus, aware of their malice, said, ‘Why put Me to the test, you hypocrites? Show Me the coin for the tax.’ And they brought Him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, ‘Whose likeness and inscription is this?’ They said, ‘Caesar’s.’ Then He said to them, ‘Therefore, render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God, the things that are God’s’” (Matthew 22:18-21)

The trap that took the Pharisees and Herodians about three years to construct was dismantled by Jesus in about three seconds! At this point, the leaders of these two groups probably wished they had come themselves instead of sending their disciples. Those who were sent weren’t able to faithfully render the plan that had so painstakingly been rendered.

The Rendering of Hearts

Rendering can also mean making a realistic description of something. This event was recorded by Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Each of their renditions uses a different word to depict the heart attitudes of the disciples of the Pharisees and Herodians. It is clear from the words they each used that Jesus knew those who came to Him with the question about taxes weren’t as innocent as they may have seemed.

“Jesus, aware of their malice” (Matthew 22:18), “knowing their hypocrisy” (Mark 12:15), “perceived their craftiness, and said to them …”  (Luke 20:23).

Though the Pharisees and the Herodians joined together to rid the world of their mutual enemy, they considered themselves quite different. But Jesus saw more deeply than their outward appearances. Although they stood for vastly different ideals, in their hearts, they were not all that different.

“[Jesus] cautioned [His disciples], saying, ‘Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod’” (Mark 8:15).

Leaven is a relatively small thing, when placed in bread dough, that causes it to swell. Leaven puffs up and alters that in which it is put. What were the seemingly small things that filled the Pharisees and the Herodians and dangerously transformed them? From what exactly was Jesus warning His disciples to keep their distance?

What would make the Pharisees, the conservative religious class of their day, become so bent on killing Someone who attempted to hold them accountable?

Jesus explained outright that the Pharisees’ leaven was hypocrisy.

“[Jesus taught] His disciples …, ‘Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed or hidden that will not be known’” (Luke 12:1b-2).

“In the Gospels, the Pharisees are often presented as hypocritical and proud opponents of Jesus. The Lord stated it bluntly: ‘They do not practice what they preach’ (Matthew 23:3). As a general rule, the Pharisees were self-righteousness and smug in their delusion that they were pleasing to God because they kept the Law—or parts of it, at least. As Jesus pointed out to them, however scrupulous they were in following the finer points of ritualism, they failed to measure up to God’s standard of holiness: ‘You have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness’”⁵

The Pharisees looked incredible on the outside. They were impressive to all around them. They received many accolades and much respect from everyone, that is, except Jesus who saw through their façades. So, to protect themselves and their glory, the Pharisees were determined to get rid of the One who was exposing their true natures of hypocrisy.

And what would cause those who were concerned about the security of their nation to be so insecure about the presence of one Man?

To discover the leaven of the well-to-do Jewish Herodians, we need to go no further than taking a look at Herod Antipas Himself. Herod was a man filled with pride and self-indulgence. Herod’s capital in Galilee, Tiberias, was pretentious. It was built and decorated to rival a Greek city in all its glory. Herod erected many statues in his city to feed his own ego. And his hometown provided ample opportunities for amusement and pleasure. Tiberias contained a spa fed by natural mineral springs, a stadium, and a theater.

Some examples of Herod’s self-indulgence are recorded in Scripture. The account of his birthday party (see Mark 6:17-28) revealed his opulent lifestyle, his adulterous and incestuous relationship, and his ability to resort to murdering an innocent man to protect his own image. And Herod’s appetite for entertainment was displayed on the day of Jesus’ sentencing (see Luke 23:6-11).

It was self-righteousness and self-indulgence that Jesus warned against when He indicated to His disciples that the Pharisees and the Herodians were made out of the same stuff. And it was Jesus’ statement about rendering appropriate authority to both God and Caesar that silenced His opponents because their assertions didn’t compare with their practices.

The Rendering of Honor

The Pharisees claimed to honor God and the Herodians alleged their respect for the government but neither was rendering the appropriate dignity because they were preserving that recognition for themselves. In reality, we are all called to give tribute to those who are in authority over us. And that is really hard to faithfully render if the ones in our mirrors receive the most attention.

We are expected to pay homage to both God and government. The Scriptures teach:

“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore, whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore, one must be in subjection not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. Because of this, you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed” (Romans 13:1-7).

“Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor” (1 Peter 2:13-15).

As Christians, we are called to seek the good of those who rule over us.

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior” (1 Timothy 2:1-3).

The Rendering of You

The Pharisees claimed to worship God, yet they were more concerned about grabbing glory for themselves. And the Herodians praised Herod and Roman rule but they were ultimately interested in satisfying their own lusts. Each group pridefully held themselves in the center stage while giving lip service to those in authority.

They tried to flatter Jesus by saying:

“‘Teacher, we know that You are true and teach the way of God truthfully and You do not care about anyone’s opinion’” (Matthew 22:16a) “‘and show no partiality’” (Luke 20:21), “‘for You are not swayed by appearances’” (Matthew 22:16b).

Their assessment of Jesus was absolutely correct, yet they did not believe in Him or submit to Him. Their actions did not match their words. They were not faithfully rendering the honor due the One to whom they spoke. Instead, they were lying and attempting to flatter Him for their own gain.

What about you? Consider your prayers. Think about the worship songs you sing. What have you been saying to God? Do your words match your actions and attitudes? Are you guilty of honoring Him with your speech but not faithfully rendering your life to God? Are you praising Him with words that are true but which are not an accurate representation of what you believe in your heart?

Jesus quoted Isaiah 29:13 in chastisement of the religious leaders of His time on Earth. Could they apply to you and me, the religious of today?

“‘You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: ‘“These people honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me; in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men”’’” (Matthew 15:7-9).

Remember, Jesus also gave this warning:

“‘Not everyone who says to Me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the Kingdom of Heaven but the one who does the will of My Father who is in Heaven. On that Day many will say to Me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and cast out demons in Your name, and do many mighty works in Your name?” And then will I declare to them, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness.”’” (Matthew 7:21-23).

Addressing Jesus as Lord doesn’t mean He is in actuality your Lord. Even doing mighty works in His name can in reality be done in your own name. If you are set on exulting yourself, you are really joining Christ’s enemy in hopes of getting what you want.

“Jesus told His disciples, ‘If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me’” (Matthew 16:24).

How are you doing at rendering your selfishness and sin dead? How about denying yourself and following Jesus’ example of self-sacrifice? Jesus also said:

“‘If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple … Any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be My disciple’” (Luke 14:26 & 33).

How are you doing with putting Jesus above everyone else whom you love? What about everything you own; have you really dedicated it all to Him? Isn’t this all from Him in the beginning? What do you have that He has not given you?

Does Jesus have first place in your life or do you? Who is in the seat of ultimate control over your life? Rendering to God His due means putting Him above everything. And rendering to God those things which are God’s means giving Him all of you. If you are a Believer, you are God’s. Jesus bought you with His blood. He gave all of Himself for you. Why not faithfully render to Him the things that are His … not only in word but also in deed?

 

¹ Scripture quotations marked with ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All Scriptures are taken from the ESV unless otherwise noted. To aid in understanding, I have capitalized references to God.

² https://www.gotquestions.org/Herodians.html

³ https://www.gotquestions.org/Pharisees.html

⁴ For my commentary on this event, check out https://www.blueturtletrails.com/a-little-change-and-much-change/

⁵ https://www.gotquestions.org/Pharisees.html