For Me And For You

Matthew 17:22-27

“Shim‘on, what’s your opinion? The kings of the earth — from whom do they collect duties and taxes? From their sons or from others?” ²⁶ “From others,” he answered. “Then,” said Yeshua, “The sons are exempt. ²⁷ But to avoid offending them — go to the lake, throw out a line, and take the first fish you catch. Open its mouth, and you will find a shekel. Take it and give it to them for me and for you.”



This is a weird story. I think Jesus is doing his usual double-and-triple-layered metaphorical thing.

It all turns on the Greek words translated as “others” and “duties and taxes”.

“Others” is “allotrios”— a foreigner, an alien.

“Duties” is “telos”— an end attained; a consummation; a perfect discharge; a closing act; fulfillment; realization; final stage; ultimate destiny; and (almost as an afterthought) a tax or dues.

“Taxes” is “kēnsos”— a census; an assessment; a valuation of property; a tribute.

This passage could be taken to mean that Jesus is making a distinction between “the kings of the earth” and God, who is the Ruler of all.

The word-play between Simon and Jesus turns on the implication that they are both exempt from the tribute demanded from foreigners by the rulers of the earth; neither Simon or Jesus are foreigners or aliens; they are both sons of Israel, and so they should be exempt from the tax. Nevertheless, in order to avoid giving offense, Jesus tells Peter to pay the tax.

Now comes the weird part. Jesus doesn’t go to the household cash-box to get money to pay the tax. No, Jesus pays the tax, but not the tax you might expect or in the way you might expect.

See, he tells Peter to go fishing with a hook and line; which is not the normal method used for fishing in first century Galilee; and the first fish he catches will have a whole shekel in its mouth, which is double the amount needed to pay the temple tax.

With a hook and line, you can only catch one fish at a time, so the message here is that only one fish is necessary: the fish with “ultimate destiny” in its mouth.

Instead of an ordinary coin to pay a monetary tax, Jesus renders up a perfect end—

A consummation, an eternal fulfillment realized in a culminating act.

He pays his dues with the full value of all that he is, as a tribute given to God.

And here’s the clincher: The payment is more than what Jesus himself owes—

 It’s a perfect fulfillment; a complete attainment— “for me and for you.”