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24 When they came to Capernaum, the collectors of the Temple tax came to Peter and said, “Your teacher pays the Temple tax,[a] doesn’t He?”

25 “Yes,” Peter said.

Now when Peter came into the house, Yeshua spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? The kings of the earth, from whom do they collect tolls or tax? From their sons or from strangers?”

26 After Peter said, “From strangers,” Yeshua said to him, “Then the sons are free. 27 But so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw out a hook, and take the first fish that comes up. And when you open its mouth, you’ll find a coin.[b] Take that, and give it to them, for Me and you.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 17:24 Greek double drachma, Hebrew half-shekel; cf. Ex. 30:13; 38:26.
  2. Matthew 17:27 Lit. stater, a silver coin worth four drachmas or one shekel; the Temple Tax for two people.

The Temple Tax

24 After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax(A) came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”

25 “Yes, he does,” he replied.

When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes(B)—from their own children or from others?”

26 “From others,” Peter answered.

“Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. 27 “But so that we may not cause offense,(C) go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”

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