Peter and His Master Pay Their Taxes

24 (A)When they had come to [a]Capernaum, those who received the [b]temple tax came to Peter and said, “Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?”

25 He said, “Yes.”

And when he had come into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth take customs or taxes, from their sons or from (B)strangers?”

26 Peter said to Him, “From strangers.”

Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free. 27 Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a [c]piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 17:24 NU Capharnaum, here and elsewhere
  2. Matthew 17:24 Lit. double drachma
  3. Matthew 17:27 Gr. stater, the exact temple tax for two

Paying the Double Drachma Temple Tax

24 Now when[a] they arrived in Capernaum, the ones who collected the double drachma tax[b] came up to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the double drachma tax?” 25 He said, “Yes.” And when he[c] came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect tolls or taxes—from their own sons, or from foreigners?” 26 And when he[d] said, “From foreigners,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free. 27 But so that we do not give offense to them, go out to the sea, cast a line with[e] a hook, and take the first fish that comes up. And when you[f] open its mouth, you will find a four-drachma coin. Take that and[g] give it[h] to them for me and you.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 17:24 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“arrived”)
  2. Matthew 17:24 This refers to the half-shekel annual tax paid by Jewish males to support the temple; over time the name of the coin commonly used to pay the tax came to be used for the tax itself
  3. Matthew 17:25 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“came”) which is understood as temporal
  4. Matthew 17:26 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“said”) which is understood as temporal
  5. Matthew 17:27 The words “a line with” are not in the Greek text but are implied
  6. Matthew 17:27 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“open”) which is understood as temporal
  7. Matthew 17:27 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“take”) has been translated as a finite verb
  8. Matthew 17:27 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation