Jesus never really answers his opponents' question about paying taxes. He simply asks them to produce a coin, which they do. He asks whose head and name are on it, and they tell him. But I think the translators mislead us here in that Jesus actually asks "Whose image is this?" It's the same word used in the Greek version of the Genesis story where God creates humankind in God's "image." The question about image carries with it implications of ownership. (By the way, the Pharisees are violating their own teachings by having this Roman coin with a graven image of the emperor on it. Jesus has already one-upped them as soon as they pull out the coin.)
We are quite familiar with people putting their names on things. Designer clothes sometimes have initials or a crest of the maker, allowing everyone to know that you are wearing something by that designer. Corporations pay big dollars for "naming rights" to stadiums and sporting events. But some venues and sporting events resist this trend. The Masters gold tournament won't sell its naming rights. For whatever reasons, it does not want its identity muddied by another name.
According to the Bible, we humans bear, in some way, the image of God. And as Christians, we are marked by our baptisms. We acquire a new identity as we are joined to Christ. You might say that God has double naming rights on Christians. It is part of our nature and it is stamped on us a second time in baptism. Although perhaps none of that is necessary in that Scripture also tells us, The earth is Yahweh's and all that is in it."
So when Jesus says we are to give to the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and to God what belongs to God, it's not clear to me how much the emperor is going to get out of that deal.
Click to learn more about the Daily Lectionary.
No comments:
Post a Comment