So far, our consideration of the corporate responsibility of nations to confess Jesus Christ has focused on the Old Testament. Critics will say that this is the Achilles heel of the Covenanter position. Sure, the Old Testament has a great deal to say about nations submitting to God’s Kingly rule, but that is, after all, the Old Testament.

What about the New Testament? Doesn’t Jesus make it clear that His kingship is a spiritual matter, wholly unconnected to the political realities of the kingdoms of this world? Those who would take their faith into the public square are reminded of their duty to “render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Matt. 22:21). Good advice. The question remains, what exactly belongs to Caesar? And, more precisely, what does Caesar owe to God?

A Gordian Knot

In Matthew 22, we find Jesus in Jerusalem. Embraced by the crowds at the triumphal entry (21:9-11), the Lord did not find nearly as warm a reception from their leaders. Smarting from a series of public rebukes at the hands of a Galilean upstart, the Pharisees plotted against Jesus. Seeking to “entangle him in his talk” (22:15), the Pharisees sent their disciples to speak to Jesus. They did not go alone. Accompanied by a number of Herodians (supporters of King Herod), this mixed company proves that politics really does make strange bedfellows! Who would expect common purpose between puritanically minded Pharisees, zealous defenders of the holy law of God, and worldly Herodians, crass apologists of Herod’s impious regime? Only a common hatred for the righteousness of Christ could bring such bitter enemies into union.

Following a prelude of hypocritical flattery, the conspirators ask, “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”

The problem set before Jesus was exquisite. Pious Jews resented Roman rule. The fortress of Antonia with its Roman legions and symbols of foreign tyranny were looked upon as blasphemy. Zealots sought to liberate Jerusalem through violent rebellion. The Pharisees were less militant in deed but no less venomous in word. Jerusalem’s crowds shared the hostile sentiment. If Jesus were to declare it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, would He not lose all credibility among the pious?

On the other hand, Jesus is confronted by the Herodians. King Herod reigned at the pleasure of Rome. All of the prerogatives of power enjoyed by him and his supporters stood on the authority of Caesar to rule (and tax) the people. If Jesus declared the unlawfulness of paying taxes to Caesar, He immediately would be arrested and put to death.

The enemies of Christ believed that they had backed Him into a corner and tied His tongue into a proverbial Gordian knot. They quickly learned that one mightier than Hercules was before them.

The Faithful Must Give Caesar His Due

Jesus requested a coin. A Roman denarius was provided. Jesus asked, “Whose image and inscription is this?” (Matt. 22:20). The coin bore an image of Caesar Tiberius. On the front an inscription read, “Tiberius Caesar Augustus, Son of the Divine Augustus.” On the back the were the words, “Highest Priest.” Such blasphemy was an outrage to pious Jews. What would Jesus say of it?

Jesus expounds the fifth commandment duty of men to their rulers, declaring, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s” (v. 21). Jesus calls attention to Caesar’s image impressed upon the coin. What purpose does an image serve but to glorify its object? Since the coin bears Caesar’s picture (and his name), it must belong to Caesar. Those who take from Caesar must give back to Caesar.

Further, Jesus teaches that the coin in their pockets was a symbol of the benefits of Caesar’s authority enjoyed by the Jews. Although they were not legally obligated to pay their taxes with the denarius, it is obvious that the same people who despised the coin for its blasphemy were unwilling to forego its benefits. Jesus declares that dependence upon Caesar’s courts for justice, his roads for travel, and his coin for commerce creates a duty to render to Caesar the honor that belongs to him as a minister of God’s justice.

The Faithful Must Give God His Due

Further, Jesus rebukes Jerusalem for her hypocrisy. Days earlier, Jesus had cleansed the temple of its money-changers (Matt. 21:12-13). Jerusalem was filled with false shepherds and inequity. Do those who legalistically pervert God’s covenant of grace, flaunt their additions to God’s holy worship, and bind the conscience of God’s people with human regulations have a right to claim moral indignation against Caesar?

To such men Jesus declares, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” God gave authority to Caesar to rule over Jerusalem in order that violence might be restrained, that order might be preserved, and that the wicked might be punished (Rom. 13:1-7). To Caesar the faithful owe fearful respect and humble submission in all things lawful and/or indifferent. To God the faithful owe doctrinal integrity, purity of worship, and a zealous love for honorable conduct.

Caesar Must Give God His Due

The image of God

Jesus declared that the image-bearing coin must belong to Caesar. The image must bring glory to its object. Upon this principle, we look again at Caesar. This time our focus is not his image impressed upon a coin. Rather, focus your attention on Caesar himself. What do you see? First and foremost, we see a man. No matter what court flatterers might have told him, Tiberius was not the divine son of a god. Rather, Tiberius Caesar, like all men, was a son born of Adam’s flesh. To look upon Tiberius is to look upon the image of God (Gen. 1:27).

Further, if we consider Tiberius’ heart, we recognize the inscription of God. There is written the law of God. Paul reminds us that the Gentiles (of which Caesar was one) “show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness” (Rom. 2:15). The glory of God is impressed upon Caesar’s being, and the signature of His law is written upon his heart. As the Roman coin was an image of Caesar’s glory, and therefore under Caesar’s authority, so Caesar himself was an image of God’s glory and therefore under God’s authority!

An image of wrath

While Caesar as a man reflected the divine image, so Caesar in his office reflected the divine image as well. The Scriptures teach that civil authority is not outside of God’s providence. Paul warns those tempted toward evil, “But if you do wrong, be afraid, for [the civil authority] 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” (Rom. 13:4). The title Caesar reflects the office of Tiberius as chief civil magistrate of the Roman Empire. After the Flood, God armed the civil magistrate in order to restrain violence and punish the wicked. While the church’s ministry is called to reflect the image of God’s mercy offered, the magistrate’s ministry is called to reflect the image of God’s wrath enforced (v. 4). Let us conclude where we began. What does Caesar owe to God? The biblical answer is: everything.