"You men of false heart, pretending to be honest!" he said, "why do you try to catch me in a snare? Let me see some of the tax money!"
They brought to him a piece of silver, a Roman coin. He looked at it closely and then asked:
"Whose head is this that I find upon the coin? What are the words around the edge?"
"Why, that is the head of the Roman emperor, Tiberius Cæsar, and those words are his title."
"Well, then," said Jesus, "give to Cæsar what belongs to Cæsar; and be sure to give to God what belongs to God."
There was nothing in that answer which they could make to appear either unfriendly or friendly to the Roman rule; nor yet was there anything that could be used against Jesus with the people. Wondering at the answer of Jesus, these men left him.
Jewish half-shekel, the coin in which the Temple tax was paid—"tribute money" (Matt. 17:27)—value, 32 cents