“Therefore, render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to Elohim the things that are Elohim’s.” (Mat 22:21)

I began part 1 of this “Render to Caesar …” series of articles by saying how troubling it is to me that people use a story or stories in the New Testament to trump what the clear teaching of Torah is. This next, much misused portion of Matthew picks up on just this thought and is found in Mat 12:15-21. It begins with this:

Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle him [Yeshua] in His talk. And they sent to him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do you care about anyone, for you do not regard the person of men. (Mat 22:15-16)

Who are these men that are coming to Yeshua? What do they have to gain by discrediting Yeshua and his message about Yehovah’s kingdom? Is it possible that their goal is to maintain their authority over men;  to keep things the way they presently are? Yeshua is teaching about another kingdom where only Yehovah rules over men; these men want to preserve their own authority over others. They have no love for their Roman conquerers but they have no problem involving Caesar, a greater authority than them, to make Yeshua look bad, so they asked him this question.

Tell us, therefore, what do you think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” (Mat 22:17)

They are asking Yeshua, who they just said “teaches the way of God (Elohim) in truth“, if it is according to Torah to pay taxes to Caesar. Did Israel during, say David’s reign, pay taxes to Babylon?

But Yeshua perceived their wickedness, and said, “Why do you test me, you hypocrites? Show me the tax money.” So they brought Him a denarius. (Mat 22:18-19)

Wow – these two verses are loaded with truth. Let’s ask ourselves, why does Yeshua call them hypocrites? Could it be that it is because they honor Yehovah with their mouths but not their lives? Even their question is founded in harlotry? For Yehovah’s people are to have no other elohim but Him. Are they really concerned about what Yehovah thinks when they ask “is it lawful,” or are they just looking to stir up trouble?

Notice, Yeshua does not ask them to show him just any money, he asks them to show Him the tax or tribute money. This coin, a denarius, is the coin that the tax must be paid with. I wonder if the money changers of Yeshua’s time made these coins as costly to get as they did the silver shekel of the temple.

A denarius is a strictly Roman coin.  Smith’s Bible dictionary says that the denarius is:

A Roman silver coin that is worth about 15 cents. It was the principal silver coin of the Roman commonwealth. From the parable of the laborers in the vineyard, it would seem that a denarius was then the ordinary pay for a day’s labor.

Yeshua said to them,

“Whose image and inscription is this?”(Mat 22:20)

And they answered Yeshua saying,

“Caesar’s” (Mat 22:21)

Why would Caesar want his tribute paid in another country’s currency? Caesar’s servants pay his tribute with the coins that have his image on it.

But now we come to the final answer that Yeshua gave these hypocrites who were questioning him.

And He said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to Elohim the things that are Elohim’s.” When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way. (Mat 22:21-22)

Yehovah is the creator of all; is there anything that should not be His?

The earth is Yehovah’s, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein. Psa 24:1

I ignorantly rendered my life to Caesar for the majority of my life by entering into His contracts and by using his numbers; and, to my shame, taught my children to do the same. I wanted to serve only my Father but I belonged to Caesar and that fact began to make me very unhappy. One of the things that helped set me free was understanding what money is and what it is not. So since this blog has a lot to do with money I thought I should mention the Federal Reserve Notes that many of us use as money.

Few people understand that the Federal Reserve is not federal and that it has no reserve to back up their notes. They are a private corporation and are listed in the business section of the phone book, as opposed to the government section, close to the Federal Express listing which is another private corporation.

The Federal Reserved was formed in 1913 in secret on Jekyll Island, Georgia and has become one more tentacle of the world’s money changers. Representative Charles A Lindbergh – R-MN and the father of aviator Charles “Lucky” Lindbergh” said,

“This Act establishes the most gigantic trust on Earth. When the President signs this bill, the invisible government by the Monetary Power will be legalized, the people may not know it immediately but the day of reckoning is only a few years removed… The worst legislative crime of the ages is perpetrated by this banking bill.” – 1913

And after the Federal Reserve Bill was signed Rep. Lindberg said the following about the new financial system.

“The financial system has been turned over to the Federal Reserve Board. That board administers the financial system by the authority of a purely profiteering group. The system is private, conducted for the sole purpose of obtaining the greatest possible profits from the use of other people’s money.” – 1923

James Madison, the main author of the Constitution, referred to people like those that run the Federal Reserve as “money changers’ and said,

“History records that the money changers have used every form of abuse, intrigue, deceit, and violent means possible to maintain their control over governments by controlling money and its issuance.”

The Rothschild family is, for all practical purposes, the head of the money changers of the world. Here are a couple quotes from them:

“Give me control of a nation’s money and I care not who makes its laws.” — Mayer Amschel Bauer Rothschild

“The few who understand the system, will either be so interested from its profits or so dependent on its favors, that there will be no opposition from that class.” — Rothschild Brothers of London, 1863

Yeshua, when speaking about “where your treasure is, so is your heart” said that we could not serve both Yehovah and mammon. I believe this is what he was talking about. Remember it was the money changers’ tables that he overturned in the temple.

“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve Yehovah and mammon. (Mat 6:24)

Those who, like myself, have rendered everything to Elohim and have no covenants with Caesar, owe him nothing. Am I saying, “don’t pay your taxes”? God forbid! What I am saying is “set up your life so you are 100% Yehovah’s and owe no allegiance to any other elohim or government; that is what Israel is supposed to do.” That is lawful, and that is Torah! As we saw in part one, the sons of the kingdom are free!

Here is a video called “The Money Masters” that will help you see just why wars are fought, how the control of the world has fallen into the hands of a very few and much more. It is over 3 hours long but only those that seek for knowledge and truth will ever find it. Now it is time to learn the truth while you still can.

Seek Yehovah while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. (Isa 55:6)

Part 7 of this “Coming Out of Babylon” continues here!