Luke 20:22

20:22 Is it right ¹  for us to pay the tribute tax ²  to Caesar ³  or not?”

Luke 20:25

20:25 So ⁴  he said to them, “Then give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” ⁵ 

Luke 2:1

The Census and the Birth of Jesus

2:1 Now ⁶  in those days a decree ⁷  went out from Caesar ⁸  Augustus ⁹  to register ¹⁰  all the empire ¹¹  for taxes.

Luke 20:24

20:24 “Show me a denarius. ¹²  Whose image ¹³  and inscription are on it?” ¹⁴  They said, “Caesar’s.”

Luke 23:2

23:2 They ¹⁵  began to accuse ¹⁶  him, saying, “We found this man subverting ¹⁷  our nation, forbidding ¹⁸  us to pay the tribute tax ¹⁹  to Caesar ²⁰  and claiming that he himself is Christ, ²¹  a king.”

Luke 3:1

The Ministry of John the Baptist

3:1 In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, ²²  when Pontius Pilate ²³  was governor of Judea, and Herod ²⁴  was tetrarch ²⁵  of Galilee, and his brother Philip ²⁶  was tetrarch of the region of Iturea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ²⁷  was tetrarch of Abilene,

[20:22]  ¹ tn Or “lawful,” that is, in accordance with God’s divine law. On the syntax of ἔξεστιν (exestin) with an infinitive and accusative, see BDF §409.3.

[20:22]  ² tn This was a “poll tax.” L&N 57.182 states this was “a payment made by the people of one nation to another, with the implication that this is a symbol of submission and dependence – ‘tribute tax.’”

[20:22]  ³ tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[20:25]  ⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate that Jesus’ pronouncement results from the opponents’ answer to his question.

[20:25]  ⁵ sn Jesus’ answer to give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s was a both/and, not the questioners’ either/or. So he slipped out of their trap.

[2:1]  ⁷ tn Grk “Now it happened that.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[2:1]  ⁸ sn This decree was a formal decree from the Roman Senate.

[2:1]  ⁹ tn Or “from the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[2:1]  ¹⁰ sn Caesar Augustus refers to Octavian, who was Caesar from 27 b.c. to a.d. 14. He was known for his administrative prowess.

[2:1]  ¹¹ tn Grk “that all the empire should be registered for taxes.” The passive infinitive ἀπογράφεσθαι (apografesqai) has been rendered as an active in the translation to improve the English style. The verb is regarded as a technical term for official registration in tax lists (BDAG 108 s.v. ἀπογράφω a).

[2:1]  ¹² tn Grk “the whole (inhabited) world,” but this was a way to refer to the Roman empire (L&N 1.83).

[20:24]  ¹⁰ tn Here the specific name of the coin was retained in the translation, because not all coins in circulation in Palestine at the time carried the image of Caesar. In other places δηνάριον (dhnarion) has been translated simply as “silver coin” with an explanatory note.

[20:24]  ¹¹ tn Or “whose likeness.”

[20:24]  ¹² tn Grk “whose likeness and inscription does it have?”

[23:2]  ¹³ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[23:2]  ¹⁴ sn They began to accuse him. There were three charges: (1) disturbing Jewish peace; (2) fomenting rebellion through advocating not paying taxes (a lie – 20:20-26); and (3) claiming to be a political threat to Rome, by claiming to be a king, an allusion to Jesus’ messianic claims. The second and third charges were a direct challenge to Roman authority. Pilate would be forced to do something about them.

[23:2]  ¹⁵ tn On the use of the term διαστρέφω (diastrefw) here, see L&N 31.71 and 88.264.

[23:2]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “and forbidding.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated to suggest to the English reader that this and the following charge are specifics, while the previous charge was a summary one. See the note on the word “misleading” earlier in this verse.

[23:2]  ¹⁷ tn This was a “poll tax.” L&N 57.182 states this was “a payment made by the people of one nation to another, with the implication that this is a symbol of submission and dependence – ‘tribute tax.’”

[23:2]  ¹⁸ tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[23:2]  ¹⁹ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[3:1]  ¹⁶ tn Or “Emperor Tiberius” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[3:1]  ¹⁷ sn The rule of Pontius Pilate is also described by Josephus, J. W. 2.9.2-4 (2.169-177) and Ant. 18.3.1 (18.55-59).

[3:1]  ¹⁸ sn Herod refers here to Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great. He ruled from 4 b.c.-a.d. 39, sharing the rule of his father’s realm with his two brothers. One brother, Archelaus (Matt 2:22) was banished in a.d. 6 and died in a.d. 18; the other brother, Herod Philip (mentioned next) died in a.d. 34.

[3:1]  ¹⁹ sn A tetrarch was a ruler with rank and authority lower than a king, who ruled only with the approval of the Roman authorities. This was roughly equivalent to being governor of a region. Several times in the NT, Herod tetrarch of Galilee is called a king (Matt 14:9, Mark 6:14-29), reflecting popular usage.

[3:1]  ²⁰ sn Philip refers to Herod Philip, son of Herod the Great and brother of Herod Antipas. Philip ruled as tetrarch of Iturea and Trachonitis from 4 b.c.-a.d. 34.

[3:1]  ²¹ sn Nothing else is known about Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene.