St Luke Chapter XX : Verses 17-26
Contents
- Luke xx. Verses 17-26. Douay-Rheims (Challoner) text & Latin text (Vulgate)
- Douay-Rheims 1582 text
- Annotations based on the Great Commentary
Luke xx. Verses 17-26.
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| Shew me a penny. Whose image and inscription hath it? J-J Tissot. Brooklyn Museum. |
Ille autem aspiciens eos, ait : Quid est ergo hoc quod scriptum est : Lapidem quem reprobaverunt ædificantes, hic factus est in caput anguli?
18 Whosoever shall fall upon that stone, shall be bruised: and upon whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.
Omnis qui ceciderit super illum lapidem, conquassabitur : super quem autem ceciderit, comminuet illum.
19 And the chief priests and the scribes sought to lay hands on him the same hour: but they feared the people, for they knew that he spoke this parable to them.
Et quærebant principes sacerdotum et scribae mittere in illum manus illa hora, et timuerunt populum : cognoverunt enim quod ad ipsos dixerit similitudinem hanc.
20 And being upon the watch, they sent spies, who should feign themselves just, that they might take hold of him in his words, that they might deliver him up to the authority and power of the governor.
Et observantes miserunt insidiatores, qui se justos simularent, ut caparent eum in sermone, ut traderent illum principatui, et potestati praesidis.
21 And they asked him, saying: Master, we know that thou speakest and teachest rightly: and thou dost not respect any person, but teachest the way of God in truth.
Et interrogaverunt eum, dicentes : Magister, scimus quia recte dicis et doces : et non accipis personam, sed viam Dei in veritate doces.
22 Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or no?
Licet nobis tributum dare Cæsari, an non?
23 But he considering their guile, said to them: Why tempt you me?
Considerans autem dolum illorum, dixit ad eos : Quid me tentatis?
24 shew me a penny. Whose image and inscription hath it? They answering, said to him, Caesar's.
ostendite mihi denarium. Cujus habet imaginem et inscriptionem? Respondentes dixerunt ei : Cæsaris.
25 And he said to them: Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's: and to God the things that are God's.
Et ait illis : Reddite ergo quæe sunt Cæsaris, Cæsari : et quæ sunt Dei, Deo.
26 And they could not reprehend his word before the people: and wondering at his answer, they held their peace.
Et non potuerunt verbum ejus reprehendere coram plebe : et mirati in responso ejus, tacuerunt.
Douay-Rheims : 1582 text
17. But he beholding them ſaid: What is this then that is written, The ſtone which the builders reiected, the ſame is become into the head of the corner?
18. Euery one that falleth vpon this ſtone, ſhal be quaſhed: and vpon whom it ſhal fal, it ſhal breake him to pouder.
19. And the cheefe Prieſts and Scribes ſought to lay hands vpon him that houre: and they feared the people, for they knew that he ſpake this ſimilitude to them.
20. And watching, they sent ſpies which ſhould feine themſelues iuſt: that they might take him in his talke, and deliuer him to the principaltie and power of the Preſident.
21. And they aſked him, ſaying: Maiſter, we know that thou ſpeakeſt and teacheſt rightly; and thou doeſt not accept perſon, but teacheſt the way of God in truth.
22. Is it lawful for vs to giue tribute to Cæſar, or no?
23. But conſidering their guile, he ſaid to them: Why tempt you me?
24. Shew me a penie. Whoſe image hath it and inſcription? They anſwering ſaid: Cæſars.
25. And he ſaid to them: Render therfore the things that are Cæſars, to Cæſar: and the things that are Gods, to God.
26. And they could not reprehend his word before the people: and marueling at his anſwer, they held their peace.
Annotations
[Taken from the Great Commentary on Chapter xxii of St Matthew's Gospel concerning the same incident. The verse numbers of St Luke's Gospel have been inserted.]
22. Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or no? The occasion of this question being propounded to Christ, was as follows. About this time one Judas, of Galilee, had taught that it was not lawful for the Jews to be in subjection to the Romans, and pay them taxes. Now Christ and the Apostles were regarded as Galilæans; and the Jews professed to look upon them as upholders of this teaching of Judas the Galilæan, as being their countryman. And for this reason they frequently repudiated this error of theirs. Hear S. Jerome (in cap. 3, ad Tit. ver. 1), “I think,” says he, “this precept was given by the Apostle, because at that time the teaching of Judas the Galilæan was still in vogue, and had many followers. Among their other tenets, they held it probable that, according to the law, no one ought to be called lord, except God only; and that those who paid tithes to the Temple ought not to render tribute to Cæsar. This sect increased to so great an extent as to influence a great part of the Pharisees as well as the rest of the people, so that they referred this question about the lawfulness of paying tribute to Cæsar to our Lord, who answered prudently and cautiously, Render therefore, &c. S. Paul’s teaching is in agreement with this answer, in that he bids believers be in subjection to princes and powers.”
23. But he considering their guile, &c. It is as though He said, “You pretend to be friends, and to desire to maintain a good conscience, that you may know what you ought to do in this case truly and justly, according to the law of God, when all the while you are My enemies, and are thirsting for My blood.” “The prime virtue,” says S. Jerome, “in one who gives an answer is to know the mind of him who asks the question.”
24. shew me a penny. That is, Show me the coin which Cæsar exacts as a tax from each person. The Arabic has, Show Me the figure of the denarius. And they brought unto Him a denarius. You will say that, according to chap. xvii.17, it appears that the Jews paid a capitation-tax of a didrachma, or a half-shekel. But the Roman denarius was only worth about half a didrachma, or ninepence. My answer is, that the didrachma was, for the sake of convenience, divided into two denarii, and that each individual paid two denarii, or one didrachma. So Jansen and Maldonatus. Lastly, it would appear that Tiberius and the other emperors ordered a denarius of this value to be struck off, which coin they required to be paid by the Jews in the way of tribute. As Baronius shows from Lampridius, the Romans were in the habit of striking off coins of such weight and value as they required to be paid in the way of tribute, and of greater or less value, according to the necessity of times and requirements.
Whose image and inscription hath it? Gr. ἐπιγραφή; for which the Vulg. in Mark has inscription. For coins are wont to be stamped with the name and image of the prince who coins them. Hence the Arab, has, Whose figure and inscription is this?
They answering, said to him, Caesar's, i.e., Tiberius Cæsar’s, who then reigned. Christ already knew this, but He put the question that He might draw from their own mouth a reply which He could turn against them and convict them. The cognomen Cæsar was first given to Julius Cæsar, from whom it passed to the succeeding emperors. Servius and Spartianus, and from them Charles Sigonius (lib. de Nomin. Rom.), say that Cæsar was called originally from the slaughter of an elephant. For Cæsar signifies elephant in the Punic tongue. I have seen on some silver coins, on one side an elephant, with the inscription Cæsar; on the reverse, instruments by means of which the Romans were wont to slay elephants.
25. And he said to them: Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's: and to God the things that are God's. As though He said, “Since ye, O ye Jews, are now subject to Cæsar, and use his coins, do ye not so much give as render or restore (reddite) to him the denarius which is due to him as tribute. But spiritual things, that is to say, worship and piety, give ye (date) to God. For this God exacts as what is rightly His due. So shall it come to pass that ye will offend neither against God nor Cæsar.”
Observe: that Christ is here unwilling to enter into the question whether the Jews were justly or unjustly subjects and tributaries of the Romans. For this was a doubtful question. For prima facie, the negative, that they were not justly subject, would seem the more correct. For Pompey, who first reduced the Jews under the Roman yoke, was only called in by Hyrcanus and Aristobulus, the grandsons of Simon the high priest, to decide between them which of the two was to succeed to the Jewish sovereignty and high-priesthood. By what right then did Pompey pass them over, and transfer the sovereign power over Judea to the Romans? For this is Turkish justice. For when the Turk is called in to aid them by Christian princes quarrelling between themselves, he seizes upon and enslaves both. And yet, if we examine what happened more carefully, we shall perceive that the contrary proposition is the more probable, namely, that Pompey seized upon Judea by the right of a just war. For when Pompey had justly decided in favour of Hyrcanus, as being the elder, his younger brother, Aristobulus, atacked Jerusalem, and filled it with his soldiers, who fought against both Pompey and Hyrcanus. Then Pompey took Jerusalem by storm, and made it subject, with the consent of Hyrcanus, to the Roman yoke. Hyrcanus being unable to keep it by himself, delivered it to Pompey, with the consent of the elders and nobles of the Jews, who preferred to be subject to the Romans rather than to Hyrcanus and Aristobulus. For they saw that without the Romans, the Jewish state would be annihilated by schisms and seditions. See the relation in Josephus (lib. 24, c. 5, &c.).
Lastly, prescription was on the side of the Romans, for they had been in peaceful possession of Judea for about a hundred years, with at least the tacit assent of the Jewish people. And without doubt the position of the possessor is the stronger. Wherefore, if the Pharisees wished to deprive the Romans of this possession, the onus probandi lay upon them of showing that they had acquired it unjustly. Since they were not able to do this, the Romans rightly retained possession. For when the accuser does not prove his charge, the accused is absolved. In this case the accusers were the Pharisees, the accused the Romans, whom the accusers wished to deprive of their possession. Christ therefore, in this place, does not choose to enter into the question whether the Roman dominion over Judea, and their imposition of tribute, was just or unjust: but He takes for granted that, as a matter of fact, that which was strengthened and confirmed by the various titles specified above was just. For the Pharisees, in propounding this question about the payment of tribute to the Romans, did not put forward the plea of justice, but of religion and piety; that is to say, that it was neither lawful nor becoming that they, who were the alone people of God, should pay tribute to Cæsar, a Gentile and a heathen. They do not ask, “Are we bound to pay tribute to Cæsar?” but, “Is it lawful to pay tribute to Cæsar?” And they imply that to do so was contempt of God, a disgrace to the Jews, and an injury to their religion. Christ answers, on the contrary, that it was not an injury to God and the faith, nor an indignity to a faithful nation, if the people of God were subject to Cæsar, a Gentile; and that the Jews themselves might both profitably and honourably obey both God and a Gentile prince, if they would but render to both their due; and if they would do this with prudence, so as to arouse against them neither God nor Cæsar, and so destroy their whole nation, as they did not long afterwards. For it is better to pay money than to lose life and everything.
Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's: and to God the things that are God's. That is, give to Cæsar the didrachma, which he rightly exacts from you to sustain the burdens of the state, and especially to maintain soldiers to defend you against the attacks of enemies. But give God also the didrachma—tithes, oblations, victims, as S. Jerome says, such as are prescribed in Leviticus, which He, by the right of supreme dominion, demands of you as His creatures, and as faithful to Him. “Because,” says Origen, “a man renders to Cæsar what belongs to Cæsar, it is not a hindrance to him in rendering to God what belongs to God.” The rights which belong to Cæsar are different from those which belong to God. Political obligations are not adverse to religion; neither is religion adverse to political duties. “Wherefore, since Tiberius Cæsar reigns over you, and you are his subjects, which clearly is the case, because he has the right of coining money, I mean the denarius of such a weight and value as seems good to him; and inasmuch as you yourselves, by receiving the coin of the census from Tiberius, as your prince, acknowledge that you are his subjects, and bound to pay his taxes,—therefore by this very fact you are under obligation to pay.” “What Christ spoke with His mouth,” says S. Bernard (Epist. 42), “He was careful to fulfil in act. This Creator of Cæsar delayed not to pay tribute to Cæsar.” Hear Tertullian (lib. de idololat. c. 15), “Render to Cæsar the things of Cæsar, and to God the things of God, i.e., the image of Cæsar, which is in money, to Cæsar; and the image of God, which is in man, to God; so that thou mayest give money to Cæsar, to God thyself.” And S. Chrysostom, “When thou hearest that the things of Cæsar must be rendered to Cæsar, doubt not that those things only are spoken of which do no harm to piety and religion to pay them. For the tribute, or toll, which is opposed to virtue or the faith, is the tribute and revenue of the devil” And S. Hilary says, “If we have nothing in our possession which belongs to Cæsar, then we are free from the obligation of giving him that which is his.” Which is as though Christ said, “If ye wish to be exempt from tribute, renounce all things, as I and the apostles have done; for where there is nothing, there Cæsar hath no right.”
Politically: Christ here tacitly admonishes Cæsars and sovereigns that, being contented with what belongs to them, they must not intermeddle with the affairs of God and the Church. Wisely and piously did Constantine the Great, as Eusebius testifies (Vita Constant. iv. 24), say to the prelates of the Church, “You are bishops within the Church; I have been appointed by God a bishop without the Church.” And Valentinian the Elder said, “It is not lawful for me, who am a layman, to interfere in such matters as this.” When his son, Valentinian the Younger, was instigated by his mother, Justina; who was an Arian, to ask for a church from S. Ambrose (as he himself relates, Epist. 33, ad Marcellinam), he heard the following reply: “Do not burden yourself, O emperor, by thinking that you have any imperial rights over things divine. Do not lift up yourself; but if you desire a long reign, be subject to God; for it is written, ‘Give the things of God to God, the things of Cæsar to Cæsar.’ To the emperor pertain palaces, but churches to the priest. You have authority over fortifications, not sacred buildings.” And Hosius of Cordova said to the Arian emperor Constantius, “Do not intermeddle with matters ecclesiastical, neither give us orders with respect to such things, but rather learn them from us. To thee God has entrusted the imperial power, to us the things of the Church.” And Theodosius the Younger said (Epist. ad Conc. Ephesin.), “It is wickedness for one who has not been enrolled in the catalogue of the holy bishops to thrust himself into ecclesiastical affairs and deliberations.”
Tropologically: S. Hilary says,
“We are bound to render unto God the things of God, our body, soul, and will; for the coin of Cæsar is in gold, in which his image is engraven; but God’s coin is man, in whom is the image of God. Give your money then to Cæsar, but keep for God the consciousness of your innocence.”
And S. Augustine says, “To God must be given Christian love, to kings human fear.” And S. Bernard, or whoever was the author of the book on the Lord’s Passion, says (cap. 3), “Render unto Cæsar the penny which has Cæsar’s image; render unto God the soul which He created after His own image and likeness, and ye shall be righteous.”
Symbolically: the author of the sermon to the Brethren in the wilderness (apud S. Angus. tom. 10, sum. 7) says, “Then do we render to Cæsar the things of Cæsar, when we pay to the Saints the reverence (dulia) which is due to them; and we give the things of God to God, when we render unto Him that Divine worship (latria) which is due to Him alone.”
Lastly: S. Augustine (in Sententiis, Sent. 15) rightly applies these words to vows, and those who make vows. “Whosoever thinks well of what he may vow to God, and what vowing pay, let him vow and render himself. This is required, and this is due. Let Cæsar’s image be rendered to Cæsar, God’s image to God. This is what the Psalmist commands when he says, ‘Vow ye, and pay to the Lord your God: all you that are round about him bring presents.’ ” (Ps. lxxv. 12).
26. And they could not reprehend his word before the people: and wondering at his answer, they held their peace. They marvelled at the wisdom of Christ, who thus easily extricated Himself from the snare which to the Pharisees seemed so impossible of escape, and twisted it round their own necks, who had laid it, according to the words of Psalm lxvi, “They prepared a snare for my feet; and they bowed down my soul. They dug a pit before my face, and they are fallen into it.” And again it is said (Prov. xxi. 30), “There is no wisdom, there is no prudence, there is no counsel against the Lord.”
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SUB tuum præsidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genitrix. Nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus, sed a periculis cunctis libera nos semper, Virgo gloriosa et benedicta. Amen.
The Vladimirskaya Icon. >12th century.
Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
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