Taxes and Death

Since the 18th century, the following phrase has been repeated often:

“Nothing is certain in this world except for taxes and death.”

Rome cared for nothing more than taxes. Unlike other political powers, when Rome conquered land, it only wanted taxes from that land as if it were a vassal government. They preferred the nations’ native rulers ruling their nations, provided those kings paid Rome the revenue. This is why Julius Caesar made Herod the king of Judea when Herod successfully gained taxes in Galilee. Following him, Antipas (Herod’s son) ruled Galilee while Pontius Pilate ruled the region as Roman prefect. If Judea/Galilee paid taxes to Rome, Rome didn’t care who ruled them.

Soon after Sanhedrin couldn’t convince Jesus that he wasn’t their Messiah, they decided to punish him by Rome. They led Jesus to the Roman prefect in Judea, Pilate (Luke 23:1), and said,

“We have found him turning around our nation and hindering them from giving foros to Caesar and calling himself as the king.” (23:2)

This trifold accusation was significant and interrelated: He turned the Hebrews’ loyalty from Rome to themselves by stopping or hindering them from giving foros to Caesar because he thought he was their king. “Taxes” (ofeilai) were what the people owed. Foros, on the other hand, was what was given in addition to taxes to please the nobility, like special gifts given to dignitaries (coming from fero, the Greek word for “carry”—“what was carried to him” as a sign of honor and respect, cp Rom 13:7). If short, Jesus was saying he was the king; as such, they were to bear gifts to him, not Caesar.

Pilate was a shrewd ruler who knew if anyone had stopped the Judeans from giving taxes and foros to Rome! His life was on the line if Rome didn’t receive its taxes. Yet, he asked Jesus,

“Are you the king of the Judeans?” (23:3a)

Jesus replied,

“Yes, as you say.” (23:3b)

This was not a big problem for Pilate. Herod Antipas, a pseudo-Hebrew, was already ruling the Galileans and paying Rome its taxes and special gifts. So why not Judea? That would only mean more taxes and gifts! So he returned to the high priests and crowd and said,

“I find nothing concerning in this man.” (23:4)

As far as Pilate was concerned, Jesus wasn’t a challenge to his rule or Roman authority or a hindrance to taxes, income, and gifts.

But the high priests and leaders weren’t convinced. They insisted, saying,

“He stirs the people by teaching all over Judea, beginning from Galilee until here.” (23:5).

We can imagine Pilate rolling his eyes and wondering, “What does that have to do with me? Sure, he is teaching from Galilee to here. Rome and I are still getting our taxes, revenues, and gifts. So this man can travel around and say he is the king; it’s no consequence to me.”

The leaders were consistent. Nearly twenty years earlier, two sons of Herod—Archelaus and Antipas—fought for their dad’s title, “king.” Caesar Augusts and the Senate refused those titles and gave them “ethnarch” (rule of a nation) and “tetrarch” (ruler of a quarter) instead, less glamorous. Why should this Galilean carpenter have the title “the king of the Judeans”? They were happy with Antipas, the tetrarch in Galilee, and Pilate, the prefect in Judea. No reason to rock the boat!

Regardless of their wishes, Jesus is not only the king of Judea but also the king of kings of all nations. Every nation will bow before him and confess him as Lord.