Matthew 22:15
Pharisees went and
planned how they might
entrap Jesus. This plan follows upon and sets into motion the earlier decision the Jewish leaders had made about Jesus when they could not explain his miracle-working powers (Matt. 12:14). This shows the leaders' wickedness: Rather than responding with humility and repentance (Matt. 3:17; 4:2) they responded with violence.
Matthew 22:16
we know that
you are truthful. These are deceptive and false words, honoring Jesus with their lips while their hearts are far from him (Isa. 29:13; Matt. 15:8-9), as Matt. 22:15-18 show.
Matthew 22:17
Is it
lawful to
pay taxes to
Caesar? The Jewish people were required to pay many taxes to the oppressive Roman Empire. This was resented by the Jews and created tensions within the Jewish community about how to live faithfully to God within this system. The Jewish leaders' hope was to discredit Jesus and get him into trouble either with the Romans or with the Jewish people, depending on which way he answered this difficult question.
Matthew 22:21
give to
Caesar. Rather than being shamed by his enemies, Jesus showed himself to be very wise. He escaped their trap and simultaneously taught how to relate faithfully to God in an oppressed world. See
WLC 127;
BC 36;
HC 104.
Matthew 22:23
Sadducees who
say there is no resurrection. There were different opinions among the Jews of Jesus' day regarding several theological issues. This included differences of belief regarding the final era of the world and whether this included a resurrection of all people from the dead. This idea is only hinted at in the Old Testament but is developed much more in the centuries before Jesus' time. The Sadducees did not follow these resurrection teachings.
Matthew 22:24
His
brother must
marry his
wife. This practice is described as levirate marriage and is designed to ensure that the male lineage is preserved by having a man sire children in the name of his deceased brother (Deut. 25:5).
Matthew 22:30
They neither marry nor are given in
marriage. There is much we do not know about the final era of the world, but Jesus taught here that the marriage relationship will not be part of that redeemed, final reality. Man and woman will no longer be alone (Gen. 2:18) and in need of this kind of companionship because God will be everyone's life and light (Rev. 21:1-4).
Matthew 22:36
which is the
greatest commandment in the
law. This was a question that many rabbis discussed before Jesus. Jesus' answer is recognized as wise, focusing on whole person love for God and others, a helpful summary of the two parts of the Ten Commandments (Exod. 20:1-17; cf. also Gal. 5:14; Rom. 13:8-13).
Matthew 22:40
law and the
prophets. Jesus has used this phrase before (Matt. 5:17; 7:12) and together this phrase refers to the entirety of the Old Testament and particularly to a way of reading the Law through the lens of the latter prophets.
Jesus Confounds His Accusers – Matthew 22:41-46
Jesus taught three sonship parables that were words of judgment against the Jewish leaders (21:28–22:14). The Jewish leadership responded with three questions in a failed attempt to entrap Jesus (22:15-40). Now in this final story before the next major teaching block (Matt 23–25) Jesus challenged his enemies with a question that confounds and shames them. This question centers on himself as the Son of David who is also at the same time David's Lord. This is an unresolved mystery in the Psalms that Jesus explained it by showing it refers to himself.
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