The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is a punching bag for a lot of people. After all, no one likes to pay taxes, right? But what does the Bible say about paying taxes?
Jesus Told Us to Pay Taxes
Tax collectors were common, and commonly despised, in Jesus’ day. Not surprisingly, the issue of paying taxes came up in the religious leaders’ attempts to trap Jesus. Matthew – the tax collector who became an apostle – relates two such accounts.
The Temple Tax
Now when they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?” He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll tax, from their sons or from strangers?” When Peter said, “From strangers,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are exempt. However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth, you will find a stater. Take that and give it to them for you and Me” (Matthew 17:24-27).
The ”two-drachma tax” was a temple tax – paid not to the Roman government, but to the Jewish leadership for maintaining the temple. That makes Jesus’ response to Peter even more interesting. When those who collected the tax asked Peter if Jesus paid the tax, Peter said, “Yes.” But Jesus basically told him that He shouldn’t have to pay the tax, because the sons are exempt. The temple was God’s house; therefore, God’s Son shouldn’t have to pay the tax. But Jesus went on and told Peter to pay it so that we do not offend them.
Most people who are familiar with this passage focus on the miraculous way that Jesus provided the money for Peter to pay their tax. I think that Jesus did that as a way to confirm the validity of what He told Peter – that the sons are exempt. But that logic would only apply to Jesus, at least in the sense of being the “only begotten Son of the Father.” It was as though Jesus was saying, “I shouldn’t have to pay the tax, but because they are in charge, we will pay it.” That line of reasoning carries forward into Jesus’ other pronouncement on taxes.
Paying Taxes to Caesar
Later in Jesus’ ministry, the Pharisees were trying to trap Him in order to have a basis to accuse Him:
Then the Pharisees went and plotted together how they might trap Him in what He said. And they sent their disciples to Him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are truthful and teach the way of God in truth, and do not care what anyone things; for You are not partial to anyone, Tell us then, what do You think? Is it permissible to pay a poll-tax to Caesar, or not?” But Jesus perceived their malice, and said, “Why are you testing Me, you hypocrites? Show Me the coin used for the poll tax.” And they brought Him a denarius. And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” Then He said to them, “Then pay to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s” (Matthew 22:15-21).
Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s. That makes it pretty plain, doesn’t it? Caesar had the authority to assess the tax. The Pharisees hated the Roman government. They believed that they shouldn’t have to pay tax to such a godless regime. But they also knew that if Jesus said that, the Roman authorities would come after Him. So they asked Him about paying taxes to Caesar. Imagine their surprise when He told them to pay the taxes!
Paul’s Instruction on Paying Taxes
In Romans 13, Paul addresses a number of issues relating to submission to the secular government. After all, Christians were (and are) part of God’s Kingdom. So what responsibility do we have to submit to earthly authorities? Particularly, should we submit to secular rulers who do not honor God?
Every person is to be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves…For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. Pay to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; respect to whom respect; honor to whom honor” (Romans 13:1-2, 6-7).
Remember that the Roman Empire was the “governing authority” in Paul’s day. While widespread persecution of Christians had not yet begun when Paul wrote this letter, neither could it be said that the Roman government was friendly to Christians. Yet Paul taught that Christians should be subject to the governing authorities, including the matter of paying taxes. Not just “some” taxes; not just taxes that they agreed with. Pay to all what is due them.
How Does that Apply to Paying Taxes Today?
It surprises me at times how modern Christians will go through mental gymnastics to justify their refusal to abide by what Scripture teaches. We’ve seen that a great deal on the subject of immigration. While the Bible clearly teaches that God’s people are to welcome “the alien and stranger among you,” we often hear that “things are different now.” I believe that anyone who wants to ignore what the Bible teaches – on any subject – because “things are different now” has a huge hurdle to overcome. The justification that “things are different now” seems to say that “God didn’t know what things would be like in our day when He made those commands back then.” Say that out loud – and then pray that God doesn’t strike you down!
The same is true of paying taxes. Jesus taught that we should render to Caesar that which is Caesar’s. Paul instructs us to submit to the governing authorities – period. Not “when we agree with them,” or “when we like their policies.” Certainly not only when “our side” won the last election. I don’t believe that Paul’s statement that “every authority is established by God” means that God actively chooses who wins elections. However, I do believe that “the authority” is established by God, even if the ones wielding that authority were not hand-picked by God.
So what does that mean? I believe that God established the governing principles of the United States. I don’t believe that God chose who won the last election, nor the one before it. It is the authority of the government that God has established, not the authority of one person or another. And while politicians are quick to claim “mandates” from the electorate, none of them can claim a mandate from God.
Abolish the IRS?
So do we abolish the IRS? Should we? Well, governments can’t operate without resources. The primary way (perhaps the only feasible way) that governments can raise resources is through taxes. So if we abolish the IRS, we’ll have to replace it with something else in order to fund the government.
We can talk about the amounts that the government spends – and we should. It’s fair to ask whether the government is spending wisely and appropriately. But if you want a government with no taxes and no system of collecting them, there’s only one I can think of. It’s a Kingdom that’s already breaking into this world, but someday it will come in fullness. Until then, I’m afraid that taxes and government authority will continue to be universal realities.
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