Luk 20:20-21 | MHM | STEP | Christ's Enemies Nonplussed In this section, Jesus’ enemies tried to trap Him with a tricky question about paying taxes. Their real goal was to get Him in trouble with the government. But Jesus saw through their plans and answered with great wisdom, leaving them confused and unable to attack Him. v. 20 : The religious leaders wanted to catch Jesus and hand Him over to the Roman governor (Luke 20:20 ). They could not legally kill Him themselves, so they hoped to make the government do it. This shows how religious leaders have often used political power to attack God’s servants. By plotting this way, they were actually helping to fulfill what Jesus had already said—that He would be handed over to the Gentiles.

‏ Luke 20:20-21

Christ's Enemies Nonplussed

In this section, Jesus’ enemies tried to trap Him with a tricky question about paying taxes. Their real goal was to get Him in trouble with the government. But Jesus saw through their plans and answered with great wisdom, leaving them confused and unable to attack Him.

v. 20: The religious leaders wanted to catch Jesus and hand Him over to the Roman governor (Luke 20:20 ^a). They could not legally kill Him themselves, so they hoped to make the government do it. This shows how religious leaders have often used political power to attack God’s servants. By plotting this way, they were actually helping to fulfill what Jesus had already said—that He would be handed over to the Gentiles.

v. 21–22: They sent spies who pretended to be honest men. These spies tried to trick Jesus by flattering Him, saying, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly…” (Luke 20:21 ^b). Then they asked, “Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” They hoped that, however Jesus answered, He would get in trouble—either with the people or with the government. If He said “yes,” the people might be angry. If He said “no,” the Romans could arrest Him.