Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Matthew 22:20

"And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?" — Matthew 22:20 (ASV)

But Jesus will not be forced into a yes or no reply. He recognizes the duplicity of his opponents. Jesus chooses to answer them on his own terms and asks for the coin used for paying this tax. Such coins bore an image of the emperor’s head, along with an offensive inscription (“Tiberius Caesar, son of the divine Augustus” on one side and “pontifex maximus”—which Jesus would understand as “high priest”—on the other), that would offend most Palestinian Jews. They hand Jesus a denarius, and, as in 21:23–27, he asks his questioners a question—this time one they have to answer (v.20).