Luke 20:24

24 "Show me a coin. Whose face and name is this?" They answered, "The emperor's."

Luke 20:24 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 20:24

Show me a penny
A Roman denarius, value seven pence halfpenny of our money. The Persic version adds, "they showed it, he asked of them"; and the Ethiopic version, "and they brought it, and he said unto them", as follows;

whose image and superscription hath it?
for the penny had an head upon it, with something written, as the name of the emperor, whose image it was, his titles, the date of the coin, or some motto on it:

they answered and said, Caesar's;
very likely Tiberius Caesar's, who was at that time emperor of Rome; (See Gill on Matthew 22:20) and (See Gill on Matthew 22:21).

Luke 20:24 In-Context

22 Is it right for us to pay taxes to the emperor or not?"
23 He saw through their scheme, so he said to them,
24 "Show me a coin. Whose face and name is this?" They answered, "The emperor's."
25 He said to them, "Well, then give the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and give God what belongs to God."
26 They couldn't make him say anything wrong in front of the people. His answer surprised them, so they said no more.
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