Mark 12:17

17 Jesus said to them, "Give the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and give God what belongs to God." They were surprised at his reply.

Mark 12:17 Meaning and Commentary

Mark 12:17

And Jesus answering said unto them
Very wisely and pertinently,

render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's:
or "to the king, which are the king's", as the Arabic and Ethiopic versions render it:

and to God the things that are God's; (See Gill on Matthew 22:21);

and they marvelled at him;
at his wisdom and prudence in returning such an answer, which cut off all occasion against him.

Mark 12:17 In-Context

15 Jesus recognized their hypocrisy, so he asked them, "Why do you test me? Bring me a coin so that I can look at it."

16 They brought a coin. He said to them, "Whose face and name is this?" They told him, "The emperor's."

17 Jesus said to them, "Give the emperor what belongs to the emperor, and give God what belongs to God." They were surprised at his reply.

18 Some Sadducees, who say that people will never come back to life, came to Jesus. They asked him,

19 "Teacher, Moses wrote for us, 'If a man dies and leaves a wife but no child, his brother should marry his widow and have children for his brother.'