Matius 21:29

21:29 The boy answered, ¹  ‘I will not.’ But later he had a change of heart ²  and went.

Matius 21:37

21:37 Finally he sent his son to them, ³  saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

Matius 22:17

22:17 Tell us then, what do you think? Is it right ⁴  to pay taxes ⁵  to Caesar ⁶  or not?”

Matius 22:42

22:42 “What do you think about the Christ? ⁷  Whose son is he?” They said, “The son of David.” ⁸ 

[21:29]  ¹ tn Grk “And answering, he said.” This is somewhat redundant and has been simplified in the translation. Here the referent (“the boy”) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:29]  ² tn The Greek text reads here μεταμέλομαι (metamelomai): “to change one’s mind about something, with the probable implication of regret” (L&N 31.59); cf. also BDAG 639 s.v. The idea in this context involves more than just a change of mind, for the son regrets his initial response. The same verb is used in v. 32.

[21:37]  ³ sn The owner’s decision to send his son represents God sending Jesus.

[22:17]  ⁴ tn Or “lawful,” that is, in accordance with God’s divine law. On the syntax of ἔξεστιν (exestin) with an infinitive and accusative, see BDF §409.3.

[22:17]  ⁵ tn According to L&N 57.180 the term κῆνσος (khnso") was borrowed from Latin and referred to a poll tax, a tax paid by each adult male to the Roman government.

[22:17]  sn This question concerning taxes was specifically designed to trap Jesus. If he answered yes, then his opponents could publicly discredit him as a sympathizer with Rome. If he answered no, then they could go to the Roman governor and accuse Jesus of rebellion.

[22:17]  ⁶ tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[22:42]  ⁷ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[22:42]  sn See the note on Christ in 1:16.

[22:42]  ⁸ sn It was a common belief in Judaism that Messiah would be the son of David in that he would come from the lineage of David. On this point the Pharisees agreed and were correct. But their understanding was nonetheless incomplete, for Messiah is also David’s Lord. With this statement Jesus was affirming that, as the Messiah, he is both God and man.