What the Bible Says About the Meaning of Tribute

Scripture

¹⁵ Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words.
¹⁶ And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances.
¹⁷ Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”
¹⁸ But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites?
¹⁹ Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius.
²⁰ And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?”
²¹ They said to him, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
²² When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.

Matthew 22:15-22

Romans 13:1-7: ¹ Let every person be subject to the governing authorities.
² Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
³ For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval,
⁴ for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.
⁵ Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience.
⁶ For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing.
⁷ Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.

1 Peter 2:13-17: ¹³ Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme,
¹⁴ or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.
¹⁵ For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.
¹⁶ Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God.
¹⁷ Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

Mark 12:13-17: ¹³ And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk.
¹⁴ And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?
¹⁵ But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.”
¹⁶ And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.”
¹⁷ Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they marveled at him.

Luke 20:20-26: ²⁰ So they watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor.
²¹ So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality, but truly teach the way of God.
²² Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?”
²³ But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them,
²⁴ “Show me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar’s.”
²⁵ He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
²⁶ So they were unable to catch him in what he said before the people, and marveling at his answer, they became silent.

Nehemiah 5:1-13: ¹ Now there arose a great outcry of the people and of their wives against their Jewish brothers.
² For there were those who said, “With our sons and our daughters, we are many. So let us get grain, that we may eat and keep alive.”
³ There were also those who said, “We are mortgaging our fields, our vineyards, and our houses to get grain because of the famine.”
⁴ And there were those who said, “We have borrowed money for the king’s tax on our fields and our vineyards.
⁵ Now our flesh is as the flesh of our brothers, our children are as their children. Yet we are forcing our sons and our daughters to be slaves, and some of our daughters have already been enslaved, but it is not in our power to help it, for other men have our fields and our vineyards.
⁶ I was very angry when I heard their outcry and these words.
⁷ I took counsel with myself, and I brought charges against the nobles and the officials. I said to them, “You are exacting interest, each from his brother.” And I held a great assembly against them.
⁸ and said to them, “We, as far as we are able, have bought back our Jewish brothers who have been sold to the nations, but you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us!” They were silent and could not find a word to say.
⁹ So I said, “The thing that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God to prevent the taunts of the nations our enemies?
¹⁰ I also said, “The thing that you are doing is not good. Ought you not to walk in the fear of our God to prevent the taunts of the nations our enemies?
¹¹ Return to them this very day their fields, their vineyards, their olive orchards, and their houses, and the percentage of money, grain, wine, and oil that you have been exacting from them.”
¹² Then they said, “We will restore these and require nothing from them. We will do as you say.” And I called the priests and made them swear to do as they had promised.
¹³ I also shook out the fold of my garment and said, “So may God shake out every man from his house and from his labor who does not keep this promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied.” And all the assembly said “Amen” and praised the Lord. And the people did as they had promised.

Ezra 4:11-16: ¹¹ (now this is the copy of the letter that they sent) “To Artaxerxes the king: Your servants, the men of the province Beyond the River, send greeting. And now
¹² be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. They are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations.
¹³ Now be it known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and the royal revenue will be impaired.
¹⁴ Now because we eat the salt of the palace and it is not fitting for us to witness the king’s dishonor, therefore we send and inform the king,
¹⁵ in order that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers. You will find in the book of the records and learn that this city is a rebellious city, hurtful to kings and provinces, and that sedition was stirred up in it from of old. That was why this city was laid waste.
¹⁶ We make known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls finished, you will then have no possession in the province Beyond the River.”

1 Kings 4:21-28: ²¹ Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt. They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.
²² The food of his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, and their clothing, his cupbearers, and his burnt offerings that he offered at the house of the Lord, there was no more breath in her.
²³ ten fat oxen, and twenty pasture-fed cattle, a hundred sheep, besides deer, gazelles, roebucks, and fattened fowl.
²⁴ For he had dominion over all the region west of the Euphrates from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the kings west of the Euphrates. And he had peace on all sides around him.
²⁵ And Judah and Israel lived in safety, from Dan even to Beersheba, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, all the days of Solomon.
²⁶ Solomon also had 40,000 stalls of horses for his chariots, and 12,000 horsemen.
²⁷ And those officers supplied provisions for King Solomon, and for all who came to King Solomon’s table, each one in his month. They let nothing be lacking.
²⁸ Barley also and straw for the horses and swift steeds they brought to the place where it was required, each according to his duty.

2 Kings 23:33-35: ³³ And Pharaoh Neco put him in bonds at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem, and laid on the land a tribute of a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
³⁴ And Pharaoh Neco made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the place of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But he took Jehoahaz away, and he came to Egypt and died there.
³⁵ And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh, but he taxed the land to give the money according to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, from everyone according to his assessment, to give it to Pharaoh Neco.

2 Chronicles 17:10-11: ¹⁰ And the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were around Judah, and they made no war against Jehoshaphat.
¹¹ And some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents and silver for tribute, and the Arabians also brought him 7,700 rams and 7,700 goats.

2 Chronicles 26:8: ⁸ The Ammonites paid tribute to Uzziah, and his fame spread even to the border of Egypt, for he became very strong.

2 Chronicles 27:5: ⁵ He fought with the king of the Ammonites and prevailed against them. And the Ammonites gave him that year one hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand cors of wheat and ten thousand of barley. The Ammonites paid him the same amount in the second and the third years.

Genesis 49:10: ¹⁰ The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

Deuteronomy 16:18-20: ¹⁸ You shall appoint judges and officers in all your towns that the Lord your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment.
¹⁹ You shall not pervert justice. You shall not show partiality, and you shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and subverts the cause of the righteous.
²⁰ Justice, and only justice, you shall follow, that you may live and inherit the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

Deuteronomy 17:14-20: ¹⁴ “When you come to the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you possess it and dwell in it and then say, ‘I will set a king over me, like all the nations that are around me,’”
¹⁵ you may indeed set a king over you whom the Lord your God will choose.
¹⁶ Only he must not acquire many horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to acquire many horses, since the Lord has said to you, ‘You shall never return that way again.’
¹⁷ And he shall not acquire many wives for himself, lest his heart turn away, nor shall he acquire for himself excessive silver and gold.
¹⁸ “And when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself in a book a copy of this law, approved by the Levitical priests.”
¹⁹ And it shall be with him, and he shall read in it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the Lord his God by keeping all the words of this law and these statutes, and doing them,
²⁰ that his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers, and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, either to the right hand or to the left, so that he may continue long in his kingdom, he and his children, in Israel.

Joshua 16:10: ¹⁰ However, they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, so the Canaanites have lived in the midst of Ephraim to this day but have been made to do forced labor.

Judges 1:28-35: ²⁸ When Israel grew strong, they put the Canaanites to forced labor, but did not drive them out completely.
²⁹ And Ephraim did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, so the Canaanites lived in Gezer among them.
³⁰ Neither did Zebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, or the inhabitants of Nahalol, so the Canaanites lived among them, but became subject to forced labor.
³¹ Asher did not drive out the inhabitants of Acco, or the inhabitants of Sidon, or of Ahlab, or of Achzib, or of Helbah, or of Aphik, or of Rehob,
³² So the Asherites lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land, for they did not drive them out.
³³ Naphtali did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, or the inhabitants of Beth-anath, so they lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land.
³⁴ The Amorites pressed the people of Dan back into the hill country, for they did not allow them to come down to the plain.
³⁵ But the Amorites pressed the people of Dan back into the hill country, for they did not allow them to come down to the plain.

1 Samuel 8:10-18: ¹⁰ So Samuel told all the words of the Lord to the people who were asking for a king from him.
¹¹ He said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and to run before his chariots.
¹² He will appoint for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and the equipment of his chariots.
¹³ He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers.
¹⁴ He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give them to his servants.
¹⁵ He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his servants.
¹⁶ He will take your male servants and female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put them to his work.
¹⁷ He will take the tenth of your flocks, and you shall be his slaves.
¹⁸ And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day.”

2 Samuel 8:1-18: ¹ After this David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and David took Metheg-ammah out of the hand of the Philistines.
² And he defeated Moab and measured them with a line, making them lie down on the ground. Two lines he measured to be put to death, and one full line to be spared. And the Moabites became servants to David and brought tribute.
³ David also defeated Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to restore his power at the river Euphrates.
⁴ And David took from him 1,700 horsemen, and 20,000 foot soldiers. And David hamstrung all the chariot horses but left enough for 100 chariots.
⁵ And when the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David struck down twenty-two thousand men of the Syrians.
⁶ Then David put garrisons in Aram of Damascus, and the Syrians became servants to David and brought tribute. And the Lord gave victory to David wherever he went.
⁷ And David took the shields of gold that were carried by the servants of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem.
⁸ And from Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took very much bronze.
⁹ When Toi king of Hamath heard that David had defeated the whole army of Hadadezer,
¹⁰ then Toi sent Joram his son to King David, to ask about his health and to bless him because he had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him, for Hadadezer had often been at war with Toi. And Joram brought with him articles of silver, of gold, and of bronze.
¹¹ King David also dedicated these to the Lord, together with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations he subdued,
¹² from Edom, and from Moab, and from the Ammonites, and from the Philistines, and from Amalek. And David made a name for himself when he returned from striking down 18,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
¹³ And David made a name for himself when he returned from striking down 18,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt.
¹⁴ He put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. And the Lord gave victory to David wherever he went.
¹⁵ So David reigned over all Israel. And David administered justice and equity to all his people.
¹⁶ Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army, and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder.
¹⁷ and Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were priests, and Seraiah was secretary;
¹⁸ and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites, and David’s sons were priests.

1 Kings 10:14-29: ¹⁴ Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold,
¹⁵ besides that which came from the explorers and from the business of the merchants, and from all the kings of the west and from the governors of the land.
¹⁶ King Solomon made 200 large shields of beaten gold; 600 shekels of gold went into each shield.
¹⁷ and he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three minas of gold went into each shield. And the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
¹⁸ Moreover, the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with the finest gold.
¹⁹ The throne had six steps, and the throne had a round top, and on each side of the seat were armrests and two lions standing beside the armrests,
²⁰ Twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other on the six steps. Nothing like it was made for any kingdom.
²¹ All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. None were of silver; silver was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon.
²² The king had a fleet of ships of Tarshish at sea with the fleet of Hiram. Once every three years the fleet of ships of Tarshish used to come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
²³ Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.
²⁴ The whole earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind.
²⁵ And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and garments, and armor, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
²⁶ And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen. He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.
²⁷ Now the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as the sycamore of the Shephelah.
²⁸ And Solomon’s import of horses was from Egypt and Kue, and the king’s traders received them from Kue at a price.
²⁹ A chariot could be imported from Egypt for 600 shekels of silver and a horse for 150, and so through the king’s traders they were exported to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.

2 Kings 3:4-27: ⁴ Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder, and he had to deliver to the king of Israel 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams.
⁵ But when Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
⁶ And King Jehoram marched out of Samaria at that time and mustered all Israel.
⁷ And he went and sent word to Jehoshaphat king of Judah: “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to battle against Moab?” And he said, “I will go. I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
⁸ And he said, “By which way shall we march?” Jesus answered, “By the way of the wilderness of Edom.”
⁹ So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom. And when they had made a circuitous march of seven days, there was no water for the army or for the animals that followed them.
¹⁰ And the king of Israel said, “Alas! The Lord has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.”
¹¹ But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord?” Then one of the king of Israel’s servants answered, “Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who poured water on the hands of Elijah.”
¹² And Jehoshaphat said, “The word of the Lord is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.
¹³ And Elisha said to the king of Israel, “What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother.” But the king of Israel said to him, “No; it is the Lord who has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.”
¹⁴ And Elisha said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I have regard for Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would neither look at you nor see you.
¹⁵ But now bring me a musician.” And when the musician played, the hand of the Lord came upon him.
¹⁶ And he said, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Make this valley full of trenches.’
¹⁷ For thus says the Lord, ‘You shall not see wind or rain, but that streambed shall be filled with water, so that you shall drink, you, your livestock, and your animals.’
¹⁸ This is a light thing in the sight of the Lord. He will also give the Moabites into your hand,
¹⁹ And you shall attack every fortified city and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree and stop up all springs of water and ruin every good piece of land with stones.”
²⁰ The next morning, about the time of offering the sacrifice, behold, water came from the direction of Edom, till the country was filled with water.
²¹ And when all the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against them, all who were able to put on armor, from the youngest to the oldest, were called out and were drawn up at the border.
²² And they rose early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water opposite them as red as blood.
²³ And they said, “This is blood; the kings have surely fought together and struck one another down. Now then, Moab, to the spoil!”
²⁴ But when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose and struck the Moabites, until they fled before them. And they went forward, striking the Moabites as they went.
²⁵ And they overthrew the cities, and on every good piece of land every man threw a stone until it was covered. They stopped every spring of water and felled all the good trees, till only its stones were left in Kir-hareseth, and the slingers surrounded and attacked it.
²⁶ When the king of Moab saw that the battle was too fierce for him, he took with him 700 swordsmen to break through, opposite the king of Edom, but they could not.
²⁷ Then he took his oldest son who was to reign in his place and offered him for a burnt offering on the wall. And there came great wrath against Israel. And they withdrew from him and returned to their own land.

2 Kings 17:3-6: ³ Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria. And Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute.
⁴ And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea, for he had sent messengers to So, king of Egypt, and offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in prison.
⁵ Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Samaria, and for three years he besieged it.
⁶ In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria, and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.

2 Kings 18:13-16: ¹³ In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and took them.
¹⁴ And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have done wrong; withdraw from me. Whatever you impose on me I will bear.” And the king of Assyria required of Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
¹⁵ And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house.
¹⁶ At that time Hezekiah stripped the gold from the doors of the temple of the Lord and from the doorposts that he had overlaid and gave it to the king of Assyria.

2 Chronicles 9:13-28: ¹³ Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 talents of gold,
¹⁴ besides that which the explorers and merchants brought. And all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land brought gold and silver to Solomon.
¹⁵ Besides that which came from the explorers and from the business of the merchants, and from all the kings of the west and from the governors of the land.
¹⁶ Besides that which came from the explorers and from the business of the merchants, and from all the kings of the west and from the governors of the land.
¹⁷ And they brought 600, 3 hundred and sixty talents of gold to Solomon.
¹⁸ There were six steps to the throne and a round top to the throne at its rear, and arms on each side of the seat, and two lions standing beside the arms.
¹⁹ Twelve lions stood there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. Nothing like it had ever been made for any kingdom.
²⁰ All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. Silver was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon.
²¹ The king’s ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram; every three years they used to come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.
²² Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.
²³ And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind.
²⁴ And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and garments, and armor, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
²⁵ And Solomon had 4,000 stalls for horses and chariots, and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem.
²⁶ And he ruled over all the kings from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt.
²⁷ The king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as the sycamore of the Shephelah.
²⁸ And they brought horses and chariots and 420 talents of silver to the king of Egypt. And the king of Egypt lent to the king of Israel horses and chariots, and a host of men. He lent them year by year.

2 Chronicles 17:1-19: ¹ Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place and strengthened himself against Israel.
² He placed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim that Asa his father had captured.
³ The Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the earlier ways of his father David. He did not seek the Baals,
⁴ But sought the God of his father and walked in his commandments, and not according to the practices of Israel.
⁵ Therefore the Lord established the kingdom in his hand. And all Judah brought tribute to Jehoshaphat, and he had great riches and honor.
⁶ His heart was courageous in the ways of the Lord.
⁷ Also in the third year of his reign he sent his officials, Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah.
⁸ With them were the Levites, Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tobadonijah; and with these Levites, the priests Elishama and Jehoram.
⁹ And they taught in Judah, having the Book of the Law of the Lord with them. They went about through all the cities of Judah and taught among the people.
¹⁰ And the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were around Judah, and they made no war against Jehoshaphat.
¹¹ And some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents and silver for tribute, and the Arabians also brought him 7,700 rams and 7,700 goats.
¹² And Jehoshaphat grew steadily greater. He built in Judah fortresses and store cities.
¹³ He had great riches and honor, and he made a marriage alliance with Ahab.
¹⁴ This was their muster according to their fathers’ houses: Of Judah, the commanders of thousands: Adnah the commander, with 300,000 mighty men of valor,
¹⁵ And next to him Jehohanan the commander, with 280,000;
¹⁶ and next to him Amasiah the son of Zichri, a volunteer for the service of the Lord, with 200,000 mighty men of valor.
¹⁷ And of Benjamin: Eliada, a mighty man of valor, with 200,000 men armed with bow and shield;
¹⁸ and next to him Jehozabad, and with him 180000 mighty men of valor.
¹⁹ These were in the service of the king, besides those whom the king had placed in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.

2 Chronicles 24:1-14: ²⁴ Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba.
² And Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest.
³ But Jehoiada grew old and full of days, and he died. He was 130 years old at his death.
⁴ Some time afterward, Joash decided to restore the house of the Lord.
⁵ And he gathered the priests and the Levites and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah and gather from all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year, and see that you act quickly.” But the Levites did not act quickly.
⁶ So the king summoned Jehoiada the chief and said to him, “Why have you not required the Levites to bring in from Judah and Jerusalem the tax levied by Moses, the servant of the Lord, and the congregation of Israel for the tent of the testimony?”
⁷ For the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken into the house of God and had also used all the dedicated things of the house of the Lord for the Baals.
⁸ And the king commanded, and they made a chest and set it outside the gate of the house of the Lord.
⁹ And they made a proclamation through Judah and Jerusalem to bring in for the Lord the tax that Moses the servant of God laid on Israel in the wilderness.
¹⁰ And all the princes and all the people rejoiced and brought their tax and dropped it into the chest until they had finished.
¹¹ And whenever the chest was brought to the king’s officers by the Levites, when they saw that there was much money in it, the king’s secretary and the officer of the chief priest would come and empty the chest and take it and return it to its place. So they did day after day, and collected money in abundance.
¹² And the king and Jehoiada gave it to those who had charge of the work of the house of the Lord, and they hired masons and carpenters to restore the house of the Lord, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the house of the Lord.
¹³ So those who were engaged in the work labored, and the repairing went forward in their hands, and they restored the house of God to its proper condition and strengthened it.
¹⁴ And when they had finished, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada, and with it were made utensils for the house of the Lord, both for the service and for the burnt offerings, and dishes for incense and vessels of gold and silver. And they offered burnt offerings in the house of the Lord regularly all the days of Jehoiada.

2 Chronicles 28:16-21: ¹⁶ At that time King Ahaz sent to the king of Assyria for help.
¹⁷ For again the Edomites had come and struck Judah and carried away captives.
¹⁸ And the Philistines had made raids on the cities in the Shephelah and the Negeb of Judah, and had taken Beth-shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Soco with its villages, Timnah with its villages, and Gimzo with its villages, and they settled there.
¹⁹ For the Lord humbled Judah because of Ahaz king of Israel, for he had made Judah act sinfully and had been very unfaithful to the Lord.
²⁰ So Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came against him and afflicted him instead of strengthening him.
²¹ For Ahaz took a portion from the house of the Lord and the house of the king and of the princes, and gave tribute to the king of Assyria, but it did not help him.

Ezra 6:8-12: ⁸ Moreover, I make a decree regarding what you shall do for these elders of the Jews for the rebuilding of this house of God. The cost is to be paid to these men in full and without delay from the royal revenue, the tribute of the province from Beyond the River.
⁹ And whatever is needed—bulls, rams, or sheep for burnt offerings to the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, or oil, as the priests in Jerusalem require—let that be given to them day by day without fail,
¹⁰ that they may offer pleasing sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for the life of the king and his sons.
¹¹ Also I make a decree that if anyone alters this edict, a beam shall be pulled out of his house, and he shall be impaled on it, and his house shall be made a dunghill.
¹² May the God who has caused his name to dwell there overthrow any king or people who shall put out a hand to alter this, or to destroy this house of God that is in Jerusalem. I Darius make a decree; let it be done with all diligence.”

Nehemiah 10:32-39: ³² We also take on ourselves the obligation to give yearly a third part of a shekel for the service of the house of our God:
³³ for the showbread, the regular grain offering, the regular burnt offering, the Sabbaths, the new moons, the appointed feasts, the holy things, and the sin offerings to make atonement for Israel, and for all the work of the house of our God.
³⁴ We obligate ourselves to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of the Lord;
³⁵ We obligate ourselves to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of the Lord;
³⁶ also to bring the first of our dough, and our contributions, the fruit of every tree, the wine and the oil, to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and to bring to the Levites the tithes from our ground, for it is the Levites who collect the tithes in all our towns.
³⁷ and to bring the first of our dough, and our contributions, the fruit of every tree, the wine and the oil, to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and to bring to the Levites the tithes from our ground, for it is the Levites who collect the tithes in all our towns where we labor.
³⁸ And the priest, the son of Aaron, shall be with the Levites when the Levites receive the tithes. And the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes to the house of our God, to the chambers of the storehouse.
³⁹ For the people of Israel and the sons of Levi shall bring the contribution of grain, wine, and oil to the storerooms where the vessels of the sanctuary are, as well as the priests who minister, and the gatekeepers and the singers. We will not neglect the house of our God.”

Nehemiah 12:44-47: ⁴⁴ On that day men were appointed over the storerooms, the contributions, the firstfruits, and the tithes, to gather into them the portions required by the Law for the priests and for the Levites according to the fields of the towns, for Judah rejoiced over the priests and the Levites who ministered.
⁴⁵ And they performed the service of their God and the service of purification, as did the singers and the gatekeepers, according to the command of David and his son Solomon.
⁴⁶ For long ago in the days of David and Asaph there were directors of the singers, and there were songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.
⁴⁷ And all Israel in the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah gave the daily portions for the singers and the gatekeepers; and they set apart that which was for the Levites; and the Levites set apart that which was for the sons of Aaron.

Nehemiah 13:10-14: ¹⁰ I also found out that the portions of the Levites had not been given to them, so that the Levites and the singers, who did the work, had fled each to his field.
¹¹ So I confronted the officials and said, “Why is the house of God forsaken?” And I gathered them together and set them in their stations.
¹² Then all Judah brought the tithe of the grain, wine, and oil into the storehouses.
¹³ I also provided for the wood offering at appointed times, and for the firstfruits. Remember me, O my God, for good.
¹⁴ Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and do not wipe out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God and for his service.

Esther 10:1-3: ¹ King Ahasuerus imposed tax on the land and on the coastlands of the sea.
² And all the acts of his power and might, and the full account of the high honor of Mordecai, to which the king advanced him, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia?
³ For Mordecai the Jew was second in rank to King Ahasuerus, and he was great among the Jews and popular with the multitude of his brothers, for he sought the welfare of his people and spoke peace to all his people.

Isaiah 60:1-22: ¹ Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
² For behold, darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will be seen upon you.
³ And nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your rising.
⁴ Lift up your eyes all around, and see; they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from afar, and your daughters shall be carried on the hip.
⁵ Then you shall see and be radiant;
your heart shall thrill and exult,
because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
⁶ A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young camels of Midian and Ephah;
all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense,
and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord.
⁷ All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered to you; the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you; they shall come up with acceptance on my altar, and I will beautify my beautiful house.
⁸ Who are these that fly like a cloud,
and like doves to their windows?
⁹ For the coastlands shall hope for me,
the ships of Tarshish first,
to bring your children from afar,
their silver and gold with them,
for the name of the Lord your God,
and for the Holy One of Israel,
because he has made you beautiful.
¹⁰ Foreigners shall build up your walls,
and their kings shall minister to you;
for in my wrath I struck you,
but in my favor I have had mercy on you.
¹¹ Your gates shall be open continually;
day and night they shall not be shut,
that people may bring to you the wealth of the nations,
with their kings led in procession.
¹² For the nation and kingdom that will not serve you shall perish; those nations shall be utterly laid waste.
¹³ The glory of Lebanon shall come to you,
the cypress, the plane, and the pine,
to beautify the place of my sanctuary,
and I will make the place of my feet glorious.
¹⁴ The sons of those who afflicted you
shall come bending low to you,
and all who despised you
shall bow down at your feet;
they shall call you the City of the Lord,
the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
¹⁵ Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, with no one passing through, I will make you majestic forever, a joy from age to age.
¹⁶ You shall suck the milk of nations;
you shall nurse at the breast of kings;
and you shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior
and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
¹⁷ Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
and instead of iron I will bring silver;
instead of wood, bronze,
instead of stones, iron.
I will make your overseers peace
and your taskmasters righteousness.
¹⁸ Violence shall no more be heard in your land,
devastation or destruction within your borders;
you shall call your walls Salvation,
and your gates Praise.
¹⁹ The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give you light; but the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.
²⁰ Your sun shall no more go down,
nor your moon withdraw itself;
for the Lord will be your everlasting light,
and your days of mourning shall be ended.
²¹ Your people shall all be righteous; they shall possess the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I might be glorified.
²² The least one shall become a clan, and the smallest one a mighty nation; I am the Lord; in its time I will hasten it.

Jeremiah 27:1-22: ¹ In the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord.
² Thus says the Lord to me: Make yourself straps and yoke-bars, and put them on your neck.
³ Send word to the king of Edom, the king of Moab, the king of the sons of Ammon, the king of Tyre, and the king of Sidon by the hand of the envoys who have come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah.
⁴ And give them this charge for their masters: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: This is what you shall say to your masters:
⁵ “It is I who by my great power and my outstretched arm have made the earth, with the men and animals that are on the earth, and I give it to whomever it seems right to me.
⁶ Now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, my servant, and I have given him also the beasts of the field to serve him.
⁷ All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson, until the time of his own land comes. Then many nations and great kings shall make him their slave.
⁸ “But if any nation or kingdom will not serve this Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence, declares the Lord, until I have consumed it by his hand.
⁹ So do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers, your fortune-tellers, or your sorcerers, who are saying to you, ‘You shall not serve the king of Babylon.’
¹⁰ For they prophesy a lie to you, to remove you far from your land, and that I should drive you out, and you should perish.
¹¹ But any nation that will bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will leave on its own land, to work it and dwell there, declares the Lord.”
¹² To Zedekiah king of Judah I spoke in like manner: “Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.
¹³ Why will you and your people die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, as the Lord has spoken concerning any nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?
¹⁴ Do not listen to the words of the prophets who are saying to you, ‘You shall not serve the king of Babylon,’ for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you.
¹⁵ “I have not sent them, declares the Lord, but they are prophesying falsely in my name, with the result that I will drive you out and you will perish, you and the prophets who are prophesying to you.”
¹⁶ Then I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying, “Thus says the Lord: Do not listen to the words of your prophets who are prophesying to you, saying, ‘Behold, the vessels of the Lord’s house will now shortly be brought back from Babylon,’ for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you.
¹⁷ Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon and live. Why should this city become a desolation?
¹⁸ But if they are prophets, and if the word of the Lord is with them, then let them intercede with the Lord of hosts, that the vessels that are left in the house of the Lord, in the house of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem may not go to Babylon.
¹⁹ For thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the pillars, the sea, the stands, and the rest of the vessels that are left in this city,
²⁰ which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take away, when he took into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem.
²¹ yes, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that are left in the house of the Lord, in the house of the king of Judah, and in Jerusalem:
²² They shall be carried to Babylon and remain there until the day when I visit them, declares the Lord. Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.”

Daniel 11:20-21: ²⁰ “Then shall arise in his place one who shall send an exactor of tribute for the glory of the kingdom. But within a few days he shall be broken, neither in anger nor in battle.
²¹ In his place shall arise a contemptible person to whom royal majesty has not been given. He shall come in without warning and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.

Micah 6:6-8: ⁶ “With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?”
⁷ Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousands of rivers of oil?
Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”
⁸ He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

Matthew 17:24-27: ²⁴ When they came to Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax went up to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the tax?”
²⁵ He said, “Yes.” And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tax? From their sons or from others?”
²⁶ And when he said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free.
²⁷ However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for me and for yourself.