|
Post by rjcjid on Jan 29, 2017 14:02:35 GMT -8
Was the Temple Tax mandatory? ie If you didn't pay you were barred access? In Exodus 30:13 it says, "This is what each one who is registered shall give: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord." The use of the word "shall" I take to mean it was mandatory. But what were the repercussions if you didn't pay?
Also was the tax referred to in Matthew 17:24 a tax that went to the Temple upkeep or a tax that the Romans required of the people that went to the Temple?
|
|
|
Post by alon on Jan 29, 2017 20:18:29 GMT -8
Was the Temple Tax mandatory? ie If you didn't pay you were barred access? In Exodus 30:13 it says, "This is what each one who is registered shall give: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord." The use of the word "shall" I take to mean it was mandatory. But what were the repercussions if you didn't pay? Also was the tax referred to in Matthew 17:24 a tax that went to the Temple upkeep or a tax that the Romans required of the people that went to the Temple? The Temple tax went towards upkeep and maintenance of the Temple. The Mishna talks about it I think, but I couldn’t find where. You might want to do a search … and have plenty of Visene handy … . Exodus 30:11-16 (ESV) The Census Tax 11 The Lord said to Moses, 12 “When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. 13 Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord. 14 Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the Lord's offering. 15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you give the Lord's offering to make atonement for your lives. 16 You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the Lord, so as to make atonement for your lives.”This is the first reference to the tax, called a census tax here. It was a commandment, and since accumulated sin affected the entire nation, I would imagine anyone refusing to pay would be cut off from his people. For most this would be a death sentence at many times in the Jewish history. It was also mentioned in Nehemia as being 1/3rd of a shekel. And they commited to bringing much more for the Temple as well: Nehemiah 10:32-39 (ESV) 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, the priests, the Levites, and the people, have likewise cast lots for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God, according to our fathers' houses, at times appointed, year by year, to burn on the altar of the Lord our God, as it is written in the Law. 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 to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God, the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, as it is written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and of our flocks; 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 chambers, 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.” Josephus said during the 30s CE "many tens of thousands" of Babylonian Jews guarded the convoy taking the tax to Jerusalem (Ant. 18.313).” So those remaining in the earlier diaspora paid the tax, but apparently didn’t contribute other items for Temple worship. The mention in the Renewed Covenant is unclear. Some interpretations see the reference in Matthew as a Temple tax, others as a Roman tax, and still others are not as sure. This is because the word “Temple” is not in the source documents; and the next verses seem to possibly speak of a secular tax: Matthew 17:24-27 (ESV) 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.”Both the ESV and the NASB say the “two shekel tax,” which sounds like the Temple tax: Matthew 17:24 (NASB) When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?”But the KJV says “tribute,” which sounds more like a Roman tax: Matthew 17:24 (KJV) And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute?While the NKJV says “temple tax” with temple italicised, meaning the word was not in their source document: Matthew 17:24 (NKJV) When they had come to Capernaum, those who received the temple tax came to Peter and said, “Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?”Stern says it is a “half-shekel” and calls it a “Temple Tax.” But the word “shekel” is italicised, again meaning it wasn’t in the manuscript: Matthew 17:24 (CJB) When they came to K’far-Nachum, the collectors of the half-shekel came to Kefa and said, “Doesn’t your rabbi pay the Temple tax?”Young’s Literal Translation uses the word “didrachms,” which is the Latin for “two drachmas,” the amount being collected. He makes no assumption or guess at what the tax is for: Matthew 17:24 (YLT) And they having come to Capernaum, those receiving the didrachms came near to Peter, and said, `Your teacher -- doth he not pay the didrachms?' He saith, `Yes.'Note too that in vs. 27 Yeshua says take one shekel from the fish’s mouth to pay for Himself and Peter. And since the tax is a half shekel each this would make sense. Apparently too one shekel = 4 drachma, since the tax is two drachma each. Regardless, this is the ammount of the collection for the Temple in Exodus. So it sounds like a Temple Tax. Under Roman rule it became more and more difficult for Jews outside Palestine to pay this tax. (Palestine is the Roman word for Israel- not their Arab neighbors). As early as 62 BCE L Valerius Flaccus, Governor of Asia issued an edict forbidding Jews to send this tax away from his lands. And after the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE the “Fiscus Judaicus” sought to collect this tax for Rome in addition to all the other taxes Jews paid. So really, the answer to your second question is “Yes.” It was at different times one or the other- a tax collected for the Temple upkeep and later a tax to Rome. Dan C
|
|
|
Post by Questor on May 19, 2017 21:11:05 GMT -8
Was the Temple Tax mandatory? ie If you didn't pay you were barred access? In Exodus 30:13 it says, "This is what each one who is registered shall give: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord." The use of the word "shall" I take to mean it was mandatory. But what were the repercussions if you didn't pay? Also was the tax referred to in Matthew 17:24 a tax that went to the Temple upkeep or a tax that the Romans required of the people that went to the Temple? The Temple tax went towards upkeep and maintenance of the Temple. The Mishna talks about it I think, but I couldn’t find where. You might want to do a search … and have plenty of Visene handy … . Exodus 30:11-16 (ESV) The Census Tax 11 The Lord said to Moses, 12 “When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. 13 Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord. 14 Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the Lord's offering. 15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you give the Lord's offering to make atonement for your lives. 16 You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the Lord, so as to make atonement for your lives.”This is the first reference to the tax, called a census tax here. It was a commandment, and since accumulated sin affected the entire nation, I would imagine anyone refusing to pay would be cut off from his people. For most this would be a death sentence at many times in the Jewish history. It was also mentioned in Nehemia as being 1/3rd of a shekel. And they commited to bringing much more for the Temple as well: Nehemiah 10:32-39 (ESV) 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, the priests, the Levites, and the people, have likewise cast lots for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God, according to our fathers' houses, at times appointed, year by year, to burn on the altar of the Lord our God, as it is written in the Law. 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 to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in the house of our God, the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, as it is written in the Law, and the firstborn of our herds and of our flocks; 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 chambers, 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.” Josephus said during the 30s CE "many tens of thousands" of Babylonian Jews guarded the convoy taking the tax to Jerusalem (Ant. 18.313).” So those remaining in the earlier diaspora paid the tax, but apparently didn’t contribute other items for Temple worship. The mention in the Renewed Covenant is unclear. Some interpretations see the reference in Matthew as a Temple tax, others as a Roman tax, and still others are not as sure. This is because the word “Temple” is not in the source documents; and the next verses seem to possibly speak of a secular tax: Matthew 17:24-27 (ESV) 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.”Both the ESV and the NASB say the “two shekel tax,” which sounds like the Temple tax: Matthew 17:24 (NASB) When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?”But the KJV says “tribute,” which sounds more like a Roman tax: Matthew 17:24 (KJV) And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said, Doth not your master pay tribute?While the NKJV says “temple tax” with temple italicised, meaning the word was not in their source document: Matthew 17:24 (NKJV) When they had come to Capernaum, those who received the temple tax came to Peter and said, “Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?”Stern says it is a “half-shekel” and calls it a “Temple Tax.” But the word “shekel” is italicised, again meaning it wasn’t in the manuscript: Matthew 17:24 (CJB) When they came to K’far-Nachum, the collectors of the half-shekel came to Kefa and said, “Doesn’t your rabbi pay the Temple tax?”Young’s Literal Translation uses the word “didrachms,” which is the Latin for “two drachmas,” the amount being collected. He makes no assumption or guess at what the tax is for: Matthew 17:24 (YLT) And they having come to Capernaum, those receiving the didrachms came near to Peter, and said, `Your teacher -- doth he not pay the didrachms?' He saith, `Yes.'Note too that in vs. 27 Yeshua says take one shekel from the fish’s mouth to pay for Himself and Peter. And since the tax is a half shekel each this would make sense. Apparently too one shekel = 4 drachma, since the tax is two drachma each. Regardless, this is the ammount of the collection for the Temple in Exodus. So it sounds like a Temple Tax. Under Roman rule it became more and more difficult for Jews outside Palestine to pay this tax. (Palestine is the Roman word for Israel- not their Arab neighbors). As early as 62 BCE L Valerius Flaccus, Governor of Asia issued an edict forbidding Jews to send this tax away from his lands. And after the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE the “Fiscus Judaicus” sought to collect this tax for Rome in addition to all the other taxes Jews paid. So really, the answer to your second question is “Yes.” It was at different times one or the other- a tax collected for the Temple upkeep and later a tax to Rome. Dan C Stumbled over this...on the Temple tax, and the requirement for it:On Shabbos Mevarchim Adar the extra portion which speaks of the shekel tax is read. The reason for this being that in the period of the Holy Temple every Jew was obliged to donate a half-shekel annually for the communal sacrifice fund. On the first of Adar the preparations for this collection began (see Mishnah, Shekalim 1:1) and on the preceding Shabbos they read the pertinent portion to make the people aware of their responsibility. Although we have no Holy Temple now, the custom has persisted as a commemoration of ancient practices.
When the Holy Temple stood in Jerusalem, each Jew contributed an annual half-shekel to the Temple.
The funds raised were primarily used to purchase cattle for the communal sacrifices. The leftover monies were used for a variety of communal purposes, including providing salaries for the judges and maintenance of the Temple, its vessels, and the city walls.
This annual tax, known as the machatzit hashekel, was due on the 1st of Nissan. One month earlier, on the 1st of Adar, the courts began posting reminders about this Biblical obligation. In commemoration, the Shekalim is the first of four readings added during or immediately before the month of AdarTorah reading of the Shabbat that falls on or before Adar is supplemented with the verses (Exodus 30:11-16) that relate G‑d's commandment to Moses regarding the first giving of the half-shekel.
The Shekalim haftorah (II Kings 11:17-12:17) continues on the same theme, discussing the efforts of King Jehoash (9th century BCE) to earmark communal funds for the upkeep of the first Holy Temple.
(We too give a commemorative half shekel to charity—on the Fast of Esther. Click here for more about this practice.)
"Parshat Shekalim" is the first of four special readings added during or immediately before the month of Adar (the other three being Zachor, Parah and Hachodesh).
The Shekalim reading is also related to the upcoming holiday of Purim. According to the Talmud, Haman's decree was averted in merit of the mitzvah of machatzit hashekel. Chabad.Org
Hilchot Shekalim 1:2-3; see Chapter 1, Halachah 4.
|
|