“Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee.”
Matthew 17:27 KJV
As Matthew recorded, “But so that we don’t offend them, go to the lake and throw out your hook, and the first fish that rises up will have a coin in its mouth. It will be the exact amount you need to pay the temple tax for both of us.” This miracle is a picture of the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus. The depth of the sea speaks to us of the depth of suffering Jesus passed through for us on the Cross. The fish rose to the surface on its own and wasn’t “caught”. In the mouth of our Lord Jesus is the full price of our sin debt, for He has declared the work of redemption finished, and our “tax” has been paid in full. Now we have the same message in our mouth! Peter had presumptuously told the tax collectors that Jesus would pay the temple tax, without asking Jesus first. But Jesus backed up Peter’s word and performed a miracle to pay the tax. Jesus got Peter “off the hook” by having him hook a fish with the exact amount of the tax for both Jesus and Peter! Today we realise that God always keeps His Word - He has made us holy as His inner sanctuary for we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Amen!
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