Cyrus (in Isaiah) and Caesar (in Matthew) have much in common, although they come from different lands, and from different eras. The oldest translations do its baldness justice: “I make peace and form evils” (Septuagint Greek); “I make peace and create evil” (Vulgate Latin, AV). I used to admire the way in which Jesus sidesteps the trap laid for him by the Pharisees in Matthew’s Gospel. The trap fails to ensnare him because Jesus is saying what the Pharisees themselves also think. From the fourth century, Matthew 22.21 began to be interpreted as a proof text for the separation of religious and political powers.

Source: The Times October 16, 2023 15:34 UTC