The parables of the father and his two sons, the wicked tenants, and the wedding banquet were all directed against the chief priests and elders of the people. In today’s gospel, the disciples of the Pharisees, in company with the Herodians, appear on the scene. They approach Jesus with a seemingly innocuous question about the payment of taxes to Caesar. Despite their flattering introductory words, they are not seeking instruction. They are hoping to entrap him by what he says.