When the Pharisees try to trap Jesus with a question about paying taxes (Matthew 22:15-22), he asks them to show him the tax coin (νόμισμα). They produce a denarius bearing Caesar's image and inscription. Jesus' famous reply—'Render to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's'—turns the trap into a teaching moment. The term νόμισμα emphasizes the coin's legal status: money authorized by established custom or law. The root (νόμος, 'law' or 'custom') points to the social contract that gives currency its value. By holding Caesar's coin, the Pharisees tacitly accept Roman authority and benefit from Roman economy. Jesus punctures their hypocrisy while asserting a higher loyalty: Caesar may claim taxes, but God claims the whole person.