And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood.
The chief priests picked up the silver coins and said, 'We can't put this money in the temple treasury, it's blood money.'
Even the people who orchestrated Jesus's death knew the money was dirty.
📚 Historical Context
In the Gospel of Matthew, this verse occurs during the events leading to Jesus' crucifixion, specifically after Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver and then returned the money in remorse. The chief priests, who were part of the religious elite under Roman occupation, refused to deposit the silver into the temple treasury because Jewish law considered it "blood money," tainted by its association with a death plot. This highlights the cultural emphasis on ritual purity and the hypocrisy of leaders who plotted Jesus' death yet still adhered to certain religious protocols.
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