A. In the larger picture, Mark is relentlessly pursuing the establishment of the legitimacy of rejecting the leaders of Jerusalem and their "religious" input.
1. At the heart of every issue of "Life" is the question, "Who do I trust?"
a. No one, no matter how "intelligent", or "low information", has a sufficient grasp of "Truth" to "go it alone".
1) The problem for the "intelligent" is that they are blinded by the minutia and easily led "into the weeds" of "red herrings".
2) The problem for the "low information" is that they are easily convinced to think that they simply "already know the truth" (don't confuse me with the facts).
b. The same can be said of the more critical issue of "a sufficient grasp of "Love".
1) With men, the "what is valuable?" question is almost always complicated beyondunderstanding by the immediate present.
2) Additionally, this question is (without grace in the mix) invariably set upon the foundation of whether "I" will profit, or lose, by how I answer the question, and that, alone, is a Death trap.
c. At some point, everyone has to have a "foundation for trust".
1) In this record by Mark, the huge problem is that the Jews have a very long history of being told that they are "the special people of God" so that they typically fall back upon their traditional understandings of how their "God" will act on their behalf.
2) In this record, Mark is intent upon showing even the "least aware" that there is no understanding that allows "thieves", "greedy murderers", or "hypocrites", to "set the standards" either for "Love", "Truth", or "Life".
3) According to the Scriptures, the "Love" and "Truth" and "Life" are contained in the words of God so that if anyone is not self-deceived and wishes to "know" where to lodge his/her final "court of appeal", God will show Himself to be that "final court" and will reveal it to those who wish to know "Love" and "Truth" (John 7:17).
2. Even the least informed should be able to recognize that it is foolish to "trust" those who have no integrity.
B. In this context, the issue is "hypocrisy".
1. There are six uses of this term in the New Testament with only two uses by the same person.
2. The word always refers to something "evil".
3. This word is used in Luke 12:1 to "elevate hypocrisy to the stratified realms of extreme danger" as also Paul did in 1 Timothy 4:2.
C. In this context, the "hypocrisy" is so apparent that even a barely interested person would be able to see it.
II. Jesus Easily Side-stepped The Trap.
A. The Scriptures are not silent about "the laborer being sufficiently rewarded for his/her labor" (Matthew 10:10; Luke 10:7; 1 Timothy 5:18; and James 5:4).
B. Clearly "Caesar" is providing the best way to sustain the entire economy by providing "the coin of the realm": this qualifies him to be able to legitimately "tax" those who use his provision.