Peter takes a coin from the fish’s mouth
Detail from Masaccio’s The Tribute Money in the Brancacci Chapel of the basilica of Santa Maria del Carmine in Florence.
The story is from Matthew 17:24-27
When they reached Capernaum, the collectors of the temple tax came to Peter and said, “Does your teacher not pay the temple tax?”He said, “Yes, he does.” And when he came home, Jesus spoke of it first, asking, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their children or from others?” When Peter said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the children are free. However, so that we do not give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a coin; take that and give it to them for you and me.”
I think of this as a story about paying for access to God.
