Jesus, that is some shitty exegesis. It reminds me of everything wrong with Christians who feel the need to make Christ in the gospels say what they believe.

The Psalms are about as irrelevant as it can get in terms of interpreting the passage because nothing actually suggests a real connection and plenty of parts of the Bible are inconsistent with each other even in terms of basic things such as whether people who are suffering deserve it. Much more useful as to how early Christians would have interpreted that statement would be Paul's letters where he tells people to pay their taxes. The little else we have about the early Christians says they didn't do any of that shit and were just seen as threats because they failed to worship the gods of the state despite being otherwise decent subjects. Or maybe John with Jesus' response to such accusations. "My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But now (or 'as it is') my kingdom is not from the world." This must mean that Jesus was all about smash the state according to John!!!!!!111!!!

That isn't even the first time taxes came up in Matthew. Matthew 17:24.

You prooftext with an out of context verse like the worst of the Christians. The ones that really embarrass the theologians. Nobody who actually read the entire passage would think it had any relevance.

"16“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. 17Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues. 18On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, 20for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

21“Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 22You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 23When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. Truly I tell you, you will not finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

24“The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household!

26“So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. 27What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. 28Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.b 30And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows."

This somehow translats into "lie and try to cover your ass to protect yourself from the government" in your eyes.

For another, Jesus obviously had no problem doing things that could get him killed if you believe the gospels. He was doing plenty of treasonous shit in terms of some of the gospels saying he made the claim of being the messiah, which could not be made unpolitical by simply saying he doesn't mean it is otherworldy or whatever given the state of Palestinian politics at the time. The fact that what he was saying could get him killed didn't stop Jesus in similar situations where some people came and questioned him and he said some really stupid shit in the gospels.

This is nearly as pathetic as the attempts to get out of the parts about giving up all your wealth. It has the usual problem of claiming some ancient figure totally agrees with your personal opinions regardless of how ridiculous that shit is for a person living back then. Biblical capitalism makes absolutely no fucking sense or at least no more than biblical computer programming.

As for what actual Biblical scholars who know Greek and shit think it means? They think it means to pay taxes. Just like they think the part with the eye of the needles means exactly what it sounds like and not some modern bullshit interpretation meant to justify being wealthy.