June 21, 2026 – A Study of Matthew – The Cost of Atonement

The Cost of Atonement

Exodus 30:11-16 – New International Version (NIV)

¹¹ Then the Lord said to Moses, ¹² “When you take a census of the Israelites to count them, each one must pay the Lord a ransom for his life at the time he is counted. Then no plague will come on them when you number them. ¹³ Each one who crosses over to those already counted is to give a half shekel, according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty gerahs. This half shekel is an offering to the Lord. ¹⁴ All who cross over, those twenty years old or more, are to give an offering to the Lord. ¹⁵ The rich are not to give more than a half shekel and the poor are not to give less when you make the offering to the Lord to atone for your lives. ¹⁶ Receive the atonement money from the Israelites and use it for the service of the tent of meeting. It will be a memorial for the Israelites before the Lord, making atonement for your lives.”

Who instructed Moses (verse 11)?

What was each Israelite to pay “at the time he is counted” (verse 12)?

What would the payment prevent (verse 12)?

What is the “half shekel” (verse 13)?

Who is to give the offering (verse 14)?

In your opinion, why were the rich and the poor to give the same amount (verse 15)?

What is the atonement money to be used for (verse 16)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about atonement?

Matthew 17:22-27 - New International Version (NIV)

²² When they came together in Galilee, he said to them, “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. ²³ They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised to life.” And the disciples were filled with grief.

²⁴ After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”

²⁵ “Yes, he does,” he replied.

When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?”

²⁶ “From others,” Peter answered.

“Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. ²⁷ “But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”

Who would “be delivered into the hands of men” (verse 22)?

What filled the disciples (verse 23)?

Who asked Peter “doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax” (verse 24)?

How does Peter answer Jesus’s question “from whom do the kings of earth collect duty and taxes-from their own children or from others” (verses 25 and 26)?

Who did Jesus say was exempt (verse 27)?

What did Jesus not want to cause (verse 28)?

How was Peter supposed to get the money to pay the tax (verse 29)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about atonement?

In your opinion, how are the half shekel of Exodus 30:11-16 and the temple tax of Matthew 17:22-27 different?

Romans 3:21-26 - New International Version (NIV)

²¹ But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. ²² This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, ²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. ²⁵ God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— ²⁶ he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

Who testifies to the righteousness that is “apart from the law” (verse 21)?

How is the righteousness given (verse 22)?

Who is the righteousness given to (verse 22)?

What have “all” done (verse 23)?

How are “all” justified (verse 24)?

How did God present Christ (verse 25)?

What did God demonstrate (verse 26)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about atonement?

In your opinion, how does the “atonement money” the Israelites paid in Exodus 30:11-16 prepare us for the “sacrifice of atonement” that Romans 3:21-26 says that Christ made?

In your opinion, how does Jesus being willing to pay the temple tax in Matthew 17:22-27 help us understand the way Christians are “justified freely by his grace” in Romans 3:21-26?

Ephesians 4:20-32 - New International Version (NIV)

²⁰ That, however, is not the way of life you learned ²¹ when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. ²² You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; ²³ to be made new in the attitude of your minds; ²⁴ and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

²⁵ Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. ²⁶ “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, ²⁷ and do not give the devil a foothold. ²⁸ Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.

²⁹ Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. ³⁰ And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. ³² Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

What were the Ephesian Christians taught “in accordance with” (verses 20 and 21)?

How was the “old self” being corrupted (verse 22)?

Where are they to be made new” in (verse 23)?

How is the new self “created to be like God” (verse 24)?

What are we “all members of” (verse 25)?

What should we not do in our “anger” (verse 26)?

Who should we not give “a foothold” (verse 27)?

Why must those who have been stealing work (verse 28)?

What should come out of our mouths (verse 29)?

How were we “sealed for the day of redemption” (verse 30)?

What should we “get rid of” (verse 31)?

How should we forgive each other (verse 32)?

In your opinion, what is the basic message of this passage?

In your opinion, what does this passage teach us about atonement?

In your opinion, how does the Old Testament discussion about atonement in Exodus 30:11-16 help us understand the New Testament discussion in Ephesians 4:20-32 about atonement and old and new selves?

In your opinion, how does Jesus’s statement about the children being exempt in Matthew 17:22-27 lay the groundwork for putting on the new self in Ephesians 4:20-32?

In your opinion, how does the discussion of redemption in Romans 3:21-26 help us understand the way the “old self” in Ephesians 4:20-32 is “put off”?

In your opinion, what do these passages from Exodus, Matthew, Romans, and Ephesians teach us about how lost people are redeemed?

In your opinion, how should we, those who have accepted Christ’s atonement, respond to His grace today?

(sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)