When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the double-drachma tax approached Peter and said, “Doesn’t your Teacher pay the double-drachma tax? ” “But, so we won’t offend them, go to the sea, cast in a fishhook, and take the first fish that you catch. When you open its mouth you’ll find a coin. Take it and give it to them for Me and you.”Matthew 17:24‭, ‬27 HCSB

The double drachma was a tax started by God in Exodus 30:13 and Exodus 38:25-26.

Everyone who is registered must pay half a shekel according to the sanctuary shekel (20 gerahs to the shekel). This half shekel is a contribution to the Lord.

Exodus 30:13 HCSB

https://bible.com/bible/72/exo.30.13.HCSB

The silver from those of the community who were registered was 7,544 pounds, according to the sanctuary shekel — 2/5 of an ounce per man, that is, half a shekel according to the sanctuary shekel, from everyone 20 years old or more who had crossed over to the registered group, 603,550 men.

Exodus 38:25‭-‬26 HCSB

https://bible.com/bible/72/exo.38.25-26.HCSB

I was looking to see if the tax was raised from Moses to the days of Jesus, but I have not found that to be true. The double drachma was half a shekel. Peter went out and caught a shekel which would have been enough to pay for Jesus and himself. About 5 or 6 years ago I wondered if we were still required to pay the 2/5 of an ounce of silver and I came to the conclusion that it was a restitution tax and that Jesus had paid it for us on the cross. 

One ounce of silver equals 2.5 Shekels.

One ounce of silver equals 7.36 Denarii.

One Talent equals 720 ounces of Silver.

Silver price today (6-24-21) is at $25.98 per ounce.

Half of a shekel or 2/5 of an ounce would amount to $10.38 according to the cost of silver today. So then what was a denarius? A denarius was a day's wages.

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the workers on one denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard.

Matthew 20:1‭-‬2 HCSB

https://bible.com/bible/72/mat.20.1-2.HCSB

A shekel is about three denarii. So a day's wages would equal $191.

This would value Mary's alabaster box at $57,364. 

While He was in Bethany at the house of Simon who had a serious skin disease, as He was reclining at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of pure and expensive fragrant oil of nard. She broke the jar and poured it on His head. But some were expressing indignation to one another: “Why has this fragrant oil been wasted? For this oil might have been sold for more than 300 denarii and given to the poor.” And they began to scold her.

Mark 14:3‭-‬5 HCSB

https://bible.com/bible/72/mrk.14.3-5.HCSB

At a $10.00 per hour wage, a denarius would be $80. And a shekel would be $240. So accounting for a 10.00 wage this would put Mary's jar at $24,000. It appears that a wage of $10.00 per hour would need to make 2.39 times as much to equal a true denarius or 23.88 per hour. 

My next thought is why was the tax collectors not worried about Peter paying his tax just Jesus. Was Peter too young to pay it? Would he have been under 20? Maybe this day was Peter's birthday and he had not registered for the double drachma tax yet? I doubt it but it is an interesting thought. My guess is this was a way to trip up Jesus. To accuse Him of not following Moses' law. But then it could be true because Jesus only supplied enough coins for Him and Peter and not the other 11 apostles. Peter and Jesus was the only ones over 20. If the others were still under 20 then Peter probably was not much older than 20.

This double drachma tax was a tax collected every year right before Passover. WAIT ONE MINUTE. Moses commanded it to be paid only when there was a census. 

“When you take a census of the Israelites to register them, each of the men must pay a ransom for himself to the Lord as they are registered. Then no plague will come on them as they are registered. Everyone who is registered must pay half a shekel according to the sanctuary shekel (20 gerahs to the shekel). This half shekel is a contribution to the Lord.

Exodus 30:12‭-‬13 HCSB

https://bible.com/bible/72/exo.30.12-13.HCSB

But they were collecting it yearly. So it had gone up from every census to every year!

So now onto talents.

For this reason, the kingdom of heaven can be compared to a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves. When he began to settle accounts, one who owed 10,000 talents was brought before him. 

“But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him 100 denarii. He grabbed him, started choking him, and said, ‘Pay what you owe! ’

Matthew 18:23‭-‬24‭, ‬28 HCSB

https://bible.com/bible/72/mat.18.23-28.HCSB

Now, what is a talent compared to a shekel and denarii?

1 talent is 1,789 shekels, 5,299 Denarii, or $18,706. So the debt that the First slave would be $187,060,000. And the debt of the second slave would be $19,121. 

The contrast of God's forgiveness of our $187,060,000 to our cost to forgive others' debt of $19,121 fails I'm comparison. If we were to forgive others 70 times 7 as Jesus told Peter we would be forgiving $9,369,290. Still short of God's forgiveness toward us. To equal God's forgiveness, we would need to forgive 20 people 490 times or 9,800 times total. But if your keeping track then I doubt you are forgiving in love.

Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not conceited, does not act improperly, is not selfish, is not provoked, and does not keep a record of wrongs.

1 Corinthians 13:4‭-‬5 HCSB

https://bible.com/bible/72/1co.13.4-5.HCSB

So yes the tax had gone up as I expected. I don't know how often the people in Jesus' day were counted in a census. I know of one and this was the year of Jesus' birth.

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole empire should be registered. This first registration took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So everyone went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family line of David, to be registered along with Mary, who was engaged to him and was pregnant. While they were there, the time came for her to give birth.

Luke 2:1‭-‬6 HCSB

https://bible.com/bible/72/luk.2.1-6.HCSB

So this census did not take place when Jesus was 30 to 33 but rather when he was 0 to 2. So Jesus would not have been required to pay the double drachma tax. But if the temple tax collectors was collecting the tax yearly Jesus could have paid it 13 times. How typical the tax had gone up in the hands of people to outside the rules of God as with most of the laws.