That's how taxes have operated for most of modern history. And it's not a Marxist idea, progressive taxes pre-date Marx by about 600 years.
If you look at the history monetary systems in Western Europe, taxes were initially applied to a small, wealthy minority - predominately the nobility, landowners and certain types of merchants/traders. Hard numbers are difficult to come by, but this was probably no more than 15% to 20% of the population until the mid 1500s (with the exceptions of some Italian city states and the Spanish).
The tax base broadened as time progressed, but even then it was always the top earners who payed the most taxes, while the low earners paid less or zero.
The English poll taxes of the 1300s are a good example - the tax for richest in society was 1600 pence. This was graduated down to 160 pence for the nobility, clergy and certain individuals. Commoners paid MUCH less, somewhere between 1 and 4 pence. Those with no wealth ("actual beggars") paid no poll tax.
Income taxes in the modern sense were only applied at the start of the 1800s (about 20 years before Marx was born). The first English income taxes were progressive from the beginning, and were deliberately structured to pull much more heavily from the rich than they did from the commons. The poorest paid under 1% of their annual income, the richest paid about 10%.
The same is true in the US - the first income tax was only applicable to a wealthy minority (about 5-10% of the population)
You might want to do a little more research on that phrase before attributing it to Marx.
33 And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all.
34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold,
35 And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
