Coinage was not used until the late 7th century B.C. Weights of silver and gold were earlier used as “currency”. By the later exile a variety of minted coinage, made from gold, silver, bronze or copper, gradually replaced the method of reckoning currency by weighing out precious metals. Israelite, Persian, Greek and Roman coins are mentioned in Scripture.
The talent
A unit of weight
1 Kings 10:14 parallel 2 Chronicles 9:13 See also Exodus 38:25, Exodus 38:29; 1 Kings 9:28 parallel 2 Chronicles 8:18; 1 Kings 10:10 parallel 2 Chronicles 9:9; 1 Chronicles 22:14
The weight of gold that came to Solomon each year was 666 talents,
A weight for precious metals used as currency
1 Kings 20:39 See also 1 Kings 9:14, 1 Kings 16:24; 2 Kings 5:5, 2 Kings 5:22–23, 2 Kings 15:19, 2 Kings 18:14, 2 Kings 23:33 parallel 2 Chronicles 36:3; 1 Chronicles 19:6; 2 Chronicles 25:6, 2 Chronicles 25:9, 2 Chronicles 27:5; Esther 3:9
As the king passed by, he cried out to the king: “Your servant had marched out into the middle of the battle, when suddenly a man came over with a captive and told me, ‘Guard this man! If he goes missing for any reason, your life will be exchanged for his life, or you will weigh out a talent of silver.’
Adopted as the name of a coin
Matthew 18:23–35 See also Matthew 25:14–30
The shekel
Its value
Ezekiel 45:10–12 See also Exodus 30:13, Exodus 38:25–26; Leviticus 27:25; Numbers 3:46–47, Numbers 18:16
You must use honest scales, a just ephah, and a just bath. The ephah and the bath shall be the same quantity so that the bath will contain a tenth of a homer, and the ephah a tenth of a homer; the homer will be the standard measure for both. The shekel will consist of twenty gerahs. Twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels will equal one mina.
Used as currency
Isaiah 7:23 See also Exodus 30:15; Leviticus 27:1–8; Deuteronomy 22:19, Deuteronomy 22:29; Judges 9:4, Judges 16:5, Judges 17:10; 1 Samuel 13:21; 2 Samuel 18:12; 2 Kings 6:25, 2 Kings 7:1, 2 Kings 7:16, 2 Kings 7:18; 1 Chronicles 21:25 David's payment for the threshing-floor as the temple site; 2 Chronicles 1:17; Nehemiah 5:15, Nehemiah 10:32; Jeremiah 32:9; Hosea 3:2
And on that day, in every place that had a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels of silver, only briers and thorns will be found.
The denarius
Referred to in Jesus Christ's parables
Matthew 20:1–16 One denarius was the average worker's daily wage. See also Matthew 18:21–35; Luke 7:41–47
As the unit for the payment of taxes to Rome
Matthew 22:15–21 parallels Mark 12:13–17, Luke 20:20–26
Then the Pharisees went out and conspired to trap Jesus in His words. They sent their disciples to Him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that You are honest and that You teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You seek favor from no one, because You pay no attention to external appearance. So tell us what You think: Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” But Jesus knew their evil intent and said, “You hypocrites, why are you testing Me? Show Me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought Him a denarius. “Whose image is this,” He asked, “and whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they answered. So Jesus told them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
The penny
Matthew 10:29 parallel Luke 12:6 The “penny” was not a coin in use in biblical times, but the term is employed in the NIV for two different copper coins, the “assarion” and the “quadrans”, which were of relatively little value. See also Matthew 5:25–26 parallel Luke 12:58–59; Mark 12:42
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.
The gerah
Leviticus 27:25 See also Exodus 30:13; Numbers 3:47, Numbers 18:16; Ezekiel 45:12
Every valuation will be according to the sanctuary shekel, twenty gerahs to the shekel.
The drachma
Acts 19:19 See also Ezra 2:69; Nehemiah 7:70–72
And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books and burned them in front of everyone. When the value of the books was calculated, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.
The four-drachma coin
After they had arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax came to Peter and asked, “Does your Teacher pay the two drachmas?” “Yes,” he answered. When Peter entered the house, Jesus preempted him. “What do you think, Simon?” He asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs and taxes: from their own sons, or from others?” “From others,” Peter answered. “Then the sons are exempt,” Jesus said to him. “But so that we may not offend them, go to the sea, cast a hook, and take the first fish you catch. When you open its mouth, you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for My tax and yours.”
The daric
1 Chronicles 29:7 See also Ezra 8:27
Toward the service of God’s house they gave 5,000 talents and 10,000 darics of gold, 10,000 talents of silver, 18,000 talents of bronze, and 100,000 talents of iron.
Unnamed coins
General references to coins
John 2:13–16 See also Matthew 27:6
When the Jewish Passover was near, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts He found men selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and money changers seated at their tables. So He made a whip out of cords and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle. He poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those selling doves He said, “Get these out of here! How dare you turn My Father’s house into a marketplace!”
Silver coins
Matthew 26:14–15 See also Matthew 27:3–10; Zechariah 11:12–13; Luke 10:30–35, Luke 15:8–10 Although translated simply as “silver coins”, it is the “drachma” which is referred to here.
Then one of the Twelve, the one called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I hand Him over to you?” And they set out for him thirty pieces of silver.
Copper coins
Mark 12:41–42 parallel Luke 21:1–2 The Greek coin “lepton” is translated as “copper coin” in these passages.
As Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into it. And many rich people put in large amounts. Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius.
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.