Introduction
There is no mention in the Bible of coins for money before the time of Ezra. Nehemiah 7:71 This does not mean that coinage was not used in Palestine before this date because some have been found. The first coins were minted by the Greeks about the time of Jehosaphat and Hezekiah's reign. But it shows that coinage was not used extensively and may have been brought back from Babylon after the exile. This lends itself to the early date of the Israel's history before the Exile.
In Bible times Money was weighted in the form of rings of gold, silver, or brass. It is considered a form of measurement as well as currency. Genesis 20:16; 23:16 Because the pieces of metal were weighted shows that they were not like our coins of official size with legal tender markings. They needed to be weighted and bartered over to verify their value. The shekel is treated as a weight as well as a currency.
The first recorded account of official minting of Jewish money was under Antiochus VII who gave Simon Maccabees the permission to produce a coin with his own mark on it. 1 Maccabees. 15:6 140 B.C.
The common coin of the New Testament was the Roman Denarii and the Greek Drachma and Tetradrachm. The Jews did have a coin called the Lepton but it was rare. Mark 12:42 Jewish coinage was not produced on a large scale until after 66 A.D. There were three forms of coinage during the New Testament time. There were Roman, Greek and Jewish coinage which made commerce very confusing.
Roman Coinage
Quadran
The smallest Roman coin, made of copper and worth about 1/4 of a cent. Jesus said that we must settle matters on the way to court with our enemies or we will not get out until we have paid the last Quadran. Matthew 5:26.
Denarius
This was the common Roman coin in Jesus day. It was made of silver and worth about .16 cents. The workers in the vineyard each received a Denarius for their days wage. Matthew 20:2-13 The good Samaritan paid the Inn Keeper two denarii for looking after the wounded man. Luke 10:35 It was the Denarius which Jesus requested when he was asked if it was right to pay taxes to Caesar. Mark 12:15.
Greek Coinage
Drachma
The Greek Drachma was equivalent to the Roman Denarius. In Luke 15:8 it was a drachma that the woman lost out of her headdress. It was equivalent to a day's wages.
Tetradrachma
The Greek Tetradrachma was worth four drachma. The Temple tax was two drachma or the half shekel but this coins were not very common so a tetradrachma was allowed for two people. It was this coin that Peter found in the mouth of the fish to pay the temple tax for Peter and Jesus. Matthew 17:24.
Mina
The Mina (usually translated Pound both in A.V. and R.V., 1 Kings 10 :17; Ezra 2:69; Nehemiah 7:71,72) is often supposed to have amounted to 100 shekels, because 3 minas in 1 Kings 10 :17 correspond to 300 shekels in 2 Chron. 9:16. In the LXX version of Ezekiel 45:12 the mina is fixed at 50 shekels, which modern commentators accept as the true reading. It would be the equivalent of 100 Drachma and be worth about $8.00-$16.00. Luke 19:12-27.
Talent
The Kikkar (translated Talent in the English Bible) consisted, according to Exodus 38:25,26 of 3000 shekels. The Talent as mentioned in the New Testament was a large amount of money and not a specific coin. The amount varied depending on whether it was of silver or gold equivalent and whether it was light or heavy weight. Jesus uses it to describe a debt that would be impossible to repay in Matthew 18:24. Jesus also used it to teach a parable in Matthew 25:14 30. The talent could be worth anywhere from 1000 to 30,000 dollars. The talent mentioned in Rev. 16:21 is probably the Attic talent, equal to about 57 lbs.
Jewish Coinage
Mite or Lepton
The Mite or Lepton was a Jewish coin and the smallest used in New Testament time. It means thin likely because of its size and was worth only about 1/8 of a cent. Mark 12:32; Luke 12:59; 21:2.
Gerah
The Gerah was the smallest weight used among the Hebrews, and amounted to the twentieth part of the shekel. It would be equivalent to about .03 cents. Exodus 30:13; Lev. 27:25; Numbers 3:47, 18:16; Ezek. 45:12
Shekel
The Shekel was by far the most ordinary unit of weight; hence in stating weights the word "shekel" is often omitted, as in Gen. 20:16, where "a thousand of silver" means a thousand shekels. It cannot be said what the exact weight of the shekel among the Hebrews before the Maccabean period (i.e. the latter half of the second century B.C.), when it amounted to 218 grains. Some people are of the opinion that in earlier times the Hebrews had two distinct shekels, one equal to 129 grains and the other to 258, in accordance with the Babylonian systems of weights; but of this there is no positive proof. It is also not certain that the "sacred shekel" or "shekel of the sanctuary," mentioned in the Pentateuch, was really double the ordinary shekel, as the Rabbis assert. The Gold Shekel is worth about $9.60 while the silver shekel is worth .64 cents Matthew 17:27.
Bekah
The Bekah, or half-shekel, is mentioned only in Gen. 24:22, and Exodus 38:26. It was a Jewish piece of silver worth about ca. .32 cents.
Piece of Silver
The Quesitah is mentioned only in Gen. 33:19; Job 42:11 (where the A.V. has "piece of money"); and Josh. 24:32 (A.V.,"pieces of silver"). The phrase 'shekels or pieces of silver' is used in Exodus 21:32 and Hosea 3:2 as the amount paid for compensation for a slave that had been killed. Thirty pieces of sliver were also paid by Judas to betray Christ. Matthew 26:15. This would be equivalent to about a persons wages for 4 months.