What’s a penny worth in the New Testament? Well… depends who you trust. I just noticed recently that my Strong’s concordance says that it’s 1/64th of a day’s wage. Now I love the Word, and I love studying it, and I’ve found a concordance to be a real handy tool, but so-called Bible “helps” can take the life right out of the scriptures, if you trust them, and not the Spirit to teach you the Word. In Matt.20:1-15 (KJV), Jesus told a parable about a man who hired laborers to work all day in his vineyard for a penny. At the end of the day he paid the ones hired the 11th hour the same as those that worked all day… a penny. He asked those that murmured about it, “Is your eye evil because I am good?” If they all had gotten paid 1/64th of a day’s wage, there would have been some real murmuring going on… and NOT because he was good! So I’ll take Jesus’ definition of a penny as an agreeable day’s wage for a laborer. For today’s equivalent, I just figure $100, for easy calculations.Look what this does to Jesus’ teaching on forgiving your brother in Matt.18-21-35. Did the wicked servant that had been forgiven 10,000 talents, have his fellowservant cast into prison for $156? 100 pence (plural of penny) x $100/64=$156. Or a few dollars, according to my Zondervan margin. Most people would not relate to that, and would think, ” I would never do such a thing.” But if you use Jesus’ definition, now we’re talking $10,000! Would you forgive your brother ten grand? Now this parable takes on some real meaning.
In Mark 14, where the woman broke the “alabaster box of ointment of spikenard, very precious”, and poured it on Jesus’ head, it’s easier to understand the indignation of some of those present if that was worth 300 days’ wages. You can really help some poor people with $30,000! Or was that “very precious” ointment and box only worth a few hundred?
In Mark 6, when Jesus fed the 5,000 men, plus women & children, the disciples asked if they should buy 200 pennyworth of bread to feed them. Now $20,000 to feed maybe 10,000 people sounds about right for a snack to get them by till they got home. But $312.50 doesn’t make sense.
In Luke 10, did the good Samaritan give the innkeeper $3 or $200 to take care of the man that had been beaten and robbed?
And Revelation 6:6 takes on just the opposite meaning if a measure of wheat for a penny means a day’s wage vs. $1.56.
So, now do you want to look up the other verses where penny/pence/pennyworth is used? Studying to show yourself approved is absolutely fun… and addicting. I just can’t get enough. Oh, teach me, Lord!
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