The student of the Bible meets with some difficulty in adapting the names of weights, measures and coins, to the standards now in use, and finds that the authorities are not agreed upon the precise signification of the Bible terms used in relation to these subjects. These difficulties and discrepancies arise from three facts: 1. The Oriental mind has never been accustomed to the exactness of our systems of measurement. Among eight cubit measures found on the Egyptian monuments, no two were precisely alike. 2. The models or standards of weights and measures referred to in Hebrew history were long ago lost, and it is not easy to reproduce them. 3. The Jews adopted the measurements of peoples among whom they were dispersed, yet often retained the names of such of their own as were nearest to them in amount, so that at different periods in Bible history the standard was different. The same word may refer to different measurements at different times. We have adopted in this section the measurements of F. R. and C. R. Conder in "The Hand Book of the Bible," except where other authorities are specified.

I. Smaller Measures of Length. 1. The lowest dimension, as in our own table of linear measure, was the Barleycorn. 2. Two barleycorns laid endways made the Finger-breadth (Hebrew, Atzbah), two-thirds of an inch. 3. Four finger-breadths made the Palm (Heb., Tupah), 2²/₃ inches. 4. Sometimes the Hand-breadth and Palm are the same; elsewhere, the hand-breadth (Heb., Zereth) is double the palm, or 5¹/₃ inches. 5. Three palms made the Span (Heb., Sit), 8 inches, the width of the outspread hand, from the end of the thumb to that of the little finger. 6. Four palms made the Foot (Heb., Regal), 10²/₃ inches. 7. Six palms made the Cubit (Heb., Ameh), 16 inches (Conder), or the distance from the elbow to the tip of the middle finger, when held in a straight line. The cubit, however, varied (just as the pound with us varies in troy and avoirdupois weight), as indicated in the expressions "the cubit of a man" (Deut. 3:11), "a great cubit" (Ezek. 41:8), etc. In the length of the cubit, authorities vary from 15 to 21 inches. We have adopted the general opinion, and place it, conjecturally, at a foot and a half, or 18 inches.

II. Larger Measures of Length. The cubit (reckoned more precisely at 16 inches) is here regarded as the unit of measurement. 1. The Fathom was 6 or 6½ feet. 2. The Reed (Heb., Keneh; compare our word cane) was 4 cubits, according to Conder, but 6 cubits according to other authorities, thus varying between 5¹/₃ feet and 8 feet. 3. The Furlong (named only in the New Testament) was a Greek measurement (Stadium), of 606¾ feet, or 53¼ feet less than our furlong. 4. The Mile (Matt. 5:41) was 1,618 yards. The Hebrew mile is not referred to in the Bible, but was of two kinds, "the small mile" (Heb., Mil), being about 1,000 cubits, or about a quarter of our mile; and "the long mile," twice as far. 5. The Sabbath Day's Journey is stated by Conder at 2,000 cubits, or half an English mile; but by most other writers at seven-eighths of our mile. 6. The Day's Journey was variable, from 10 to 30 miles; generally about 20 miles. So most authorities decide, but Conder gives it at 4¾ miles.

III. Dry Measures of Capacity. 1. The Cab (2 Kings 6:25), 96 cubic inches, or 675 thousandths of a quart. 2. The Omer (Exod. 16:36) contained 172⁸/₁₀ cubic inches, or about 2½ quarts. 3. The Seah (in Greek, Modios) was the ordinary household measure of quantity, translated, generally, "measure" in our Bibles, but in Matt. 5:15 "bushel." It contained six times as much as the cab, or a little over a peck; according to Conder, 1.012 pecks; according to the Revised Version (Matt. 13:33, marginal note), a peck and a half. 4. The Ephah (Exod. 16:36) contained 3 seahs, or 10 omers; about three-quarters of a bushel. 5. The Cor contained 10 ephahs, or 7½ bushels. The cor is also called "the homer" (Isa. 5:10), which is to be carefully distinguished from the omer, which contained one-hundredth of its quantity. The two words are not alike in the Hebrew. It will be noticed that the omer, the ephah and the cor (or homer) formed a decimal scale of measurement.

IV. Liquid Measures of Capacity. 1. The Auphauk (not named in the Bible) was the smallest, containing 6 cubic inches, or 675 thousandths of a gill. 2. The Log (Lev. 14:10), four times as large as the auphauk, was "six egg-shells full," 24 cubic inches, or a little more than half a pint (675 thousandths). 3. The Hin (Exod. 29:40) contained 12 logs, or a little over a gallon. 4. The Seah (see above, under Dry Measures) contained twice as much as the hin. 5. The Bath, containing 3 seahs or 6 hins, contained 1,728 cubic inches, or 6.036 gallons. Besides these, the New Testament names two Greek measures, the Metretes (John 2:6, "firkins"), equivalent to 10¹/₃ gallons; and the Choenix (Rev. 6:6, "measure"), about a pint and a half.

V. Measures of Weight. (From the Oxford Teacher's Bible.) 1. The Gerah, "a bean," weighed a little less than half of a dram avoirdupois (.439 dram). 2. The Bekah, 10 gerahs, weighed about a quarter of an ounce (4.39 drams). The word means "half," i. e., of a shekel. 3. The Shekel, "weight," used as a silver coin, 2 bekahs, weighed 8.9 drams. 4. The Maneh (Greek, Mina), 60 shekels (Conder says 50 shekels, which would agree with paragraph VI., below), 2 lbs. 1 oz. 5. The Talent, "circle," meaning "an aggregate sum," 50 manehs, weighing 102 lbs. 14 ozs. The weights are of lower degree than those in common use at present, because in the early times money was weighed, and not counted, and exact weighing was necessary with gold and silver.

VI. Measures of Value. Two systems of money are referred to in the Bible: the Hebrew, or that in use in Old Testament times and lands; and the Roman, which was used during the New Testament period. In the Hebrew system the weights referred to in paragraph V. were used in silver as measures of value. 1. The Gerah (Exod. 30:13) was the lowest, and was worth 2¾ cents. 2. The Bekah, 10 gerahs (Exod. 38:26), was worth 27³⁷/₁₀₀ cents, or about 2 cents more than our quarter of a dollar. 3. The Shekel, 2 bekahs, was worth 54¾ cents, or about 5 cents more than half a dollar. 4. The Maneh, or Mina, 50 shekels (Luke 19:13, "pound"), $27.37½. 5. The Talent of Silver, 60 manehs, $1,642.50. 6. The Talent of Gold was nearly twenty times as valuable, being estimated at $26,280. 7. So the Shekel of Gold was worth, in the same proportion of weight with the ordinary shekel of silver, $8.75. It is to be remembered that a given amount of coin in those times would purchase ten times as much as now.

The Greek and Roman coins are chiefly referred to in the New Testament. The smallest was the Lepton (Mark 12:42, "mite"), worth a fifth of a cent. 2. The Quadrans (Mark 12:42, "farthing"), 2 mites, or less than half a cent. 3. The Assarion (Matt, 10:29, "farthing"), four times the quadrans, or 1³/₅ cents. Notice that two coins, one worth four times as much as the other, are both translated "farthing" in our version. 4. The Denarius (Matt, 22:19, "penny"), 10 times the assarion, or 16 cents. It was the latter which in Christ's time bore the face of the Roman emperor.