Ezekiel 45:12

Old Testament Major Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Ezekiel 45:12 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And the shekel shall be twenty gerahs; twenty shekels, five and twenty shekels, fifteen shekels, shall be your maneh.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And the shekel shall be twenty gerahs; twenty shekels, five and twenty shekels, fifteen shekels, shall be your maneh.
Ezekiel 45:12 — American Standard Version

Context — Ezekiel 45

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
12And the shekel shall be twenty gerahs; twenty shekels, five and twenty shekels, fifteen shekels, shall be your maneh.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And the shekel shall be twenty gerahs, &c.] This is a rule for money or coin; the shekel was a silver coin, and is generally reckoned about the value of two shillings and six pence of our money, so a gerah about three half pennies: Bishop Cumberland reckons the shekel more exactly at two shillings and four pence farthing, and a little more, and the gerah at eleven grains of silver; (see <032725>Leviticus 27:25): twenty shekels, five and twenty shekels, fifteen shekels, shall be your maneh; these were several pieces of money; one was a twenty shekel piece, which according to the common account was fifty shillings of our money; another was a five and twenty shekel piece, which was three…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“The standard weights were lost when the Chaldeans destroyed the temple. The threefold enumeration of shekels (twenty, twenty-five, fifteen) probably refers to coins of different value, representing respectively so many shekels, the three collectively making up a maneh. By weighing these together against the maneh, a test was afforded whether they severally had their proper weight: sixty shekels in all, containing one coin a fourth of the whole (fifteen shekels), another a third (twenty shekels), another a third and a twelfth (twenty-five shekels) [MENOCHIUS]. The Septuagint reads, "fifty shekels shall be your maneh."”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“The shekel - See the marginal reference. The “maneh” shall be of true weight, but it would seem that in Ezekiel’s time there were “manehs” of different value. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“the shekel: Exo 30:13; Lev 27:25; Num 3:47 twenty shekels: That is, 20+25+15=60; for the maneh as a weight was equal to sixty shekels, though as a coin it was only equal to fifty, weighing about 2 lb. 6 oz.; and reckoning the shekel at 2s 6d being in value 6 5s. Ezekiel 45:14”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification