[Avodah] Machatzis Hashekel in the Mishkan / Mikdash

Zev Sero zev at sero.name
Tue Mar 6 09:24:08 PST 2018


Even more balebatish: Coins hadn't yet been invented. Therefore Moshe 
had never seen one.  *If* there is a requirement that the ten gerah of 
silver be minted into a coin before being given to the mishkan, Moshe 
would have to understand what such a thing looked like, and make an 
example to explain it to the people.  (Ditto for pidyon maaser sheni, 
but by then they'd already seen what a "coin" was.)  Perhaps this was 
the invention of the coin, and it merely took another six centuries or 
so for the idea to catch on among the nations that this Jewish ritual 
object might have secular applications.


-- 
Zev Sero            A prosperous and healthy 2018 to all
zev at sero.name       Seek Jerusalem's peace; may all who love you prosper


More information about the Avodah mailing list