A unit of weight used in OT times, equivalent to about 1½ grams (about two-fifths ounce).
The shekel is divisible into 2 gerahs.
It was only natural that, from a measure of weight, the shekel should also become a measure of currency. Depending on situation, a shekel may refer to a shekel of gold (1 Chron 21:25), silver (1 Sam 9:8), brass (1 Sam 17:5) and of iron (1 Sam 17:7). The shekel, though of very different value, is also the unit of currency in use in modern Israel.
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