Verse 26. - Six hundred and fifty talents of silver, according to Mr. Peele's estimate of the talent, would be nearly a quarter of a million of our money. The annual revenue of Persia was about three and a half millions (Herod., 3:95). Of gold an hundred talents. Rather more than a million of our money.

8:24-30 Do we expect that God should, by his providence, keep that which belongs to us, let us, by his grace, keep that which belongs to him. Let God's honour and interest be our care; and then we may expect that our lives and comforts will be his.I even weighed unto their hand six hundred fifty talents of silver,.... Which, according to Scheuchzer (a) amount to 975,000 imperials, and, of our money, 2,229,450 pounds sterling: and silver vessels one hundred talents; which came to 35,300 pounds, or 50,000 imperials; according to Jarchi, there were one hundred vessels, and every vessel weighed a talent, and so Aben Ezra, which, with Brerewood (b), was three hundred and seventy five pounds:

and of gold one hundred talents; which, according to Scheuchzer (c), were equal to 1,222,000 ducats of gold; the value of gold now is above 14 and a 3d to the value of silver, by which may be judged the difference between one hundred talents of gold and one hundred talents of silver; according to David de Pomis (d), there were two sorts of talents; common talents, which weighed sixty pounds, and the talent of the sanctuary, which weighed double to that.

(a) Physica Sacra, vol. 4. p. 651. (b) De Pond. & Pret. Vet. Num. c. 4. (c) Ut supra. (Physica Sacra, vol. 4. p. 651.) (d) Tzemach David, fol. 57. 3.