Judas Bag

The Shekel of Tyre

The History The Jewish rabbinical teachings in Jesus’ day instructed that the Temple tax had to be paid with a coin of the highest silver purity. This was a man-made stipulation and not one given in Scripture. Nevertheless, the primary coin in Jesus’ day that qualified for the silver content was the “shekel of Tyre.” The Tyrian shekel was a silver coin that was minted in the Phonecian city of Tyre and was produced from 126 B.C. to 57 A.D. On one side the shekel had the head of Melqart, the god of Tyre, also known as “Baal” or “Heracles.” The reverse side showed an eagle and was inscribed with the statement “Tyre, the Holy and Inviolable.”   This coin created an issue with religious Jews of Jesus’ day. The inscriptions were contrary to the second commandment for not making graven images. The shekel was engraved with a depiction of a “foreign” god as well as an eagle. It was further offensive because it called Tyre the “holy city.”  Because of this, many Jews would not carry the Tyrian shekel but since it was the only coin accepted for the Temple tax, money-changers were set up in the Temple courtyards. A devout Jew would bring his Jewish money to the Temple and exchange it for a Tyrian shekel with which he would pay the Temple tax. But the money-changers charged outrageous rates for this service, which was part of what made Jesus indignant and the reason He turned over their tables and rebuked them for making the temple a “den of robbers” (Mark 11:17).  It was also most likely 30 Shekels of Tyre, coins that had been paid to the Temple by sincere worshippers, which were now used to pay Judas for the betrayal of Christ.