Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ezra 8:27
Also twenty basins of gold, of a thousand drams; and two vessels of fine copper, precious as gold.
27. also twenty basons of gold ] R.V. and twenty bowls of gold: ‘bowl’ as in Ezr 1:10.
of a thousand drams ] R.V. of a thousand darics. About 1 each: see on Ezr 2:69.
The total specified values then are about
243,750 + 37,500 + 675,000 + 1,000 = 957,250,
or nearly a million of our money.
fine copper ] R.V. fine bright brass. The Hebrew word (Muhbh) occurs only here. LXX. . Some have suggested ‘orichalchum’, a variety of brass.
1Es 8:57 , ‘And twelve (not ‘two’) vessels of brass even of fine brass, glittering like gold’.
precious ] a rare word in the Hebrew, occurring also in Gen 27:15, ‘ goodly raiment’; 2Ch 20:25; Dan 11:38; Dan 11:43, ‘precious things’ (cf. Dan 10:3, ‘pleasant bread’ or bread of preciousness), applied metaphorically to Daniel himself ‘greatly beloved’ (lit. a man of precious things), Dan 9:23; Dan 10:11; Dan 10:19.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Twenty basons of gold, of a thousand drams – Not of a thousand drams (i. e., darics) each, but worth altogether a thousand darics. As the value of the daric was about 22 shillings of British money, each basin, or saucer, would have been worth (apart from the fashioning) 55 British pounds.
Of fine copper – The word translated fine, which occurs here only, is thought to mean either yellow or glittering (see the margin). Probably the vessels were of orichalcum, an amalgam which was either brass or something nearly approaching to brass, but which was very rarely produced in the ancient world, and, when produced, was regarded as highly valuable.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Heb. desirable as gold; not that it was of equal price and worth with it, but for its incomparable excellency in its kind, and for its great rarity, for which cause there were only two vessels of that sort.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
27. two vessels of fine copper,precious as goldAlmost all commentators agree in maintainingthat the vessels referred to were not made of copper, but of an alloycapable of taking on a bright polish, which we think highly probable,as copper was then in common use among the Babylonians, and would notbe as precious as gold. This alloy, much esteemed among the Jews, wascomposed of gold and other metals, which took on a high polish andwas not subject to tarnish [NOYES].
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Also twenty basins of gold, of a thousand drams,…. Which were upwards of 1000 pounds of our money; for Bishop Cumberland says e, the Persian “daric”, “drachma”, or “drachm”, weighed twenty shillings and four pence; and, according to Dr. Bernard, it exceeded one of our guineas by two grains, [See comments on 1Ch 29:7]
and two vessels of fine copper, precious as gold; which perhaps is the same with the Indian or Persian brass Aristotle f speaks of, which is so bright and pure, and free from rust, that it cannot be known by its colour from gold, and that there are among the cups of Darius such as cannot be discerned whether they are brass or gold but by the smell: the Syriac version interprets it by Corinthian brass, which was a mixture of gold, silver, and copper, made when Corinth was burnt, and which is exceeding valuable; of which Pliny g makes three sorts, very precious, and of which he says, it is in value next to, and even before silver, and almost before gold; but this sort of brass was not as yet in being: Kimchi h interprets the word here of its colour, being next to the colour of gold.
e Scripture Weights and Measures, ch. 4. p. 115. f De Mirabilibus, p. 704, vol. 1. g Nat. Hist. l. 34. c. 1, 2. h Sepher Shorash. rad. .
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(27) A thousand drams.Darics, and therefore the whole worth rather more than a thousand guineas.
Fine copper.Probably the Roman Orichalcum, a metal very highly valued.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
27. A thousand drams Worth about five thousand five hundred dollars. See on the word dram, or daric, at Ezr 2:69.
Fine copper Or, rather, copper shining beautifully. The value of all these treasures, according to the above estimate, must have been nearly seven million dollars, an amount so great as to lead us to suspect some corruption or error in the numbers.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Ezr 8:27 Also twenty basons of gold, of a thousand drams; and two vessels of fine copper, precious as gold.
Ver. 27. Of a thousand drachms ] 312 pounds 10 shillings. The Hebrew (or rather Chaldee) word here rendered a drachm seems to be taken from the Greek word D .
And two vessels of fine copper
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
basons = bowls.
of = valued at.
fine copper, &c. = copper shining like gold.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
fine copper: Heb. yellow, or shining brass, The Syriac renders, nechosho korinthyo tovo, “good Corinthian brass;” so called from the brass found after the burning of Corinth by Lucius Mummius, which was, as is generally supposed, brass, copper, silver, and gold, melted together. Sir J. Chardin, however, in a manuscript note, cited by Harmer, mentioned a factitious metal used in the East, and highly esteemed there, which might probably be of an origin as ancient as Ezra. He says, “I have heard some Dutch gentlemen speak of a metal in the island of Sumatra, and among the Macassars, much more esteemed than gold, which royal personages alone are privileged to wear. It is a mixture, if I remember right, of gold and steel, or copper and steel.” He afterwards added, “calmbac is the name of this metal, which is composed of gold and copper.”
precious: Heb. desirable, Lam 4:2
Reciprocal: 1Ki 20:6 – pleasant Ezr 7:19 – The vessels
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
8:27 Also twenty basons of gold, of a thousand {i} drams; and two vessels of fine copper, precious as gold.
(i) Read Ezr 2:69.