If you are interested in History and Religion, then collecting Biblical Coins might be a great and surprisingly inexpensive hobby to consider. If you are unfamiliar with collecting coins, you might be surprised to hear that you can buy a widows mite, as mentioned in the Christian Bible for around the same price as a CD or DVD.
Widows Mites are quite small bronze coins, usually green or brown in appearance with an anchor on one side and a wheel with ray like spokes on the other, together with Hebrew inscription 'Yehonatan the King'. They were made by the ruthless king of Judea, Alexander Jannaeus around 2100 years ago, in such large quantities that many survive to this day.
Our knowledge of these and many other Biblical coins has developed over time, and gradually the study of such coins resulted in the publication of books specifically dealing with Biblical coins. One of the first and still one of the best, although a little outdated and inaccurate in places is:
The History of Jewish Coinage and of Money in the Old and New Testaments, Frederick W Madden (1864)
This Contains lots of line drawings and much historical information on each coin. Original copies are expensive ($200+), but a reprint from Pegasus Publishing, dated 1967, is readily available for about $20 and is highly recommended.
Getting up to date, two names stand out in terms of popular books on Biblical Coins, Ya'akov Meshorer and David Hendin
The Guide to Biblical Coins 4th Edition, David Hendin, 2001 at approx $90 is the default standard, and if you only buy one book on the subject, make it this one. It is a well-presented richly illustrated catalogue of just over 550 coins, all with a unique and widely quoted reference number.
Ya'akov Meshorer wrote many books and papers on the subject of Biblical coins, the last one before he died becoming an award-winning book is:
A Treasury of Jewish Coins, 2001 approx $90
These two excellent books are very different in style and format, but richly illustrate life and the money that was used in Biblical times.
There are many other books on the subject, often selling for around the $20 range, by people like Rev Edgar Rogers, Florence Aiken Banks, Kenneth Jacob and RS Yeoman. While these are worth a look, and all have value, they do not represent that rounded catalogues of the above books.
There are many new books promised too that you should look out for, an updated book from David Hendin, and a new publication from Richard Plant, provisionally titled 'A numismatic journey through the Bible'.
I can’t say that I was always a reader of great books. I read more for the fun of it. I read the comic books of the early 50s. Then I went on to read paperback books particularly those dealing with air battles of World War II both fiction and non-fiction. I do have to confess though that I read these books because my older brother bought them. I wouldn’t put these books in the category of great books but they did inspire my imagination. The books always had a hero. Someone who saved the day or won the battle. Perhaps they were a stepping stone on to the books that would really matter and shape my life.
Since our thoughts determine our life we need to give close attention to what it is that is fuelling our thinking. Books become a very powerful influence to our thinking patterns. What do books do for us?
1.Great Books Broaden Your World. Read biographies and autobiographies of great men and women past and present. These books will help us to lift our eyes to see that other people have faced challenges in life and have succeeded. You’ll see that people have found a need and were willing to do everything they could to fulfill that need. Cameron Townsend was challenged by the fact that people did not have the Bible in their own language. So he founded Wycliffe Bible Translators. These true stories will encourage you to look around and see what would help people and then do it.
2.Great Books Sharpen Your Mind. We need to read books that will challenge our thinking. I have read books where I could only read one or two pages a day. I was trying to understand the concept and the philosophical position of the author. I did finally finish the book. My wife asked me why I bothered and I told her it makes me think outside my usual realm of thought. It sharpened my thought processes.
3.Great Books Ignite Your Heart. When you read books of people who have accomplished great things it inspires me to think that I can do it also. When I read books about people who have done great things in the areas that I am involved in and love my heart is ignited to see if I can do those things and even greater things. My heart begins to beat faster as I consider the possibility of seeing great accomplishments.
4.Great Books Develop Your Skills. Read the books of others who have been successful. Read the books of the people who have tried, worked and perfect it. Learn from them and their life. Let their experiences jump-start your successful life. It doesn’t matter what you are doing there are books by people who have tried things, failed trying and then succeeded. Learn from them! Don’t ignore them. Don’t think you have to make all the same mistakes. There are books that will help you shorten your learning curve but the thing is that you actually have to read them.
TV sitcoms and “reality" shows do not sharpen or expand your thinking. They only cause your mind to shut-down. Be careful on the shows you choose to watch. Even then TV will never replace the written book or today’s Ebook if you want to improve your Great Thinking processes. Once you start improving your thinking processes you need a something where you can use your newly gained information and creativity. A new business venture or even several new ventures is a tremendous way to perfect your new knowledge. Internet marketing is the avenue of business today, are you involved with this phenomenon? Ebay is creating business opportunities for millions, are you one? Go to jfcashflow com. Or, perhaps you want to write an ebook? Ebooksnoproblem com. Do you need to improve your leadership qualities? Supersuccesssecretsrevealed com. Want to start your own business? Joannaheller com.
Both Dave Millington & James Heller are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Dave Millington has sinced written about articles on various topics from Science, Web Development and Information Technology. If you are interested in any of these books, or would like to learn more about coin books, please visit . Dave Millington's top article generates over 3600 views. to your Favourites.
James Heller has sinced written about articles on various topics from Marketing, Anger Control and Leadership. I worked in the corporate world for 15 years - oil & gas taxation, payroll account. The next 27 years have been spent in church ministry. Internet Marketing is allowing retirement. www.dreamweaverplus.com. James Heller's top article generates over 8100 views. to your Favourites.