Itinerarium totius Sacræ Scripturæ. Or, the trauels of the holy patriarchs, prophets, iudges, kings, our sauiour Christ, and his Apostles, as they are related in the Old and New Testaments. With a description of the townes and places to which they trauelled, and how many English miles they stood from Ierusalem. Also a short treatise of the weights, monies, and measures mentioned in the Scriptures, reduced to our English valuations, quantitie, and weight. Collected out of the workes of Henry Bunting, and done into English by R.B.

Now followeth the Reckonings of the monies in the NEW TESTAMENT.

And first of Matthew.

* 1.1HHe that agreeth not with his aduersarie, shall be cast into prison and not come forth (so saith our Sauiour Christ) vntill hee hath payed the vtmost farthing. The Hebrew and Latine translations haue it, Quadrans, or a fourth part, that is, a farthing in our money: but if you account according to the Ro∣man coine, it was ob. q.

* 1.2Doe not men buy to Sparrowes for a pennie? that is, something more than halfe a farthing.

* 1.3When our Sauior Christ went into Capernaum, the receiuers of tribute spake to Peter, saying, Doth not your Master pay tribute? The tribute money in the Text is called Didrachma, which was 15 d. for so much euery man payed for tribute: from whence may be gathered, that the pennie that Peter tooke out of the fishes mouth, was worth 2 s. 6 d.

* 1.4The kingdome of Heauen is like vnto a King that would call his seruants to account, and when he began to reckon with them the one ought him 10000 li. in Hebrew weight; which at 37 s. 6 d. the pound, commeth in the whole to 18750 li. so much was the wicked seruant in debt to his Master. And on the contrary, one of his fellow seruants ought him 100 pence: in the Hebrew text it is Centum Obulus, and one Obulus was 1 d. q. that is, 10 s. 5 d. so that the bad seruant ought his Master 30000 times more than his fellow seruant ought him.

The Greeke text saith, that this fellow ought him Centum De∣rius; that is, 3 li. 2 s, 6 d. which is yet a great deale of difference; for the wicked seruant ought his master aboue 6000 times more than his fellow seruant ought him.

* 1.5The Lord of the Vineyard agreed with his labourers for a pen∣nie a day; in the Hebrew text it is zuza; and in Greeke Denari∣us; both which are of like value English, that is, 7 d. ob. so much each labourer had by the day.

When the Pharises & Herods seruants tempting Christ, asked

him whether it was lawfull to pay tribute vnto Caesar or not: Christ answered and said, You Hypocrites, why tempt you me? shew me the tribute money, and they brought him a penny; where it is ex∣prest by the word of zuza, or Denarius that is 7 d. ob.

The kingdome of heauen is like vnto a man,* 1.6 that trauelling in∣to a farre countrey, called his seruants, and deliuered vnto them his goods; to one he gaue fiue talents; that is, 937 li. 10 s. with which he gained just as much more, that is, 937 li. 10 s. to the se∣cond hee gaue two Talents of the common weight also, which was 375 li. and he also gained just as much more, that is, 375 li. and to the third he gaue one Talent, that is, 187 li. 10 s. and hee gained nothing with it, but hid the Talent in the earth.

Iudas Iscariot betraied our Sauiour Christ for thirtie pence or pieces of siluer, which were so many sicles of the Temple,* 1.7 each sicle being halfe an ounce, which were accounted worth 2 s. 6 d. so the whole came to 3 li. 15 s. for which our Sauiour Christ was betraied. And with it they bought a Potters field.

Marke.

OVr Sauiour Christ sate ouer against the treasurie,* 1.8 and beheld how the people cast into the Treasurie: and many rich men cast in much; and there came a certaine poore widdow, and shee threw in two mites, which is a farthing, or Quadrans, which was the fourth part of an Assis, being almost a penny English.

Our Sauiour Christ being at Bethanie in the house of Simon the Leaper,* 1.9 there came a woman hauing a boxe of oyntment of costly oyle called Spikenard, and shee broke the box and poured it vpon his head; therefore some murmured among themselues, and said, To what end is this wast of oyntment? for it might haue beene sold for more than three hundred denarios or pence, that is, 9 li. 7 s. 6 d.

Luke.

OVr Sauiour Christ saith, Are not fiue Sparrowes solde for two farthings? that is, Assibus duobus,* 1.10 which is 1 d. ob.

Or what woman hauing ten pieces of siluer, that is,* 1.11 ten Drach∣ma's or groats, (each being worth 7 d. ob.) and lose one, will not seek til she find it, &c. So these 10 were in English mony 6 s. 3 d.

* 1.12A certaine Nobleman went into a farre country to receiue for himselfe a kingdome: and he called his ten seruants, and deliue∣red them ten pieces of money, or ten pounds, or Mina's (accor∣ding to the weight of the Temple) which came to (at 3 li. 2 s. 6 d. the Mina) in the whole 31 li. 5 s.

Iohn.

* 1.13WHen our Sauiour Christ would feed 5000 men, besides women and children, hee said vnto Philip, Where might wee buy bread that these people might eat? (which he spake to proue Philip.) Philip answered and said, That 200 pennie worth of bread will not be sufficient for them that euery man might take a little. The 200 pennie worth of bread are called Denarios, which was worth 7 d. ob. in our money, and in the whole is worth 6 li. 5 s. From whence may be gathered, that there being 5000, euery one of them should haue had no more bread than might haue bin bought with a farthing mite and halfe of our siluer.

* 1.14As our Sauiour Christ six daies before the Passeouer was ea∣ting in the house of Lazarus, (whom he had raised from the dead in Bethania,) Mary, Lazarus sister tooke a box, some say a pound of oyle of Spikenard, and annointed Iesus feet, and wiped them with her haire; and the whole house was filled with the sauour of the ointment. Then said one of his Disciples, euen Iudas Iscariot, Simons sonne, Why was not this ointment sold for 300 pence; that is, denarios; euery denarios being worth 7 d. ob. which amoun∣ted in the whole to 9 li. 7 s. 6 d.

* 1.15When Christs body was to be buried, Nicodemus came and brought Myrrh and Aloes mingled together, about 100 pound weight according to the common weight, which was 2500 halfe ounces and came to 78 pounds and eight ounces, English.

Acts.

IN Asia many bookes were burnt to the value of 50000 pieces of siluer, that is, Roman denarios, euery of which was 7 d. ob. the whole amounting to 1562 li. 10 s.

Thus haue I briefly set forth to you the seuerall weights that

were common amongst the Iewes, both as they were originally from themselues, and as they receiued them from other Nati∣ons, comparing them with the Scriptures as they are seuerally mentioned, and reduced them to our valuations. In casting vp of which, if there shall chance to be any errour, you may with the due examination of the worth of euery piece of siluer or Gold (according as you may finde them at the beginning of this Treatise) easily reforme them, and bring them to your owne vn∣derstanding.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Cap. 5.
• * 1.2

  Cap. 10. v. 29.
• * 1.3

  Cap. 17. v. 25.
• * 1.4

  Cap. 18. v. 23.
• * 1.5

  Cap. 2. v. 5.
• * 1.6

  Mat. 25.14.15.
• * 1.7

  Cap. 26. v. 14.
• * 1.8

  Ca. 12. v. 41, 42.
• * 1.9

  Cap. 14. v. 15.
• * 1.10

  Cap. 12. v. 6.
• * 1.11

  Cap. 15. v. 8.
• * 1.12

  Cap. 19. v. 12.
• * 1.13

  Cap. 6. v. 5.
• * 1.14

  Cap. 12. v. 5.
• * 1.15

  Cap. 19. v. 39.