The Widow’s Mite or the Poor Widow’s Example

Jesus sat in the temple courts across from the treasury—the place where people brought their offerings. And Jesus watched the people put money into the treasury. Many rich people put their large gifts into the treasury. Then Jesus saw one poor widow who came and put into the treasury two Greek lepta—two small copper coins worth one Roman codrant, or one Roman penny.

Seeing this, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you; this poor widow has put into the treasury more than all the others. For they all gave out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, has given all she had to live on.”

See Mark 12:41-44; Luke 21:1-4

Notes: “two lepta”: a lepton was a Jewish coin made of bronze or copper and worth about 1/128 of a denarius. So, the woman’s two lepta was equal to 1/64 of a labor’s daily wage, or one Roman kodrantēs (codrant), one Roman penny.

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