The Treasure Trove of Generous GivingSýnishorn

Mark 12: The Widow's Mite

First and foremost, what comes to mind when you hear the word, “mite”?

If you think the Bible was talking about termites, you would be on the wrong track.

A mite, back in Biblical times, was “a Jewish coin and the smallest used in New Testament days. When Mark was written, it was worth 1/64th of a denarius. A denarius was a day’s wage for a common worker. In today’s terms, it would be worth about 1/8th of a cent” (Taylor 2005).

Why is the value of a mite even important for the story in Mark 12?

In Mark 12, we have this unnamed lady that we call the widow, as she’s the one that gave the now-famous widow’s mite. Let’s pause to understand the insignificance of such a paltry amount if this woman were to give it today. I have an actual two-thousand-year-old widow’s mite in my office that is encapsulated in a little case. It’s smaller than a dime, and if you studied it, you would think, “You couldn’t buy the skin of a chicken nugget with that today.” But can you imagine—since this passage was written nearly two millennia ago—how many times this event has been preached, taught, explored, and explained, and how many people have been convicted to give based on what she gave?

“Give, and it will be given to you: Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will men give unto you. For with the measure you use, it will be measured unto you.” – Luke 6:38, MEV

If God’s mathematics are different—and they are—can you fathom what that widow’s compounded interest in heaven has been over the last two thousand years, once you factor in how many lives she has changed just from that single act of giving? Can you imagine the compounded interest she is still earning in heaven right now, even as you read about her in this study plan? I really don’t think you can. That single act has been talked about billions, if not trillions, of times. And here we are, two thousand years later, still talking about it and still being moved.

How does this story tie into being a good steward to God?

Over the next four days, you will walk through the four principles of stewardship. During this time, you will gradually become more and more like the widow who gave her two mites—everything she owned—to God.

Source: Samford University