Also we made ordinance, for us
Laws among themselves, binding them to that which the laws of God did not:
to charge ourselves yearly with the third part of a shekel, for the
service of the house of our God;
the particulars of which follow in the next verse; for the defraying of which there used to be a treasury in the temple; but now there was none, and therefore they took this method to assess themselves; and being poor, instead of the half shekel, which in some cases was required, they only charged themselves with the third part of one; though Aben Ezra thinks this was added to the half shekel, and was paid over and above that; according to Brerewood F1, it was of the value of ten pence of our money: Waserus F2 has given us the figure of one of these coins, with this inscription, a "third" part of a shekel of Israel.