King Solomon made two hundred large shields of beaten gold: In certain languages it will be more fitting to say that Solomon had these shields made (as in Bible en français courant and Parole de Vie) or that he caused workmen to make them. The verb made is not to be taken in its most literal sense.
The Hebrew noun rendered large shields refers to rectangular shields that protected the whole body. It differs from the Hebrew noun for “shields” in verse 17, which Good News Translation renders “smaller shields” (also La Bible Pléiade). The Jerusalem Bible (Jerusalem Bible) follows the Septuagint in reading “three hundred” shields, but New Jerusalem Bible reads “two hundred,” as do most modern versions.
It is possible that the shields were made of gold, but more likely they were made of wood or some kind of metal and “overlaid” with gold (so Good News Translation, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). The adjective beaten translates a Hebrew participle from the verb usually meaning “to slaughter.” In this context it is usually understood to mean “to beat”; that is, the gold was beaten or hammered into very thin sheets that covered the shields made of wood. Most modern versions are based on this understanding of the Hebrew verb and say beaten gold (for example, Revised Standard Version, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy) or “overlaid with gold.”
However, according to Holladay, the Hebrew verb should be understood in light of a similar verb in Arabic which means to mix wine with water. In this case the Hebrew verb will mean “mixed” or “alloyed,” that is, the gold was mixed with some other kind of metal. This understanding is followed in Bible en français courant, which says “gold alloy.”
Six hundred shekels of gold is literally “six hundred gold,” but the noun shekels is understood and is supplied in the Revised Standard Version translation. The modern equivalent of a shekel is 11.4 grams or 0.4 ounces. In pounds the equivalent of six hundred shekels is “almost fifteen pounds” (Good News Translation). In kilograms the equivalent is about “six kilos” (Bible en français courant, Parole de Vie, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy) or “seven kilos” (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). A recently discovered bronze weight in the shape of a dome has the word “shekel” written in Hebrew on it. The weight comes from the early eighth century B.C. and weighs 0.57 ounces, which is considerably more than the average shekel, which weighed 0.4 ounces.
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .