I also grant fifteen thousand shekels of silver yearly out of the king’s revenues from appropriate places: This is an outright gift to the Temple treasury, not something the Jews will have to fight for. Shekels of silver were units of money, a weight in silver, which Good News Bible conveniently translates as “silver coins” (Contemporary English Version “pieces of silver.” There is no realistic way to determine its value in modern terms. The king’s revenues probably refers to “the royal treasury” (Good News Bible). From appropriate places apparently means the king will give the Temple the 15,000 pieces of silver from any source of income he may find convenient at any particular time. New English Bible translates “from such places as may prove convenient.” Good News Bible is also good with “from appropriate accounts.” An alternative model for this verse is:

• Every year, I will send you 15,000 [or, fifteen thousand] pieces of silver from appropriate accounts in my treasury.

Quoted with permission from Bullard, Roger A. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on 1-2 Maccabees. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here.