International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
WEDGE, OF GOLDwej, (lashon zahabh, literally, "tongue of gold"): A piece of gold in the form of a wedge found by Achan in the sack of Jericho. It was in one of the forms in which gold was used for money and was probably stamped or marked to indicate its weight, which was 50 shekels, i.e. one maneh, according to the Hebrew standard, or nearly two pounds troy. Its value would be 102 British pounds 10 shillings or USD510.00 (in 1915). See MONEY; POUND. A wedge, or rather, oblong rectangular strip of gold, of similar weight has been found in the excavations of Gezer (Macalister, Bible Side-Lights, 121). Along with metal rings they were doubtless used as an early form of currency. In Isaiah 13:12 the King James Version, kethem, "pure gold" (so the Revised Version (British and American)), is translated as "golden wedge" on insufficient grounds.
H. Porter
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
n.) A piece of metal, or other hard material, thick at one end, and tapering to a thin edge at the other, used in splitting wood, rocks, etc., in raising heavy bodies, and the like. It is one of the six elementary machines called the mechanical powers. See Illust. of Mechanical powers, under Mechanical.
2. (n.) A solid of five sides, having a rectangular base, two rectangular or trapezoidal sides meeting in an edge, and two triangular ends.
3. (n.) A mass of metal, especially when of a wedgelike form.
4. (n.) Anything in the form of a wedge, as a body of troops drawn up in such a form.
5. (n.) The person whose name stands lowest on the list of the classical tripos; -- so called after a person (Wedgewood) who occupied this position on the first list of 1828.
6. (v. t.) To cleave or separate with a wedge or wedges, or as with a wedge; to rive.
7. (v. t.) To force or drive as a wedge is driven.
8. (v. t.) To force by crowding and pushing as a wedge does; as, to wedge one's way.
9. (v. t.) To press closely; to fix, or make fast, in the manner of a wedge that is driven into something.
10. (v. t.) To fasten with a wedge, or with wedges; as, to wedge a scythe on the snath; to wedge a rail or a piece of timber in its place.
11. (v. t.) To cut, as clay, into wedgelike masses, and work by dashing together, in order to expel air bubbles, etc.
Strong's Hebrew
3956. lashon -- tongue... tongue (84), tongues (5), word (1). babbler, evil speaker, language, talker,
tongue,
wedge. Or lashon {law-shone'}; also (in plural
... /hebrew/3956.htm - 6k 3800. kethem -- gold
... Word Origin from an unused word Definition gold NASB Word Usage fine gold
(2), gold (6), pure gold (1). most fine, pure golden wedge. ...
/hebrew/3800.htm - 6k
2490. chalal -- to bore, pierce
... by implication) to wound, to dissolve; figuratively, to profane (a person, place
or thing), to break (one's word), to begin (as if by an "opening wedge"); denom ...
/hebrew/2490.htm - 6k
