Human Valuations

When a man shall clearly utter a vow of persons unto the LORD, according to thy valuation, then thy valuation shall be for the male from twenty years old even unto sixty years old, even thy valuation shall be fifty shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary. And if it be a female, then thy valuation shall be thirty shekels. And if it be from five years old even unto twenty years old, then thy valuation shall be for the male twenty shekels, and for the female ten shekels. And if it be from a month old even unto five years old, then thy valuation shall be for the male five shekels of silver, and for the female thy valuation shall be three shekels of silver. And if it be from sixty years old and upward: if it be a male, then thy valuation shall be fifteen shekels, and for the female ten shekels. (Leviticus 27:2–7)

אִישׁ כִּי יַפְלִא נֶדֶר בְּעֶרְכְּךָ נְפָשֹׁת לַה': וְהָיָה עֶרְכְּךָ הַזָּכָר, מִבֶּן עֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה וְעַד בֶּן שִׁשִּׁים שָׁנָה, וְהָיָה עֶרְכְּךָ: חֲמִשִּׁים שֶׁקֶל כֶּסֶף בְּשֶׁקֶל הַקֹּדֶשׁ. וְאִם נְקֵבָה הִוא, וְהָיָה עֶרְכְּךָ: שְׁלֹשִׁים שָׁקֶל.
וְאִם מִבֶּן חָמֵשׁ שָׁנִים וְעַד בֶּן עֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה, וְהָיָה עֶרְכְּךָ הַזָּכָר: עֶשְׂרִים שְׁקָלִים, וְלַנְּקֵבָה: עֲשֶׂרֶת שְׁקָלִים.
וְאִם מִבֶּן חֹדֶשׁ וְעַד בֶּן חָמֵשׁ שָׁנִים, וְהָיָה עֶרְכְּךָ הַזָּכָר: חֲמִשָּׁה שְׁקָלִים כָּסֶף, וְלַנְּקֵבָה עֶרְכְּךָ: שְׁלֹשֶׁת שְׁקָלִים כָּסֶף.
וְאִם מִבֶּן שִׁשִּׁים שָׁנָה וָמַעְלָה, אִם זָכָר, וְהָיָה עֶרְכְּךָ: חֲמִשָּׁה עָשָׂר שָׁקֶל, וְלַנְּקֵבָה: עֲשָׂרָה שְׁקָלִים. (ויקרא כ״ז, ב–ז)

Toward the end of Leviticus, the Torah discusses someone who vows to give his valuation to the LORD. It teaches that a person’s valuation depends on age and sex, as summarized in the following table:

Why do male and female valuations differ, and why does their ratio change between age groups?

At first sight, one might argue that a person’s monetary valuation reflects labor-market value, and that a man, physically stronger than a woman, has a higher valuation. But this does not fit what we know from the Torah or, separately, from other ancient law collections.

Archaeological evidence shows that male and female slaves were sold at different prices depending on their intended purpose. Yet when the price of a male or female slave appears in a legal context, the Torah makes no distinction between their monetary valuations. For example, when an ox gores a male or female slave, the compensation to the owner is identical:

If the ox gore a bondman or a bondwoman, he shall give unto their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned. (Exodus 21:32)

אִם עֶבֶד יִגַּח הַשּׁוֹר אוֹ אָמָה – כֶּסֶף שְׁלֹשִׁים שְׁקָלִים יִתֵּן לַאדֹנָיו, וְהַשּׁוֹר יִסָּקֵל. (שמות כ"א, לב)

We find a similar situation in other ancient law collections, such as the Laws of Hammurabi. There too, there is no difference between a male and female slave’s monetary value, and someone returning either to their owner receives the same reward:

If a man catches a runaway male or female slave in the field and returns that person to the owner, the owner of the male or female slave shall pay him two shekels of silver. (Laws of Hammurabi, law 17)

אם איש תפס בשדה עבד או אמה שברח והשיב אותו לבעליו – בעל העבד או האמה ישלם לו שני שקלים של כסף. (חוקי חמורבי, חוק מס' 17)

If the valuations at the end of Leviticus reflect a slave’s value, an adult man’s valuation should equal a woman’s: 30 shekels. Yet it is 50 shekels. Why?

I propose that the differences arise from function, rather than status or labor capacity. The adult woman’s valuation corresponds to civilian labor value, and therefore matches the amount the Torah assigns to male and female slaves: 30 shekels. The adult man’s valuation is higher because it includes an additional component absent for women: a national role as one eligible for military service.

Possible support appears in II Kings 15, which tells how Menahem son of Gadi, king of Israel, had to give the king of Assyria an enormous sum to secure his assistance. He collected the necessary money from the mighty men, 50 shekels from each:

And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and stayed not there in the land. (II Kings 15:20)

וַיֹּצֵא מְנַחֵם אֶת הַכֶּסֶף עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל עַל כָּל גִּבּוֹרֵי הַחַיִל לָתֵת לְמֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר חֲמִשִּׁים שְׁקָלִים כֶּסֶף לְאִישׁ אֶחָד וַיָּשָׁב מֶלֶךְ אַשּׁוּר וְלֹא עָמַד שָׁם בָּאָרֶץ. (מלכים ב ט"ו כ)

Perhaps this amount reflected a soldier’s accepted valuation, and each soldier in Israel was required to pay his valuation as ransom to the king of Assyria.

We can now also explain why the ratios vary with age.

Childhood, from one month to five years, is a period when children neither work nor serve in the military, either fully or partially, nor prepare to do so. Their valuation is therefore fixed symbolically at a tenth of their adult valuation at the height of their strength: 5 shekels for a male and 3 for a female, preserving the adult female-to-male ratio of 3:5.

In youth and old age, a woman’s monetary valuation, based on her working capacity, remains steady at 10 shekels. A man’s valuation, however, includes his military contribution, which varies with age.

Before age 20, boys apparently served in supporting roles for soldiers, such as carrying equipment or delivering messages (see I Samuel 17:17–18). Their valuation is therefore 20 shekels, twice that of girls. After 60, when a man is no longer an active soldier, the Torah still assigns him symbolic value as a former soldier. His valuation is therefore 15 shekels, somewhat higher than his female counterpart’s but no longer twice as much.