Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently till she find it? Ten pieces of silver - Δραχμας δεκα, ten drachmas. I think it always best to retain the names of these ancient coins, and to state their value in English money. Every reader will naturally wish to know by what names such and such coins were called in the countries in which they were current. The Grecian drachma was worth about sevenpence three farthings of our money; being about the same value as the Roman denarius.
The drachma that was lost is also a very expressive emblem of a sinner who is estranged from God, and enslaved to habits of iniquity. The longer a piece of money is lost, the less probability is there of its being again found; as it may not only lose its color, and not be easily observed, but will continue to be more and more covered with dust and dirt: or its value may be vastly lessened by being so trampled on that a part of the substance, together with the image and superscription, may be worn off. So the sinner sinks deeper and deeper into the impurities of sin, loses even his character among men, and gets the image and superscription of his Maker defaced from his heart. He who wishes to find the image of God, which he has lost by sin, must attend to that word which will be a lantern to his steps, and receive that Spirit which is a light to the soul, to convince of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He must sweep the house - put away the evil of his doings; and seek diligently - use every means of grace, and cry incessantly to God, till he restore to him the light of his countenance. Though parables of this kind must not be obliged to go on all fours, as it is termed; yet they afford many useful hints to preachers of the Gospel, by which they may edify their hearers. Only let all such take care not to force meanings on the words of Christ which are contrary to their gravity and majesty.