TREASURY

A place, usually a building or a room, where money or other valuables are kept for security. Numbers 31:54 indicates that at an early period “the tent of meeting” served, in a sense, as a sacred treasury holding contributed gold. The valuable things from Jericho that ‘belonged to Jehovah’ were given “to the treasure of Jehovah’s house,” suggesting that a treasury of some sort was established in connection with the tabernacle. (Jos 6:17, 24) Levites were appointed over the treasures that were contributed and over that which came as spoil made holy to God. (1Ch 26:20-28) The temple Solomon constructed also had a treasury, where gold and silver, as well as the costly utensils of the temple, were kept.​—1Ki 7:51; 2Ch 5:1.

Under the monarchy in Israel, there was in addition a royal treasury. (2Ki 20:13; 24:13; 2Ch 32:27, 28; Jer 38:11) Over the years the valuables of the royal treasury as well as the treasury of the house of Jehovah were repeatedly taken by enemies as plunder or were used to buy off or bribe pagan nations.​—1Ki 14:26; 15:18; 2Ki 12:18; 14:14; 16:8; 18:15; 24:13.

Concerning the Babylonian treasury, Daniel 1:2 says that Nebuchadnezzar brought the valuable utensils of Jehovah’s house into “the treasure-house of his god.” One Babylonian inscription represents Nebuchadnezzar as saying about the temple of Merodach: “I stored up inside silver and gold and precious stones . . . and placed there the treasure house of my kingdom.” (Compare Ezr 1:8.) The Babylonians may have had secondary treasuries in different parts of the empire. (Da 3:2) The Persians had such an arrangement, with the more localized treasuries holding some of the money collected as taxes by the satraps. (Ezr 7:20, 21) At least the main Persian treasuries also served as royal archives, containing important records in addition to gold and other valuables.​—Ezr 6:1, 2; Es 3:9.

Christian Greek Scriptures. When Jesus was on earth, a portion of the temple in Jerusalem was termed “the treasury.” (Joh 8:20) This apparently was located in the area called the Court of the Women. According to rabbinic sources, in this temple rebuilt by Herod there were 13 treasury chests around the wall in this court. (The Mishnah, Shekalim 2:1; 6:1, 5) These were shaped like trumpets, with small openings at the top, and the people would deposit in them various contributions and offerings. (Mr 12:41) The priests refused to put into this sacred treasury the silver pieces Judas threw into the temple, “because,” they said, “they are the price of blood.” (Mt 27:6) It is believed that this temple also contained a major treasury where the money from the treasury chests was brought.