He took the silver and the gold, and the costly vessels; he took also the hidden treasures which he found: At first this verse seems to refer to the same objects listed in verses 21-22. Following Goldstein we suggest the following interpretation: “He also took the silver and gold coins and the precious [or, expensive] articles that he found had been deposited there.” The phrase he took also can just as easily be translated “that is, he took,” which enables us to see that the two clauses of this verse have essentially the same meaning. The Temple was used as a kind of bank, where money or articles of value could be stored for safekeeping (see 2Macc 3.10-11). The silver and the gold refers to coins, since any other silver or gold would be in the form of costly vessels. Hidden treasures means the money and expensive articles were deposited in the Temple for protection. An alternative model for this verse is:

• He also took all the money [or, the silver and gold coins] and all the valuable objects that people had left in the Temple for safekeeping—anything he could find.

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.