Shekalim 15 - The chamber of secrets
One who brought a sacrifice in the Temple would first go to the administrator over tokens (Yochanan), pay the money for the oil and wine required with his sacrifice, and receive a token. He would then take the token to the administrator over the supplies (Achiya) and receive the proper amounts. In the evening, Yochanan and Achiya would meet and reconcile the tokens and the money. If any money was lacking, Yochanan had to repay his own because of the rule that "Temple always has precedence." There were four types of tokens for various groups of sacrifices.
There were two chambers in the Temple, the chamber of secrets and the chamber of tools. People who wanted to give charity would put the money in the chamber of secrets, and the descendants of good families who lost their wealth would come and secretly take it from there. The Talmud tells a few stories about the importance of giving charity and acting wisely so as not to embarrass the recipient. One of such stories: Rabbi Chama was strolling among the synagogues of Lod, and he told his colleague, Rabbi Hoshaya, "See how much money did my ancestors sink into these beautiful synagogues!" To this, Rabbi Hoshaya replied, "See how many lives did your ancestors sink! Were there no people struggling to study Torah that they could have supported instead?!"
The chamber of tools - anyone who wanted to donate an implement to the Temple would put it in this chamber, and every thirty days, the priests would open it and use the tools that could be used directly, while the rest was sold for the upkeep of the Temple.
Art: A Business Secret by Isidor Kaufmann
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