For you have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried my rich treasures into your temples: Good News Translation does not explicitly render the logical connector For, which introduces God’s accusations, since the context makes it clear. Interpreters of this verse have two opinions concerning its meaning. The first is that Yahweh’s silver and gold were the treasures of both the Temple in Jerusalem and also of the land of Judah, Yahweh’s land. The attackers from Tyre, Sidon, and Philistia had carried away these treasures and had deposited them in their own temples (see 1 Sam 5.2; 31.10). The second is that the wealth which Yahweh’s people owned was his wealth, for his people and their land all belonged to Yahweh. The people of Tyre, Sidon, and Philistia may have gotten their wealth from Yahweh’s people by crooked trading, although plunder is also possible. There is no record that these nations ever plundered the Temple. Furthermore, the Hebrew for your temples can mean “your palaces” as well (see the RSV footnote). Temples and palaces were closely related in the Ancient Near East. Even though the wealth may have been kept by individuals among the enemies of Judah, there is no doubt that some of it was given as offerings in the pagan temples.

The preferred interpretation is that the verb taken refers to any means of acquiring the wealth, most likely in an improper manner. My silver and my gold refers to all the silver and gold in Judah, whether privately owned or in the Temple. Your temples most likely refers to pagan temples since Yahweh is speaking and would be jealous of his treasures being misused in this way. At least some of the treasures would have been brought there—in some cases, stored there for use in the palaces.

Quoted with permission from de Blois, Kees & Dorn, Louis. A Handbook on Joel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .