The inner sanctuary of the temple was a secure area where only priests were permitted, to which Judas would not have had access. Some early manuscripts address this problem by changing this verse to specify that it is the temple, not the sanctuary where the coins are going, but the earliest sources agree that τον ναον was the term the author of Matthew used. While the author of Matthew would have been aware of the rules surrounding the Temple sanctuary, he may be using the term to emphasize the defilement with the blood money corrupting the holy place and presaging the destruction of the Temple itself. Gundry feels the wording is a specific reference to Zechariah, and does not have implications beyond that. Another view is that while τον ναον literally meant the sanctuary, it was also an accepted term for the temple itself and the temple complex. The temple was home to the treasury, and Judas' act may be interpreted as returning the coins to where they came from, in the parallel verse in Zechariah the coins are returned to the "potter", usually understood to be a term for a foundry where coins would be made. See also Christian views on suicide Judas Tree References 27:05