Precious Stones

Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald
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I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God … as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.—Isaiah 61:10

Richard Doctor

“The traditional classification [of gemstones] in the West, which goes back to the Ancient Greeks, begins with a distinction between precious and semi-precious stones. … In modern usage the precious stones are diamond, ruby, sapphire and emerald, with all other gemstones being semi-precious. This distinction is unscientific and reflects the rarity of the respective stones in ancient times, as well as their quality: all are translucent with fine color in their purest forms, except for the colorless diamond, and very hard.”—Wikipedia, “Gemstone”

Although rubies and sapphires were exceedingly valuable jewels in the ancient world, Job named them as less desirable when compared to the “infinite” value of wisdom (Job 28:16,18). Solomon said rubies were less valuable than both wisdom and a virtuous woman (Proverbs 3:15; 8:11; 20:15; 31:10).  Both are made of corundum, a mineral harder than anything except the diamond. Impurities give the corundum color. The red variety is called ruby, the blue (and other colors) is called sapphire.

Emeralds were in the fourth foundation of the wall of the great city (Revelation 21:19). An emerald-like color is associated with God’s throne: “He that sat [upon the throne] was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald” (Revelation 4:3). Although a rainbow usually displays all the colors, the “rainbow” around God’s throne as seen by John in vision had a predominantly green, emerald-like hue.

Ezekiel mentions all three of these precious stones as part of the “covering” of the “king of Tyre” (a code word for Satan himself): “You were in Eden, the garden of God. Every precious stone was your covering, the ruby, topaz, and emerald, the chrysolite, onyx, and jasper, the sapphire, turquoise, and beryl” (Ezekiel 28:13, Net Bible). We cannot be completely sure just which jewel corresponds to which Hebrew name, and translators of the Bible do not agree among themselves. For example, the New American Standard starts its list of jewels for the king of Tyre with ruby, topaz, and diamond (not emerald), and ends with lapis lazuli (not sapphire), turquoise, and emerald (not beryl).

The High Priest’s Breastplate

The breastplate worn by Israel’s high priest was beautiful. Twelve different gems were mounted in gold in four rows and three columns.  The front and back of this breastplate represented the Law in its twofold aspect: the letter and the spirit. The front of the breastplate displaying the jewels represented the spirit of the Law; the jewels pictured God’s true “jewels”—the “little flock.” Each gem had the name of a tribe of Israel engraved upon it. In antitype this points to special characteristics being sought for the saints. By the grace of God the antitypical jewels have the righteousness of character perfected in them. Here is the arrangement of the gems. Start with “ruby” in column 1, row 1, and progress to the left (the direction used for Hebrew script), and top to bottom:
 

The Ruby

The first gem is odem (Strongs #124), a Hebrew word cognate with Adam (Strongs #119). Odem is translated “sardius” in the King James and other Bibles, and as “ruby” in the NIV and Net Bible. The sardius is also known as the carnelian, a variety of flesh-colored (carne) quartz, having a hue of red similar to a ruby. Ancient Greek sources translate it as sardion, linking it to the deep orange-red variety of carnelian found near Sardis, the capital of ancient Lydia. The account in Genesis shows God named the first man “Adam” perhaps after the red-colored earth from which he was formed. Most sources say this first stone (odem) was red. Some say it was actually a ruby{FOOTNOTE: See Bahye ben Asher ibn Halawa whose commentary on the Hebrew Bible was first published in 1492, and  Me'am Lo'ez, by Rabbi Yaakov Culi, 1730, a widely-studied commentary on the Tanakh.} a choice gem universally recognized as being of high value that would otherwise not be in the breastplate if it were not in this first position.

The first thing the heavenly Father sees is that we are but flesh, we are “Adam,” but not as fallen flesh, but justified in his sight. The Bible shows that the life of the flesh is in its red blood (Leviticus 17:11) depicted in the breastplate by this red stone. The symbol would represent not the blood of fallen Adam, but the life-giving atoning blood of our Lord which comes before everything else. The blood of Christ is the foundation of our relationship with God, and it is the life we lead through this blood that must direct our entire Christian experience.

Three colors are of great importance in the tabernacle: red, blue, and purple (a color obtained by combining red and blue). These three colors are literally woven into every aspect of the tabernacle in its threads of skillful embroidery. In a most positive way, there is life, energy, and activity represented in the blood. The anemic find little energy or joy in life.

The exact ordering of the tribes engraved on each gemstone of the breastplate is not certain. Jewish writings suggest birth order for the stones of the breastplate: (row 1, right to left) Reuben, Simeon, Levi; (row 2) Judah, Dan, Naphtali; (row 3) Gad, Asher; Issachar; (row 4) Zebulon, Joseph, Benjamin.{FOOTNOTE: Source: Soncino Books of the Bible, Exodus 28.} If this is true, Reuben’s name was engraved on the ruby. Other Scriptural orderings of the twelve sons also point to Reuben. The order by mothers (Genesis 35:23) has Reuben first, as would the order of blessings (Genesis 49:3). However, Judah holds the pre-eminence in the order of the camp leading from the east (Numbers 2:3); Reuben leads the tribes on the south (v. 10). The order of the completed tribes in Revelation 7 also places Judah first. The first Adam lost his place through disobedience, and the natural firstborn son Reuben, represented in this stone of highest value, likewise lost his preeminence to Judah.
 

The Sapphire

Our English word sapphire is an attempt to pronounce the original Hebrew saw-far. Both rubies and sapphires are among the most prized gemstones in the breastplate. Both are formed from aluminum oxides common in the crust of the earth. Were it not for special experiences during their formation, they might find only menial use as industrial grinding agents. The Hebrew word for sapphire (Strongs #5608) suggests the ancient recognition of the hardness of this gem for inscribing. On the scale of mineral hardness, only the diamond exceeds ruby and sapphire. Likewise the church class is composed of common elements of this earth, yet with the addition of special circumstances and gifts of grace, these elements are transformed into gems of great hardness and beauty.

Although a sapphire is clear blue, a luminescent six-pointed star exists in the most-prized variety, called the “star sapphire.” Blue pictures faithfulness and it was part of the garment of faithful Jews: “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: Throughout the generations to come you are to make tassels on the corners of your garments, with a blue cord on each tassel” (Numbers 15:38, NIV). Blue represents that aid is promised without fail to man, and that one is to faithfully maintain a righteous character.

Sapphire is first mentioned in connection with the God of Israel:  [They] “saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire, clear as the sky itself” (Exodus 24:10, NIV).

Since the sardius, or ruby, is in the first row of the breastplate, a secondary lesson in the breastplate shows the characteristics of God in the first row, and the characteristics of what most closely surrounds him in the second row. Consideration of the breastplate puts the sapphire in a most favored position near the center. Because of its hardness, rarity, and brilliance, the diamond is today considered the most valuable of gems. A diamond’s geometrically-oriented facets are polished with great skill to show off its brilliance even at the sacrifice of large portions of the original stone. At the time of the exodus the gem technology probably did not permit the brilliant polishing and setting of a diamond with its many facets. Yet the extant technology of that time would have been able to display a star-sapphire at its best. The brilliant star that seems to move as the angle of view is shifted would have been dramatic against its dark blue background.

Determining which son corresponds to the sapphire is not easy because there is a different fifth son depending upon which list is used. But using the birth order in Genesis 29 and 30 suggests it was Dan. The sapphire as the fifth gem in the breastplate might well have been associated with the most troubled of Israel’s tribes. The tribe of Dan had a stormy history within the nation. The sapphire is brilliant but ultimately, through unfaithfulness, the tribe of Dan lost its inheritance and does not appear in the list of twelve tribes in Revelation 7. To think that this dazzling brilliance could have been the inheritance of Dan should serve as a warning against the unbridled arrogance that was exhibited in the downfall of the original morning star, Lucifer.

These precious gems on the breastplate were beautiful. There is the ruby red of justification based on the blood of Christ, sapphire blue of faithfulness, amethyst purple of royalty, emerald green picturing abundant life, and many more.

Let our hearts glory in these hidden treasures brought to light and polished for use in the heavenly Father’s service, esteeming all other things as of minor importance. If our hearts are set upon these treasures of character, the disappointment and trials of our present life will not overwhelm us, though they may cause some temporary pain and sorrow. The gems of the breastplate encourage us to pursue all that is pure, good, noble, and true. Such things are worthy of the aspirations of the spiritual sons of God; they are our real treasures. May our hearts glory in them forevermore.