and onyx stones and gemstones to be mounted on the ephod and breastpiece.
Parallel translations
- WEB onyx stones, and stones to be set for the ephod and for the breastplate.
- KJV Onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod, and in the breastplate.
- NKJV onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod and in the breastplate.
- NASB onyx stones and setting stones for the ephod and for the breastpiece.
- NLT onyx stones, and other gemstones to be set in the ephod and the priest’s chestpiece.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Onyx stones and other gems were brought to be set in the high priest's ephod and breastplate. Precious stones adorned the garments of the one who represented Israel before God.
Overview
These costly stones would be engraved with the names of Israel's tribes and worn by the high priest, who carried the people on his shoulders and over his heart before God. The beauty of the stones honored the sacred office. The detail shows God's care that His people be represented before Him in their fullness. This foreshadows Christ, our great High Priest, who bears His people before the Father continually.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 2
- Exod 28:4These are the garments that they shall make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a woven tunic, a turban, and a sash. They are to make these holy garments for your brother Aaron and his sons, so that they may serve Me as priests.
- Exod 28:6–30They are to make the ephod of finely spun linen embroidered with gold, and with blue, purple, and scarlet yarn.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 25:7 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.