They set in it four rows of stones. A row of ruby, topaz, and beryl was the first row;
Parallel translations
- KJV And they set in it four rows of stones: the first row was a sardius, a topaz, and a carbuncle: this was the first row.
- BSB And they mounted on it four rows of gemstones: The first row had a ruby, a topaz, and an emerald;
- NKJV And they set in it four rows of stones: a row with a sardius, a topaz, and an emerald was the first row;
- NASB And they mounted four rows of stones on it. The first row was a row of ruby, topaz, and emerald;
- NLT They mounted four rows of gemstones on it. The first row contained a red carnelian, a pale-green peridot, and an emerald.
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
They set the first of four rows of precious stones into the breastplate. Each stone represented a tribe of Israel.
Overview
The breastplate held twelve gemstones in four rows of three, beginning here with the first row. Each stone stood for one of the twelve tribes, so the priest carried all Israel, distinct and precious, before God. The specific identification of several ancient stones is uncertain to scholars, but the meaning is clear: every tribe was individually valued and represented.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Rev 21:19–21The foundations of the city’s wall were adorned with all kinds of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, chalcedony; the fourth, emerald;
- Exod 28:21The stones shall be according to the names of the children of Israel, twelve, according to their names; like the engravings of a signet, everyone according to his name, they shall be for the twelve tribes.
- Exod 28:16–17It shall be square and folded double; a span shall be its length of it, and a span its width.
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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 39:10 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
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