| Exodus
28:17-20: Set it with four rows of mounted stones.
The first of these
rows shall contain a ruby, an emerald and a crystal.
The second row: carbuncle, sapphire, pearl.
The third row:
topaz, turquoise, calf eye. The fourth row:
chrysolite, onyx, jasper. These stones shall be in
their fullness, placed in gold settings.
The ephod had two
stones on its shoulder straps, both of onyx (shoham),
with the names of six tribes inscribed on each stone
(Ex. 29:9-12;39:6-7).
As for the twelve
stones in the choshen (Ex. 28:17-21;39:10-14), the
Torah doesn't indicate how they correspond to the
twelve tribes; but the correspondence can be found in
the commentary of Rabbenu Bachya:
Reuven - odem (ruby)
Shimon - pitdah (smaragd)
Levi - barekes (carbuncle)
Yehudah - nofech (emerald)
Yissachar - sapir (sapphire)
Zevulun - yahalom (pearl)
Dan - leshem (topaz)
Naftali - shevo (turquoise)
Gad - achlamah (crystal)
Asher - tarshish (chrysolite)
Yosef - shoham (onyx)
Binyamin - yashfeh (jasper)
The above
translations of the gem names are from Ginsberg,
Legends of the Jews, Vol.III pp.169-172.
See also the article
"Avnei Choshen ve-Ephod" in the Talmudic Encyclopedia.
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Mile Chai
