John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Exodus 28:19
And the third row, a ligure, an agate, and an amethyst. The first of these stones, the ligure or lyncurius, is said to be so called from the congealed urine of the lynx F14 Vid. Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 37. c. 3. , but rather from the spots of that creature; for, according to Danaeus F15 Apud De Dieu in loc. , it is the same stone with that called "stellina", from having many specks like stars spread about in it. Braunius F16 Ut supra, (De Vestitu Sacerd. Heb. l. 2.) c. 14. sect.... read more
Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Exodus 28:15-30
The most considerable of the ornaments of the high priest was this breast-plate, a rich piece of cloth, curiously wrought with gold and purple, etc., two spans long and a span broad, so that, being doubled, it was a span square, Exod. 28:16. This was fastened to the ephod with wreathen chains of gold (Exod. 28:13, 14, 22) both at top and bottom, so that the breast-plate might not be loosed from the ephod, Exod. 28:28. The ephod was the garment of service; the breast-plate of judgment was an... read more