Exodus 28:9-12

9-12. Two onyx stones Hebrews, stones of shoham . Some render beryl, others, sardonyx . These were to have graven on them the names of the twelve sons of Israel; according to Josephus ( Ant . , 3: 7, 5) the elder sons’ names were on the right shoulder, so that the younger must have been on the left . Thus arranged according to their birth, if we are guided by Genesis 29:30, they would have been as follows:

RIGHT. LEFT.

Reuben Gad

Simeon Asher

Levi Issachar

Judah Zebulun

Dan Joseph

Naphtali Benjamin.

The engraving of the names upon the two stones was to be after the manner of a signet, or seal, and the stones themselves were to be set upon the shoulders of the ephod for stones of memorial, continually admonishing the wearer of them that he acted as the consecrated representative of the twelve tribes of Israel, and not for himself alone. The stones were to be set in ouches of gold, or rather surrounded with textures of gold. According to Josephus, “there were two sardonyxes upon the ephod at the shoulders to fasten it, in the nature of buttons, having each end running to the sardonyxes of gold that they might be buttoned by them.” The vacant space ( e) in the cut indicates the place where the breastplate (described Exodus 28:15-29) was to be worn.