Exodus 25:7

25:7 onyx stones, and other gems to be set in the ephod and in the breastpiece.

Exodus 28:9

28:9 “You are to take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel, ¹ 

Exodus 35:9

35:9 onyx stones, and other gems ²  for mounting ³  on the ephod and the breastpiece.

Job 28:16

28:16 It cannot be measured out for purchase ⁴  with the gold of Ophir,

with precious onyx ⁵  or sapphires.

Ezekiel 28:13

28:13 You were in Eden, the garden of God. ⁶ 

Every precious stone was your covering,

the ruby, topaz, and emerald,

the chrysolite, onyx, and jasper,

the sapphire, turquoise, and beryl; ⁷ 

your settings and mounts were made of gold.

On the day you were created they were prepared.

[28:9]  ¹ tn Although this is normally translated “Israelites,” here a more literal translation is clearer because it refers to the names of the twelve tribes – the actual sons of Israel.

[35:9]  ² tn Heb “and stones.”

[35:9]  ³ tn Heb “filling.”

[28:16]  ⁴ tn The word actually means “weighed,” that is, lifted up on the scale and weighed, in order to purchase.

[28:16]  ⁵ tn The exact identification of these stones is uncertain. Many recent English translations, however, have “onyx” and “sapphires.”

[28:13]  ⁶ sn The imagery of the lament appears to draw upon an extrabiblical Eden tradition about the expulsion of the first man (see v. 14 and the note there) from the garden due to his pride. The biblical Eden tradition speaks of cherubs placed as guardians at the garden entrance following the sin of Adam and Eve (Gen 3:24), but no guardian cherub like the one described in verse 14 is depicted or mentioned in the biblical account. Ezekiel’s imagery also appears to reflect Mesopotamian and Canaanite mythology at certain points. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:119-20.

[28:13]  ⁷ tn The exact identification of each gemstone is uncertain. The list should be compared to that of the priest in Exod 28:17-20, which lists twelve stones in rows of three. The LXX apparently imports the Exod 28 list. See reference to the types of stones in L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.