Carbuncle: (Exodus 28:17; 39:10; Ezekiel 28:13) Heb. barkath; LXX. smaragdos; Vulgate,
smaragdus; Revised Version, marg., "emerald." The Hebrew word is from
a root meaning "to glitter," "lighten," "flash." When held up to the
sun, this gem shines like a burning coal, a dark-red glowing coal,
and hence is called "carbunculus", i.e., a little coal. It was one of
the jewels in the first row of the high priest's breastplate. It has
been conjectured by some that the garnet is meant. In
(Isaiah 54:12) the
Hebrew word is 'ekdah, used in the prophetic description of the
glory and beauty of the mansions above. Next to the diamond it is the
hardest and most costly of all precious stones.
