TOPAZ. 331 



RUBY. 



IN the preceding article we have stated it to be probable that the 

 Hebrew word ^em'ram, rendered ruby in our Bible, denotes the pearl, 

 rather than this precious gem. 



SAPPHIRE. 



THIS beautiful gem has preserved its original name in most Ian-* 

 guages, and there is no reason to doubt its identity. 



The oriental sapphire is a gem of blue color, the shades of which 1 

 vary from a full and deep tint to a nearly colorless appearance. 

 Hence the ' God of Israel ' is represented as having ' a paved work 

 of sapphire stone ' under his feet, and ' as it were the body of heav-^ 

 en in his clearness,' Exod. xxiv. 10. Ezekiel also compares the 

 throne of God to a sapphire, ch. i, 26. 



Jeremiah describing the former appearance of the inhabitants of 

 the holy city, says, ' Her Nazarites were purer than snow, they 

 were whiter than milk ; they were more ruddy in body than rubies, 

 their polishing was of sapphire' (Lam. iv. 7) ; and the bride says 

 of her beloved, that ' his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sap- 

 phires,' Cant. v. 14. The reference in each of these passages 

 seems to be to the fine color of the sapphire,- in connexion with the 

 delicate whiteness of the marble : the snowy whiteness of the 

 skin was heightened by the intersecting veins, which were of th& 

 color of sapphire. 



SARDIUS, OR SARDINE, 



THE Sardius and Sardine of John (Rev. xxi. 20), is thought to 

 be the same with the adem of Moses (Exod. xxviii. 17) and Ezekiel 

 (ch. xxviii. 13) but we have no means of ascertaining this fact. 



TOPAZ. 



So the LXX., Josephus, and others, translate the ptted of the 

 Old Testament, and the topazion of John ; but it is certain that the 

 topaz of the ancients was a very different stone from that so called 



