In the Bible precious stones often appear in contexts of great solemnity: the high priest's breastplate, the foundations of the heavenly Jerusalem, the divine throne. But there is a less familiar and extraordinarily dense passage, in the book of the prophet Ezekiel, in which gems are linked to the garden of Eden and to a fall. It is chapter 28, with the lament over the king of Tyre.
The context: an oracle against Tyre
Tyre was a very wealthy Phoenician city, a centre of maritime trade across the Mediterranean. Ezekiel, a prophet who lived during the Babylonian exile, utters a series of oracles against it and its ruler. The king of Tyre is accused of pride: he believed himself a god because of his wisdom and his wealth.
But in the second part of the chapter the tone changes. The prophet raises a lament that seems to describe not a mere human king but a cosmic figure.
"You were in Eden, the garden of God"
The text addresses the king with surprising words: he was the seal of perfection, full of wisdom, perfect in beauty. He was in Eden, the garden of God, and every precious stone was his covering. There follows a list of gems which, in the traditional Hebrew text, includes nine stones, among them carnelian, topaz, jasper, chrysolite, onyx, sapphire and emerald, together with gold.
The translations of the individual stones are uncertain, because identifying biblical gems is one of the most difficult problems for scholars. What matters is the overall image: a creature entirely clothed in precious stones, luminous like a living jewel.
In the ancient Greek translation of the Bible, known as the Septuagint, the list is longer and includes twelve stones, which match those of the high priest's breastplate in the Book of Exodus. This parallel has led many interpreters to think that the figure described is also a kind of primordial priest.
The cherub and the stones of fire
The text continues: the king was a guardian cherub, set by God on the holy mountain, and he walked in the midst of the stones of fire. He was blameless in his ways from the day he was created, until iniquity was found in him. Because of his pride he was cast out from the mountain of God and driven from among the stones of fire.
The expression "stones of fire" is mysterious and has received many interpretations. It might refer to gems that blaze like flames, or a kind of burning pavement of the divine mountain, or again the stars. In any case the image unites two fundamental symbols: stone, which signifies stability and duration, and fire, which signifies divine presence, light and purification.
From the fall of the king to the fall of the angel
Many early Christian authors, including Origen and Tertullian, read this passage, together with Isaiah's on the fall of the "morning star", as an allusion to the fall of Satan. The king of Tyre would be the earthly image of an angelic being originally splendid, adorned with gems and placed in the garden of God, then cast down through pride.
This interpretation had an enormous influence on theology and art. It also explains why some medieval traditions imagined Lucifer wearing a crown of gems, from which a precious stone fell at the moment of his rebellion.
Eden and its stones
The link between Eden and precious stones does not appear only in Ezekiel. Already in the Book of Genesis, in the description of the four rivers flowing out of the garden, it is said that the river Pishon encircles the land of Havilah, where there is gold, and that the gold of that land is good; bdellium and onyx stone are also found there.
Paradise, in the biblical tradition, is not only a garden of trees and waters but also a place of metals and gems. Mineral wealth is part of the original beauty of creation.
Symbolic meanings
| Element | Meaning |
|---|---|
| creature covered in gems | original beauty and perfection |
| parallel with the breastplate | priestly function, mediation |
| stones of fire | divine presence, light, purification |
| fall through pride | loss of light through arrogance |
| gold and onyx of Havilah | richness of creation in paradise |
An inner reading
Symbolically, Ezekiel's lament tells of something that concerns every human being. The gems are the gifts received: intelligence, beauty, abilities. The danger is to forget that they are gifts and to believe one owns them by one's own merit. When this happens, the light of the stones goes out, and what was splendid becomes the cause of a fall.
Tradition does not present gems as something negative: they are signs of perfection. The problem is not beauty, but the way one lives it.
In short
- In chapter 28 of Ezekiel the king of Tyre is described as a creature of Eden covered in precious stones.
- In the Greek Septuagint translation the list includes twelve stones, the same as those of the high priest's breastplate.
- The king is called a cherub walking among the "stones of fire", from which he is driven out for his pride.
- Many Christian authors read the passage as an image of Lucifer's fall.
