- Levi’s stone was a bright emerald, since Levi shined with the light of Torah. The emerald also symbolized Moshe, who was from the tribe of Levi. When Moshe was born, a midrash says, his home was filled with light. (See Devash for Parashat Shemot!)
- Zevulun’s stone was quartz, the color of silver. This was a symbol of that tribe’s wealth.
- Yosef’s stone was onyx. The Hebrew name for this stone is שֹׁהַם (shoham), which has the same letters as הַשֵּׁם (Hashem, God). This was based on the pasuk that describes how God was with Yosef (Bereshit 39:2).
- Yissakhar’s stone was a blue lapis lazuli, since this tribe was full of the Torah’s wisdom. There are traditions that the לֻחוֹת (luhot, tablets from God) were made of this stone.
- What is the connection between Aharon being happy for Moshe and then being chosen to wear the Urim and Tummim in the mishkan? Why does one lead to the other?
- Aharon was the older brother, and Moshe, the younger brother, was chosen to be the leader. How would most older brothers feel if that happened? (Can you think of how other brothers in the Torah might have acted?) What can we learn from the way Aharon responds?
- What is this midrash trying to teach us about being able to serve God in the mishkan?
The Lubavitcher Rebbe
And the Breastplate shall not budge from the Efod (apron) (28:28)
The Efod (Apron) was worn in back and below the waist; the Choshen (Breastplate,) on the front and upper part of the wearer. Thus, the deeper significance of the commandment "And the Breastplate shall not budge from the Efod"... is that there must be no "gap" between the upper and lower aspects of life, ... True, the human being consists of both the sensitive heart and the functional foot; true, life is composed of sublimely spiritual moments as well as the daily tending to one's material/physical needs. But the "Efod" must be securely bound to the "Choshen". The upper must permeate the lower, and the external must never lose sight of its inner essence and purpose.