בָּרֶקֶת

The word "בָּרֶקֶת" (bareket) appears in the Bible as one of the stones in the breastplate (hoshen) worn by the High Priest (Exodus 28:17), in the first row along with odem and pitdah. The word is probably related to the root b-r-k, which indicates lightning or sparkle, suggesting the special sparkle of the stone. In the Septuagint Greek translation, the word "bareket" was translated as "smaragdos" (σμάραγδος), which is the source of the modern word "emerald." Later translations, including the Latin Vulgate, continued this identification and translated the word as "smaragdus," again the source for "emerald." The identification of "bareket" with the modern emerald was established in Modern Hebrew, and the gemstone "emerald" is called "bareket" in modern Hebrew. As with the other biblical gemstones, it is difficult to determine with certainty whether the stone that the Bible calls "bareket" is indeed the modern emerald, but this is the accepted identification.