P. You are right.

K. To this he commands that another ornament be added, saying: "And make nests of gold; and two chains of pure gold, twist them into a plaiting work, and fasten the twisted chains to the sockets. Make the breastplate of judgment a skilful workmanship; Thou shalt make it the same work as the ephod: of gold, of blue, purple, and scarlet [wool], and of fine woven linen, thou shalt make it; it must be quadrangular, double, a span long and a span wide; and thou shalt put in it the set stones in four rows; next to it: ruby, topaz, emerald, these are one row" (Exodus 28:13-17). Then, having arranged the names of the stones themselves, he adds more: "These stones shall be twelve, according to [the number of the children of Israel], according to their names; on each, as on a seal, one name from among the twelve tribes should be carved" (28, 21). And a little later: "And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of Israel on the breastplate of judgment near his heart, when he enters the sanctuary, for constant remembrance before the Lord" (28:29).

P. How dark is this object — the word (judgment); The image of its structure also seems completely incomprehensible to me.

K. Therefore we must proceed to explain this as close as possible to the truth, although the difficulty of the subject may not permit us to fully reach it: to see what is very obscure, even as in a mirror, I think, is better than the opposite, I mean not to understand it at all. So, I will tell you as much as I can and make sense. He ordered two shields to be made of pure gold, wider than the circumference of the coin, but of the same appearance, since the coin has a round shape. Then there were "two chains of pure gold": there were chains that looked speckled with paints. These were: linen, purple, gold threads, blue color and scarlet twist. And, besides, what is woven, he says, must be quadrangular, like a cube, in one span and with equal sides on every side. Twelve stones were to be sewn on it, it was wisely said, arranged three in a row, so that in all four rows all the tribes (of Israel) were carved by name on them (stones). So, hanging from the shoulder on gold chains of various colors, the shields were slightly raised, so that they seemed to be a little higher, on the very shoulders; but they touched the persians and hung down to the breasts; and from the shields the word judgment, very well attached by other chains, hung on the persians, and the chains hung down. And this thing was wondrous for the audience, shining with stones and gold and excellently decorated with the beautiful colors of other materials. And this, it is said, "Let him be in remembrance the son of Israel before the Lord," when Aaron enters the Holy Place. Is not the image of these artifices at last as clear to you as possible?

P. Very much. But why is this product given a name: the word of judgment?

K. Did we not say earlier, on the basis of the wording, that the armpiece was so called because it was placed on both ramen?

P. Yes. So what of it?

K. That the word judgment is also so called because of the word-production and in accordance with what is contained in the heart and womb; For the heart and the womb serve as the dwelling place of our rational faculty, and in our rational faculty, as it were, the right and irreproachable judgment is established and naturally established, that is, justice and that which is proper to each. Does not our rational faculty weigh the nature of actions and separate the unpleasant and useless from the most excellent?

P. Of course it is.

K. And the inspired Scriptures are in the habit of calling justice and justice judgment. Thus the divine David sings: "Blessed are they that keep judgment and do righteousness at all times!" (Psalm 105:3). And again he said: "The power of the king loveth judgment" (Psalm 98:4): for the honor and glory of the king is beautiful, if he loves righteousness. Thus, the word of judgment placed on the heart and the forehead is so called because it lay in the place of the rational faculty, in which justice and truth consist. In it were also twelve stones set in gold, bearing the inscription of the tribes: they can serve as an image of holy men, who are glorious and honest, and as if the chosen stones are almost contained in the mind and heart of Christ. And they are truly worthy of remembrance, but because of glory in virtue and dignity in sanctification. At the word of the judge, chains of gold were also hung, which circumstance, I think, indicates that a long and innumerable string of valiant deeds seems to hang from the assembly of saints. In the same way, Blessed David says that the adornment of the Church also consists in chains (Psalm 44:14).

P. Interpretation is probable.

K. From the word of the judge, as we have said, a multi-colored and beautiful chain threaded through gold rings stretched upwards, and, passing through both shields, reached the very top of the frame, on which there were stones with inscriptions. And what does this mean, is it not worthy of consideration? It seems to me that this riddle again means something like this: the honest, like stones, and abiding in the understanding and remembrance of Christ, flowing to the writing in heaven, acquire it "with the weapon of righteousness in their right and left hand," as the divine Paul clearly writes (2 Corinthians 6:7). Likewise, in another place He says: "Put on the whole armor of God" (Ephesians 6:11). The golden weapons of the king; gold shields are also golden, and covertly they indicate the whole armor of God. Thus, we will not be otherwise in the memory and record of God than by taking up the weapons of righteousness and actively marching with them. And that the word of judgment touched the shoulder cloth, this, I think, may indicate that the earthly touches the heavenly, through the mediation of Christ; "He is our peace, which made of both one," according to the Scriptures (Ephesians 2:14), and by the union of love bound the human with the host of holy Angels. It should also be known that Blessed Ezekiel also says that the prince of Tyre put on all kinds of precious stones, and then enumerates the very ones that, according to the divine Moses, were placed in the word of judgment. These were: ruby (sardia), topaz, emerald (smaragd), carbuncle (anthrax), sapphire, jasper, yakhont (lygyrium), agate, amethyst, chrysolite, diamond (virillium), onyx (cf. Exodus 28:17-20 and Ezekiel 28:13). There are three of them in four rows, which arrangement gives us the firmness in the faith of those who abide in the heart and memory of Christ: the symbol of faith is their arrangement in threes and as it were in the Trinity, and the firmness is in a quadrangular and equilateral figure. Thus was made the word of judgment, on which were also those twelve stones.

P. I agree.

K. In addition, he commands that something else be added to the twelve stones, saying: "On the breastplate of judgment put the Urim and Thummim, and they will be in the heart of Aaron when he enters [into the sanctuary] before the Lord; and Aaron shall always bear the judgment of the children of Israel in his heart before the Lord" (Exodus 28:30). Therefore he calls this manifestation and truth, but he did not clearly indicate whether they were stones, or whether He commanded that such a writing be made on a small tablet. I will also remember the prophet who says: "For for a long time the children of Israel shall remain without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, without an altar, without an ephod and without a teraphim" (Hosea 3:4). But whether these were also stones, or whether the names were written on a tablet of gold, it will not be very important for us to investigate; we will only know that all this was placed in the image of Christ, who was present with the saints; for He says: "I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matt. 28:20). But the truth and manifestation is Christ, because in Him we have come to know the Father, and He has revealed to us His will, "good, acceptable, and perfect," according to the Scriptures (Romans 12:2); for he said somewhere: "I no longer call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have told you all that I have heard from My Father", I have declared it to you (John 15:14-15). And in another sense, Immanuel is the truth, because He alone is the Son by nature, God from God, one Holy, one Lord; but the creature by communion and imitation is what He thinks He is. Thus, Christ is present with the saint, implied in manifestation and truth, and He also brings our needs before the face of the Father, "being always alive to intercede" for us (Heb. 7:25). This, I think, is meant by the words: "And Aaron shall always bear the judgment of the children of Israel in his heart before the Lord" (Exodus 28:30).