Ephod

An ephod (Hebrew: אֵפוֹד, romanized: ʾēp̄ōḏ; /ˈɛfɒd/ or /ˈiːfɒd/) was a type of apron that, according to the Hebrew Bible, was worn by the High Priest of Israel, an artifact and an object to be revered in ancient Israelite culture, and was closely connected with oracular practices and priestly ritual.

From this description, it appears to have been something like an apron or skirt with braces,[1] though Rashi argued that it was like a woman's riding girdle.

[2] The biblical description also adds that there were two engraved gems over the shoulder straps like epaulettes made from shoham.

This is thought by scholars to mean malachite,[2][3] by Jewish tradition to mean heliodor,[2] and in the King James Version translated as "onyx", and with the names of the 12 tribes written upon them; the classical rabbinical sources differ as to the order in which the tribes were named on the jewels (Sotah 36a).

[7] Gideon went on to make an ephod out of the gold won in battle; according to Ginzberg's The Legends of the Jews: "In the high priest's breastplate, Joseph was represented among the twelve tribes by Ephraim alone, not by Manasseh, too.

"[8] According to the Bible, this action eventually caused the whole of Israel to turn away from God yet again and the ruin of Gideon and his family.

He also had a Shechemite concubine who bore him a son he named Abimelech, which means "my father is king" (Judges 8:31).