The 12 Foundation Stones in New Jerusalem

https://www.christianevidence.net ^ | September 21, 2018 | Joel

[Jonty30]

“The wall of the city was built on foundation stones inlaid with twelve precious stones the first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst.” (Revelation 21:19)

Anisotropic vs. Isotropic Gems In the past century, scientists have discovered that gems can be classified as either anisotropic or isotropic, and only recently they have found that cross-polarized light can be used to identify whether a gem is anisotropic or isotropic. Anisotropic stones produce a colorful array when viewed in crossed-polarized light (similar to “pure” light), reflecting all the colors of the rainbow, whereas isotropic stones lose all of their color and appear black.

An intriguing observation regarding Revelation chapter 21 is that all 12 of the gems mentioned for adorning the New Jerusalem are anisotropic gems...

Interestingly, diamond, rubies, and garnets are not mentioned, despite the fact that these groups of gems are very, very common. For instance, the precious stones are generally considered to be diamond, ruby, sapphire, and emerald, with all other gemstones being semi-precious. It turns out that they are isotropic, and when pure light passes through them, there is no beauty at all...

[Hebrews 11:6]

Many thanks to you for this very enlightening post. He who has eyes to see, let him see.