THE PEARL.
The Pearl of Scripture—Wisdom compared to Pearl—Different renderings of the Hebrew word—Opinions of the Talmudists—Structure of Pearls—The Pearls of the marine and aquatic mussels—Pearl-fisheries of the Conway—Metaphorical uses of the Pearl—The Pearl of great price—Casting Pearls before swine—An ancient proverb.
There is only one passage in the Old Testament in which can be found the word which is translated as Pearl, and it is certain that the word in question may have another interpretation.
The word in question is gabish, and occurs in Job xxviii. 18. Treating of wisdom, in that magnificent passage beginning, "But where shall Wisdom be found, and where is the place of understanding?" the sacred writer uses these words, "No mention shall be made of coral, or of pearls: for the price of wisdom is above rubies." This is the only passage in the Bible which contains the word in its simple form, but there are two others in which it is found with the addition of the syllable el, connected with the word abne, or stone. In this form, it is translated in the Authorized Version as "hailstones."
See Ezek. xiii. 11: "Say unto them which daub it with untempered morter, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great Hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it." Also xxxviii. 22: "And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that are with him, an overflowing rain, and great Hailstones, fire, and brimstone."
The Jewish Bible accepts the rendering of "hailstones" in both these passages, but affixes the mark of doubt to the word, whereas in Job xxviii. 18 it translates the word gabish as "pearls" without using any mark of doubt. In Buxtorfs Hebrew Lexicon, the word is translated as "Unio, Margarita pretiosa." It is not, however, difficult to see that the word gabish may primarily signify either ice or Pearl, and that the one may have been used metaphorically for the other.
The Talmudical writers had much to say on the subject of Pearls, but, before proceeding to their curious disquisitions, it will be as well to describe briefly the Pearl and its origin.
We are all familiar with the shining inner coating or "nacre" possessed by many bivalve molluscs, such as the common mussels and oysters. This coating is sometimes found upon extraneous substances deposited on the "mantle" of the animal, and then takes the name of "Pearl." Sometimes these are found in the common oyster.
For example, I have before me some Pearls about as large as No. 5 shot, that I took out of a single plateful of oysters. They are dull in colour and irregular in form, but they are perfect Pearls.