What is…
Uphaz

Hebrew: אוּפָז —transliteration: Uphaz —occurrences: 2

This is a place mentioned twice in Scripture with the implication that it is a source of the finest known gold.

Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish,
And gold from Uphaz,
The work of a craftsman and of the hands of a goldsmith… —Jeremiah 10:9 NASB excerpt

I raised my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a man dressed in linen, whose waist had a belt of pure gold of Uphaz. —Daniel 10:5 NASB

Uphaz is probably another name for Ophir. The early 7th-century Syrian Aramaic translation (Syro-Hexaplar version) of the Greek Septuagint (Old Testament) actually uses the name “Ophir” in the above 2 verses.

Genesis 10:29 lists Ophir among the Arabian countries. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary suggests,

Perhaps Malacca is the country meant, the natives of which still call their gold mines Ophirs. Heeren thinks Ophir the general name for the rich countries of the south, on the Arabian, African, and Indian coasts; just as our term, East Indies.

Sources of gold mentioned in Scripture

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Article Version: August 18, 2021