part of the ceremonial dress of the high priest of ancient Israel described in the Old Testament (Ex. 28:6–8; 39:2–5). It was worn outside the robe and probably kept in place by a girdle and by shoulder pieces, from which hung the breast piece (or pouch) containing the sacred lots (divinatory objects), Urim and Thummim, whose precise function is now unknown. It is uncertain whether the ephod covered the back, encircling the body like a kind of waistcoat, or only the front. It was not a garment in the ordinary sense, and its association with the sacred lots indicates that the ephod was used for divination.

A similar vestment, made of linen, was worn by persons other than the high priest. Samuel wore the ephod when he served before the tabernacle at Shiloh (I Sam. 2:18), as did David when he danced before the Ark at its entry into Jerusalem (II Sam. 6:14).