Neqeb (נֶקֶב) means socket, setting, or bezel — the mounting or groove in which a gemstone is placed. From nāqab (to pierce, bore through).
Ezekiel 28:13 describes the king of Tyre (echoing the covering cherub): 'every precious stone adorned you... The workmanship of your settings and mountings was prepared for you on the day you were created.' Each gemstone had its specific neqeb — its appointed place. God designs each person for a specific setting, a particular place in His purposes. When we try to occupy someone else's setting or refuse our own, the beauty God intended is marred. Ephesians 2:10: 'We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.'