Note 2 at 1 Cor. 3:12: There is not any great significance to the "gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble." God's Word was compared to gold (see ref. g at this verse), but it was always superior to gold. It was not an exact comparison. Paul is simply illustrating that you can build with good building materials that will last (gold, silver, precious stones) or inferior materials that will be burned (wood, hay, stubble).