The term עֲצֵי שִׁטִּים a’tsey shittim “tree of shittim” is used 29 times in the Tanakh with 28 of the references referring to the wood used for building the Ark of the Covenant and other furniture of the Tabernacle. The shittim tree is considered to be identical to the acacia tree and the word שִׁטִּים is translated as “acacia” in most Bibles. However, the name “shittim wood” is also sometimes applied to two plants that are not acacias, the buckthorn and the false buckthorn. (Encyclopedia.com)
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