Thou shalt also make a table of shittim wood: two cubits shall be the length thereof, and a cubit the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof.

EXODUS 25:23KJV
Know the Bible

Exodus 25:23 (KJV)

What does Exodus 25:23 mean?

Exodus 25:23 gives instructions for making a table out of shittim wood, specifying its exact measurements: two cubits long, one cubit wide, and one and a half cubits high. This table is part of the detailed directions God gives to Moses for building items to be used in the tabernacle.

In this verse, God is speaking directly to Moses on Mount Sinai, giving him precise guidelines for constructing the tabernacle’s furnishings. The table described here will later be called the "table of showbread," and it is one of several sacred objects meant for use in Israel’s portable place of worship. The focus on exact materials and dimensions highlights the importance of following God’s instructions carefully in this setting.

The Hebrew behind Exodus 25:23

  • שִׁטִּים (shittim): This word refers to acacia wood, a durable and common wood in the Sinai region. Its use emphasizes both the availability and the lasting quality of the materials chosen for the tabernacle.
  • אַמָּה (amah): Translated as "cubit," this is an ancient unit of measurement, roughly the length of a forearm (about 18 inches or 45 centimeters). Knowing this helps readers picture the actual size of the table.
  • שֻׁלְחָן (shulchan): This is the Hebrew word for "table." In this context, it is not just any table but a specific, holy object with a set role in tabernacle worship.

Why Exodus 25:23 matters

  • Exodus 25:23 shows that the tabernacle’s furnishings were not left to human creativity but were to be made exactly as instructed, underscoring the seriousness of following God’s directions.
  • The verse connects to a larger section where every item in the tabernacle has a purpose and a meaning, setting the stage for understanding the rituals and symbols of Israel’s worship.
  • Knowing the specific measurements and materials helps modern readers appreciate the care and intentionality behind the design of Israel’s worship space, rather than seeing it as random or decorative.

Where else these words appear

“shittim” Hebrew H7848 · used in 28 verses

  • Exodus 25:5 And rams' skins dyed red, and badgers' skins, and shittim wood,
  • Exodus 27:6 And thou shalt make staves for the altar, staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with brass.
  • Exodus 37:4 And he made staves of shittim wood, and overlaid them with gold.

“height” Hebrew H6967 · used in 43 verses

  • Genesis 6:15 And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits.
  • 1 Kings 6:20 And the oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof: and he overlaid it with pure gold; and so covered the altar which was of cedar.
  • 2 Chronicles 6:13 For Solomon had made a brasen scaffold, of five cubits long, and five cubits broad, and three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the court: and upon it he stood, and kneeled down upon his knees before all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven,

“table” Hebrew H7979 · used in 62 verses

  • Exodus 25:27 Over against the border shall the rings be for places of the staves to bear the table.
  • 1 Samuel 20:34 So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no meat the second day of the month: for he was grieved for David, because his father had done him shame.
  • Job 36:16 Even so would he have removed thee out of the strait into a broad place, where there is no straitness; and that which should be set on thy table should be full of fatness.

“breadth” Hebrew H7341 · used in 89 verses

  • Genesis 6:15 And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits.
  • 1 Kings 7:2 He built also the house of the forest of Lebanon; the length thereof was an hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.
  • Ezekiel 41:3 Then went he inward, and measured the post of the door, two cubits; and the door, six cubits; and the breadth of the door, seven cubits.