What does שִׁטָּה (šiṭāh) mean in the Bible?
Acacia names a tree or the wood used from it. Exodus specifies acacia wood for the ark, making the material part of a detailed instruction about the sanctuary's furnishings.
Hebrew · H7848
שִׁטָּה
Acacia names a tree or the wood used from it. Exodus specifies acacia wood for the ark, making the material part of a detailed instruction about the sanctuary's furnishings.
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שִׁטָּהH7848
Pronunciationšiṭāh
What does שִׁטָּה (šiṭāh) mean in the Bible?
Reader summary
Full entry for שִׁטָּה (H7848) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H7848?
The BSB source-word alignment has 28 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include of acacia (18), acacia (3), of acacia wood (3), [of] acacia (1), acacias (1).
Where does שִׁטָּה (šiṭāh) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Exodus 25:5. Its strongest book concentrations include Exodus (26), Deuteronomy (1), Isaiah (1).
What This Word Actually Means
Acacia names a tree or the wood used from it. Exodus specifies acacia wood for the ark, making the material part of a detailed instruction about the sanctuary's furnishings. Later, those who have acacia wood bring it for the work, joining material contributions with the community's willing response. Isaiah includes acacias among trees the Lord promises to plant in the wilderness so people may recognize His creating hand.
A construction material and a planted tree therefore receive significance through different actions. Neither use requires an imagined spiritual property within the wood. The instructions give the ark its specified design, and Isaiah's promise gives the wilderness planting its testimony. Readers can appreciate concrete materials without making botanical traits an unspoken explanation of redemption.
How the Bible Uses It
Acacia appears in specified sanctuary construction, willing material contributions and the Lord's wilderness planting promise. Its meaning remains a tree or wood while each passage supplies its role.
- Exod.25.10
And they are to construct an ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.
The ark's acacia material belongs to the Lord's stated pattern and dimensions, followed by instructions for a gold overlay.
- Exod.35.24
And all who could present an offering of silver or bronze brought it as a contribution to the Lord. Also, everyone who had acacia wood for any part of the service brought it.
People possessing acacia wood bring it for the service, a material contribution among the community's willing gifts.
- Isa.41.19
I will plant cedars in the wilderness, acacias, myrtles, and olive trees. I will set cypresses in the desert, elms and boxwood together,
Acacias are among the promised wilderness trees, with the following verse stating that people should recognize the Lord's creating hand.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders Itof acacia18×Exodus 25:10, Exodus 25:13, Exodus 25:23, Exodus 25:28
acacia3×Exodus 25:5, Exodus 35:7, Exodus 35:24
of acacia wood3×Exodus 26:32, Exodus 26:37, Exodus 36:36
[of] acacia1×Exodus 37:15
acacias1×Isaiah 41:19
from acacia1×Exodus 38:1
out of acacia1×Exodus 37:25
Show sample aligned rows
Exodus 25:5שִׁטִּֽים׃toacaciaNoun - feminine pluralExodus 25:10שִׁטִּ֑יםtoof acaciaNoun - feminine pluralExodus 25:13שִׁטִּ֑יםtoof acaciaNoun - feminine pluralExodus 25:23שִׁטִּ֑יםtoof acaciaNoun - feminine pluralExodus 25:28שִׁטִּ֔יםtoof acaciaNoun - feminine pluralExodus 26:15שִׁטִּ֖יםtoof acaciaNoun - feminine pluralExodus 26:26שִׁטִּ֑יםtoof acaciaNoun - feminine pluralExodus 26:32שִׁטִּ֔יםtoof acacia woodNoun - feminine pluralExodus 26:37שִׁטִּ֔יםtoof acacia woodNoun - feminine pluralExodus 27:1שִׁטִּ֑יםtoof acaciaNoun - feminine plural
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowExodus 25:5
Aligned rows28
Books represented3
Exodus26Deuteronomy1Isaiah1
Source forms
שִׁטִּ֑ים15xšiṭ·ṭîmExodus 25:10, Exodus 25:13, Exodus 25:23, Exodus 26:26
שִׁטִּ֔ים6xšiṭ·ṭîmExodus 25:28, Exodus 26:32, Exodus 26:37, Exodus 36:36
שִׁטִּ֖ים3xšiṭ·ṭîmExodus 26:15, Exodus 30:1, Exodus 36:20
שִׁטָּ֔ה1xšiṭ·ṭāhIsaiah 41:19
שִׁטִּ֛ים1xšiṭ·ṭîmExodus 35:24
שִׂטִּֽים׃1xśiṭ·ṭīmExodus 35:7
שִׁטִּֽים׃1xšiṭ·ṭîmExodus 25:5
Parsing patterns
Noun - feminine plural27xExodus 25:5, Exodus 25:10, Exodus 25:13, Exodus 25:23
Noun - feminine singular1xIsaiah 41:19
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Encourage willing contribution without promising blessing based on a particular material.
- Let Isaiah's stated provision guide hope rather than a prescribed tree-planting ritual.
Avoid claiming...
- The acacia noun does not establish that the ark's wood was naturally incorruptible.
- An acacia tree alone is not textual proof of a hidden prediction about Christ.
Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. Hard wood of covenant—acacia frames the tabernacle, symbolizing durability and God's presence.
Source Gloss
the acacia (from its scourging thorns)
Extended definitionSource: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
Hard wood of covenant—acacia frames the tabernacle, symbolizing durability and God's presence.
the acacia (from its scourging thorns) BDB: acacia Usage: shittah, shittim. See also 1029.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Word Origins
שִׁטָּה is built from this root:
שֹׁטֵטH7850
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
For the Preacher and Teacher
The community's acacia contributions show how a named material enters an assigned work. Exodus does not need an invented lesson about the tree's properties to explain that participation. The sanctuary instructions supply the pattern, and willing contributors supply materials they possess. Isaiah's acacias belong to another movement: the Lord answers the poor and needy with water and promised growth, so observers may recognize His creating hand.
Treating every mention as the same typological code would obscure both the community's work and the prophet's stated purpose. A sound lesson can honor careful construction and divine provision while acknowledging that the tree name remains concrete. Any larger claim about Christ must arise from explicit canonical teaching rather than an unverified description of wood's durability or symbolism.
Anchor passage
Exod.35.24
Doctrinal connections
- Exodus 25:8-10 places acacia construction within the sanctuary pattern God commands.
- Exodus 25:13 specifies acacia poles for carrying the ark.
- Exodus 27:1 names acacia wood when describing the altar's construction.
- Exodus 35:22-26 connects material gifts with willing hearts and skilled work.
- Deuteronomy 10:3 recalls an acacia ark prepared with the stone tablets.
- Isaiah 41:17-20 states that wilderness provision should reveal the Lord's creating hand.
The Hebrew record identifies acacia; construction contexts use the wood while Isaiah names planted trees. The noun does not state botanical durability, a species argument or a typological interpretation.
From Old to New Testament
Hebrews 9:4 describes the covenant ark among sanctuary furnishings. That explicit canonical description permits a furnishing comparison, but it does not assign a spiritual meaning to acacia's botanical characteristics or make every acacia occurrence a separate Christological prediction.