Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Exodus 30:22-33
Compare Exodus 37:29.Exodus 30:23Principal spices - i. e. the best spices.Pure myrrh - Is a gum which comes from the stem of a low, thorny, ragged tree, that grows in Arabia Felix and Eastern Africa, called by botanists Balsamodendron myrrha. The word here rendered pure, is literally, “freely flowing”, an epithet which is explained by the fact that the best myrrh is said to exude spontaneously from the bark, while that of inferior quality oozes out in greater quantity from incisions made in the... read more
The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 30:24
Cassia . The modern cassia is the inner bark of a tree distinct from the cinnamon tree, known to botanists as Cinnamo-mum cassia, which is a native of India, Java, and the Malay peninsula. In taste and scent, it "bears a strong resemblance to cinnamon, but is more pungent and of coarser texture" (Cook). It is uncertain, however, if this is the spice here indicated. The Hebrew word used is kiddah , not ketsioth (as in Psalms 45:8 ); and it is very doubtful whether the two are identical... read more