Exodus 30:24

“And of cassia five hundred [shekels], etc.] Or two hundred and fifty ounces: after the shekel of the sanctuary; according to the standard weight kept there. This “cassia” was not the “cassia solutiva”, which is of a purgative nature, and now in use in physic, but the “cassia odorata”, or the sweet smelling “cassia”: which, Pancirollus f908 says, some take to be the nard, out of which a most sweet oil is pressed; and Servius f909 says, that cassia is an herb of a most sweet smell. Pliny f910 speaks of it along with cinnamon; and Galen says, when cinnamon was wanting, it was usual to put in its stead a double quantity of cassia f911; Leo Africanus speaks of trees in Africa bearing cassia, and…”

“cassia--from the same species of tree as the cinnamon--some think the outer bark of that tree. All these together would amount to one hundred twenty pounds, troy weight. hin--a word of Egyptian origin, equal to ten pints. Being mixed with the olive oil--no doubt of the purest kind--this composition probably remained always in a liquid state, and the strictest prohibition issued against using it for any other purpose than anointing the tabernacle and its furniture.”

“Compare Exodus 37:29. Exodus 30:23 Principal 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 bark. Five hundred shekels - Probably rather more than 15 1/4 lbs. See Exodus 38:24. Cinnamon - is obtained from a tree allied to the laurel that grows in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and other islands of…”

“cassia: Psa 45:8 the shekel: Num 3:47; Eze 45:12 hin: Exo 29:40; Lev 19:36; Num 15:5 Exodus 30:25”