Bible Dictionary
RAMS' SKINS
Rams’ skins were sheep hides, commonly tanned with the wool left on. They were useful as coverings and were prescribed as one of the materials for the tabernacle.
Definition
Rams’ skins are sheep hides, roughly tanned with the wool left on. Rams’ skins were especially desirable and served as practical coverings for shepherds or peasants.
Biblical Usage
Their usefulness as warm coverings explains their inclusion among the materials prescribed for the covering of the tabernacle.
Historical Background
A ram’s hide with the wool remaining was regarded as a suitable winter jacket and was valued particularly for this purpose.
Historical Bible Dictionaries
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>The skin of the sheep, roughly tanned with all the wool on, is the common winter jacket of the shepherd or peasant, the ram's being considered especially desirable (compare Heb 11:37). Hence, the appropriateness of these skins in the covering of the tabernacle (Ex 25:5, etc.).</p><p>See TABERNACLE; DYE, DYEING.</p>