King James Bible Dictionary

This word is found in Exodus 25:5; 26:14; 35:7, 23; 36:19; 39:34; Numbers 4:6, etc. The tabernacle was covered with badgers' skins; the shoes of women were also made of them (Ezekiel 16:10). Our translators seem to have been misled by the similarity in sound of the Hebrew tachash_ and the Latin _taxus, "a badger." The revisers have correctly substituted "seal skins." The Arabs of the Sinaitic peninsula apply the name tucash to the seals and dugongs which are common in the Red Sea, and the skins of which are largely used as leather and for sandals. Though the badger is common in Palestine, and might occur in the wilderness, its small hide would have been useless as a tent covering. The dugong, very plentiful in the shallow waters on the shores of the Red Sea, is a marine animal from 12 to 30 feet long, something between a whale and a seal, never leaving the water, but very easily caught. It grazes on seaweed, and is known by naturalists as Halicore tabernaculi.

Skins of, used:

For covering of tabernacle
Exodus 25:5; Exodus 26:14; Exodus 35:7; Exodus 35:23; Exodus 36:19; Exodus 39:34; Numbers 4:6; Numbers 4:8; Numbers 4:10-12; Numbers 4:14; Numbers 4:25

For shoes
Ezekiel 16:10

BADG'ER, noun In law, a person who is licensed to buy corn in one place and sell it in another, without incurring the penalties of engrossing.

BADG'ER, noun A quadruped of the genus Ursus, of a clumsy make, with short, thick legs, and long claws on the fore feet. It inhabits the north of Europe and Asia, burrows, is indolent and sleepy, feeds by night on vegetables, and is very fat. Its skin is used for pistol furniture; its flesh makes good bacon, and its hair is used for brushes to soften the shades in painting. The American badger is called the ground hog, and is sometimes white.

There is much obscurity as to the meaning of the word tachash , rendered "badger" in the Authorized Version, (Exodus 25:5; 35:7) etc. The ancient versions seem nearly all agreed that it denotes not an animal but a color, either black or sky-blue. The badger is not found in the Bible lands. The Arab duchash or tufchash denotes a dolphin, including seals and cetaceans. The skins referred to are probably those of these marine animals, some of which are found in the Red Sea. The skin of the Halicore , one of these, from its hardness would be well suited for making soles for shoes. (Ezekiel 16:10)

BADG'ER-LEGGED, adjective Having legs like a badger. Johnson says having legs of unequal length; but, qu.short thick legs.