Bible Dictionaries
Clay

Easton's Bible Dictionary

This word is used of sediment found in pits or in streets (Isaiah 57:20; Jeremiah 38:60 ), of dust mixed with spittle (John 9:6 ), and of potter's clay (Isaiah 41:25; Nahum 3:14; Jeremiah 18:1-6; Romans 9:21 ). Clay was used for sealing (Job 38:14; Jeremiah 32:14 ). Our Lord's tomb may have been thus sealed (Matthew 27:66 ). The practice of sealing doors with clay is still common in the East. Clay was also in primitive times used for mortar (Genesis 11:3 ). The "clay ground" in which the large vessels of the temple were cast (1 Kings 7:46; 2 Chronicles 4:17 ) was a compact loam fitted for the purpose. The expression literally rendered is, "in the thickness of the ground,", meaning, "in stiff ground" or in clay.