make brick, be (made, make) white(-r)
Boyd’s Bible Dictionary:
(fragment). Bricks were made of clay, mixed with straw, usually larger than our bricks, and burned in a kiln or dried in the sun (Gen. 11:3; Ex. 1:14; 5:7, 2 Sam. 12:31; Jer. 43:9).
Concise Bible Dictionary:
As early as Genesis 11:3 we read of bricks being made and burnt; and in Egypt the bricks were made with an admixture of straw. When the Israelites had to find their own straw or stubble and yet make as many bricks per day, it is probable that but little straw was used. Some ancient bricks have been found which had apparently no straw in them. Many of the bricks were stamped with the name of the reigning monarch.
On the monuments in a tomb the process of brick-making in Egypt is fully delineated: a task-master stands over the men with a stick in his hand, as doubtless was the case in the time of Moses (Ex. 5:7-19). Bricks brought from Egypt vary in size, from 20 in. to 14 1/4 in. long, 8 3/4 in. to 6 ½ in. wide, and 7 in. to 4 ½ in. thick. There is a brick from Babylon in the British Museum, which bears the inscription in cuneiform characters “I am Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, the restorer of the temples Sag-ili and Zida, the eldest son of Nabopolassar, king of Babylon.” It measures 13 in. by 13 in., and 4 in. thick. Other bricks from Chaldea are more ancient still.
Strong’s Dictionary of Hebrew Words:
Meaning:
a primitive root; to be (or become) white; also (as denominative from 3843) to make bricks
KJV Usage:
make brick, be (made, make) white(-r)