mortar

1 A grinding vessel in which a pestle is the crushing instrument (Prov 27:22; Num 11:8). 2 The sealer between courses of stone or brick, whether a natural material like bitumen (Gen 11:3) or a prepared compound (Exod 1:14). A hint of the preparatory process as trampling is reflected in Isaiah’s metaphoric reference (Isa 41:25), and Jeremiah’s oracle against Egypt used stones buried under mortar as a figure for the successful Babylonian conquest of the land (Jer 43:9). (Nah 3:14) sees treading mortar as a preparation for defense, and Zephaniah uses it as a proper noun for a location in Jerusalem where silver traders functioned (Zeph 1:11).