LIME

A substance, white when pure, that is prepared by burning forms of calcium carbonate such as limestone, shells or bones. (Amos 2:1) Abundant in the mountainous region of Palestine, limestone was converted into lime (calcium oxide) by burning fragments of limestone in conical or cylindrical limekilns. In ancient times lime was a principal ingredient in mortar and was used for plastering walls and for whitewashing walls, graves, and so forth. (Deut. 27:4; Ezek. 13:10; Matt. 23:27; Acts 23:3) The Bible also uses the burnings of lime figuratively to represent destruction.—Isa. 33:12.