Bible Dictionary
Mouldy
Mouldy bread in the account of the Gibeonites was likely bread that had become dry, hard, and biscuit-like. Its condition was intended to support their claim that they had traveled from a distant land.
Definition
Mouldy bread in the account of the Gibeonites means bread that had become dry, hard, and biscuit-like. The Hebrew term is also rendered “cracknels,” referring to a kind of crisp cake.
Biblical Usage
The Gibeonites displayed their dry and hardened provisions as evidence supporting their claim that they had come from a distant land.
Historical Background
The condition of the bread was presented as the result of a long journey. It was hard like biscuits rather than necessarily covered with mould in the modern sense.
Scripture References
Historical Bible Dictionaries
Easton's Bible Dictionary
Of the Gibeonites it is said that “all the bread of their provision was dry and mouldy” (Josh. 9:5, 12). The Hebrew word here rendered “mouldy” (nikuddim) is rendered “cracknels” in 1 Kings 14:3, and denotes a kind of crisp cake. The meaning is that the bread of the Gibeonites had become dry and hard, hard as biscuits, and thus was an evidence of the length of the journey they had travelled.