Everlasting Covenant of Salt

I love salt.  I use the pink kind…on everything.  And lots of it.  This week’s Torah Portion teaches us about the properties and importance of SALT, specifically

Vayikra (Leviticus) 2:13 ‘offer salt with all your offerings’ (3 times in this passage they instructed about SALT!)

and its corresponding Numbers 18:19

NAS – "All the offerings of the holy gifts, which the sons of Israel offer to the LORD, I have given to you and your sons and your daughters with you, as a perpetual allotment. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before the LORD to you and your descendants with you." - (Numbers 18:19)
BHS – כֹּ֣ל תְּרוּמֹ֣ת הַקֳּדָשִׁ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֨ר יָרִ֥ימוּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֮ לַֽיהוָה֒ נָתַ֣תִּֽי לְךָ֗ וּלְבָנֶ֧יךָ וְלִבְנֹתֶ֛יךָ אִתְּךָ֖ לְחָק־עֹולָ֑ם בְּרִית֩ מֶ֨לַח עֹולָ֥ם הִוא֙ לִפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה לְךָ֖ וּלְזַרְעֲךָ֥ אִתָּֽךְ׃  - (Numbers 18:19)

What are we to make of this ‘salt of the covenant with your God’?

The first verse that popped into my mind was Colossians 4:6

Colossians 4:6 - NAS – Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.
Colossians 4:6 - WH – ο λογος υμων παντοτε εν χαριτι αλατι ηρτυμενος (5772) ειδεναι (5760) πως δει (5719) υμας ενι εκαστω αποκρινεσθαι (5738) 

CJB Commentary says this about ‘with grace/seasoned with salt’…

HOLY OUCH.

In addition, Yeshua told his bickering talmidim while HE was schooling them about Kingdom Servanthood ‘if anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of all’ (Mark 9:49) the following:

 “Indeed, everyone is going to be salted with fire.  Salt is excellent, but if it loses its saltiness, how will you season it?  So have salt in yourselves…that is, BE AT PEACE (IN SHALOM, AT-ONE) WITH EACH OTHER”

Okay, so we can deduce from looking at roughly 38 verses having to do with salt, that IT IS A PERPETUAL COVENANT WITH ADONAI ELOHEINU (YHWH-Our-God =Merciful Mighty One).  And HE expects that we SEASON EVERY OFFERING with salt.

So, what does salt do?  You can come up with your own list!

Salt ENHANCES, PRESERVES and HEALS.

On the contrary, a Follower who does NOT walk in the anointing of the Ruach HaKodesh undermines/neglects/lessens AND abandons/harms/destroys AND weakens/damages/injures those around him.   Sooooo…let’s not.

Salt enhances sweetness.  Salt also enhances all other flavors by suppressing bitterness.  Salt is not meant to be used alone…it’s meant to be used IN CONJUNCTION with other things.  It brings out flavor that isn’t recognizable without salt’s enhancing properties.  Salt preserves from corruption. And because salt preserves, that means it also brings healing.

One commentator said:

  “Salt seasons, preserves, and helps control bacteria and fermentation, and its physical attributes are used in a spiritual application throughout Scripture (see Matt. 5:13; Mark 9:50; Luke 14:34; Col. 4:6). Salt represents how Yeshua's life, death, and resurrection checked the corruption of sin and preserved life in this world.“

In all my ‘serving God - in all my ‘drawing near’ (korban/offering) - have I taken the time to examine my offering having seasoned them with the ETERNAL SALT COVENANT of the Holy Spirit?   That is to say, am I IN THE SPIRIT, lavishly and graciously sprinkling with salt my offerings to HIM…AT PEACE WITH MY BROTHERS…thus ENHANCING AND PRESERVING LIFE in all my ‘serving’?

Or, am I (like I believe Cain did) offering an UNACCEPTABLE, UNSALTED OFFERING?

Do you see the correlation and lack of the beautiful rhythmic shalom with his brother Abel and Yeshua’s words to His disciples above?

The ETERNAL SALT COVENANT is being FILLED with the Spirit of Yeshua.  Sprinkling my ‘offerings’ - truly drawing near the Father - is to
ENHANCE (BRINGING ABUNDANT LIFE!) AND PRESERVE (FREEING FROM DECAY!).

Sefer Vayikra (Book of Leviticus) teaches us, yet again, that

The KINGDOM = LIGHT/LIFE/UNITY!  

We have to guard ourselves against its polar opposite - the things of this present world that even pervade our churches and our very lives because we’ve dangerously confused them with darkness/death/discord.

Here’s to SALTY TALMIDIM!!!

LOVE,
carmen