“Whatever is set aside from the holy offerings the Israelites present to the Lord I give to you and your sons and daughters as your perpetual share. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before the Lord for both you and your offspring.”
Numbers 18:19 (NIV)
I’m kind of in a foodie mood this week. Yesterday I mentioned our herb garden and the things I’ve been having fun creating with it, like the parsley almond salsa verde. Last night I used the mortar and pestle to grind some fresh Thyme, and loved the breathing in the fresh scent that filled the kitchen. Wendy and I have our grandson Milo with us this week, and tonight my Dad’s coming over for a good ol’ Iowa summer celebration with burgers on the grill and fresh Iowa sweet corn bathed in butter and seasoned with salt.
Salt is an every day seasoning for us. It sits on every table. We mindlessly shake it on our food and don’t stop to realize how ubiquitous it is in almost every recipe. For most of the history of human civilization salt was life. Before modern refrigeration emerged as a household convenience in the early 1900s, salt was the way the world preserved things for thousands of years. But it was more. It was used as currency (the word salary comes from salarium, as Roman soldiers were sometimes paid in salt). It was used as means of governmental control through salt taxes. To ancient cultures, salt was metaphorical for life itself. This was true for our fledgling Hebrew nation, as well. And, God gave salt even greater significance in the faith, ritual, and tradition of the Hebrews.
Remember that paying attention to the order of the text is important. Two chapters ago Korah led a rebellion against Moses, Aaron and the priesthood as God set it up. Yesterday, God affirmed His choice of Aaron and his family as the chosen priests. Today, God reminds Aaron and his family that when they enter the Promised Land (God’s still maintaining his faithfulness to that promise despite His people’s unwillingness to follow Him in a few chapters ago), their tribe will not get any land like all the other tribes because God Himself, and His eternal Kingdom are their inheritance. Their provision isn’t from working the land and grazing flocks and herds. Their provision is the tithes, sacrifices, and offerings the other 11 tribes bring to God. God calls this “an everlasting covenant of salt.” If you think about it, there’s a foreshadowing here of Jesus’ teaching on storing up treasure in heaven and not on earth. Hold onto that thought.
Salt was a prescribed by God as part of every sacrifice and offering. It was used in the making of the incense used at part of the rituals in the traveling tent Temple. Salt was also used as a binding agent when making covenants. God is making salt an important metaphor regarding preservation, holiness, seasoning, covenant, and sacrifice.
And yet, salt is so common, so simple, so humble, even gritty.
Fast forward to Jesus telling the crowd of poor, humble, common people on the mountainside “You are the salt of the earth.” Wait a minute. Just Aaron and his family were given the covenant of salt in today’s chapter. Jesus blows the doors wide open on the covenant. He came to make the everlasting covenant of salt with the simple, humble, gritty, every day people. No longer is it an exclusive and elite covenant for a select few. The covenant and calling is now offered to everyone, complete with all of the blessings and all of the responsibilities of sacrifice, faithfulness, and preservation of the covenant.
One of the things that salt has been known for over history is its permanence. Pure salt doesn’t decay. The ancients, however, knew that when mingled with dust and dirt, salt could be diluted. It could lose its effectiveness.
In the quiet this morning, I’m reminded that when Adam and Eve chose to follow their pride and appetites over obedience, the result was that they had to leave community with God in the Garden and return “to the dust of the earth.” Fascinating that Jesus first tells the crowd of common, poor, and uneducated people that they are the “salt of the earth” warning them not to lose their saltiness. A few minutes later He tells them not to store up treasure on earth that just gets covered in dust, but to store up eternal treasure in heaven like Aaron and his family who didn’t get a dusty parcel of land but rather, through being faithful in sacrifice, received the blessing of God’s provision.
Today, when I reach for the salt, I will be reminded:
That Jesus graciously made with me an everlasting covenant of salt. I am part of the royal priesthood, complete with the responsibility of sacrifice and the blessing of God’s provision.
That the dust of earthly treasure only dilutes me spiritually, rendering me less spiritually flavorful, useful, and effective.
That I want my loved ones, my community, and everyone I come into contact with to find me to bring seasoning, sacrificial servant heartedness, and a hint of God’s eternal kingdom in all I say and do.
If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.
