Salt added flavor to food, and it was also used to preserve meat in a society in which refrigeration and cold storage did not exist.
Jesus used the imagery of salt to describe His followers. If they did not demonstrate their distinctive purity and holiness as His people, they would have no influence in the world. Christians have no higher calling than to serve as the “salt of the earth” in a sinful and decadent culture.
SIGIFICANCE OF SALT
- While fleeing from the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, Lot’s wife looked back and was turned into a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:26).
- The everlasting covenant, or agreement, between God and His people was called “a covenant of salt” because of its durability and permanence (Numbers 18:19).
- Because of its salty water, the Dead Sea was also referred to as the “salt sea” (Joshua 12:3).
- A barren valley south of the Dead Sea where David won a victory over the Syrians was called the valley of salt (2 Samuel 8:13).