Salted with Fire – a closer look at Mark 9:49 - Everyone will be salted with fire! An essay by Paranoid Android 3/10/08
Study notes – this essay is exclusively pointed at 9:49, but please read Mark 9:33-50 for context
After researching the passage in Mark 9:49, reading “everyone being salted with fire”, I think it is one of the most difficult passages I have ever come across. I have read Mark a dozen times since becoming a Christian and yet I find it strange that I have never looked at this verse closely before today. Before I begin, I would like to quickly mention that the English translation here for “salt”, “salted”, and “fire” accurately reflects the Greek meaning, though there are some interesting ramifications of “first and “last” in the preceding passage beforehand (9:35), which I will discuss later as it impacts on the overall consideration of verse 49.
The first point I would like to address is the metaphorical use of both Salt and Fire in the Bible. Though salt has been used in other contexts to refer to being Holy and set apart for God, this is not the meaning implied in this passage. In Matthew 5, for example, where Jesus uses salt in the context of being Holy, he specifically states “YOU ARE the salt of the Earth” (Matthew 5:13). In Mark 9, he does not say this. What he says is, “have salt in yourselves” (v50). This is something we must contain within ourselves, not something that we as Christians intrinsically should be. What is salt used for then? It must be contextually accurate with the use of fire. As such, it is incorrect to suggest a correlation to Matthew 5 and being “different” or “set apart” as the text of Matthew 5 suggests.
Considering this imagery falls down, what is the purpose then of fire (to be “salted with fire”? While there are many uses of “fire” in the Bible, an interesting parallel can be seen here in Mark 9 and John the Baptist’s remarks to his followers:
"I baptise you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. (Matthew 3:11, see also Luke 3:16) *emphasis added*
John was baptising with water, but the one who would come, whom John identified as Jesus, would baptise with fire. Here in Mark 9, Jesus continues this metaphor, and says that everyone will be “salted with fire”. Salt is not directly related to the process of baptism, but an indirect relationship still exists. 4th Century AD traditions of baptism included salt with some baptism ceremonies, and while that doesn’t necessarily equate to biblical baptism, it shows the early Christian understanding of the commonalities between the purification qualities of salt, and the rebirth of the spirit at baptism (in the sense of being baptised by the Holy Spirit and by Fire, as noted earlier in Matthew 3). Fire and salt are therefore both metaphors for purification. As newborn Christians, we have become new creations, no longer tied to our lives as slaves to sin, but slaves to righteousness (Romans 6:16). And thus salt and fire are both clear symbols for our new lives as Christians, as evidenced throughout the Bible – first hinted at in Malachi 3, when prophesying the day of the Lord’s Return, which will be
“like a refiner's fire” (Malachi 3:2), and made clear in James’ letter where he states,
“wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double minded… Humble yourself before the Lord, and he will lift you up” (4:8,10)
Therefore, the clearest interpretation of Mark 9:49 is that it is yet another command for Christians to be baptised not only with water, which is only a symbol, but also by the Holy Spirit of truth, such as Jesus commanded in what has become known as the “Great Commission” (Matthew 28:18-20).
Jesus cleverly contrasts the purification qualities of God’s fire in verse 49 with the condemnatory fires of the earthly fires of Gehenna (translated as Hell in verses 42-48), where
“their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched” (Mark 9:48 – a quote from Isaiah 66:24, which also addresses the same concept of purity and rebirth against the judgements of sin, which contextualise the concept of purity). As a short aside, Gehenna was a valley outside Jerusalem which people would burn their rubbish and (for the poor, to whom Jesus often preached) often their dead. It was synonymous with death, and many people in 1st Century AD could look forward to being thrown on this fire. Jesus contrasts their mortal bodies, which will remain on earth and burn up in Gehenna to His purifying fire which is required to attain salvation. Sin leads to the earthly fires of Gehenna, the final result being the end of all things (physically and spiritually). In contrast, following Jesus’ example, living our lives metaphorically salted with fire leads to life and the eternal rewards of His Kingdom.
In its briefest sense, this is the context of Mark 9:49. However, looking deeper at the passage offers some further insights and worthy points of discussion.
A very interesting point that I found was that some translations of the Bible include an extra line of text in verse 49. For example, the ESV footnotes the passage clearly as a later addition, while the KJV included this in the original text. The added line would make this passage read:
Everyone will be salted with fire, and every sacrifice will be salted with salt.
~ Mark 9:49
Before moving on, it should be noted that in the most reliable ancient texts, this extra line is NOT in the Bible. In the strictest sense then, we cannot consider this to be the “word of God” (though some who believe in the inerrancy of the KJV as the only authentic version may disagree). However, for most other Christians, it is obvious that an over-zealous scribe somewhere along the lines in the early centuries after Christ’s existence. This addition, though not technically part of the text, may offer insight in to the views of the early Christians, and thus, the historical context of this provides a possible understanding from early Christianity as to what this verse meant to them.
As such, the question turns then to what the purpose of salting sacrifices was according to either early Christians, or the Jewish law. Salting sacrifices/offerings has its origins in the Levitical laws of the Old Testament. Leviticus 2 requires that “Grain Offerings” be seasoned with salt:
Season all your grain offerings with salt. Do not leave the salt of the covenant of your God out of your grain offerings; add salt to all your offerings.
~ Leviticus 2:13
Grain offerings were a particular type of offering given in Old Testament times. They were mainly given to the Levite Priests, who were not allowed to own land or grow crops, and thus had to rely on these offerings to survive (ie, food). These Grain Offerings took the form of crushed grains, both raw and cooked (flour, bread, etc) – it was not whole-grains, or husks as may be suggested. These Grain Offerings spoken of in Leviticus, we are told, are to be “seasoned with salt”. Moreover, in the context of this offering, the Israelites were told specifically they were not to be seasoned with honey, or yeast (Leviticus 2:11). The purpose for this law is unclear. There are various theories (as with any ancient doctrine). In keeping with the idea of purity, which appears to be an overriding theme of Mark 9:33-50, salt was representative of purity, particularly the “stemming of corruption” from its qualities of preservation, while both honey and yeast could be fermented into alcohol and thus stood as symbols for corruption unhindered. However, it is also true that honey was a common offering given to pagan gods, and so it is possible that the law could simply have been given by God to differentiate Yahweh-worship from the other pagan gods (a common theme throughout the book of Leviticus). Rabbi Koniuchowsky, a Messianic Jew (“Messianic Jew” - a Jew who still believes in the Old Testament covenant with Israel, but accepts Christ as the promised Messiah of the Old Testament) comments that:
“Pagan deities were known to have an appetite for honey, a sweet but false substitute to the sweetness that can only come from a close relationship with Israel's King and His Son. The honey was used to appease the false deities, as well as to humanize them by feeding them honey! By giving them sweet offerings, mankind thought that the deity would be more apt to respond favorably. Yahweh cannot be bribed or convinced to do our desire by candy and honey offerings”
~ Taken from “Covenant of Salt”, written by Rabbi Moshe Yoseph Koniuchowsky. Source:
Covenant of Salt
It must be stressed however, that the reasons for seasoning Grain Offerings with salt is not made clear in scripture. Its meaning is ambiguous. I tend to favour the idea of “stemming corruption”, as that is the context that is implied in Mark 9, but it is just my opinion there, and I do not claim any divine authority on this issue.
Another historical point is that Grain Offerings were usually given in conjunction with other offerings, such as burnt offerings. For the most part then, they were separate to Offerings given as atonement for sin. But it is interesting to note that for the poor who could not afford to provide burnt offerings and grain offerings, a Grain Offering could be given alone to satisfy this sin-atonement law, and so may have overtones of atonement for sin, particularly for those whom Jesus preached to, who were often the poor and those most in need.
If we consider this in relation to Mark 9 then, a most interesting possibility arises. Verse 49 reads, “EVERY sacrifice will be seasoned with salt”. To be specific, it DOES NOT say, “Grain offerings will be seasoned with salt”, as the Levitical law states. Rather “every sacrifice” is spoken of. If we think of this comment in context to Mark 9 (which is the purpose of this essay, after all), and Jesus’ previous statement that, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all." (Mark 9:35), there is a correlation worth noting. As mentioned at the start of this paper, the Greek words for “first” and “last” provide an interesting possibility. The Greek word “first” –
[FONT="]pro'-tos [/FONT][FONT="](from which I assume we get the English prefix “proto”, as in prototype, or “first type” for example) – has overtones of “first”, “primary”, “before all others”, “order of importance”, and supports the idea of the disciples arguing over who is greatest (Mark 9:33). The word translated as “last” however –
es'-khat-os – has a broader meaning. It does translate as “last”, but it also has overtones of being the lowest, poorest. While not exactly related to money, it could be argued that Jesus was indeed thinking of “last” in this context (or at least, partly in this context) – as supported by his teachings about leaving everything behind, such as Matthew 19, which also expands on the idea of the first being last and the last being first.[/FONT]
And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first.
[FONT="]~ Matthew 19:29-30[/FONT]
With the core teachings of Jesus being humbleness, humility, treating others as better than ourselves (welcoming a little child as an equal in Mark 9 and 10) and leaving what we own, being “poor in spirit” (Matthew 5: 3), and bringing his words to the poor (Luke 4:18), this comment that “every offering shall be salted with salt” (per the Levitical Laws) might be considered as a template for how we as Christians are to think of ourselves. If every Christian were to be “poor” in spirit, then if they were to make sin offerings, it would be as part of their Grain Offering since we would not be “rich” enough to give other offerings. This is a strong possibility, though perhaps a bit of a stretch to biblically link the concepts. Of course, Jesus’ death was the ultimate sacrifice and therefore there was no need for Christians to make sacrifices for their sins at all. The language used is of course metaphorical, and in line with the overarching theme of Mark 9:33-50, and provides yet another example as to how Christians are to relate to each other, in full submission and Love.
A less radical solution to this passage is to argue that there is an inherent context to this passage. “Every sacrifice”, in verse 49 refers to the offering of Grain Sacrifices, which is what most Jews would already know (though not all gentiles would be aware of such – which is an interesting point to consider when we take into account that Mark was written primarily for Gentiles).
In this context then we come back again to the original question of this essay – who is it referring to when it states, “Everyone shall be salted with fire” (9:49). If we take the view that Christians are to live as the “poor”, then “everyone” is referring to those who live as Christians, and those who live such humble lives are purified by their dedication to God (through the baptism of the Holy Spirit and Fire as previously suggested). On the other hand, if we take a context-specific view, then “everyone” also is contextually referring to simply “every Christian”. In other words, regardless of the specific interpretation you take (and I have provided a few different ideas for you to consider), the people being referred to is ultimately the same.
That said, the verse reading, “Every sacrifice shall be salted with salt” is (as already mentioned) very likely a later addition, and the majority of current Bible scholars acknowledge this and leave it out in most translations (or at least point clearly to this as a likely addition). Nevertheless, it provides a nice platform for understanding the context of being salted with fire, with insight to how the earliest Christians likely viewed the issue.
To conclude my most overly long dissertation on Mark 9, I hope this provides a good platform to consider the interpretation of Mark 9:33-50. Humbling ourselves and making ourselves servants to all is an overriding theme to this whole passage, and it is this process of purification that leads to both the immediate effect of humbleness, and the more lasting effect of Eternal Life. Being “salted with fire” is a metaphor for this entire process, being purified by the spirit of the Lord, baptised in spirit as well as with water, and by analogy, with fire.
