From: Rabbi Moshe Yoseph Koniuchowsky
To: '
heb_roots_chr@hebroots.orgSubject: Covenant of Salt
CHILDREN OF SALT
By Rabbi Moshe Yoseph Koniuchowsky
With scriptural contributions by Rebbetzin Wendy McNulty
A COVENANT OF SALT FOREVER
In Bamidbar/
Numbers 18:19 it is stated that all of Yisrael's offerings offered to Yahweh must be offered seasoned with salt. This ordinance is a mishpat/ruling that makes perfect sense, as Israel's sons and daughters are to engage in an eternal covenant of salt with Yahweh when offering their personal sacrifices. The term "covenant of salt" is indicative of the everlasting nature of the relationship between the children of salt, and their Elohim Yahweh. When we hear the term salt, the understanding is that the things Yahweh addresses are eternal, enduring, never changing, and abiding forever. All salt covenants then are eternal, and eternally binding on the sons and daughters of Yisrael, regardless where they are to be found, and regardless of whether a physical temple stands on Mt. Moriyah or not. WITH ALL YOUR OFFERINGS BRING SALT
In Wayiqra/Leviticus 2:13 it is confirmed that all Israelite offerings must be seasoned with salt. We as Israel's children must make sure that our salt does not lack in any service, or act of obedience to or for Yahweh Elohim. This mishpat/ruling has never been reneged, and has never been removed in the Brit Chadasha. All of the offerings not only had to be seasoned with salt but had to be void of leaven, a type of sin, and of honey, a favorite appeasement tool offered in almost all pagan nations in their sacrifices. 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 or by any other sacraments. Our forefathers tried it in the past by offering cakes of honey and oil (Yehchezkel/Ezekiel 16:19) to the "queen of heaven" known today in popery as the allegedly "sinless" Mother Mary. Rather, we are called by the Messiah TO OFFER OURSELVES to Yahweh, as His Israel because Yahweh is sweet and good in and of Himself, and not outside of Himself. He expects that same sweet spirit to be in us, as it is in Him. Yahweh makes it clear that neither sin nor wrong motive will get Him to move on our behalf. He Himself is the sweetness we need. He Himself is our great reward (Genesis/Berecraph 15:1). We must only approach Yahweh within the salt covenant, and not with honey and leaven.
Yahweh is looking for sacrifices from our lives as returning Yisrael with eternal, long term, and abiding commitments in our doctrines and lifestyles. He does not want any offerings made out of the emotional need of a moment or a knee jerk action. The Israelite must approach Him with an understanding that any commitment, and any offering cannot be reneged upon or made into any short-term arrangement. The Babylonian system of religion from which Yahudah and Ephraim are escaping (Rev. 18:4), are known by their temporal and shifting doctrines, highlighted by short-term commitments from both the worshipper and their perception of Yahweh. A perfect example of the violation of the Israelite covenant of salt is the churches propagation of dispensationalism, which is all but a guarantee that all their doctrines, teachings, actions, and understandings will be full of honey and leaven lacking in enduring salt. Honey is symbolic of manipulation by the worshipper towards the Heavenly Judge.
Salt on the other hand is a time proven and consistent preservative that prevents decay and corruption with enduring quality. The forefathers of Yisrael preserved their food with salt in place of the modern refrigerator. The important things of sustenance were preserved with salt. Israel's health was often preserved with baths in the Salt-Sea, which preserved their skin and appearance. Just as in the physical, so it is in the spiritual. All the important elements of Israelite worship must be preserved with salt. Salt typifies abiding, eternality, steadfastness, stability, and permanence and even the very character and reliability of Abba Yahweh Himself! Therefore every sacrifice and every ordinance in the First Covenant by definition must be eternal, since Israel could only approach Yahweh with ordinances using salt offerings. These salt offerings were known to be everlasting due to the eternal and enduring nature of salt's preservation power along with what it implied in the spirit realm. From this understanding, we see that all of Torah has been preserved by the eternal covenant of salt given to Yisrael. Israelite worship was to be characterized by steadfast eternal immutability, unlike the shifting sands of the "pleasure for the moment" motives of the nations.
SOLIDIFYING AND RENEWING FRIENDSHIP
Salt was also used to seal a bond of friendship forever. Brethren at an Israelite table would seal their friendship by the sharing of salt. Salt was a means in Yisrael by which friends solidified and preserved their commitment to each other by a covenant of shared salt at a table of shared community. In much the same way, Israelites were bonded with Yahweh with all the various approaches to Him being seasoned with the eternal salt covenant.It is the Master's desire to be sealed with us in an eternal covenant of friendship seasoned with salt. Now if His best friend and bride is Israel, and if Israel has sealed that relationship with salt, then Yahweh cannot marry a "gentile church bride", and neither can He balance two brides through manmade superimposed dispensationalism. He must remain eternally faithful to Yisrael alone despite Yisrael's lack of faithfulness, and despite all other considerations.
Yahweh, due to His own eternal covenant of salt, has just two options. He can renew Yisrael through the regeneration of Ephraim and Judah or He can do nothing. Thankfully as we know according to Yirmeyahu/Jeremiah 31:31, He has chosen the better option for Israel, and has decided to renew both houses through Yahshua the Moshiach, as well as invite others to join the renewed Commonwealth. Any creation or birthing of a separate entity called the church would result in a violation of the eternal covenant of salt by Yahweh Himself, which we know is a scriptural impossibility. Yahshua's renewal of Yisrael through His cleansing blood has been seasoned with the required salt of endurance and eternal commitment. He relates to us in salt covenant, and that's the way He expects us to relate to Him.
"LET US" CONTINUALLY
Grain seasoned with salt was symbolic of provision. Even though Israel today is not to literally bring grain offerings to Yahweh in the Jerusalem temple, we are to provide grain offering to His modern day servants as it is written, "Yahweh hath ordained that those who preach the Good News, should live [maintain sustenance] from the Good News"(1 Cor. 9:14). So our current grain offering is made to the five fold ministers, who care for the sheep as well as to the orphan, poor, and widow in our midst. When Yisrael does these mitzvoth, they are seasoning all their offerings with salt.
IN THE ABSCENCE OF THE TEMPLE
The Israelite also subjects his human body and it's passions by self-control according to First Cor. 9:25-27, lest we should become castaways. So the very offering of our purity through set-apartness is a seasoning of salt. A Renewed Covenant Yisraelite while not being able to keep the pashat or literal mitzvah of sundry offerings because the temple no longer stands, can jump down into the remez or hint level, which is the second level of scriptural interpretation, which then allows all of Yahudah/Judah and Ephraim to keep salt covenant by accepting all Torah misphatim and chukim on a remez level, when AND ONLY WHEN the pashat or literal level cannot be applied.
Because Christianity cannot get past their valid but often limited first level/literal interpretation of scripture, and their unwillingness to adopt anything they perceive to be "too Jewish", i.e. the four levels of scriptural interpretation, (since they cannot bring literal gifts to the Jerusalem Temple) they willfully yet wrongfully dismiss these ordinances as outdated "Jewish legalism", which cannot be performed. But what we are about to see shortly is that ALL can be done by Israel, if and when a returning Israelite is willing to adopt the Hebraic understanding of scripture, which allows for a minimum of four basic and valid accepted methods of scriptural understanding for each mitzvah, in order to make the divine eternal and enduring connection required by Yahweh to His eternal bride Yisarel.
So in order for Yahweh not to be found to be a liar, He must still provide ways for all mitzvoth to be performed, though one may have to dig four levels deep to get the method of approach. Since Yahsuua has fulfilled all requirements of the sacrificial system for blood, grain, and drink offerings, we must now go through Messiah, since they are all offerings seasoned with His salt to His Father and Elohim. Yahweh expects these salt offerings to continue, and to still be guarded but commands us to do them through Messiah, and through His tabernacle service in the tabernacle in heaven not pitched with man's hands. So on a sod/esoteric level, the sacrifices are eternal due to their being seasoned with salt, and under the eternal covenant of salt with eternal Israel. Only the realm of the offerings have changed, NOT THE REQUIREMENTS THEMSELVES. That is exactly what the Book of Ivrim is all about!
The Christians see Yahshua's Cohen Hagadol or High Priestly role as one of singing and whistling Amazing Grace to His Father Abba Yahweh after having offered His own blood once and for all. The Israelite does not accept that, seeing rather all of the eternal salt offerings of the First Covenant tabernacle, as ongoing and as taking PLACE LITERALLY through Yahshua, who performs them all before Abba Yahweh, albeit on a different and invisible plane. So the Sun-Day system of worship will never understand Torah, and adopt it as their constitution, until and unless they begin to see things in four dimensions applying all four levels of Hebraic interpretation before giving up on a mitzvah as "Jewish stuff". A mitzvah is a commandment performed, which is literally defined as a divine connection to Yahweh.
STUCK ON ONE LEVEL
According to Ivrim/Hebrews 13:15, we are to continue as Israel, to offer "slaughter offerings" to Yahweh continually, and forever through our lips. They no longer come from our hands but from our lips. So it is still Israel that walks in the covenant of salt but we use our lips rather than our hands and feet. Notice in Hebrews 13:15, the principle of continuity regarding the offerings seasoned by salt. The question is who is "the us", in Ivrim/Hebrews 13:5? The answer is obvious. Renewed Covenant Yisrael.
If the Torah has been nailed to Calvary as many claim, then why would Rav Shaul admonish us to perform these mitvahs by usage of the term "LET US", (writing to both houses according to Hebrews 8:12) offer slaughter offerings...The only people ever to do so without the honey and leaven, and with salt alone as the preservative, were are and will be Israel alone from among the nations. Yahweh's only and forever bride. So the obligation of salt offerings continues in the other levels of Hebraic truth rather than the literal temple. The Ephraimite still stuck in false religious systems does not see nor comprehend the fact that there are four gospel records, since the Father Yahweh determined that His atonement for Israel be understood on all four levels of Hebraic understanding.
BINDING OR SEALING THE SACRIFICE
The Christian theologian is puzzled as to why the four versions of the Besarot/Good News of Messiah, seem to often contradict each other, when the truth is that they do not. They are written on all four levels of Hebraic understanding. Mattityahu/Matthew in drash/parables/allegory, Mark/Moshe in pashat or plain literal simplicity, Luke in remez or hinting style, and Yochanan/John in sod or on the mystery level. Rav Shaul's epistles feature all four styles, and the Book of Revelation is totally written on the fourth level of sod. It is because Christian scholars are stuck in level one, that they habitually take metaphors and symbolism in the Book of Revelation meant to be understood as sod in a literal fashion, and therefore fall into some of the most absurd and childish interpretations of scripture, such as the assertion that the 200 million soldiers who cross the Euphrates River are actually Asian Orientals from mainland China, rather than demons released from Tartaros by the messenger (s.a.tan) with the key to the dark pit (Rev. 13:1). Lack of understanding of these four levels have resulted in scholars questioning the legitimacy of both the eternal salt commands of Torah, as well as the very inspiration of the gospels themselves. And they have no one to blame but themselves.
In order to continually offer these offerings of salt as Israelites to Yahweh, we must season these scarifies with salt. What kind of salt? The Name of Yahweh according to Ivrim/ Hebrews 13:15! We are to continue these salt offerings as children of the salt covenant, salted with the preservation and guarding power of the only true eternal "salt" Name of Abba, which is Yahweh. According to Yochanan 17:12, the invoking of His true Name by His talmidim/disciples, guards these sacrifices of Torah. Calling on HaShem or Baal/Lord Goad, is not seasoning our sacrifices to Yahweh with salt, since according to this verse all offerings must be salted and bound to the altar with the Name coming from our lips. How many modern day religious offerings of song, praise, worship and study are being offered to Yahweh as strange fire, due to lacking the proper binding and sealing of the offering by the absence of HIS TRUE NAME!
