Weekend Economists' Variety Show! November 21-23, 2014

[Demeter]

24. The First Seasoning was probably Salt

Salt is the most commonly consumed mineral in its natural pure form, used for both savor and health (the only others I can think of: carbon and bismuth, are purely medicinal by themselves...although a nicely charred bit of meat or fish is popular. And Iodine, frequently combined with salt, is essential for health, but not to the point of tasting it). The per capita daily consumption (a decisive figure for calculating the iodine dosage when using salt as a carrier for treating iodine deficiency) is roughly the same under the most varied cultural conditions, namely 8 to 12 grams. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16156164

Salt is versatile. It can and has been used as: a preservative, currency, an exfoliant, an herbicide, a deodorant, a laxative, a disinfectant, and as toothpaste, and that's before we get into industrial uses.

Such as making ice cream in the old-fashioned way!

Salt is frequently mentioned in the Bible:

The role of salt in the Bible is relevant to understanding Hebrew society during the Old Testament and New Testament periods. Salt is a necessity of life and was a mineral that was used since ancient times in many cultures as a seasoning, a preservative, a disinfectant, a component of ceremonial offerings, and as a unit of exchange. The Bible contains numerous references to salt. In various contexts, it is used metaphorically to signify permanence, loyalty, durability, fidelity, usefulness, value, and purification.

Salt sources in Ancient Palestine

The main source of salt in the region was the area of the Dead Sea, especially the massive, about seven miles long, salt cliffs of Jebel Usdum.[1] The face of the ridge is constantly changing as weather interacts with the rock salt. Ezekial 47:11 highlights the importance of the Dead Sea's salt.

The Hebrew people harvested salt by pouring sea water into pits and letting the water evaporate until only salt was left. They used the mineral for seasoning and as a preservative. In addition, salt was used to disinfect wounds. In 2 Chron 13:5 King Abijah referred to God's covenant promise to David that he will not lack a man to seat on Israel's throne as a Salt covenant - that is a covenant that can never be broken.

The fate of Lot's wife, being turned to a pillar of salt, is found in Genesis 19:26. The story may have originated as an explanation for the salt pillar on Mount Sodom, which is often called "Lot's Wife". It is common for locals to give names to some of the human-like shapes, including legends of the shapes' origins.

Leviticus 2:13 and Ezekiel 43:24 illustrate the requirement of salt as part of ancient Hebrew religious sacrifices. Levicitus 2:13 reads: "And every offering of your grain offering you shall season with salt; you shall not allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your grain offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt."

Salt was cast on the burnt offering (Ezekiel 43:24) and was part of the incense (Exodus 30:35). Part of the temple offering included salt (Ezra 6: 9).

Salt was widely and variably used as a symbol and sacred sign in ancient Palestine. Numbers 18:19 and 2 Chronicles 13:5 illustrate salt as a covenant of friendship. In cultures throughout the region, the eating of salt is a sign of friendship. Salt land is a metaphorical name for a desolate no man's land, as attested in Psalms 107:34, Job 39:6, and Jeremiah 17:6. The land of defeated cities was salted to consecrate them to a god and curse their re-population, as illustrated in Judges 9:45.

Bishop K.C. Pillai, from India, testifies that the salt covenant is much more than a covenant of friendship. It is an irrevocable pledge and promise of fidelity. Those who have taken salt together would rather die before they would break their covenant. He further states that the penalty for violating such a covenant is death.

Newborn babies were rubbed with salt. A reference to this practice is in Ezekiel 16:4: "As for your nativity, on the day you were born your navel cord was not cut, nor were you washed in water to cleanse you; you were not rubbed with salt nor wrapped in swaddling cloths."

The significance of rubbing a newborn with salt is to indicate that the child would be raised to have integrity, to always be truthful.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_in_the_Bible