What is a “Covenant of Salt”?

This is a great question which comes from three different texts in the Old Testament- Levitucus 2:13, Numbers 18:19, and II Chronicles 13:5. All of these mention either “the salt of the Covenant” or “Covenant of Salt”, but it is not obvious to us from a cursory reading what the significance was. To understand this, the historical connotations of salt must be understood.

Salt was of premium importance in ancient times, really up until refrigeration came to be commonplace. It was of such importance in the preservation of meat that it also began to take on a more symbolic importance – currency. Our word “Salary” has its root in the Latin word for salt – “Salarium”¹. This is likely the origin for our saying that someone was “worth their salt” in reference to doing a good job. Also consider that Roman soldiers were at least partially paid in salt (Pliny) giving rise to the term “soldier”, which comes from the latin word “Sal Dare” meaning “to give salt.²

But what about this “salt covenant”? We are not ever directly told what the significance of this type of covenant is. As said at the outset, it is referenced 3 times in the OT:

1.       Leviticus 2:13 when instructions were being given for the Grain Offering, “You shall season all your grain offerings with salt. You shall not let the salt of the covenant with your God be missing from your grain offering; with all your offerings you shall offer salt.”

2.       Numbers 18:19 when God spoke of the covenant between Him and the Sons of Aaron, “All the holy contributions that the people of Israel present to the LORD I give to you, and to your sons and daughters with you, as a perpetual due. It is a covenant of salt forever before the LORD for you and for your offspring with you.”

3.       II Chronicles 13:5 when King Abijah spoke to Jeroboam before going to battle with him, “Ought you not to know that the LORD God of Israel gave the kingship over Israel forever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt?”

In the Covenant of Salt, the symbolic importance of salt is at play, especially in the Ancient Near East. The idea of preservation and longevity is at the forefront of the symbolism. In that area of the world, if two men sat down to a meal and ate salt together, this was viewed as them making a covenant of friendship between them. This meal together was considered to be an everlasting oath between them to be at peace. So it is with the “Covenant of Salt”. The Israelites would have already understood the significance of salt in covenant making prior to God speaking with them. Since it is one of the most important ingredients in an “everlasting covenant” and that fact that salt was an important preservative, God likely used it to signify the gravity of a covenant between Him and His people.

                To illustrate the use of this type of Covenant, let’s consider the Biblical reference in II Chronicles. During the period of the Divided Kingdom Jeroboam, King of Israel, seeks to go to war with Abijah, son of Rehoboam, King of Judah. Abijah sits on the throne of Judah as one in the line of Kings benefitting from the covenant that God had made with David. II Samuel 7:16 says of this Covenant, “And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” King Jeroboam comes against Judah with 800,000 soldiers in an effort to take over Judah. King Abijah came out in defense with only 400,000 soldiers, so it looked as if Jeroboam had the upper hand. That is when Abijah brought up to Jeroboam the “Covenant of Salt” between God and David’s descendants that a descendant of David would always be King of Israel. The point was that even with the superior numbers, Jeroboam was fighting a losing battle. The Kingdom of Judah was the one with the line of David on the throne, so it was receiving God’s preservation. In fact this “covenant of salt” was so everlasting that there is still a descendant of David on the Throne of Israel – Jesus (Acts 2:29-33; Hebrews 1:5, 8).

Works Cited

1.                     Pliny. The Natural History. n.d.

2.                     "The Wealth of India: A Dictionary of Indian Raw Materials and Industrial Products." Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (India) ( (1971): p.44.