Mark ix. 49.
For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.
This is generally esteemed one of the most difficult passages in the four Gospels. I confess, I take no pleasure in commenting on such passages, especially in this place; because the comment only serves, for the most part, to gratify a learned curiosity, and is, otherwise, of small use.
But, when a difficult text of Scripture can be explained, and the sense, arising out of the explanation, is edifying and important, then it falls properly within our province to exert our best pains upon it.
This I take to be the case of the difficulty before us, which therefore I shall beg leave to make the subject of the present discourse.
There are TWO very different interpretations, of which the words are capable: and they shall both of them be laid before you, that ye may adopt either as ye think fit; or even reject them both, if ye do not find them sufficiently supported.
To enable you to go along with me in what follows, and to judge of either interpretation, whether it be reasonable or not, it is necessary to call your attention to the preceding verses of this chapter, to which the text refers, and by which it is introduced.
Our blessed Lord (for the words, I am about to explain, are his) had been discoursing to his Disciples on offences, or scandals; that is, such instances of ill-conduct, such indulgences of any favourite and vicious inclination, as tended to obstruct the progress of the Gospel, and were likely to prevent either themselves, or others, from embracing, or holding fast, the faith. Such offences, it was foreseen, would come: but woe to that man (as we read in the parallel passage of St. Matthew’s Gospel) by whom the offence cometh[93].
And, to give the greater effect to this salutary denunciation, our Saviour proceeds, in figurative, indeed, but very intelligible terms, to enforce the necessity of being on our guard against such offences, what pain soever it might cost us to subdue those passions, from which they were ready to spring. No virtue of self-denial was too great to be attempted in such a cause. A hand, a foot, an eye, were to be cut off, or plucked out; that is, inclinations, as necessary and as dear to us, as those members of the body, were to be suppressed or rejected by us, rather than the woe, denounced against the indulgence of them, be incurred. This woe is, that the offenders should be cast into hell-fire, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched: and it is subjoined three times, in the same awful words, to so many instances of supposed criminal indulgence, in the case alledged; or rather, to one and the same species of ill-conduct, differently modified, and, to make the greater impression upon us, represented under three distinct images. After the last repetition of it, the text immediately follows—for every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.
I. Now, taken in this connexion, the words may clearly, and, according to our ideas, of interpretation, most naturally do, admit this sense; that the offenders, spoken of, shall be preserved entire to suffer the punishment threatened, though it might seem that they would, in no long time, be totally destroyed by it: as if our Lord had expressed himself thus—“I have repeated this woe three times, to shew you the degree and duration of it, as well as the certainty of its execution; the worm shall not die, that is, the sense of suffering shall continue, even in circumstances, which may seem proper and likely to put an end to it: for such, as are worthy to be cast into this fire, shall be salted, or preserved from wasting (salt being the known emblem of incorruption, and thence of perpetuity) by the very fire itself. And [you may easily conceive how this shall be, for] every sacrifice, the flesh of every animal to be offered up to God in your Jewish sacrifices, is kept sound and fit for use by being (as the Law directs in that case) salted with salt. Just so, the fire itself shall act on these victims of the divine justice: like salt, sprinkled on your legal victims, it shall preserve these offenders entire, and in a perpetual capacity of subsisting to that use, to which they are destined.”
Now, if such be the sense of the words, they contain the fullest and most decisive proof of that tremendous doctrine, the eternity of future punishments, which is any where to be met with in Scripture. For the words, being given as a reason and explanation of the doctrine, are not susceptible of any vague interpretation, like the words eternal or everlasting, in which it is usually expressed; but must necessarily be understood, as implying and affirming the literal truth of the thing, for which they would account. And, this being supposed, you see the use, the unspeakable importance, of this text, as addressed to all believers in Jesus. But,
II. There is another sense, of which the text is capable: and, if you think it not allowable to deduce a conclusion of such dreadful import from words of an ambiguous signification, you will incline perhaps (as it is natural for us to do) to this more favourable interpretation, which I am going to propose.
I observed, that the text, as read in connexion with the preceding verse, is most naturally, according to our ideas of interpretation, to be understood, as I have already explained it. But, what is the most natural, according to our modern rules and principles of construction, is not always the true, sense of passages in ancient oriental writers (who did not affect our accuracy of connexion), and particularly in the writers of the New Testament.
To give a remarkable instance in a discourse of our Lord himself. He had prescribed to his disciples that form of prayer, which we know by the name of the Lord’s prayer, consisting of several articles; the last of which is—for thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory for ever[94]. Now, to this concluding sentence of his prayer he immediately subjoins these words—FOR if we forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. But, from the illative particle, for, according to our notions of exact composition, was to be expected a reason, or illustration, of the immediately foregoing clause, the doxology, which shuts up this prayer: whereas, the words, which that particle introduces, have respect to another and remote clause in the same prayer, namely, forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors[95], and express the ground and reason, only, of that petition.
In like manner, the illation expressed in the text—FOR every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt—may not be intended to respect the preceding words—where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched—but something else, which had been advanced in our Lord’s discourse, though at some distance from the text; and possibly, the general scope or subject of it. Consider, then, what that subject is. It is necessary, our Lord tells his disciples, for such as would escape the woes, threatened, and approve themselves faithful followers of him, to subdue or renounce their most favourite inclinations, by which they might be, at any time, tempted to offend, though the pain of this self-denial should be ever so grievous to them.
To reconcile their minds to this harsh doctrine, he may then be supposed to resume that topic, and to justify the advice, which, with so much apparent severity, he had given them. And then we may conceive him to speak to this effect:
“I have said, you must not regard the uneasiness, which the conduct, I require of you, will probably occasion. For every one, that is, every true Christian, every one that is consecrated to my service, and would escape the punishment by fire, in the world to come, shall be salted with fire, in the present world; that is, shall be tried with sufferings of one kind or other, can only expect to be continued in a sound and uncorrupt state, by afflictions; which must search, cleanse, and purify your lives and minds, just as fire does those bodies, which it refines, by consuming all the dross and refuse, contained in them. The process may be violent, but the end is most desirable, and even necessary. And, that it is so, ye may discern from the wisdom of your own Law, which requires that every sacrifice, fit to be offered up to God in the temple-service, shall be salted with salt; that is, preserved from putrefaction, and even all approaches to it, by the application of that useful, though corroding substance. Now, the fire of affliction shall be to your moral natures, what salt is to the animal. It may agitate and torment your minds, but it shall eat all the principles of corruption out of them, and so keep them clean and untainted; as is fit, considering the heavenly use that is to be made of them, it being your duty, and even interest, to present them, as a sacrifice acceptable and well pleasing to God[96].”
In this way, you see, the text is reasonably explained of moral discipline in this world, not of future punishment. What may be thought to occasion some little difficulty, or, at least, particularity, in the mode of writing, is, that one metaphor seems here employed to explain another. But we should rather conceive of the two metaphors, as employed, jointly and severally, to express this moral sentiment—‘That affliction contributes to preserve and improve our virtue.’ The allusion to the effects of salt was exceedingly obvious and natural in the mouth of a Jew, addressing himself to Jews[97]. Not but it was common enough, too, in Gentile writers[98]. And the other allusion to the effects of fire (though the two figures are in a manner run together by speaking of the subject, to which they are applied, as salted with fire). This allusion, I say, to fire, is justified by the familiar use of it, in the sacred writings. For thus we are told, that fire must try every man’s work[99]—that our faith is tried, as gold by fire[100]—that a fiery trial must try us[101]—that, as gold is tried in the fire, so are acceptable men in the furnace of adversity[102]—and in other instances.
Of both these natural images, it may be affirmed, that they are not unusually applied to moral subjects: and, if we thus apply them in the text, the use to ourselves, according to this interpretation, is considerable and even important; no less, than the seeing enforced, in the most lively manner, and by our Saviour himself, this great moral and evangelical lesson—that the virtue of a good mind must be maintained at whatever expence of trouble and self-denial—and for this plain reason, because, though no chastening for the present seem to be joyous, but grievous; nevertheless, afterward, it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them, which are exercised thereby[103].
And, that such is probably the true sense of the text, we have been considering, may further be concluded from the light it throws on the following and last verse of this chapter; the meaning of which will now be very plain and consequential, as may be shewn in few words.
For, having spoken of Christian discipline under the name of salt, which preserves what it searches, our Lord very naturally takes advantage of this idea, and transfers the appellation to Christian faith, which was necessary to support his followers under that discipline, and has this property, in common with salt, that it gives soundness and incorruption to the subject on which it operates. Salt, says he, is good: but, if salt have lost its saltness, wherewith will ye season it? That is, faith in me (for by salt, you easily perceive, I now mean that faith, which is your true seasoning, and can alone maintain your firmness and integrity under all trials; this faith, I say) is a salutary principle: but take notice, if you suffer that principle, so active and efficacious, to decay and lose its virtue, there are no means left to retrieve it. Like salt, grown insipid, it can never recover its former quality, but is for ever worthless and useless[104]. Therefore, adds he, take care to have, that is, retain, this salt, this good seasoning of your Christian principles, in yourselves; which will preserve you incorrupt, as individuals: and, as salt, from its necessary use at the table, is further an emblem of union and friendship, give proof of these principles in your intercourse with all Christians, so as to keep peace one with another; for, by this seasoning of peace, ye will best preserve yourselves entire, as a body of men, or society[105].
We see, then, that understanding this fire, with which every one shall be salted, of the fire of affliction only, which, like salt, is to try and preserve the moral integrity of all believers, and not of the fire which dieth not, and, according to the former interpretation, was to preserve offenders in a perpetual capacity of enduring future punishment; understanding, I say, this metaphor in the former sense, we have an easy, elegant, and extremely useful sense in the words of the text: a sense, which perfectly agrees with what precedes the text, and illustrates what follows it: whereas, in the other way of explaining these words, it will be difficult to shew their coherence with the subsequent verse, though they admit an application to the foregoing.
On the whole, I leave it to yourselves to judge, which of the two interpretations, now proposed to you, is the proper one. I know of no other, that so well deserves your notice, as these two: and, if either of them be admissible, we have gained the satisfaction of understanding a very obscure passage of holy Scripture. But we have gained more, than this: for, whichever we prefer, a momentous inference may be drawn from it. Either, we must resolve to stick close to our Christian faith and principles, as the only means of preserving our integrity, and making us fit for the favour of God, to whatever trials of any kind they may expose us: OR, we shall have to reflect, what SUFFERING, terrible beyond imagination, is reserved for obstinately impenitent and incorrigible sinners.