13“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything but is thrown out and trampled under foot.
The Greek that is translated “if salt has lost its taste (or “saltiness”)?” or similar in English is translated in Amele as “if salt’s bitterness stings” (source: John Roberts), in Mairasi as “if that salt becomes watery” (source: Enggavoter 2004), and in the German New Testament translation by Berger / Nord (publ. 1999) as “even if it would be possible for it to lose its taste.”
John Roberts comments on the nature of the salt in question in this article : “Jesus says salt can lose its salty taste and when it does it is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out. ‘You are the salt of the earth’ in Mat 5.13 is a metaphor. In this metaphor, ‘You’ (the disciples of Jesus) is the tenor and ‘salt of the earth’ is the vehicle of the metaphor. The metaphor applies the properties of salt to the disciples. When Jesus spoke this metaphor the salt (ἅλας) referred to was not pure sodium chloride. It was dug out of the ground mixed with other materials. The salt used in the area mostly came from mines around the Dead Sea and material extracted from that area demonstrates these same properties today. This ‘salt’ was used as seasoning or fertilizer, or as a preservative. However, when exposed to the elements, the sodium chloride in this ‘salt’ would leach out and leave only the sediment or impurities behind. What was left was good for nothing, except that it was used to place in paths, or walks, as we use gravel today. (See: Matthew 5:13 ). These are the properties of ‘salt’ that Jesus applies metaphorically to his disciples.”
The Greek in Matthew 5:13 that is translated as “trampled under foot” or “walk on (the salt)” is translated in Chol as “thrown out with the trash” because there is a taboo regarding stepping on salt.
Like many languages (but unlike Greek or Hebrew or English), Tuvan uses a formal vs. informal 2nd person pronoun (a familiar vs. a respectful “you”). Unlike other languages that have this feature, however, the translators of the Tuvan Bible have attempted to be very consistent in using the different forms of address in every case a 2nd person pronoun has to be used in the translation of the biblical text.
As Voinov shows in Pronominal Theology in Translating the Gospels (in: The Bible Translator2002, p. 210ff. ), the choice to use either of the pronouns many times involved theological judgment. While the formal pronoun can signal personal distance or a social/power distance between the speaker and addressee, the informal pronoun can indicate familiarity or social/power equality between speaker and addressee.
Here, Jesus is addressing his disciples, individuals and/or crowds with the formal pronoun, showing respect.
In Nepali translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and other people with the medium honorific pronoun timīlē (तिमीले) or timīlēharū (तिमीलेहरू). His disciples respond with a high honorific pronoun. (Source: Chitra Chhetri in The Bible Translator 2009, p. 73ff. )
In most Dutch translations, Jesus addresses his disciples and common people with the informal pronoun, whereas they address him with the formal form.
Following are a number of back-translations of Matthew 5:13:
Uma: “‘You who follow me can be compared to salt, which brings goodness [broad word sometimes used to mean salvation] to mankind. But if you do not follow my teaching, you are like salt that is tasteless, it cannot be made salty again, and there is no longer its usefulness, with the result that it is discarded and stepped on.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “‘You who follow me are like salt for all mankind. But when/if the salt has no more taste, it will not become salty again. There is no use for it anymore. Then it is just thrown out and the people walk over it.'” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
Western Bukidnon Manobo: “You, my disciples, you are like salt which is that which makes food good, because you are the means of making all-mankind good. However if the flavor is removed from salt, there is no way to bring its flavor back, and there is no use to salt which no longer has any flavor. It is thrown out and people inadvertently walk on it.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “Jesus continued to teach and said, ‘You are what-can-be-compared to salt for the people on this earth. But if salt becomes-tasteless it is impossible to return its saltiness (same word as sour/bitter). It is useless, therefore it will be thrown-away and people will step on it.” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “Jesus continued his teaching saying, ‘You (pl.) who obey the will of God, an illustration of you is salt, that being really necessary here in the world. Well suppose this salt becomes tasteless, how can its saltiness be caused to return again? Isn’t it useless now? Of course it will just be thrown away. What will happen to it is that it will just be being trodden on by people.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tenango Otomi: “Salt has the work that when it is put on something it keeps it from spoiling. You must do like this in the world so that because you live here it will keep down the evil which people do. But when salt has lost its strength, it is not able to salt anything again. Then it is worth nothing, it is then thrown away, people step on it.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)
Martu Wangka: “Jesus told them a small talk like this, ‘Meat becomes good from salt. That salt is good. Salt which has laid around on the ground becomes bad and then becomes bad rubbish. You all sit like good salt — you who are my relatives. Others, when they see you sitting well, they will gather together with you and they will follow me, Jesus. You will sit like good salt.'” (Source: Carl Gross)
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Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.
One way Japanese shows different degree of politeness is through the choice of a formal plural suffix to the second person pronoun (“you” and its various forms) as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. In these verses, anata-gata (あなたがた) is used, combining the second person pronoun anata and the plural suffix -gata to create a formal plural pronoun (“you” [plural] in English).
Barclay Newman, a translator on the teams for both the Good News Bible and the Contemporary English Version, translated passages of the New Testament into English and published them in 2014, “in a publication brief enough to be non-threatening, yet long enough to be taken seriously, and interesting enough to appeal to believers and un-believers alike.” The following is the translation of Matthew 6:13-16:
For everyone on this earth, you and you alone are salt!
But if salt is no longer salty, it’s good only for gravel.
For everyone on this earth, you and you alone are light.
You are a city on top of a hill and cannot be hidden.
Only a fool would light a lamp and place it under a bucket
instead of on a lamp stand.
Keep your light shining! Let everyone see what you do,
so they will praise your Father above.
Whereas in Mark 9.50 the disciples are told to have salt in themselves (Good News Translation “Have the salt of friendship among yourselves”), here they themselves are identified as the salt of the earth. Good News Translation transforms the metaphor You are the salt into a simile, “You are like salt.” In English, as in many other languages, the use of a simile (“X is like Y”) is clearer and more straightforward than a metaphor (“X is Y”).
As it stands, the genitive expression of the earth is difficult to understand because it leaves ambiguous the relation between salt and earth. New English Bible is an improvement (“You are salt to the world”), and Good News Translation has “… for all mankind.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch entirely restructures (“What salt is for food, this is what you must be for the world”), and INCL has “You are like salt that is needed by this world.”
In many languages it will be necessary to specify in what way you are like salt. Some translations have felt the basis of the comparison is that in the same way salt gives flavor or savor to food, you must give flavor to the earth. But this is probably not what is meant here. It is more likely that you are to preserve or save the earth as salt preserves food. However, because of the variety of ways the expression can be interpreted, a large number of translations have preferred to say in the text “You are like salt for men,” and to discuss what it means in a footnote.
Of the earth, as we pointed out, means “for all people” or “for people everywhere.”
Has lost its taste is difficult to interpret. Salt that is used for food does not lose its taste or its saltness even if unused for a long period of time. This expression must therefore refer to the salt being diluted or somehow mixed with other substances so that it becomes ineffective. The root meaning of the verb is “make foolish” or “show to be foolish” (1 Cor 1.20), and in the passive, “become foolish” (Rom 1.22). Only in this verse and in Luke 14.34 do the lexicons give the meaning for the passive as “become tasteless.”
Scholars have suggested many possible explanations. One is that Jesus is referring to salt being mixed with other substances so that it is no longer effective. Another is that the salt retrieved from the Dead Sea contains other substances, and that if the salt is washed out and lost, only those worthless substances are left. Anchor Bible has “If the salt is of low grade,” and the authors in this way reflect their interpretation of the verb “become foolish” as referring to the salt becoming “insipid” by being mixed and thus weakened. Others suggest that a play on words was involved, in which the Hebrew word for “be foolish” resembles the Aramaic word for “seasoned, salty.” Another suggestion is that salt has been a symbol of wisdom, and that Jesus is warning his disciples not to become “foolish,” as indicated by the use of the Greek verb. Another possibility, of course, is that Jesus knew perfectly well that salt does not change, but that he simply used this unreal and surprising figure of speech in order to teach a lesson more effectively.
We must not assume that Jesus and his disciples knew nothing of the properties of salt. Instead, it is important to recognize the function of this saying of Jesus. First, it is better to regard the figure of salt as referring to preservation of food rather than to improving the taste, although both may be involved. Although Jerusalem Bible follows Revised Standard Version with “become tasteless,” most of the modern translations settle for the meaning “loses its strength” (Good News Translation, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, An American Translation, Luther 1984). Second, he is saying that the disciples are the people who have the spiritual knowledge, wisdom, and way of life by which to preserve this world in a proper condition, and it is not the religious leaders or government officials who can do it. Third, he is warning his followers against a useless discipleship, one that is weak or diluted so as to become ineffective.
Because salt is known wherever Bible translations are prepared, there is no difficulty preparing a translation that preserves salt as a figure of speech. However, the translator should take care that the structure of the sentence will not cause undue difficulty for the practical application of the figure in the life of a Christian. Few translations choose the interpretation “be foolish” for lost its taste. More common are those who say “no longer tastes like salt,” “no longer does what salt should do,” or “if the salt becomes so impure that it is no longer really salt.” But “loses its strength” will be the most common.
The sentence continues by asking how shall its saltness be restored? The translation will depend on how “lost its taste” was translated, since it should be similar. Following the above examples, the clause can be “how can it be made to taste like salt again?” “how can it once more do what salt should do (or, once more act like salt)?” “how can it become salt again?” or “how can it regain its strength?”
It is no longer good for anything (Good News Translation “It has become worthless”) is more literally “It no longer has strength for anything.” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “One can no longer use it for anything.” Other options are “People have no further use for it,” “It is no longer good for anything,” or “You can do nothing with it,” as in Barclay.
Thrown out may have to be “thrown outside” or “thrown out of doors.”
Trodden (Good News Translation “trample”) is also used in Matthew 7.6 and Luke 8.5 with the same meaning. Elsewhere in the New Testament it is found only in Luke 12.1 and Hebrews 10.29. Trodden under foot does not mean people will deliberately walk on it or somehow try to stamp it into the ground. The idea is it will be out on the ground where people walk, perhaps even on a road.
Taking these things into account, the sentence can be translated “It is no longer good for anything, so it will just be thrown outdoors where it will be walked on” or “You can do nothing with it except throw it out, and there it will get walked on (or, people will walk on it).”
Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .
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