◀ All Reading Plans / Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary) / Numbers 11:4-6 10-16 24-29 (The spirit is upon seventy elders); Psalm 19:7-14 (The law gives light); James 5:13-20 (Prayer and anointing in the community); Mark 9:38-50 (Warnings to those who obstruct faith) (New English Translation)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Daily Bible readings that follow the church liturgical year, with thematically matched Old and New Testament readings.

Duration: 1245 days

Numbers 11:4-6

Complaints about Food

⁴^[a] Now the mixed multitude^[b] who were among them craved more desirable foods,^[c] and so the Israelites wept again^[d] and said, “If only we had meat to eat!^[e] ⁵We remember^[f] the fish we used to eat^[g] freely^[h] in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic. ⁶But now we^[i] are dried up,^[j] and there is nothing at all before us^[k] except this manna!”

Footnotes

Numbers 11:4 sn The story of the sending of the quail is a good example of poetic justice, or talionic justice. God had provided for the people, but even in that provision they were not satisfied, for they remembered other foods they had in Egypt. No doubt there was not the variety of foods in the Sinai that might have been available in Egypt, but their life had been bitter bondage there as well. They had cried to the Lord for salvation, but now they forget, as they remember things they used to have. God will give them what they crave, but it will not do for them what they desire. For more information on this story, see B. J. Malina, The Palestinian Manna Tradition. For the attempt to explain manna and the other foods by natural phenomena, see F. W. Bodenheimer, “The Manna of Sinai,” BA 10 (1947): 1-6.
Numbers 11:4 tn The mixed multitude (or “rabble,” so NASB, NIV, NRSV; NLT “foreign rabble”) is the translation of an unusual word, הָאסַפְסֻף (haʾsafsuf). It occurs in the Hebrew Bible only here. It may mean “a gathering of people” from the verb אָסַף (ʾasaf), yielding the idea of a mixed multitude (in line with Exod 12:38). But the root is different, and so no clear connection can be established. Many commentators therefore think the word is stronger, showing contempt through a word that would be equivalent to “riff-raff.”
Numbers 11:4 tn The Hebrew simply uses the cognate accusative, saying “they craved a craving” (הִתְאַוּוּ תַּאֲוָה, hitʾavvu taʾavah), but the context shows that they had this strong craving for food. The verb describes a strong desire, which is not always negative (Ps 132:13-14). But the word is a significant one in the Torah; it was used in the garden story for Eve’s desire for the tree, and it is used in the Decalogue in the warning against coveting (Deut 5:21).
Numbers 11:4 tc The Greek and the Latin versions read “and they sat down” for “and they returned,” involving just a change in vocalization (which they did not have). This may reflect the same expression in Judg 20:26. But the change does not improve this verse.tn The Hebrew text uses a verbal hendiadys here, one word serving as an adverb for the other. It literally reads “and they returned and they wept,” which means they wept again. Here the weeping is put for the complaint, showing how emotionally stirred up the people had become by the craving. The words throughout here are metonymies. The craving is a metonymy of cause, for it would have then led to expressions (otherwise the desires would not have been known). And the weeping is either a metonymy of effect, or of adjunct, for the actual complaints follow.
Numbers 11:4 tn The Hebrew expresses the strong wish or longing idiomatically: “Who will give us flesh to eat?” It is a rhetorical expression not intended to be taken literally, but merely to give expression to the longing they had. See GKC 476 §151.a.1.
Numbers 11:5 tn The perfect tense here expresses the experience of a state of mind.sn As with all who complain in such situations, their memory was selective. It was their bitter cries to the Lord from the suffering in bondage that God heard and answered. And now, shortly after being set free, their memory of Egypt is for things they do not now have. It is also somewhat unlikely that they as slaves had such abundant foods in Egypt.
Numbers 11:5 tn The imperfect tense would here be the customary imperfect, showing continual or incomplete action in past time.
Numbers 11:5 tn The adverb “freely” is from the word חָנַן (khanan, “to be gracious”), from which is derived the noun “grace.” The word underscores the idea of “free, without cost, for no reason, gratis.” Here the simple sense is “freely,” without any cost. But there may be more significance in the choice of the words in this passage, showing the ingratitude of the Israelites to God for His deliverance from bondage. To them now the bondage is preferable to the salvation—this is what angered the Lord.
Numbers 11:6 tn Heb “our souls.”
Numbers 11:6 sn The Hebrews were complaining both about the bland taste of the manna and dehydration—they were parched in the wilderness.
Numbers 11:6 tn Heb “before our eyes,” meaning that “we see nothing except this manna.”

Numbers 11:10-16

Moses’ Complaint to the Lord

¹⁰^[a] Moses heard the people weeping^[b] throughout their families, everyone at the door of his tent; and when the anger of the Lord was kindled greatly, Moses was also displeased.^[c] ¹¹And Moses said to the Lord, “Why have you afflicted^[d] your servant? Why have I not found favor in your sight, that^[e] you lay the burden of this entire people on me? ¹²Did I conceive this entire people?^[f] Did I give birth to^[g] them, that you should say to me, ‘Carry them in your arms, as a foster father^[h] bears a nursing child,’ to the land that you swore to their fathers? ¹³From where shall I get^[i] meat to give to this entire people, for they cry to me, ‘Give us meat, that we may eat!’^[j] ¹⁴I am not able to bear this entire people alone,^[k] because it^[l] is too heavy for me! ¹⁵But if you are going to deal^[m] with me like this, then kill me immediately.^[n] If I have found favor in your sight then do not let me see my trouble.”^[o]

The Response of God

¹⁶^[p] The Lord said to Moses, “Gather to me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know are elders of the people and officials^[q] over them, and bring them to the tent of meeting; let them take their position there with you.

Footnotes

Numbers 11:10 sn Moses begins to feel the burden of caring for this people, a stubborn and rebellious people. His complaint shows how contagious their complaining has been. It is one thing to cry out to God about the load of ministry, but it is quite another to do it in such a way as to reflect a lack of faith in God’s provision. God has to remind the leader Moses that he, the Lord, can do anything. This is a variation on the theme from Exodus—“who am I that I should lead….”
Numbers 11:10 tn The participle “weeping” is functioning here as the noun in the accusative case, an adverbial accusative of state. It is explicative of the object.
Numbers 11:10 tn Heb “it was evil in the eyes of Moses.”
Numbers 11:11 tn The verb is the Hiphil of רָעַע (raʿaʿ, “to be evil”). Moses laments (with the rhetorical question) that God seems to have caused him harm.
Numbers 11:11 tn The infinitive construct with the preposition is expressing the result of not finding favor with God (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 12-13, §57). What Moses is claiming is that because he has been given this burden God did not show him favor.
Numbers 11:12 sn The questions Moses asks are rhetorical. He is actually affirming that they are not his people, that he did not produce them, but now is to support them. His point is that God produced this nation, but has put the burden of caring for their needs on him.
Numbers 11:12 tn The verb means “to beget, give birth to.” The figurative image from procreation completes the parallel question, first the conceiving and second the giving birth to the nation.
Numbers 11:12 tn The word אֹמֵן (ʾomen) is often translated “nurse,” but the form is a masculine form and would better be rendered as a “foster parent.” This does not work as well, though, with the יֹנֵק (yoneq), the “sucking child.” The two metaphors are simply designed to portray the duty of a parent to a child as a picture of Moses’ duty for the nation. The idea that it portrays God as a mother pushes it too far (see M. Noth, Numbers [OTL], 86-87).
Numbers 11:13 tn The Hebrew text simply has “from where to me flesh?” which means “from where will I have meat?”
Numbers 11:13 tn The cohortative coming after the imperative stresses purpose (it is an indirect volitive).
Numbers 11:14 tn The word order shows the emphasis: “I am not able, I by myself, to bear all this people.” The infinitive לָשֵׂאת (laseʾt) serves as the direct object of the verb. The expression is figurative, for bearing or carrying the people means being responsible for all their needs and cares.
Numbers 11:14 tn The subject of the verb “heavy” is unstated; in the context it probably refers to the people, or the burden of caring for the people. This responsibility was turning out to be a heavier responsibility than Moses anticipated. Alone he was totally inadequate.
Numbers 11:15 tn The participle expresses the future idea of what God is doing, or what he is going to be doing. Moses would rather be killed than be given a totally impossible duty over a people that were not his.
Numbers 11:15 tn The imperative of הָרַג (harag) is followed by the infinitive absolute for emphasis. The point is more that the infinitive adds to the emphasis of the imperative mood, which would be immediate compliance.
Numbers 11:15 tn Or “my own ruin” (NIV). The word “trouble” here probably refers to the stress and difficulty of caring for a complaining group of people. The suffix on the noun would be objective, perhaps stressing the indirect object of the noun—trouble for me. The expression “on my trouble” (בְּרָעָתִי, b^eraʿati) is one of the so-called tiqqune sopherim, or “emendations of the scribes.” According to this tradition the original reading in v. 15 was [to look] “on your evil” (בְּרָעָתֶךָ, b^eraʿatekha), meaning “the calamity that you bring about” for Israel. However, since such an expression could be mistakenly thought to attribute evil to the Lord, the ancient scribes changed it to the reading found in the MT.
Numbers 11:16 sn The Lord provides Spirit-empowered assistance for Moses. Here is another variation on the theme of Moses’ faith. Just as he refused to lead alone and was given Aaron to share the work, so here he protests the burden and will share it with seventy elders. If God’s servant will not trust wholeheartedly, that individual will not be used by God as he or she might have been. Others will share in the power and the work. Probably one could say that it was God’s will for others to share this leadership—but not to receive it through these circumstances.
Numbers 11:16 tn The “officials” (שֹׁטְרִים, shot^erim) were a group of the elders who seem to have had some administrative capacities. The LXX used the word “scribes.” For further discussion, see R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 69-70.

Numbers 11:24-29

²⁴So Moses went out and told the people the words of the Lord. He then gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and had them stand around the tabernacle. ²⁵And the Lord came down in the cloud and spoke to them, and he took some of the Spirit that was on Moses^[a] and put it on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them,^[b] they prophesied,^[c] but did not do so again.^[d]

Eldad and Medad

²⁶But two men remained in the camp; one’s name was Eldad, and the other’s name was Medad. And the Spirit rested on them. (Now they were among those in the registration,^[e] but had not gone to the tabernacle.) So they prophesied in the camp. ²⁷And a^[f] young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp!” ²⁸Joshua son of Nun, the servant^[g] of Moses, one of his choice young men,^[h] said,^[i] “My lord Moses, stop them!”^[j] ²⁹Moses said to him, “Are you jealous for me?^[k] I wish that^[l] all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put his Spirit on them!”

Footnotes

Numbers 11:25 tn Heb “on him”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
Numbers 11:25 tn The temporal clause is introduced by the temporal indicator וַיְהִי (vay^ehi), which need not be translated. It introduces the time of the infinitive as past time narrative. The infinitive construct is from נוּחַ (nuakh, “to rest”). The figurative expression of the Spirit resting upon them indicates the temporary indwelling and empowering by the Spirit in their lives.
Numbers 11:25 tn The text may mean that these men gave ecstatic utterances, much like Saul did when the Spirit came upon him and he made the same prophetic utterances (see 1 Sam 10:10-13). But there is no strong evidence for this (see K. L. Barker, “Zechariah,” EBC 7:605-6). In fact there is no consensus among scholars as to the origin and meaning of the verb “prophesy” or the noun “prophet.” It has something to do with speech, being God’s spokesman or spokeswoman or making predictions or authoritative utterances or ecstatic utterances. It certainly does mean that the same Holy Spirit, the same divine provision that was for Moses to enable him to do the things that God had commanded him to do, was now given to them. It would have included wisdom and power with what they were saying and doing—in a way that was visible and demonstrable to the people! The people needed to know that the same provision was given to these men, authenticating their leadership among the clans. And so it could not simply be a change in their understanding and wisdom.
Numbers 11:25 tn The final verb of the clause stresses that this was not repeated: “they did not add” is the literal rendering of וְלֹא יָסָפוּ (v^eloʾ yasafu). It was a one-time spiritual experience associated with their installation.tc The Targum, Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, and the Vulgate read “they did not cease prophesying,” presumably taking the verb to be יָסֻפוּ (yasufu; from סוּף; suf). This does not represent a change in the consonantal text, only in the vowels, which were not originally written. The Hebrew verb סוּף is rare (occurring) and appears to mean “to come to an end; to perish” (HALOT, 746). This would mean that they did not die from their encounter with the Lord.
Numbers 11:26 tn The form of the word is the passive participle כְּתֻבִים (k^etuvim, “written”). It is normally taken to mean “among those registered,” but it is not clear if that means they were to be among the seventy or not. That seems unlikely since there is no mention of the seventy being registered, and vv. 24-25 says all seventy went out and prophesied. The registration may be to eldership, or the role of the officer.
Numbers 11:27 tn The article indicates that the “young man” was definite in the mind of the writer, but indefinite in English.
Numbers 11:28 tn The form is the Piel participle מְשָׁרֵת (m^esharet), meaning “minister, servant, assistant.” The word has a loftier meaning than the ordinary word for slave.
Numbers 11:28 tn The verb is בָּחַר (bakhar, “to choose”); here the form is the masculine plural participle with a suffix, serving as the object of the preposition מִן (min). It would therefore mean “[one of] his chosen men,” or “[one of] his choice men.”
Numbers 11:28 tn Heb “answered and said.”
Numbers 11:28 sn The effort of Joshua is to protect Moses’ prerogative as leader by stopping these men in the camp from prophesying. Joshua did not understand the significance in the Lord’s plan to let others share the burden of leadership.
Numbers 11:29 tn The Piel participle מְקַנֵּא (m^eqanneʾ) serves as a verb here in this interrogative sentence. The word means “to be jealous; to be envious.” That can be in a good sense, such as with the translation “zeal,” or it can be in a negative sense as here. Joshua’s apparent “zeal” is questioned by Moses—was he zealous/envious for Moses sake, or for some other reason?
Numbers 11:29 tn The optative is expressed by the interrogative clause in Hebrew, “who will give….” Moses expresses here the wish that the whole nation would have that portion of the Spirit. The new covenant, of course, would turn Moses’ wish into a certainty.

Psalm 19:7-14

⁷The law of the Lord is perfect
and preserves one’s life.^[a]
The rules set down by the Lord^[b] are reliable^[c]
and impart wisdom to the inexperienced.^[d]
⁸The Lord’s precepts are fair^[e]
and make one joyful.^[f]
The Lord’s commands^[g] are pure^[h]
and give insight for life.^[i]
⁹The commands to fear the Lord are right^[j]
and endure forever.^[k]
The judgments given by the Lord are trustworthy
and absolutely just.^[l]
¹⁰They are of greater value^[m] than gold,
than even a great amount of pure gold;
they bring greater delight^[n] than honey,
than even the sweetest honey from a honeycomb.
¹¹Yes, your servant finds moral guidance there;^[o]
those who obey them receive a rich reward.^[p]
¹²Who can know all his errors?^[q]
Please do not punish me for sins I am unaware of.^[r]
¹³Moreover, keep me from committing flagrant sins;^[s]
do not allow such sins to control me.^[t]
Then I will be blameless,
and innocent of blatant^[u] rebellion.
¹⁴May my words and my thoughts
be acceptable in your sight,^[v]
O Lord, my sheltering rock^[w] and my redeemer.^[x]

Footnotes

Psalm 19:7 tn Heb “[it] restores life.” Elsewhere the Hiphil of שׁוּב (shuv, “return”) when used with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “life”) as object, means to “rescue or preserve one’s life” (Job 33:30; Ps 35:17) or to “revive one’s strength” (emotionally or physically; cf. Ruth 4:15; Lam 1:11, 16, 19). Here the point seems to be that the law preserves the life of the one who studies it by making known God’s will. Those who know God’s will know how to please him and can avoid offending him. See v. 11a.
Psalm 19:7 tn Traditionally, “the testimony of the Lord.” The noun עֵדוּת (ʿedut) refers here to the demands of God’s covenant law.
Psalm 19:7 tn God’s covenant contains a clear, reliable witness to his moral character and demands.
Psalm 19:7 tn Or “the [morally] naive,” that is, the one who is young and still in the process of learning right from wrong and distinguishing wisdom from folly.
Psalm 19:8 tn Or “just.” Perhaps the idea is that they impart a knowledge of what is just and right.
Psalm 19:8 tn Heb “[they] make happy [the] heart.” Perhaps the point is that they bring a sense of joyful satisfaction to the one who knows and keeps them, for those who obey God’s law are richly rewarded. See v. 11b.
Psalm 19:8 tn Heb “command.” The singular here refers to the law as a whole.
Psalm 19:8 tn Because they reflect God’s character, his commands provide a code of moral and ethical purity.
Psalm 19:8 tn Heb [they] enlighten [the] eyes.
Psalm 19:9 tn Heb “the fear of the Lord is clean.” The phrase “fear of the Lord” probably refers here to the law, which teaches one how to demonstrate proper reverence for the Lord. See Ps 111:10 for another possible use of the phrase in this sense.
Psalm 19:9 tn Heb “[it] stands permanently.”
Psalm 19:9 sn Trustworthy and absolutely just. The Lord’s commands accurately reflect God’s moral will for his people and are an expression of his just character.
Psalm 19:10 tn Heb “more desirable.”
Psalm 19:10 tn Heb “are sweeter.” God’s law is “sweet’ in the sense that, when obeyed, it brings a great reward (see v. 11b).
Psalm 19:11 tn Heb “moreover your servant is warned by them.”
Psalm 19:11 tn Heb “in the keeping of them [there is] a great reward.”
Psalm 19:12 tn Heb “Errors who can discern?” This rhetorical question makes the point that perfect moral discernment is impossible to achieve. Consequently it is inevitable that even those with good intentions will sin on occasion.
Psalm 19:12 tn Heb “declare me innocent from hidden [things],” i.e., sins. In this context (see the preceding line) “hidden” sins are not sins committed in secret, but sins which are not recognized as such by the psalmist.
Psalm 19:13 tn Or “presumptuous sins.”
Psalm 19:13 tn Heb “let them not rule over me.”
Psalm 19:13 tn Heb “great.”
Psalm 19:14 tn Heb “may the words of my mouth and the thought of my heart be acceptable before you.” The prefixed verbal form at the beginning of the verse is understood as a jussive of prayer. Another option is to translate the form as an imperfect continuing the thought of v. 14b: “[Then] the words of my mouth and the thought of my heart will be acceptable before you.”
Psalm 19:14 tn Heb “my rocky cliff,” which is a metaphor for protection; thus the translation “sheltering rock.”
Psalm 19:14 tn Heb “and the one who redeems me.” The metaphor casts the Lord in the role of a leader who protects members of his extended family in times of need and crisis.

James 5:13-20

Prayer for the Sick

¹³Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone in good spirits? He should sing praises. ¹⁴Is anyone among you ill? He should summon the elders of the church, and they should pray for him and anoint^[a] him with olive oil in the name of the Lord. ¹⁵And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick and the Lord will raise him up—and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.^[b] ¹⁶So confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great effectiveness.^[c] ¹⁷Elijah was a human being^[d] like us, and he prayed earnestly^[e] that it would not rain and there was no rain on the land for three years and six months! ¹⁸Then^[f] he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the land sprouted with a harvest.

¹⁹My brothers and sisters,^[g] if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone turns him back, ²⁰he should know that the one who turns a sinner back from his wandering path^[h] will save that person’s^[i] soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

Mark 9:38-50

On Jesus’ Side

³⁸John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him because he was not following us.” ³⁹But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, because no one who does a miracle in my name will be able soon afterward to say anything bad about me. ⁴⁰For whoever is not against us is for us. ⁴¹For I tell you the truth,^[a] whoever gives you a cup of water because^[b] you bear Christ’s^[c] name will never lose his reward.

⁴²“If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a huge millstone^[d] tied around his neck and to be thrown into the sea. ⁴³If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off! It is better for you to enter into life crippled than to have^[e] two hands and go into hell,^[f] to the unquenchable fire.^[g] ⁴⁵If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off! It is better to enter life lame than to have^[h] two feet and be thrown into hell.^[i] ⁴⁷If your eye causes you to sin, tear it out!^[j] It is better to enter into the kingdom of God^[k] with one eye than to have^[l] two eyes and be thrown into hell, ⁴⁸where their worm never dies and the fire is never quenched. ⁴⁹Everyone will be salted with fire.^[m] ⁵⁰Salt^[n] is good, but if it loses its saltiness,^[o] how can you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with each other.”

Footnotes

Mark 9:41 tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amēn), I say to you.”
Mark 9:41 tn Grk “in [the] name that of Christ you are.”
Mark 9:41 tn Or “bear the Messiah’s”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”sn See the note on Christ in 8:29.
Mark 9:42 tn Grk “the millstone of a donkey.” This refers to a large flat stone turned by a donkey in the process of grinding grain (BDAG 661 s.v. μύλος 2; L&N 7.68-69). The same term is used in the parallel account in Matt 18:6.sn The punishment of drowning with a heavy weight attached is extremely gruesome and reflects Jesus’ views concerning those who cause others who believe in him to sin.
Mark 9:43 tn Grk “than having.”
Mark 9:43 sn The word translated hell is “Gehenna” (γέεννα, geenna), a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew words ge hinnom (“Valley of Hinnom”). This was the valley along the south side of Jerusalem. In OT times it was used for human sacrifices to the pagan god Molech (cf. Jer 7:31; 19:5-6; 32:35), and it came to be used as a place where human excrement and rubbish were disposed of and burned. In the intertestamental period, it came to be used symbolically as the place of divine punishment (cf. 1 En. 27:2; 90:26; 4 Ezra 7:36). This Greek term also occurs in vv. 45, 47.
Mark 9:43 tc Most later mss have 9:44 here and 9:46 after v. 45: “where their worm never dies and the fire is never quenched” (identical with v. 48). Verses 44 and 46 are present in A D Θ ƒ¹³ M lat sy^p,h, but lacking in significant Alexandrian mss and several others (א B C L W Δ Ψ 0274 ƒ¹ 28 565 892 co). This appears to be a scribal addition from v. 48 and is almost certainly not an original part of the Greek text of Mark. The present translation follows NA²⁸ in omitting the verse number, a procedure also followed by a number of other modern translations.
Mark 9:45 tn Grk “than having.”
Mark 9:45 tc See tc note at the end of v. 43.
Mark 9:47 tn Grk “throw it out.”
Mark 9:47 sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus’ teaching. The nature of the kingdom of God in the NT and in Jesus’ teaching has long been debated by interpreters and scholars, with discussion primarily centering around the nature of the kingdom (earthly, heavenly, or both) and the kingdom’s arrival (present, future, or both). An additional major issue concerns the relationship between the kingdom of God and the person and work of Jesus himself.
Mark 9:47 tn Grk “than having.”
Mark 9:49 tc The earliest mss ([א] B L [W] Δ 0274 ƒ^1,13 28* 565 700 sy^s sa) have the reading adopted by the translation. Codex Bezae (D) and several Itala read “Every sacrifice will be salted with salt.” The majority of other mss (A C Θ Ψ M lat sy^p,h) have both readings, “Everyone will be salted with fire, and every sacrifice will be salted with salt.” An early scribe may have written the LXX text of Lev 2:13 (“Every sacrifice offering of yours shall be salted with salt”) in the margin of his ms. At a later stage, copyists would either replace the text with this marginal note or add the note to the text. The longer reading thus seems to be the result of the conflation of the Alexandrian reading “salted with fire” and the Western reading “salted with salt.” The reading adopted by the text enjoys the best support and explains the other readings in the ms tradition. sn The statement everyone will be salted with fire is difficult to interpret. It may be a reference to (1) unbelievers who enter hell as punishment for rejection of Jesus, indicating that just as salt preserves so they will be preserved in their punishment in hell forever; (2) Christians who experience suffering in this world because of their attachment to Christ; (3) any person who experiences suffering in a way appropriate to their relationship to Jesus. For believers this means the suffering of purification, and for unbelievers it means hell, i.e., eternal torment.
Mark 9:50 sn Salt was used as seasoning or fertilizer (BDAG 41 s.v. ἅλας a), or as a preservative. If salt ceased to be useful, it was thrown away. With this illustration Jesus warned about a disciple who ceased to follow him.
Mark 9:50 sn The difficulty of this saying is understanding how salt could lose its saltiness since its chemical properties cannot change. It is thus often assumed that Jesus was referring to chemically impure salt, perhaps a natural salt which, when exposed to the elements, had all the genuine salt leached out, leaving only the sediment or impurities behind. Others have suggested the background of the saying is the use of salt blocks by Arab bakers to line the floor of their ovens: Under the intense heat these blocks would eventually crystallize and undergo a change in chemical composition, finally being thrown out as unserviceable. A saying in the Talmud (b. Bekhorot 8b) attributed to R. Joshua ben Chananja (ca. a.d. 90), recounts how when he was asked the question “When salt loses its flavor, how can it be made salty again?” is said to have replied, “By salting it with the afterbirth of a mule.” He was then asked, “Then does the mule (being sterile) bear young?” to which he replied: “Can salt lose its flavor?” The point appears to be both are impossible. The saying, while admittedly late, suggests that culturally the loss of flavor by salt was regarded as an impossibility. Genuine salt can never lose its flavor. In this case the saying by Jesus here may be similar to Matt 19:24, where it is likewise impossible for the camel to go through the eye of a sewing needle.

New English Translation (NET)

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Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

Complaints about Food

Footnotes

Moses’ Complaint to the Lord

The Response of God

Footnotes

Eldad and Medad

Footnotes

Footnotes

Prayer for the Sick

Footnotes

On Jesus’ Side

Footnotes