See also entry entitled, “Money”
Salary is about “salt”, surprisingly. Salt was such a precious commodity in Bible times, to preserve food. Therefore, salt was sometimes part of the payment of soldiers. Certainly the etymology of the word salary show it comes from the word, salt.
While Wikipedia says Roman soldiers were not paid in salt, it may have been a “salt allowance”, since salt was so important to survival, especially in war time. The following history site says soldiers were SOMETIMES paid in salt. See https://www.thevintagenews.com/2016/08/22/priority-roman-times-salt-worth-weight-gold-soldiers-sometimes-paid-salt-hence-word-salary/
Salt or salary in a dream speaks of the genuineness of a Christian life – as opposed to just walking in the old, fallen nature.
Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” Matthew 5:13
Back then, salt often had impurities in it, rendering it useless. Pure salt consists of two elements, being the compound sodium chloride.
When a salary appears as a dream detail, it is not generally about money or physical provision. Anything to do with money is going to have a spiritual meaning anyway. It will always be about a person’s character and therefore their heavenly reward (or otherwise, if they lose their “salary or salt”.
We see the theme “money”, is also used in this symbolic way in Isaiah 55:1 in which the Lord invites us to buy from Him without price. This is about His free gift of life in the spirit. That’s how one’s character is designed to change into holiness. It’s His easy free gift, if we are willing to give up our fallen nature.
Here is the passage that is key to dreams about money – notice it is an offering of healthy life, abundance and delight:
“You there! Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;
And you who have no money come, buy and eat.
Come, buy wine and milk
Without money and without cost.
2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread,
And your wages for what does not satisfy?
Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good,
And delight yourself in abundance.
3 Incline your ear and come to Me.
Listen, that you may live;
And I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
According to the faithful mercies shown to David.”
(The covenant speaks of God’s binding promise)
Wages, on the other hand are usually about the path of death, sickness, poor relationships etc,
The key passage for this is Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gracious gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
But there’s also a theme of it in the Old Testament such as in Haggai 1:6:
“You have sown much, only to harvest little; you eat, but there is not enough to be satisfied; you drink, but there is not enough to become drunk; you put on clothing, but there is not enough for anyone to get warm; and the one who earns, earns wages to put into a money bag full of holes.”
We also see a reference in Zechariah 11:12 about Judas who betrayed Jesus so that He was crucified. Zechariah 11 is about those who refused to come to Jesus:
“And I said to them, ‘If it is good in your sight, give me my wages; but if not, never mind!’ So, they weighed out thirty shekels of silver as my wages.”
Scots, Scotland or Scottish dance or towns, Tartan or a man called Scott
References to Scottish things such as highland dances, tartan (tribes/ clans also Tartarus), also Gaelic, towns language etc., all relate to Galatians / legalism. This is because the original Galatians were Celts with a fierce history that impacted other nations in the BC era. Gaelic speakers / tribes migrated to many places and later across Europe, through to France (Gaul and related words), England and Ireland and then to Scotland. Biblically from Galatia, which in Paul’s time was a more constrained ethnic group than their fierce forebears, in a dream, they may signify a church falling backwards into legalistic habits.
Any reference to Gaelic, Scotland, tartan etc (etymology relates to Tartarus / Abyss – 2 Peter 2:4) symbolises law keeping instead of trusting Christ alone.
See also the entry on Tartan, https://divine-dreaming.com/2023/09/19/dream-dictionary-the-letter-t/
Seeds, Beans, Rice
The symbol of seeds is central to the wonderful Bible story of God gathering humanity back to Himself as Father God. It is no surprise, then, that seeds and plants are regular features in biblical dreams.
Jesus tells us that the parable of the sower (someone who plants seeds) is key to understanding all parables (Mark 4:13).
God’s intention for humanity is that every human ever conceived into this world be reconceived with His own “seed”. the bible actually uses the word , “sperma” to describe this happening.
But if we are born of a human egg and sperm, why so we need to be born anew?
The answer is in the post at https://divine-dreaming.com/2025/04/13/healing-spirit-soul-and-body/ – read from about paragraph 12 onwards.
The seed parable can be found in Matthew 13:18-23, Mark 4:13-20; Luke 8:11-15. It is so important that the Lord has three writers repeat it. The key to understanding the seed in this parable is that the seed is a symbol of God’s Word, His simple message of the Bible. Christ is also spoken of as God’s Word, and it is He who comes to dwell inside the human heart. You can tell if someone has Jesus Christ in their heart because they start to act like Him.
In the parable of the sower we also have the symbols of soil quality and garden pests. These also appearing dreams about gardens. Here’s Jesus’ run down to help us turn to Him for healing : 1. the birds who rob the seed when it falls on a path, represent the devil who doesn’t want people to be well. 2. The rocks in the soil represent people who have no room in themselves for God’s word and although they receive it with joy, soon wither up, when their love is tested. They have no root (depth) in themselves. 3. The seed that falls among thorns quickly falls away from Jesus. He is more concerned with worries of this life (See Matthew 6:25-34). But the seed landing on good soil means some have good hearts towards God and when they hear the word (receive the seed), they produce a bountiful crop. The crop they produce will be rewarded by God because it is done in His power and not our own.
For the mustard seed, see the entry on “Trees”.
If you happen to see a gardener, or talk to one in a dream, it is highly likely that entity represents Jesus Christ. He was mistaken for the gardener at the time when He had just risen from the dead. He also depicts Himself as the one looking after His garden in many scriptures. See also the lovely imagery about the bride and groom (Jesus) in their lovers’ garden in the Song of Solomon. See the entry, “Garden”.
The Letter S – Silver
Silver is not an uncommon biblical dream symbol. Vehicles with wheels, boats, coins and instruments and a variety of objects can appear in dreams as silver in colour.
When we dream of something silver, we take note of other features of the objects. For example, how many silver coins or vehicles? Size, number and odd things all add context to the dream’s message.
Interestingly, silver has healing properties. Before pharmaceuticals were regulated so tightly, colloidal silver was used as an antibiotic for people. It kills germs by surrounding the cell membrane and destroying it, and therefore the bacterium it held. That said, it shouldn’t be ingested as it would destroy healthy gut bacteria. But on grazes, cuts and burns it will sterilize the wound. It is still used by vets and in hospital burns units today. It is cheap because it uses so little silver; it is easy to produce and can be done with very simple equipment if one has that knowledge and skill. Colloidal silver is God’s gift.
Silver is also a gift of God, when used wisely, and a great symbol of the healing power of God.
As such, silver is a biblical symbol of atonement / salvation and restoration as illustrated in a number of Bible passages. The most significant one I love is the ransom money in Exodus 30:12:
Exodus 30: 11 “Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 12 “When you take the census of the children of Israel for their number, then every man shall give a ransom for himself to the Lord, when you number them, that there may be no plague among them when you number them.“
The use of this silver, as we see in the construction of the tabernacle, was in both hooks and sockets. (Bronze was also used in various places / symbol of judgment).
Exodus 38: 25And the silver from those who were numbered of the congregation was one hundred talents and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary: 26 a bekah for each man (that is, half a shekel, according to the shekel of the sanctuary), for everyone included in the numbering from twenty years old and above, for six hundred and three thousand, five hundred and fifty men. 27 And from the hundred talents of silver were cast the sockets of the sanctuary and the bases of the veil: one hundred sockets from the hundred talents, one talent for each socket. 28 Then from the one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels he made hooks for the pillars, overlaid their capitals, and made bands for them.“
A thousand pieces of silver was Sarah’s vindication (some translations use the word “rebuke’”) but it justified Sarah and enriched our spiritual father, Abraham. It spoke of Sarah’s restoration to her husband, since Abraham is a type / shadow of God our Father who would send His son.
The Old Testament is rich in symbolism regarding atonement and restoration using silver as a picture of what Jesus Christ would do for humanity. This was not just individual salvation, but also depicts the abundant life of Christ in us, together as the redeemed people of God:
Numbers 10:2 “Make two silver trumpets for yourself; you shall make them of hammered work; you shall use them for calling the congregation and for directing the movement of the camps.
Numbers 18:16 “And those redeemed of the devoted things you shall redeem when one month old, according to your valuation, for five shekels of silver, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, which is twenty gerahs.”
Silver symbolises what is precious to humanity; principally God, Himself. Job 22:25 “Yes, the Almighty will be your gold And your precious silver.”
Silver speaks of purity. It is a symbol of God’s Word. Jesus Christ is that “Word”, which believers are called to be formed as through the refining, not of their spirit, which is redeemed, but of their soul (mind, will and emotions) which is refined through the renewal of the mind through study of the Word. The specific scriptures for this as a symbol are Psalm 12:6 “The words of the Lord are pure words, Like silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times” And:
Psalm 66:10 “For You, O God, have tested us; You have refined us as silver is refined.” And
Proverbs 17:3 “The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, But the Lord tests the hearts.”
Refining fire is seen by many Christians as “par for the course” in the Christian life. A key text is Malachi 3: 2 which predicted the arrival of John the Baptist who brought a strong, clear message of repentance to Israel, preparing the way for Messiah:
“But who can endure the day of His coming?
And who can stand when He appears?
For He is like a refiner’s fire
And like launderers’ soap.
3 He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver;
He will purify the sons of Levi,
And purge them as gold and silver,
That they may offer to the Lord
An offering in righteousness.”
Thirty pieces of silver was the betrayal price Judas received and also lost / discarded before his death. The amount fulfilled the type in Exodus 21: 32
“If the ox gores a manservant or maidservant, the owner must pay thirty shekels of silver to the master of that servant, and the ox must be stoned.”
The goring ox was killed, just as Satan was judged at the crucifixion and “cast out”. John 12:31-32 31 “Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. 32 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.”
The number 30 in association with silver speaks of the cost of salvation and liberation from the Kingdom of darkness. Thus silver and redemption are tied also in the New Testament: Colossians 1: 13 – 14 “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.”
Acts 3:6 shows healing as a gift that any believer can give, even if they have no money. “Then Peter said, ‘Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.’” To dream of no silver /gold, depending on the context, could mean you are needed to heal the sick.
Silver as a negative / warning symbol
Israel was warned against allowing a future king to amass “silver” as it could be a snare for him – “Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself.” But unfortunately, Solomon amassed many wives and much silver, in fact, Solomon made silver as common in Jerusalem as stones.
Silver can also symbolise idolatry. See Psalm 135:15 “The idols of the nations are silver and gold, The work of men’s hands.” And also, Acts “
And in Ecclesiastes 5:10, “He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver; Nor he who loves abundance, with increase. This also is vanity.”
There are many Old Testament scriptures relating silver to idolatry.
Ezekiel 16:17 expands the sin of idolatry to backslidden idolatry. These have known the Lord and been graced by Him only to take His gifts and make idols of them: “You have also taken your beautiful jewellery from My gold and My silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself male images and played the harlot with them.”
See also Acts 19:23-41
So, in some dreams we can see silver as a snare to idolatry; it depends on the context and other symbols used in the dream.
But in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream we see that all the symbols, including silver, all the world’s leaders / empires are superseded / crushed by the King of Kings, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is The Mountain (Zion) spiritually understood as one head with His one body – inseparable – His ekklēsia over which He is head. All come into Him as in Hebrews 12:22 “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, … It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. “
SISTER
In dreams, when a sister appears she is a picture of wisdom personified. Often a sister in a dream is showing you the Holy Spirit within yourself – your newly created being as compared to your soul. This is because the Holy Spirit brings the wisdom / meaning of God’s Word to you; whereas, our soul is usually trying to bring the old nature thinking back. This is why we need to renew our mind, bringing it into line with the new creation within – as in the second scripture below. When we renew our minds, we find mental / mind healing follows because the disconnect has been eroded. Science now teaches us that this biblical truth has a physical effect on our brain neurons, eroding old harmful proteins and therefore thoughts, and replacing them with healthy ones.
Proverbs 7 ESV
My son, keep my words
and treasure up my commandments with you;
2 keep my commandments and live;
keep my teaching as the apple of your eye;
3 bind them on your fingers;
write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
and call insight your intimate friend,
5 to keep you from the forbidden[a] woman,
from the adulteress[b] with her smooth words.
Romans 12:2 ESV
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
To leave our old religious Old Covenant thinking and allow the Holy Spirit to renew our minds is the spiritual worship He desires. He doesn’t require us to be in a building and follow a “service”. That is not seen as worship in the New Testament.
We ought not try to follow Paul’s directions to the Corinthians’ meetings as an idea of worship. They are seen as the most carnal ekklēsial group in the New Testament. Worship is not mentioned for their meetings. Learning certainly was mentioned as they were very much baby Christians, needing spiritual gifts to manifest because of their soulish behaviours. They weren’t living in the new creation, even though they were saved. They did not yet have “the fullness of Christ” that we are meant to have. We note that no other groups were given instructions like those given to the selfish and self-aggrandising Corinthians.
The Letter S – Spider
Spiders and their webs are a symbol of wickedness involving injustice. The webs depict evil plans involving lies to entrap – hence the injustice. The flimsy nature of the web is compared biblically in this chapter with the clothing of righteousness – by implication and contrast. In Isaiah 59, spiders are coupled with “vipers”. Those who follow this way will never know peace. It is the opposite of righteousness which brings peace. Jesus is the Prince of peace which He gives to those of a contrite heart and humble heart. The chapter also names the Redeemer who comes to “stand in the gap” bringing “recompense to His enemies and salvation to those who turn from transgression in Jacob” (ancient Israel) verses 18 to 20.
The Letter S – Sweep, Brush
Instructions to sweep or brush something into another condition or state, usually clean, but also sometimes to brush “dry” or sweep “dry”, is a symbol of deliverance being needed. This is the believer’s job in Christ.
It may be that the believer / dreamer is instructed to sweep something, usually an item of clothing, dry. In natural terms, this hardly makes sense. But the dry place is to the exclusion of anything demonic.
Luke 11:24 – 26 “When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.”
A demon cannot rest in dry places.
The dry is “anydros” – without water, dry, See its use in 2 Pet. 2:17 and Jude 12. It means barren and lifeless, as in a desert.
A demon, seeking a live body, needs the life which water supports (bios) and so outside of a living being, animal or man, demons cannot have expression which the bible speaks of as their “rest” or abode (anapausis).
“Sweeping” can also symbolise the desire of the Lord for a believer to repent. The diligent woman of Luke 15:8 also “swept” her house, presumably of dust and maybe the odd small crumbs of food, to find the kingdom coin. “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbours together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’ Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
The message here is that it is God who seeks the lost as the Gospel is preached and repentance restores the sinner to his saint position.
