Melchizedek was a figure in the Old Testament. We investigate the various passages in the Bible that refer to this person, and come to certain conclusions as presented in this article.

We see references to Melchizedek in the following passages (i) Genesis 14:18, (ii) Psalm 110:4, (iii) Hebrews 5:6-10, (v) Hebrews 6:20, (vi) Hebrews 7:10-17. Let's look at these passages, using the NIV Bible.

Genesis 14:18-20

14:18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High, 19 and he blessed Abram, saying, "Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. 20 And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand." Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

Discussion

We see that Melchizedek was [1] king of Salem (a place that was later called Jerusalem), and [2] at the time of Abram (who was later called Abraham), about 2000 BC. [3] He was a priest of God. [4] He blessed Abraham. [5] Abraham gave him a tithe of 10% of what he had.

PS 110:1 The LORD says to my Lord:
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet."

PS 110:2 The LORD will extend your mighty scepter from Zion;
you will rule in the midst of your enemies.

PS 110:3 Your troops will be willing
on your day of battle.
Arrayed in holy majesty,
from the womb of the dawn
you will receive the dew of your youth.

PS 110:4 The LORD has sworn
and will not change his mind:
"You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek."

Discussion

Psalm 110 was written by King David, about 900-1000 BC. This is a psalm about the Messiah who is to come in David's future.

In verse 1, "The LORD" refers to the Judeo-Christian God. "My Lord" refers to the Messiah. The Psalm refers to a Messiah who would be both a triumphant ruler (who commands armies that are victorious against the forces of evil) and who would also be a priest (i.e., a mediator between God and humankind).

This Psalm is referring to Jesus Christ. He is a mediator between God and Humankind, and at his second coming, he will be a victorious and triumphant ruler, who commands armies that are victorius against the forces of evil.

The Psalm refers to Jesus being a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.

A priest "of the order of Melchizedek" is referring to a Priest who is not a descendent of Levi. Among the Jews, only a descendant of Levi could be a priest to God. God is making it clear that he can choose to appoint a priest who is not a descendant of Levi. Melchizedek is one such example, and Jesus is another such example.

HEB 5:4 No one takes this honor upon himself; he must be called by God, just as Aaron was. 5 So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him,

"You are my Son;
today I have become your Father. "

HEB 5:6 And he says in another place,

"You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek."

HEB 5:7 During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. 8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered 9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him 10 and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

Discussion

The writer of the book of Hebrews is making the following points.

In verse 5, we see that Jesus is the son of God but not by birth (in human terms, i.e., God did not father a child through physical intimacy with a woman), but rather the designation of Jesus as "Son of God" is one of position. In John 1 (and many other passages in the Bible) we see that Jesus is the LOGOS of God, i.e., the very expression of the essence of God. When he came to earth in human form, he chose to take a position that we refer to as "Son of God"… so in essence, Jesus is the LOGOS of God, but in position, he is the Son of God. He takes this position of Son of God to be an example to us, so we too can become children of God, by emulating Him.

In verse 6, we see that God proclaims to us that Jesus is a priest (i.e., a mediator between us and God) forever, of the order of Melchizedek. As we have mentioned above, this is referring to the concept of God appointing a mediator (priest) who is not a descendent of Levi (from whom the Jewish priests were descended).

In verses 7-10, we see Jesus setting an example for us. Jesus was God who took human nature upon himself (in solidarity with us, and to experience the worst suffering we as humans could ever suffer, and to be able to so completely relate to us and our problems and our nature that he could meaningfully enable reconciliation between us and God/ Himself as God). So, once Jesus took human form, he voluntarily experienced the emotions and suffering, that we would experience as humans. He went through the process of being a human, suffering, learning through obedience (as far as his human nature is concerned) and growth towards perfection (as far as his human nature is concerned) in obedience. Through this example to us (of how to live our lives), he quite appropriately "earned" the designation of the ultimate mediator (high priest) between God and Humankind.

As far as Melchizedek is concerned, we see the writer of Hebrews referring to Jesus as being of the order of Melchizedek (i.e., a priest to God, as Melchizedek was, who was not a descendent of Levi… and a priest who was both priest and a king/ ruler).

HEB 6:16 Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. 17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. 19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

HEB 7:1 This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, 2 and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means "king of righteousness"; then also, "king of Salem" means "king of peace." 3 Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever.

HEB 7:4 Just think how great he was: Even the patriarch Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder! 5 Now the law requires the descendants of Levi who become priests to collect a tenth from the people--that is, their brothers--even though their brothers are descended from Abraham. 6 This man, however, did not trace his descent from Levi, yet he collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. 7 And without doubt the lesser person is blessed by the greater. 8 In the one case, the tenth is collected by men who die; but in the other case, by him who is declared to be living. 9 One might even say that Levi, who collects the tenth, paid the tenth through Abraham, 10 because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the body of his ancestor.

HEB 7:11 If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the law was given to the people), why was there still need for another priest to come--one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? 12 For when there is a change of the priesthood, there must also be a change of the law. 13 He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever served at the altar. 14 For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. 15 And what we have said is even more clear if another priest like Melchizedek appears, 16 one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life. 17 For it is declared:

"You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek."

Discussion

The writer of the book of Hebrews is making the following points.

In verses 6:16-20, we see that Jesus is the ultimate mediator (high priest) between God and humankind. And again, the phrase "of the order of Melchizedek" is applied to the priesthood of Jesus.

As before, the writer of Hebrews is making the point that God can choose to appoint a priest who is not a descendent of Levi. It is also relevant to note that priests descended from Levi were forbidden (by God) to exercise earthly rulership, i.e., they could not be kings or generals. However, Melchizedek was both priest and king, and so is Jesus (priest/ mediator now, and king/ ruler who will be manifested as such at the second coming).

In verses 7:1 onwards, we see that Melchizedek is [1] a king, [2] a king of Salem (which was later called Jerusalem), [3] he was Priest of the Judeo-Christian God, [4] he was a contemporary of Abraham, who lived about 2000 BC, [5] he met Abraham after a battle that Abraham had fought, [6] Abraham recognized Melchizedek as his superior, [7] shows this respect by giving him 10% of his stuff, as a tithe, [8] Melchizedek blesses Abraham.

And what about verse 7:3, which states in reference to Melchizedek: "Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever."? This can be understood in one of the following ways.

(A) Melchizedek appears on the scene, in the Bible, without any record of his parents or ancestory, without any record of his birth and death, and his first and last appearances in the Bible have him being a priest. The verse is stating this information in Hebraic idiomatic fashion. This does not necessarily mean that Melchizedek literally was created without parents or that he never died etc.

(B) A second, and alternate, understanding is that Melchizedek was an angel who took human form, and that is why he did not actually experience birth as a human being, or death as a human being. And in human form, he was the ruler and priest for a particular community of people who lived in the kingdom of Salem about 2000 BC.

(C) A third, and alternate, understanding is that Melchizedek is an example of an Old Testament Theophany. A Theophany was an instance, in the Old Testament, where God comes down in human form for a period of time, usually brief. In such situations, it was Jesus who came down to earth in human form. It is possible that Melchizedek is an example of such a Theophany.

Of the options above, Biblical scholars tend to favor option A.

In verses 7:4-10, we see that Melchizedek is greater than Abraham, and greater than future Levi (and greater than the Jewish priesthood all of whose members were descendents of Levi). In verses 7:11-17, we see that Jesus is the ultimate mediator (high-priest) between God and humankind (of the order of Melchizedek). The priesthoood of the order of Aaron (which is a reference to the Jewish priests all of whom were descended from Levi) was insufficient to complete the task of mediating between God and humankind, and so there was a need for a higher priesthood, and an ultimate mediator (the highest mediator) between God and humankind. That ultimate mediator is Jesus Christ.

[1] a king,

[2] a king of Salem (which was later called Jerusalem),

[3] he was Priest of the Judeo-Christian God,

[4] he was a contemporary of Abraham, who lived about 2000 BC,

[5] he met Abraham after a battle that Abraham had fought,

[6] Abraham recognized Melchizedek as his superior,

[7] Abraham shows this respect by giving him 10% of his stuff, as a tithe,

[8] Melchizedek blesses Abraham.

[9] Melchizedek was unique in that he was both priest and king, in contrast to other priests, of the order of Aaron or Levi who were allowed by God to be priests, but not kings or rulers.

[10] Jesus is unique, of the order of Melchizedek, in that he is both priest and king/ruler.

[11] Jesus is superior to all other priests in that he is the ultimate mediator (high-priest) between God and humankind. At the second coming, he will be displayed in power as king/ ruler over all the world.