Who is Melchizedek?
Genesis chapter 14 begins by detailing how the five cities of the plains rebelled against the king of Elam. We aren’t given the prior history except that these cities served this king and paid tribute to prevent being destroyed. It was not uncommon in those days for a defeated city to serve and pay tribute to the kingdoms that defeated them or to pay to prevent being attacked. For 12 years these cities paid their dues. On the 13th year, they rebelled. The king of Elam gathered three other kings to help him make war. Since the cities surrounding Sodom and Gomorrah would not pay, they planned to defeat them and take everything they had. They conquered Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Bela. They took all the possessions, and took many men and women captive. One of the captured men was Lot, Abram’s nephew. Genesis 14:14 picks up the story:
14 Now when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his three hundred and eighteen trained servants who were born in his own house, and went in pursuit as far as Dan.
15 He divided his forces against them by night, and he and his servants attacked them and pursued them as far as Hobah, which is north of Damascus.
16 So he brought back all the goods, and also brought back his brother Lot and his goods, as well as the women and the people.
17 And the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley), after his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him.
18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High.
19 And he blessed him and said: "Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth;
20 And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand." And he gave him a tithe of all.
Who was Melchizedek?
The best biblical explanation of this scripture is found in Hebrews 7. The entire chapter covers the description of Jesus as the high priest. For the sake of this time, I have limited it to the verses that I felt related directly to this topic. This is a hard passage to study. I looked at several differing views. Some teach that Melchizedek wasn’t Christ himself, but was a human priest, which foreshadows the coming Christ. I have to disagree. This is not a foundational issue, so it shouldn’t be divisive, but at the same time, it should be studied. As I read through Hebrews and looked at other passages related to this topic, I can only conclude that this was Christ. Everything in the Old Testament points to the coming of Christ, and Abraham is the example of justification by faith that was offered to us through Christ. Therefore, it is only fitting that Christ would bless Abraham just as He blessed us through the example of Abraham and His own sacrifice on the cross. This is not the only mention of the Son of God appearing in the Old Testament. In the fiery furnace, the Son of God was seen protecting the men who willingly faced death to stand up for their faith in God. Lets begin looking at who Melchizedek is by looking at Hebrews 7:
NKJ Hebrews 7:1 For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,
2 to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated "king of righteousness," and then also king of Salem, meaning "king of peace,"
3 without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.
4 Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils.
…
6 but he whose genealogy is not derived from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises.
7 Now beyond all contradiction the lesser is blessed by the better.
8 Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives.
…
14 For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood.
15 And it is yet far more evident if, in the likeness of Melchizedek, there arises another priest
16 who has come, not according to the law of a fleshly commandment, but according to the power of an endless life.
17 For He testifies: "You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek."
…
22 by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant.
23 Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing.
24 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.
Hebrews 7:3 gives a key description by saying that Melchizedek has neither beginning of days nor end of life, but remains a priest continually. Compare this to John 8:
56 "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."
57 Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"
58 Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."
Anyway you slice up this passage, only Christ could fulfill this description. Only He openly claimed to have been present before Abraham. Only He can be the one without beginning of days or end of life. Only He has the power to have an endless life (verse 16). Who in biblical history was greater than Abraham other than Jesus Christ? In Genesis 14:19, Melchizedek blessed Abraham. Hebrews 7:7 states that in this blessing, the lesser (Abraham) was blessed by the greater (Melchizedek). If God promised that in Abraham, all nations would be blessed, how could Melchizedek be greater unless he was more than just a human priest? It is also worth noting that the king that succeeded Melchizedek was Ebed-Tob. The Amarna tablets contain some of his writings. One of these tablets contains the description for Melchizedek that parallels the description given in Hebrews even though it was written thousands of years earlier.
If we dig a little deeper, we see more identifiers that point to Christ. Psalm 76:2 “In Salem also is His tabernacle, And His dwelling place in Zion.” Salem, Zion and Jerusalem are the same. Melchizedek was the priest out of Jerusalem. If we look ahead, we see that Jesus came out of Jerusalem to die for sins. If we look at the names given, it helps clarify this a little.
Melchizedek - melchi = my king; zedek = righteousness
King of Salem - Salem = peace; king of peace
Literally translated, Melchizedek, king of Salem (Genesis 14:18), means My King of Righteousness, King of Peace. We also see these titles describing Christ elsewhere in the Bible. Two good passages are:
Romans 5:21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Isaiah 9:6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Read Hebrews 13:10-14
11 For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the camp.
12 Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate.
13 Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.
14 For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come.
So what does it all mean?
Peace and righteousness united through Him.
Jesus Christ is called the Prince of Peace and the ruler of righteousness. In Him, both peace and righteousness reign. Where there is no righteousness, there cannot be peace with God. The righteousness of God demands justice against sin. Because disobedience to the law of God requires the penalty of death, there was no other way for righteousness and peace to be bridged for man other than through Jesus Christ. God’s mercy does not nullify His justice. God’s mercy is why He paid the penalty demanded by justice. God’s character is sure and will never change. Therefore, the only way to peace was for Him to bear the penalty in our place. Look at Romans 3:
20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.
21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,
22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,
25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,
26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
Take special note of verse 26 – ‘that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus’. Because we are created in the image of God, we are a direct reflection upon our Creator. Everything sin we commit falls short of that glory that we are created to uphold. Because of sin, we cannot have peace with a righteous God without Him either forfeiting His own just character, or becoming our justifier and forfeiting His right to glory. We know from Philippians 2 that Jesus did exactly that. He humbled Himself, put off His rightful glory and became an obedient servant. In obedience to the will of God, He reconciled us to God by dying on the cross and becoming our justifier. Because of what He has done on our behalf, we who were once short of the glory of God, now rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Or as Romans 5 puts it:
1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
It was Jesus Christ who united the righteousness of God and peace with God on the Cross. This is the significance of Melchizedek.
Communion of His death was planned from the beginning.
Melchizedek went out of Salem (Jerusalem) to bless Abraham and offer bread and wine. Consider the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. He went out of Jerusalem to bless Abraham’s seed and all who would receive Him by faith. I believe the bread and the wine is significant and relates directly to Jesus’ communion of bread and wine. Matthew 26
26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, "Take, eat; this is My body."
27 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you.
28 "For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Once again, the lesser is blessed by the greater. The plan of redemption was established from the beginning. The Bible also tells us that in Jesus rests the Spirit of Wisdom. That wisdom calls in Proverbs 9 using the same bread and wine.
Proverbs 9:1 Wisdom has built her house, She has hewn out her seven pillars;
2 She has slaughtered her meat, She has mixed her wine, She has also furnished her table.
3 She has sent out her maidens, She cries out from the highest places of the city,
4 "Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!" As for him who lacks understanding, she says to him,
5 "Come, eat of my bread And drink of the wine I have mixed.
6 Forsake foolishness and live, And go in the way of understanding.
What a picture of Christ this paints. The foundation has been laid; the sacrifice has been made; the table furnished and the invitation to come is being cried out. Anyone who is tired of their own ways which is lacking in understanding, come. Those who forsake foolishness will turn to the table and live. The bread of His life and the wine of His covenant have been prepared for any who choose life.
*****
If you would like to download this in Word format, it is available at http://www.exchangedlife.com/Sermons/gen/melchizedek.htm
*****
