Jesus was Melchizedek the Priest of the Most High God
(A
Theophany)
A basic
concept that Christians and other Bible students have come to understand is
that of the “Theophany”. See: https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/encyclopedia-of-the-bible/Theophany ; and https://www.gotquestions.org/theophany-Christophany.html
In this post
I’d like to highlight what I believe is a very important Theophany that doesn’t
get nearly the attention it deserves, especially among Christian believers.
While reading
and studying the Bible we sometimes encounter an unfamiliar person whose name (and
probably whose “Title”) is unlike others we’ve previously experienced. One such
example for many Christians and other Bible students was “Melchizedek, the
Priest of the Most High God.” Especially in this case, the lack of
familiarity in no way diminishes the importance of that person. In fact, in
this instance even many knowledgeable Christians have failed to recognize his
role that the “Priest of the Most High God” has had in affecting our faith.
The name
“Melchizedek” first appeared in the Book of Genesis, Chapter 14. When
I looked for more information on him, I turned to the Hebrew Dictionary (#4442)
in my reference Strong’s Expanded Concordance. The results were sparse,
indicating only that he was “an early king in Palestine”; that his name
appeared only twice in the Old Testament (as noted in Genesis Chapter 14, and
again in Psalm 110). That reference then referred me to a related one (#6664)
using the terms “righteousness, just, justice”. The initial reference was
adjacent to the Greek Dictionary entry (#3198), in which the New
Testament spelling was “Melchisedek”. There the only descriptive term was “a
patriarch”, and that name appeared only in the Book of Hebrews,
Chapters 5 (twice), 6 (once) and 7 (six times).
I provide
those details to help orient you to the relevance of this man Melchizedek’s
history and significance to the Nation of Israel, and ultimately to the Gentile
world. For a more complete context, I encourage you to read Genesis Chapter 14
in its entirety. But I’d like to highlight specific verses to explain His priestly role for
both Jews and Gentiles.
By
definition, it is not clear that Melchizedek is indeed our Lord Jesus, but
there are “clues” to His identity from the outset.
Genesis
14: 18: “And
Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he
was the priest of the most high God.” (Bold
Emphasis added.) One of my teachers (Les
Feldick Ministries) pointed out that this was the first occurrence in the
Scripture of the pairing of the combination of “bread and wine”. That combination would prove of particular
significance to those who believe in our Lord Jesus. Remember that near the end of His Earthly
Ministry our Lord Jesus gave bread and wine to His Disciples to eat, to symbolize
His body and blood which He would sacrifice for those who believed in Him.
(Matthew 26: 26-30; Mark 14: 22-26; Luke 22: 14-20) Among Gentile believers, even today that is
how we also share Communion with our Heavenly Savior. (1 Corinthians 10: 16-17)
It is also
noteworthy that Melchizedek was the “king of Salem” In His Incarnate form, Jesus came as Israel’s
long-awaited King / Messiah, and His future Kingdom will be established in
Jerusalem. (Note the reference to “Salem” in “Jerusalem”.)
Genesis
14: 19: “And He
(Melchizedek) blessed him (Abram), and said, Blessed be Abram of the most
high God, possessor of heaven and Earth:” (Bold Emphasis added) Note that Genesis 14: 22, refers to “the
LORD (Jehovah), the most high God, the possessor of heaven and
Earth.” (Bold Emphasis added)
For more context, remember from the Scriptures that there was only one
Creator, and therefore “possessor of heaven and the Earth”, and that was our
Lord Jesus. (Genesis 1: 1; John 1: 1-3,
10; Colossians 1: 12-17)
There are no
further Bible references to Melchizedek until many thousands of years later when
the writer of the Book of Hebrews provides more information
related to his identity. Key to this
discussion is the relationship of our Lord Jesus to the role of Melchisedec as “Priest
of the Most High God”. The writer of
Hebrews provided this perspective:
Hebrews 4: 14-15: “Seeing then that we
have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son
of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be
touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all
points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. (Bold Emphasis added) (Matthew 4: 1-11;
Mark 1: 9-13; Luke 4: 1-13)
Hebrews 5: 5-6,10: 5 So also
Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto
him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. 6 As he saith
also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of
Melchisedec. Called of God an high priest after the order of
Melchisedec (Bold Emphasis
added)
I’ve been highlighting
the role of our Lord Jesus as “Priest”, because many Christians, especially
Protestants, do not exercise their faith through the “involvement of a priest”.
However, even though many believers (Jew and Gentile) might not be aware of it,
our “Priest” is our Ascended Lord Jesus Christ.
I offer the
following perspective for His role by drawing on the Old Testament description
of the role of Israel’s High Priest, Aaron. As we have learned from earlier
studies, most of what we know today is based on understanding what went before.
(Romans 15: 4)
One of the
most significant functions of the High Priest of Israel took place on the annual
observance of the Day of Atonement. (Leviticus 16: 11-19; 23: 26-32) During that observance the High Priest took
the blood of the sacrificed animal behind the vail of the Temple into the Holy of
Holies, where the blood was sprinkled before and on the Mercy Seat of the Ark
of the Covenant. What most people don’t understand is that the animal blood
served only as a temporary “cover” of the sins of the people of Israel . It did
not erase their sins. The animal blood
only served as a forerunner to the Holy Blood of our Lord Jesus, which would be
sprinkled on the Mercy Seat in Heaven. The Book of Hebrews provides an
excellent analysis of this process. (Hebrews Chapter Nine, 10: 1-22) See also: https://www.gotquestions.org/mercy-seat.html
Again, remember
that shortly after His Resurrection our Lord Jesus met Mary outside of the tomb
in which He had been laid. As she approached Him, “Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet
ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend
unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. (John 20:
17) (Highlight added) As our High Priest, He had to remain “uncontaminated”
by human contact until He had carried His Holy Blood to the Mercy Seat in
Heaven. (Exodus 26: 30-34; Hebrews 8: 1-5)
In this manner our Lord Jesus confirmed that He was and is the
Priest of the Most High God for all mankind. (2 Corinthians 5: 14-15) Regrettably, only those who truly believe what
He has done for us through His death, burial and resurrection will receive complete
remission for their sins. (1 Corinthians 15: 1-4; Romans 10: 9-13).
Dr. W. A. (Bill) Robinson
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