MELCHIZEDEK: The Mysterious Priest-King

 

Ever since, Melchizedek has been seen as an enigmatic biblical character, despite the fact that he was only mentioned a few times. Some ancient Jewish interpreters regarded him as an exalted or even angelic figure. Some Christians today believe that he was Christ in His pre-incarnate form—making Christ the reincarnation of Melchizedek! Though different beliefs surround this mysterious priest-king, the Bible provides details we can examine to dismiss misinformation.

𝗔 𝗗𝗜𝗩𝗜𝗡𝗘 𝗕𝗘𝗜𝗡𝗚?

For the Qumran sect (or Dead Sea Sect), a Jewish community/cult that separated from the majority of the Jews at that time, Melchizedek was a divine being who would play a role in the final days as judge and heavenly deliverer, defeating Belial—their name for “Satan,” also called Melchi-resha (“King of wickedness”). For the philosopher Philo, Melchizedek was the “Logos” or “embodied Word of God.”

The character became controversial when he was mentioned in the prophetic psalm—Psalm 110—which speaks of the coming king (the “Messiah”) from David’s line who would be “a priest forever, in the order (post, rank, or position) of Melchizedek” (v. 4). Since the Messiah would have royal priesthood, it was expected that the prophecy would mention a familiar biblical character who also held a dual role. Because of this prophecy, some later used the same description to gain support from the Jewish community.

The Hasmoneans, a political dynasty in the second century BC, claimed that their leaders were priest-kings in the order of Melchizedek. Though these extrabiblical beliefs are fascinating, the author of Genesis—who first introduced the character to us—offers no hint to support these ideas.

Based on the Genesis account, Melchizedek was a real historical figure, one of the Canaanite kings who met Abram/Abraham in the King’s Valley (Gen. 14:17–24). To modern readers, it may seem strange that he was both priest and king, but to ancient people, this was not unusual. He was “priest of God Most High” (El Elyon, v. 18). Some suggest that Melchizedek worshiped Yahweh, just as Abraham did (v. 22). But since “El Elyon” was also a common title for Canaanite gods, it may not necessarily mean so.

Genesis narrates that the priest-king blessed Abram, and Abram gave him a tithe (vv. 19–20). Since tithes were a common practice, Abraham may have given it to him either because he was a priest (indirectly, to El Elyon) or because he was a king, as a sign of respect to his position. Based on the record, it is impossible to establish that he was a divine being.

𝗣𝗥𝗘-𝗜𝗡𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗖𝗛𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧?

The author of Hebrews beautifully argued that Christ is our Great High Priest, far superior to the priests of that time, by directly stating that He is the promised priest-king in the order of Melchizedek (Heb. 5:6–10). He used the biblical account of Melchizedek to describe Christ.

The description of Melchizedek is very intriguing: “Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.” (Heb. 7:3)

Some say that the author wanted to imply that Melchizedek and Christ are the same person—that the priest-king who met Abraham was Jesus in His pre-incarnate form. This interpretation, however, is based on a misreading of the passages. To better understand the writer’s intent, let’s note the following:

First, the text clearly says that Melchizedek was “resembling the Son of God” (v. 3), not the Son of God Himself. Some translations even use “having been made like the Son of God.” The writer simply wanted to make a comparison between Melchizedek and Jesus.

Second, since the author wanted to prove that Christ is the awaited priest in the order of Melchizedek based on Psalm 110, he highlighted certain details about Melchizedek and related them to Jesus:

• The meaning of “Melchizedek” is “king of righteousness” (v. 2), which applies to Christ.

• He is also called “king of Salem.” Since “Salem” means “peace,” he is the “king of peace” (v. 2). Again, this points to Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

• Lastly, since there is no record of Melchizedek’s parents or genealogy, we do not know his origin or end. This silence makes him appear as if he had no beginning or end (v. 3). The author used this to point to Jesus, who truly is eternal, with no beginning or end. Christ is the perfect priest forever because He never dies (vv. 23–25)! Even the silence of Genesis regarding Melchizedek’s origin and ending was used by Hebrews to point to Christ.

Third, since the author of Hebrews did not connect Melchizedek’s bread and wine (Gen. 14:18) with Jesus’ bread and wine (Matt. 26:26–27), we should not connect them either. Unfortunately, some still do, which leads to misreading the text.

In summary, the writer never intended to say that Christ and Melchizedek are the same. He was only drawing an analogy. Melchizedek was not a pre-incarnate Christ, but rather a type of Christ—someone with similarities that point to Him.

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The mysteries surrounding Melchizedek must not distract us from this truth: Jesus is the Great High Priest we all need. The righteous and eternal High Priest who offers us peace also understands our weaknesses: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.” (Heb. 4:15). Stay Curious.

Sources and Studies:

Walton, J. and, Keener, C. (2016). “See footnotes for Gen 14:18”. 𝘕𝘐𝘝 𝘊𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘺 𝘉𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦. Zondervan
Walton, J. and, Keener, C. (2016). “See footnotes for Heb 7:1-10”. 𝘕𝘐𝘝 𝘊𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘺 𝘉𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦. Zondervan
Gleason, A.L (2001). “Was Melchizedek a historical person or a mythical figure? ”𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘌𝘯𝘤𝘺𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘋𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 . Zondervan
Howe, T., and Geisler, N. (1992). “Hebrews 7:3 —Does this verse support reincarnation? ” 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘊𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘈𝘴𝘬. Victor Books.
McKenzie, J.L (1965). “Melchizedek. 𝘋𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦. McMillian Publishing.
Eams, C. (2012). “Uncovering the Identity of Melchizedek: Dead Sea Scroll 11QMelch” . 𝘈𝘳𝘮𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘵𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘉𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘈𝘳𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺. Retrieved from https://armstronginstitute.org/977-uncovering-the...