The King of righteousness and peace
For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, met Abraham and blessed him as he returned from defeating the kings, and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means king of righteousness, then also, king of Salem, meaning king of peace. Without father, mother, or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever. Hebrews 7:1-3 CSB
At the end of chapter 6, the author speaks on how Jesus “has become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” We saw previously from Hebrews 5:6 the introduction of this connection between Jesus’ priesthood and Melchizedek’s, which is a quote from Psalm 110:4, “‘The Lord has sworn an oath and will not take it back: ‘You are a priest forever according to the pattern of Melchizedek.’” Hebrews 7:1 is in reference to Genesis 14:18-20, the only other place in the Old Testament where Melchizedek is named. Genesis 14 tells of the story of how Abraham (at the time Abram) was victorious in rescuing Lot from multiple kings and their respective armies, bringing back all the goods they had retrieved. The king of Sodom goes to Abraham to barter with him, that he would return the captured people in exchange, Abraham would be allowed to keep everything from the battle. Before this exchange, however, we see in Genesis 14:18-20: “Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine; he was a priest to God Most High. He blessed him and said: Abram is blessed by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth, and blessed be God Most High who has handed over your enemies to you. And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.” Melchizedek, the king of Salem, in which the author of Hebrews interprets that as a title of the “king of peace,” priest of the Most High, blesses Abraham. Israel was unique in comparison to other ancient nations, for in the neighboring nations, the office of high priest and king were the same. Melchizedek, both king and high priest, worshipped the same God as Abraham. So, Melchizedek, being in a higher position than Abraham, is able to bless him, and in return, Abraham offers a tithe, a thank offering to God for the victory. Now, the author of Hebrews points out in Hebrews 7:3 that Melchizedek was unique in that there is no written record of his genealogy, “without father, mother, or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life.” Many scholars believe that because of these statements, Melchizedek could have been an early physical incarnation of Jesus on earth or an angel on earth. Although Melchizedek resembled Jesus Christ, he was just that, a resemblance, but not the real thing. Therefore, Jesus appearing and being the High Priest “forever,” is more glorious than Melchizedek. We have seen so far through the book of Hebrews how Jesus is superior to the angels, to Moses, to Aaron, and now, to Melchizedek, the king of peace and righteousness. Jesus is the ultimate expression of peace and righteousness, and is our eternal High Priest, making intercessions on our behalf before the Father forever and is worthy of worship and praise.
Blessings,
Isaac De Guzman
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