Hebrews 7 Melchizedek as a pattern for Christ: Psalm 110: 4 The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
KJV Heb. 7: 1 ¶ For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; Heb. 7: 2 To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; Heb. 7: 3 Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. Heb. 7: 4 Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils. NET Heb. 7: 1 ¶ Now this NJB Heb. 7: 1 ¶ Melchizedek, king of Salem, a priest of God priest of the most high God, Most High, came to meet met Abraham as he was Abraham when he returned returning from defeating the kings, and kings and blessed him; Heb. 7: 2 To him also Abraham Heb. 7: 2 and Abraham gave apportioned a tithe of him a tenth of everything. By everything. His name first the interpretation of his name, means king of righteousness, he is, first, ‘king of saving then king of Salem, that is, king justice’ and also king of Salem, of peace. that is, ‘king of peace’; Heb. 7: 3 Without father, Heb. 7: 3 he has no father, without mother or ancestry, and his life genealogy, he has neither has no beginning or ending; he beginning of days nor end of is like the Son of God. He life but is like the son of God, remains a priest for ever. and he remains a priest for all Heb. 7: 4 ¶ Now think how great time. this man must have been, if the Heb. 7: 4 But see how great he patriarch Abraham gave him a must be, if Abraham the tenth of the finest plunder. patriarch gave him a tithe of his plunder.
How to interpret Melchizedek? • gezerah shawah: linking words. This is particularly relevant because there are only two places in the OT where “Melchizedek” occurs! • The narrative structure of Gen 14 • Latter-day additions
KJV Gen. 14: 17 ¶ And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king’s dale. Gen. 14: 18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. Gen. 14: 19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: Gen. 14: 20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all. Gen. 14: 21 ¶ And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself. Gen. 14: 22 And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth, Gen. 14: 23 That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich: Gen. 14: 24 Save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men which went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion. Schocken Bible Gen. 14: 17 The king of Sedom went out to meet him upon his return from the strike against Kedorla’omer and against the kings that were with him, to the valley of Shaveh—that is now the King’s Valley. Gen. 14: 18 ¶ Now Malki-tzedek, king of Shalem, brought out bread and wine, —for he was priest of God Most-high, Gen. 14: 19 and gave him blessing and said: Blessed be Avram by God Most-high, Founder of Heaven and Earth! Gen. 14: 20 And blessed be God Most-high, who has delivered your oppressors into your hand! He gave him a tenth of everything. Gen. 14: 21 ¶ The king of Sedom said to Avram: Give me the persons, and the property take for yourself. Gen. 14: 22 Avram said to the king of Sedom: I raise my hand in the presence of YHWH, God Most-high, Founder of Heaven and Earth, Gen. 14: 23 if from a thread to a sandal-strap— if I should take from anything that is yours. . . ! So that you should not say: I made Avram rich. Gen. 14: 24 Nothing for me! Only what the lads have consumed, and the share of the men who went with me —Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre, let them take their share. NJB Gen. 14: 17 ¶ When Abram returned from defeating Chedor-laomer and the kings who had been on his side, the king of Sodom came to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the Valley of the King). Gen. 14: 18 Melchizedek king of Salem brought bread and wine; he was a priest of God Most High. Gen. 14: 19 He pronounced this blessing: Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth. And blessed be God Most High for putting your enemies into your clutches. Gen. 14: 20 ¶ And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. Gen. 14: 21 ¶ The king of Sodom said to Abram, ‘Give me the people and take the possessions for yourself. ’ Gen. 14: 22 But Abram replied to the king of Sodom, ‘I swear by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth: Gen. 14: 23 not one thread, not one sandal strap, will I take of what is yours, for you to be able to say, “I made Abram rich. ” Gen. 14: 24 For myself, nothing—except what the troops have used up, and the share due to the men who came with me, Eshcol, Aner and Mamre; let them take their share. ’
THE MELCHIZEDEK EPISODE (vv. 18– 20) It is perfectly natural that a returning hero, whose victory has also benefited the entire region, should be officially greeted by a distinguished personage. But the intrusive nature of the report here, interrupting the smooth sequence of verses 17 and 21, is obvious, and was noted by Rashi, Abravanel, and H¸izkuni. Its position, which is original and not a later insertion, heightens the tension produced by the sudden appearance of the king of Sodom, whose very name is redolent of evil. It also transforms into a spiritual experience what was up to now a secular incident. Victory in war is not attributed to Abram’s skill and valor but to the will of God, who is the ultimate arbiter of human destiny. It is inconceivable that the biblical Narrator would not have introduced such a note into the story. The artfulness with which the Melchizedek episode is integrated into the narrative is proven by the priest-king’s mention of Abram’s victory and by reference to the “Valley of the King” (v. 17), which smooths the way for the appearance of the “king of Salem, ” the first element of whose name— Melchizedek—also means “king. ” There is a subtle contrast in the uses of the verb y-ts-}, “to go out. ” The king of Sodom “came out” empty-handed to meet his benefactor, and the first word he uttered was “give!” The king of Salem “brought out” bread and wine and offered a blessing, even though he may have come to collect his tithe. The name of Melchizedek’s city—Salem (Heb. shalem)—is suggestive of shalom, the peace that Abram’s intervention brought to the region. Finally, the extraordinary title of God used by Abram in his colloquy with the king of Sodom is the name just used twice by Melchizedek Nothing is known of this priest-king who suddenly emerges from the shadows and as suddenly retreats into oblivion, as far as the biblical tradition is concerned. He is patently regarded as monotheist, one of the few select non-Israelite individuals who, in the scriptural view, preserved the original monotheism of the human race in the face of otherwise universal degeneration into paganism.
Salem Hebrew shalem, a place-name attested once again in parallelism with Zion in Psalms 76: 3 as the location of the Temple. There is no doubt of its reference there to Jerusalem, and the same identification is generally assumed for this passage too. This is the tradition of the Genesis Apocryphon 23. 13, Josephus, Antiquities 1. 181, and the Targums. There is no evidence that Salem was the earlier name of Jerusalem. [GS: But that hasn’t stopped everyone from claiming it is!] The city is already mentioned in the Egyptian execration texts of the nineteenth-eighteenth centuries B. C. E. as Urushalimu, and in the El-Amarna texts of the fifteenth-fourteenth centuries as Urusalim. The full name originally meant “the foundation of (the god) Shalim. ” The reference to Salem in Psalms 76: 3 is followed by a statement about the destruction of the weapons of war. This suggests that the shortened name of the city is a poeticism to produce the effect of shalom, “peace. ” “Jerusalem” has been reinterpreted to mean “city of peace, ” a symbol that later found expression in prophecy in such texts as Isaiah 2: 1– 5 and Micah 4: 1– 4. 20 It can hardly be coincidence that King David, who first conquered Jerusalem and converted it into the political and religious center of Israel, named one of his sons Absalom (Heb. }abshalom) and another Solomon (Heb. shelomoh). bread and wine Compare 2 Samuel 17: 27– 29. priest It is not known whether the fusion of the royal and priestly offices was characteristic of the Canaanite city-states or was peculiar to Salem. In Assyria and among the Hittites, the king was also high priest, but such was not the case in Babylon. The Ugaritic texts do not support the identity of the two offices for that city, but in the Phoenician sphere, at least in the Persian era, the king of Sidon styles himself “priest of Astarte. ” In Israel, the two institutions were conceived as being separated from the beginning (cf. 1 Sam. 2: 35). Kingship is part of the divine promises to the patriarchs in Genesis 17: 7, 16 and 35: 11, but nothing is said of priesthood. The hereditary priesthood long anteceded the establishment of the monarchy, and the priests stoutly resisted royal encroachment upon their prerogatives, as the story in 2 Chronicles 26: 16 – 21 shows. God Most High Hebrew }el {elyon, the first biblical usage of either term. }El is of uncertain etymology, perhaps deriving from a Semitic root meaning “to be strong. ” }El is common to practically all Semitic languages as a general term for “god. ” The feminine form is also current, except in biblical Hebrew, which possesses no word for “goddess. ” From earliest times }el is used outside Israel as the proper name of the deity. In the Bible, }el either simply refers to the one God or is used as a variant for the divine name YHVH. {Elyon, from the root {-l-h, “to ascend, ” expresses the absolute transcendence of God.
• Note the interruption of the Genesis story • See Excursus: Abraham and Lot • Melchizedek is the first priest mentioned of any sort in the entire Bible, yet not descended from Abraham (and a Gentile!? ) • Melchizedek’s name provides important clues • Who is being likened to who? Jesus to Melchizedek? Or Melchizedek to the Son of God? Or both? And what can we learn about the interaction between Melchizedek and others?
Abraham & Lot: A Fascinating Lesson in Contrasts possible structure for understanding the Abraham/Lot terplay: • • • Prelude: God’s promise of blessing to Abraham (Gen 12: 1 -9) and Pharoah’s threat to Sarah (12: 10 -20) Gen 13: 1 -14: 24 -- Abraham and Lot, Part I Gen 15: 1 -17: 27: a focus on the promise of a son to Abraham Gen 18: 1 -19: 38 -- Abraham and Lot, Part II Postlude: Abimelech’s threat to Sarah (20: 1 -18) and birth of promised son (21: 1 -7)
Abraham & Lot: Narratives concentrate on two closely related incidents: Sodom, Wealth, & God’s • promise Abraham & Lot Part 1: begins and ends with the wealth of Abraham (13: 2, 14: 23) • • In Ch 13, Lot chooses to enjoy benefits of Sodom In Ch 14, Abraham delivers Lot from his folly, then refuses wealth of Sodom In between these two, God reassures Abrhaham by renewing his promise of blessing (13: 14 -18) Lot turns to Sodom, Abraham trusts in God
Abraham & Lot: • Narratives concentrate on two closely related incidents: Sodom, Wealth, & God’s Abraham & Lot Part 1 I: highlights the contrast between promise these two choices by divine visits in 18 & 19, note parallels: • • • Meal with Abraham (18: 1 -8) followed by promise of posterity (18: 9 -15) and Abraham’s pleading for Sodom (18: 16 -33) Meal with Lot (19: 1 -3) followed by threat to posterity (19: 4 -11) and angels’ pleading for Lot to leave Sodom (19: 12 -22) “First visit is in broad daylight, joyful, leisurely, with a sumptuous meal and the promise of a son. The second is at night, fearful, with quickly available unleavened
Abraham & Lot: • • Narratives concentrate on two closely related incidents: Sodom, Wealth, & God’s “This narrative reaches a conclusion with Abraham’s promise coming to see the destruction of Sodom in 19: 23 -29 and the statement, ‘God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow’ (19: 29). The incest of Lot’s daughters in 19: 30 -38 depicts the bitter end of his choice, and prepares, by contrast, for the birth of Isaac in 21: 1 -7. ” Melchizedek appears as an important player in the contrast between Abraham and Lot -- he is in parallel to but also opposition to the King of Sodom. Abraham accepts the Lord and rejects Sodom. From “Melchizedek Without Speculation” in A Cloud of Witnesses, The
One Jewish interpretive principle was that was not mentioned did not happen. (Philo especially, though not exclusively—cf. the rabbis—exploited this technique. Thus, for instance, Philo argued that the wise man’s family consisted of his virtues, because at one point Moses listed virtues instead of listing all ancestors. Similarly, because Cain’s death is not mentioned, Cain did not die [for Philo, Cain represents deathless folly]. This technique of arguing from silence was applied selectively, of course, because most possible details were not mentioned in a text. ) The writer of Hebrews can thus argue that Melchizedek, for the purpose of the comparison, was without parents, because Genesis 14 does not mention them, and Genesis supplies parentage and genealogy for other important representatives of God. To Greek readers, to be without beginning or end was to be divine (e. g. , an argument by the philosopher Thales). -- IVP NT Commentary
Alma 13: 13 -20 (Received April/May 1829) 13 And now, my brethren, I would that ye should humble yourselves before God, and bring forth fruit meet for repentance, that ye may also enter into that rest. 14 Yea, humble yourselves even as the people in the days of Melchizedek, who was also a high priest after this same order which I have spoken, who also took upon him the high priesthood forever. 15 And it was this same Melchizedek to whom Abraham paid tithes; yea, even our father Abraham paid tithes of one-tenth part of all he possessed. 16 Now these ordinances were given after this manner, that thereby the people might look forward on the Son of God, it being a type of his order, or it being his order, and this that they might look forward to him for a remission of their sins, that they might enter into the rest of the Lord. 17 Now this Melchizedek was a king over the land of Salem; and his people had waxed strong in iniquity and abomination; yea, they had all gone astray; they were full of all manner of wickedness; 18 But Melchizedek having exercised mighty faith, and received the office of the high priesthood according to the holy order of God, did preach repentance unto his people. And behold, they did repent; and Melchizedek did establish peace in the land in his days; therefore he was called the prince of peace, for he was the king of Salem; and he did reign under his father. 19 Now, there were many before him, and also there were many afterwards, but none were greater; therefore, of him they have more particularly made mention. 20 Now I need not rehearse the matter; what I have said may suffice. Behold, the scriptures are before you; if ye will wrest them it shall be to your own destruction.
JST Genesis 14 (Recorded Feb or March 1831) 25 And Melchizedek lifted up his voice and blessed Abram. 26 Now Melchizedek was a man of faith, who wrought righteousness; and when a child he feared God, and stopped the mouths of lions, and quenched the violence of fire. 27 And thus, having been approved of God, he was ordained an high priest after the order of the covenant which God made with Enoch, 28 It being after the order of the Son of God; which order came, not by man, nor the will of man; neither by father nor mother; neither by beginning of days nor end of years; but of God; 29 And it was delivered unto men by the calling of his own voice, according to his own will, unto as many as believed on his name. 30 For God having sworn unto Enoch and unto his seed with an oath by himself; that every one being ordained after this order and calling should have power, by faith, to break mountains, to divide the seas, to dry up waters, to turn them out of their course; 31 To put at defiance the armies of nations, to divide the earth, to break every band, to stand in the presence of God; to do all things according to his will, according to his command, subdue principalities and powers; and this by the will of the Son of God which was from before the foundation of the world. 32 And men having this faith, coming up unto this order of God, were translated and taken up into heaven. 33 And now, Melchizedek was a priest of this order; therefore he obtained peace in Salem, and was called the Prince of peace. 34 And his people wrought righteousness, and obtained heaven, and sought for the city of Enoch which God had before taken, separating it from the earth, having reserved it unto the latter days, or the end of the world; 35 And hath said, and sworn with an oath, that the heavens and the earth should come together; and the sons of God should be tried so as by fire. 36 And this Melchizedek, having thus established righteousness, was called the king of heaven by his people, or, in other words, the King of peace. 37 And he lifted up his voice, and he blessed Abram, being the high priest, and the keeper of the storehouse of God; 38 Him whom God had appointed to receive tithes for the poor. 39 Wherefore, Abram paid unto him tithes of all that he had, of all the riches which he possessed, which God had given him more than that which he had need. 40 And it came to pass, that God blessed Abram, and gave unto him riches, and honor, and lands for an everlasting possession; according to the covenant which he had made, and according to the blessing wherewith
D&C 107: 1 -5 (Recorded March 1835) 1 THERE are, in the church, two priesthoods, namely, the Melchizedek and Aaronic, including the Levitical Priesthood. 2 Why the first is called the Melchizedek Priesthood is because Melchizedek was such a great high priest. 3 Before his day it was called the Holy Priesthood, after the Order of the Son of God. 4 But of respect or reverence to the name of the Supreme Being, to avoid the too frequent repetition of his name, they, the church, in ancient days, called that priesthood after Melchizedek, or the Melchizedek Priesthood. 5 All other authorities or offices in the church are appendages to this priesthood. D&C 107: 18 -20 18 The power and authority of the higher, or Melchizedek Priesthood, is to hold the keys of all the spiritual blessings of the church-- 19 To have the privilege of receiving the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, to have the heavens opened unto them, to commune with the general assembly and church of the Firstborn, and to enjoy the communion and presence of God the Father, and Jesus the mediator of the new covenant. 20 The power and authority of the lesser, or Aaronic Priesthood, is to hold the keys of the ministering of angels, and to administer in outward ordinances, the letter of the gospel, the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, agreeable to the covenants and commandments.
The writer begins his explanation of the significance of Melchizedek by referring to the incident in Genesis 14: 17 ff. His minor changes from the LXX do not affect the sense. First he describes Melchizedek as “king of Salem, ” which may mean “king of Jerusalem” (“Salem” is another name for Jerusalem in Ps 76: 2). But it is curious that if the writer thought that Jerusalem was in fact where Melchizedek ministered, he does not mention the fact that Jesus suffered there. Perhaps he was not particularly interested in geography. But it is also possible that he saw Salem as some other place. Westcott (in loc. ) says that in Jerome’s time Salem was understood to be near Scythopolis, and, again, the LXX of Genesis 33: 18 seems to identify Shechem with Salem. Melchizedek was not only a king but a “priest of God Most High. ” It was not uncommon for one person to combine the roles of priest and king in antiquity. It is, however, the special characteristics of this man rather than the dual offices that are noteworthy. In Genesis 14: 17 -18 we read that the king of Sodom, who had suffered at the hands of the kings Abraham had just routed, went out to meet the triumphant patriarch and that Melchizedek brought out bread and wine; but the author passes over both of these facts. He concentrates on those aspects of the incident that will help him make the points he has in mind about the work of Christ. The first of them is that he “blessed him, ” a point he will return to in v. 7.
Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything, i. e. , of the spoils from the battle. This is another point that is elaborated later (in vv. 4 ff. ). So far the author is simply identifying Melchizedek with his reference to the incident after the battle. Now he goes on to the significance of Melchizedek’s name and title. The name, he says, means “king of righteousness. ” (This is a translation of the Heb. name; it might be more accurate to render it “my king is righteous, ” but NIV gives the sense and brings in the noun “righteousness” that features so largely in the NT vocabulary of salvation. ) Then the writer goes on to the title “king of Salem. ” The place name comes from the same root as salom, the Hebrew word for “peace, ” and it may accordingly be translated in this way. The Greek word “peace” (eirene ) has about it the negative idea of the absence of war; in the NT, however, it picks up something of the fuller meaning of the Hebrew salom, which it regularly translates in the LXX. So eirene comes to signify the presence of positive blessing, the result of Christ’s work for men. We are reminded of the “Prince of Peace” (Isa 9: 6; righteousness in v. 7 is among the qualities linked with this messianic figure). The combination of righteousness and peace is seen in Psalm 85: 10. As used here, the two terms point to distinctive aspects of Christ’s saving work.
The terms “without father” and “without mother” (apator, ametor) are used in Greek for waifs of unknown parentage, for illegitimate children, for people who came from unimportant families, and sometimes for deities who were supposed to take their origin from one sex only. Some scholars hold that Melchizedek is viewed in the last mentioned way and is being pictured as an angelic being. But it seems much more likely that the author is proceeding along the lines that the silences of Scripture are just as much due to inspiration as are its statements. When nothing is recorded of the parentage of this man, it is not necessarily to be assumed that he had no parents but simply that the absence of the record is significant. What was true of Melchizedek simply as a matter of record was true of Christ in a fuller and more literal sense. So the silence of the Scripture points to an important theological truth. Melchizedek is also “without genealogy, ” a term the writer apparently coins. Taken together, the’ three terms are striking, for in antiquity a priest’s genealogy was considered all-important. After the Exile, certain priests whose genealogy could not be established “were excluded from the priesthood as unclean” (Neh 7: 64). And just as the record says nothing of Melchizedek’s genealogy, so it says nothing of his birth or death. This further silence in Scripture points the writer to another truth about Jesus—viz. , that his priesthood is without end. He uses the full title of Jesus—“Son of God”—as in 4: 14; 6: 6; 10: 29 (“my son” in 1: 5; 5: 5). Since the writer does not use it often, we may sense an emphasis on the high dignity of the Son of God. And it is the Son of God who is the standard, not the ancient priest-king. The writer says that Melchizedek is “made like” (aphomoiomenos) the Son of God, not that the Son of God is like Melchizedek. Thus it is not that Melchizedek sets the pattern and Jesus follows it. Rather, the record about Melchizedek is so arranged that it brings out certain truths that apply far more fully to Jesus than they do to Melchizedek. With the latter, these truths are simply a matter of record; but with Jesus they are not only historically true, they also have significant spiritual dimensions. The writer is, of course, speaking of the Son’s eternal nature, not of his appearance in the Incarnation.
Additional Q’s • Why Melchizedek? • From the traditional (non. LDS) perspective? • From the Mormon perspective • What relationship between faith and priesthood?
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