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Melchizedek (meaning: king of righteousness) was the King of Salem (meaning: Peace) and priest of the most high God. The book of Genesis records that after Abraham rescued his nephew Lot from the King of Elam, Melchizedek brought bread and wine to Abraham, blessed him, and received tithes (a 10th of all the spoil of war) from Abraham.
To the majority of Christian and Hebrew scholars, Melchizedek is an unsolved mystery. Some believe he was an angel, others believe he was the son of Shem (who was the son of Noah), and others dismiss any physical appearance as an abstraction. There is no general consensus within the Christian or Hebrew faiths as to the identity of Melchizedek.
However, Melchizedek cannot be ignored, as the most significant authors of the Holy Scriptures (including Moses, David, and Paul) emphasize his importance and inseparable link to the Messiah.
Guided Bible Study
1) Melchezidek was a priest and king:
- And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, Hebrews 7:15
- The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou [art] a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. Psalms 110:4
- 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; Hebrews 7:1
2) Melchizedek was greater than Abraham:
- 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; To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; Hebrews 7:1, 2a
- And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better. Hebrews 7:7
3) Melchizedek was immortal:
- Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; Hebrews 7:3
- But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises. Hebrews 7:6
- And here men that die receive tithes; but there he [receiveth them], of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. Hebrews 7:8
- And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life. For he testifieth, Thou [art] a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. Hebrews 7:15
- But this [man], because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Hebrews 7:24
4) Melchizedek and Jesus both served communion:
- And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he [was] the priest of the most high God. Genesis 14:18
- And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed [it], and brake [it], and gave [it] to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave [it] to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; Matthew 26:26, 27
5) Melchizedek looked like Jesus, the Son of God:
- 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. Hebrews 7:3
Making Connections
6) Only God can be immortal:
- Which in his times he shall shew, [who is] the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom [be] honour and power everlasting. Amen. I Timothy 6:15, 16
7) The immortal God can appear as a man:
- And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day...And Jacob asked [him], and said, Tell [me], I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore [is] it [that] thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. And Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: for I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved. Genesis 32:24, 29, 30
- And the LORD said unto Moses...Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. And the LORD said, Behold, [there is] a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen. Exodus 33:17a, 20, 23
- Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, [and] spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. Daniel 3:25
- And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day; And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground, And said, My Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant:…And the LORD went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place. Genesis 18:1-3, 33
There are a number of things to note about the LORD appearing to Abraham:
- Three men appeared before Abraham, and Abraham said “My Lord” (he was only addressing one man among the three),
- Abraham recognized the LORD by sight (he had seen him before),
- Two men left Abraham for Sodom, and only the LORD remained (the LORD was embodied in only one of the men present),
- Two angels appeared unto Lot (in the form of men), and Lot said “my lords” (he did not have the same revelation of the Godhead that Abraham had).
8) The LORD, in the form of a man before Abraham, and Jesus, both revealed the secrets of a people’s hearts:
- And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard [it] in the tent door, which [was] behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah [were] old [and] well stricken in age; [and] it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also? And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old? Genesis 18:10-13
- Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee. John 1:48
- There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink...Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband, and come hither. The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said, I have no husband: For thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly. The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am [he]. John 4:7, 16 - 26
9) Jesus did the same things that his Father did, including serve communion, and reveal the secrets of the hearts:
- If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father [is] in me, and I in him. John 10:37-38
Conclusion
God has the ability to take whatever form he desires, be that the form of an angel or the form of a man. However, in order to save humanity as a kinsman redeemer, God had to take on not only the form of man, but the lineage of man.
- For verily he took not on [him the nature of] angels; but he took on [him] the seed of Abraham. Hebrews 2:16
- For such an high priest became us, [who is] holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself. Hebrews 7:26, 27
The true revelation of Melchizedek is that he is God, the Word, in the form of a man. However, as Melchizedek was not born a man, he could not die or become a sacrifice for the sins of man. Melchizedek was therefore not the Son of God, but the God of the Son in the form of a man. Note that Melchizedek was not bound to the form of a man, but could appear and disappear at will: much like Jesus after the resurrection.
Melchizedek was immortal (Jesus died), Melchizedek had no father or mother (Jesus had God as his father, and Mary as his mother), Melchizedek was the King of Peace (Jesus was the Prince of Peace), Melchizedek was made “like unto the Son of God” (Jesus was the Son of God).
Melchizedek was the fulness of the Godhead (Colossians 2:9), also known as the I AM, in the form of a man, but without lineage. Jesus was the I AM in the form of a man, from the lineage of Abraham. Adam, another created son of God, was never the I AM, but was a part of God as a representation of His image and a physical prophecy of Jesus.
Anyone who denies that Jesus is the Son of God will see Jesus as Melchizedek - God in the form of a man, but without the attribute of redeemer - at which point the Saviour becomes the Judge. Jesus, who was the "beginning of the creation of God" (Revelation 3:14) said that Before Abraham was, I am (John 8:58) But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 10:33)
Understanding the nature of Melchizedek is one of the great keys in understanding the Godhead, and of understanding the Bible. If you can identify the man who blessed Abraham, you can also identify the man who blessed Jacob.
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