Bible References to the MELCHIZEDEK PRIESTHOOD
QUESTION:
Who is MELCHIZEDEK and what is his connection with Christ?
ANSWER:
We first find Melchizedek in the Old Testament:
Genesis 14:18
Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High.
This, of course, was after Abraham had conquered several kings in battle. He gave a tithe to Melchizedek and broke bread with him.
Psalms 110:4
The LORD has sworn And will not relent, "You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek." This is considered Messianic, refering to Christ.
Hebrews 5:6
As He also says in another place: "You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek"; This is the reference to the above.
Hebrews 5:10
called by God as High Priest "according to the order of Melchizedek,"
FROM OUR ORTHODOX STUDY BIBLE NOTES:
5:1-4 To qualify as priest one must (1) be taken from among men--be fully human, (2) be appointed for men specifically for liturgical service, (3) offer sacrifices, (4) have compassion, and (5) be called by God. In the Aaronic priesthood a priest identified himself with humanity and had sympathy for his fellow men because he sinned as other men sinned, and the sacrifices were vicarious offerings of animals.
5:5-11 Christ assumes and fulfills the priesthood of the OT (see 5:1-4): Like Melchizedek He is both priest and king, He does not sin, and his sacrifice is the human sacrifice of Himself. This perfect priesthood is present in His Church.
5:7 Most likely a reference to our Lord's agonizing prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (see Matt. 26:36-46; Mark 14:32-42; Luke 22:39-46). Jesus cries, and tears show the absolute reality of the Incarnation. Christ experiences all human emotions. Nevertheless, in the agony of injustice and in physical pain He submits to the will of the Father.
Hebrews 6:20
where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
Hebrews 7:1
For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,
Hebrews 7:10
for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.
Hebrews 7:11
Therefore, if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron?
Hebrews 7:15
And it is yet far more evident if, in the likeness of Melchizedek, there arises another priest
Hebrews 7:17
For He testifies: "You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek."
Hebrews 7:21
(for they have become priests without an oath, but He with an oath by Him who said to Him: "The LORD has sworn and will not relent, 'You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek' "), 7:1-10 Persecuted Christians are encouraged not to apostatize to Judaism because the founding father of the NT priesthood, Melchizedek, is superior to that of the OT priesthood, Levi.
MELCHIZEDEK (v. 1) means "King of Righteousness." He is also KING OF SALEM (another name for Jerusalem), that is, of peace (shalom). In King Melchizedek, then, God's holiness and forgiving grace are reconciled. By contrast, Levi is only a priest, not a king, and he does not reconcile God's Law with His mercy. Melchizedek, however, is priest as well as king. He serves under the Lord God of Israel (Gen 14:22; Ps. 18:13) and serves over Abraham and all of Abraham's children (7:4-10). He serves according to an eternal covenant (v. 3). In his services of worship, the tithe is given to him (vv. 2, 6, 9) and he in turn offers bread and wine to the worshippers. In Israel, THE SONS OF LEVI (v. 5) were the priestly tribe. They had no property or inheritance but belonged wholly to God, receiving tithes from the 12 tribes for their service in the temple. But since all Levites are sons of Abraham, Melchizedek is superior to Levi (vv.5-10). Who, then, is this Melchizedek, who has no lineage, whose life (v. 8) and priesthood (v. 3) have no end, and who is LIKE THE SON OF GOD (v. 5)? He is at least a type of Christ, if not an early earthly appearance of Christ (see Ps. 110). 7:11-28 Not only is the founder of the New Covenant priesthood superior to that of the Old Covenant, the rules of the New Covenant's priestly order are also superior. For a priesthood is so intertwined with a covenant that if the priesthood is changed, so is the covenant (vv. 11-15).
The Levitical priesthood is imperfect (vv. 11, 19): (1) Its Genealogical Requirement (vv. 11-17): It is for one family only (vv. 13, 14) and deals with mortal and corrupt humanity (FLESHLY, vv. 16, 28): it consists of sinful priests (v. 26).(2) The Power Given at Ordination (vv. 18, 19): In the work that it effects, the Levitical priesthood is weak (its sacrifices needed to be repeated, see also v. 27) and useless, incapable of perfecting (it could not reconcile to God and could not give the inner power to obey). (3) The Ordination Itself (vv. 20-22): It is without a direct confirmation from God. (4) Its Term of Office (vv. 23-25): Since it deals with mortal humanity, its members are temporary/impermanent and so it requires many members (v. 23). (5) Its Moral and Spiritual Requirements (vv. 26-28): The Levitical priests all sin and all operate out of this world, from the earth. They are mere creatures, mere men.
In contrast, the Melchizedekan priesthood is perfect:
(a) Its Genealogical Requirement: While Jesus Christ was necessarily a Jew of the tribe of Judah (v. 14), more importantly He was of Melchizedek, without genealogy (v. 3)--effected by the virgin birth--and immortal (vv. 16, 17) and sinless (v. 26): God incarnate, a man for all men. (b) The Power Given at Ordination: The power of Christ's priesthood is strong and effective: it perfects and draws us near to God (v. 19). (c) The Ordination Itself: The Father Himself takes part in the Son's ordination (v. 21). (d) Its Term of Office: Since Christ is immortal, the Melchizedekan priesthood needs only one officeholder (vv. 24, 25). (e) Its Moral and Spiritual Requirements: Christ is sinless and in heaven. He is more than a mere created human; He is also the Son of God.
7:24 -- Schmemann, Eucharist: "Finally, if the 'assembly as the Church' is the image of the body of Christ, then the image of the head of the body is the priest. He presides over, he heads the gathering, and his standing at their head is precisely what makes a group of Christians the gathering of the Church in the fulness of her gifts. If according to his humanity the priest is only one -and perhaps the most sinful and unworthy -- of those assembled, then by the gift of the Holy Spirit, which has been preserved by the Church since Pentecost and handed down without interruption through the laying on of hands of the bishop, he manifests the power of the priesthood of Christ, who consecrated himself for us and who is the one priest of the New Testament: 'and he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever' (Heb. 7:24). Just as the holiness of the assembly is not that of the people who constitute it but Christ's, so the priesthood of the priest is not his but Christ's, bestowed on the Church because she is his body. Christ is not outside the Church, and neither his power nor his authority is delegated to anyone. He himself abides in the Church and, through the Holy Spirit, he fulfils her entire life. The priest is neither a 'representative' nor a 'deputy' of Christ: in the sacrament he is Christ himself, just as the assembly is his body. Standing at the head of the body, he manifests in himself the unity of the Church, the oneness of the unity of all her members with himself. Thus, in this unity of the celebrant and the assembled is manifested the divine-human unity of the Church -- in Christ and with Christ." (Pages 24,25).
