Hebrews 7:1-3 (HCSB)
For this Melchizedek—
King of Salem, priest of the Most High God,
who 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 —
remains a priest forever.
Melchizedek is a somewhat mysterious person who only appears in three verses of biblical history: Genesis 14:18-20. He is identified there with two titles: king of Salem, and priest of God Most High.
Much conjecture has been raised about the identity of Melchizedek, some even believing that he was Shem, the son of Noah, who was still living in those days. But that is simply conjecture, and actually clouds the real point of including that small piece of biblical history in the Scriptures in the first place.
To begin with, Melchizedek was the ruler of Salem, a city in the region, sometimes identified as primitive Jerusalem. And, when Abraham returned from defeating the armies of four kings with only himself and the 318 trained men who were born in his household (Genesis 14:14-16 ), Melchizedek recognized that God’s hand was with him and brought out to him bread and wine, a small tribute to the one who was blessed by God’s hand.
Melchizedek was unusual, being not only a king, but also a priest of “God Most High”, a title of the one true God. In the midst of humanity’s fall into widespread paganism after Babel, this man had retained the knowledge of the one true God and was keeping the worship of Him alive among the people. And, as God’s priest, His agent on earth, he delivered His message of blessing to Abraham. Abraham responded by giving to Melchizedek a tithe of all he had regained from the enemy, a thank offering to the God who had given him the victory.
The writer of Hebrews sees in Melchizedek, not Jesus himself in some pre-incarnation appearance, but a type of Jesus, a foreshadowing of Who he would be. He sees in his two titles, Melchizedek, or “king of righteousness”, and king of Salem, meaning “king of peace”, two titles that Jesus Himself carried. He also points out that, unlike nearly all the other important people in the Old Testament, Melchizedek is presented with no genealogy, and nothing is said about his birth or his death. The writer sees this as a signpost pointing not only to the eternity of Jesus, but to the eternity of His high priesthood.
Father, it is fascinating that this man, only present for three verses in Old Testament history, is mentioned again briefly and Psalm 110:4, as a foreshadowing of the Messiah. It would be very easy, without the writer of Hebrews pointing to it, to simply skim by those four verses without ever seeing them. Apparently, that is what the Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the teachers of the law did, to the point that when Jesus came, there was no flash of recognition in their hearts. Lord, help us to read Your word always with open eyes, open minds, and open hearts, so that You can continue to reveal Yourself and Your truth to us each day. Amen.