Difference between revisions of "Melchizedek"

<p> '''Melchiz'edek.''' ''(king of righteousness).'' King of Salem, and priest of the most high God, who met Abram in the valley of Shaveh, which is the king's valley, bought out bread and wine, blessed him, and received tithes from him. &nbsp;Genesis 14:18-20. The other places in which Melchizedek is mentioned are &nbsp;Psalms 110:4, where '''Messiah''' is described as a priest forever, "after the order of Melchizedek," and &nbsp;Hebrews 5:1; &nbsp;Hebrews 6:1; &nbsp;Hebrews 7:1, where these two passages of the Old Testament are quoted, and the typical relation of Melchizedek to our Lord is stated at great length. </p> <p> There is something surprising and mysterious in the first appearance of Melchizedek, and in the subsequent reference to him. [[Bearing]] a title, which [[Jews]] in after ages would recognize as designating their own sovereign, bearing gifts which recall to Christians the Lord's Supper, this Canaanite crosses, for a moment, the path of Abram, and is unhesitatingly recognized as a person of higher spiritual rank than the friend of God. Disappearing as suddenly as he came, he is lost to the sacred writings for a thousand years. </p> <p> Jewish tradition pronounces Melchizedek to be a survivor of the deluge, the patriarch Shem. The way in which he is mentioned in Genesis would rather lead to the inference that Melchizedek was of one blood with the children of Ham, among whom he lived, chief , (like the king of Sodom), of a settled [[Canaanitish]] tribe. </p> <p> The "order of Melchizedek," in &nbsp;Psalms 110:4, is explained to mean "manner" = likeness in official dignity = a king and priest. The relation between Melchizedek and '''Christ''' as type and antitype, is made in the Epistle to the Hebrews to consist in the following particulars: Each was a priest, (1) not of the Levitical tribe; (2) superior to Abraham; (3) whose beginning and end are unknown; (4) who is not only a priest, but also a king of righteousness and peace. [[A]] fruitful source of discussion has been found in the site of Salem. ''See '' '''Salem''' ''.'' </p>

<p> '''Melchizedek,''' or '''Melchisedec''' (''mel-kĭz'-e-dĕk'' ), the Greek form in the New Testament (''king of righteousness),'' is mentioned in &nbsp;Genesis 14:18-20 as king of Salem and priest of the Most High God, meeting Abram in the valley of Shaveh, bringing out bread and wine to him, blessing him, and receiving tithes from him; in &nbsp;Psalms 110:4, where Messiah is described as a priest "after the order of Melchizedek;" and finally, in &nbsp;Hebrews 5:6-7, where the typical relations between Melchizedek and Christ are defined, both being priests without belonging to the Levitical tribe, superior to Abram, of unknown beginning and end, and kings of righteousness and peace. The short but impressive account of Melchizedek in Genesis, and the striking though mystical applications made in the Psalms and the Epistle to the Hebrews, have given rise to various interpretations. One Jewish tradition considers him to be a survivor of the Deluge, the patriarch Shem, and thus entitled by his very age to bless the father of the faithful, and by his position as ruler of Canaan to confer his rights to Abram. Another tradition, equally old, but not so widely accepted, considers him to be an angel, the Son of God in human form, the Messiah. Modern scholars, arguing back from the expositions given in the Epistle to the Hebrews, consider him to be a descendant of Ham, a priest among the heathen, constituted by God himself; and given a title above that of the ordinary patriarchal priesthood, even above that of Abram. </p>