Jamin Bradley

Melchizedek is a mysterious figure in the Bible. We know little about him, but after Abraham won a war to save his nephew, this king blessed him on behalf of his god, just like a priest would. After that, the story is over and we don’t expect to see his name again.

Except we do. Psalm 110 tells us that the coming messiah would be a king/priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. As the Jews waited for this Messiah to come, they reflected on this prophetic promise and came up with many unique (and sometimes strange) theories about Melchizedek. As the author of Hebrews reflected on this prophecy, he connected it directly to Jesus as the king/priest forever. But why does any of this matter?

Adam and Eve were designed to be both royalty and priests. On one hand, they were the kings and queens of the earth, given power and authority by God to reign over it. But on the other hand, they were also priests, for they lived in God’s presence and mediated between Heaven and Earth. Melchizedek is the last person in the Bible to play this role. Moses was called to play it next, but he whined so much about it that God decided to split the role of king and priest between him and Aaron. After that, the roles were generally separate. This was unfortunate, as it would be much better to have a king who spent time in God’s presence than to have a king who needed to check in with another person about what God wanted.

So just as Jesus is a second Adam to Paul, so is Jesus a second Melchizedek to the author of Hebrews. He is the king and priest of all creation. He makes just decisions and he does so from the presence of God where he mediates between Heaven and Earth. He has picked up the role that Melchizedek had last, and no one will ever take it from Him. Jesus has also extended this role to his followers, for the Bible calls us a royal priesthood.