Friday 20 October 2023

Background

Today we discover more about Melchizedek whom we met on Tuesday. We learn that his name means ‘king of righteousness’ and that he is the king of Salem, which means he is 'king of peace'.

We are also told – rather mysteriously – that he has no parents and was not born and did not die (he had "neither beginning of days nor end of life"). It is true that no mention is made in scripture of Melchizedek’s genealogy nor of his birth or death, but that doesn’t mean that they were not part of his story. The reason for emphasising all of this is to prove that it is possible to become a priest "not through a legal requirement concerning physical descent, but through the power of an indestructible life: (v.16).  In other words, it is not necessary for priests to be of the line of Aaron (the usual way to become a priest). The fact that Melchizedek blessed Abraham (the Hebrew patriarch) (v. 1) implies that he was greater than Abraham and Abraham’s descendants, who include Aaron.

Jesus was not part of a priestly line either, and this is why Psalm 110:4 is repeated again here as it was in the passage we read on Tuesday (Hebrews 5:6). If Melchizedek could be a priest, so could Jesus. “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek."

To Ponder:

• Does your name mean something? What does it mean to you?
• The hymn 'How sweet the name of Jesus sounds' (StF 322) includes multiple titles for Jesus including priest. What titles for Jesus mean the most to you?
• If your life was to be summed up in three verses like Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18-20 and Hebrews 7:1-3) what would be said about you?
• Imagine you are listening to God telling you what you most need to hear today. How would God complete this sentence: “You are …..”