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Melchizedek was a mysterious figure who appeared on the scene briefly in the Old Testament, blessed Abraham, received Abraham's tithe, and then disappeared into history. Yet it was clear that his appearance had a meaning that went beyond that that incident. Psalm 110 took up the idea of the priesthood of Melchizedek as something that the Messiah would also share. He would be "a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek" (see Psalm 110:4).
Without father, mother, or ancestry,
without beginning of days or end of life,
thus made to resemble the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.
But how could the Messiah be a priest, when the Messiah was to come from the tribe of Judah, not that of Levi? He could only do so if the criteria of his priestly line was not based on his ancestry and genealogy. Melchizedek's own priesthood was the precedent for this, not dependent on the Levitical line. Further, Genesis made no mention of his death, whereas it was preoccupied with recording the length of life of others. It was as though, in some sense, he remained forever. This pointed forward to Jesus, who, in virtue of his resurrection, was truly established in his priesthood forever. We should pay close attention to the next line:
It is even more obvious if another priest is raised up
Jesus was the the priest who was indeed "raised up" after the pattern of Melchizedek, elevated to a priesthood that was not based on the Mosaic law, not dependent on physical descent from a certain tribe, but was rather established "by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed". If anyone was to truly be a priest forever it could only be the risen Lord Jesus Christ.
His name first means righteous king,
Jesus himself was the "Righteous one" (see Acts 22:14) and the "the firstborn of the dead and ruler of the kings of the earth" (see Revelation 1:5), the "the King of kings and Lord of lords" (see First Timothy 6:15).
and he was also "king of Salem," that is, king of peace.
Jesus was the one who alone could give peace that this world could not give (see John 14:27), the one promised by Isaiah as the "prince of peace" (see Isaiah 9:6).
By perfectly fulfilling the precedent set by Melchizedek Jesus was revealed as the perfect and everlasting high priest, capable of establishing his people in the righteousness and peace that were his prerogatives, able to do so for ever by the power of his indestructible risen life.
Let us come to the high priest who is truly able to heal us, cleanse us of sin, and grant us peace. He is about the business of doing good, saving life, rather than destroying it. We should trust him, trust him with more than a tenth of everything. Yet our hand is withered and we fear to reach out. But let us only take courage and reach for him and we will be restored.
Jesus said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."
He stretched it out and his hand was restored.
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