Melchizedek
JASON MARTIN
From the Beginning... / Genesis 14; Psalm 110; Hebrews 5–7
The world leading up to the meeting
1. Genesis 14:1 - Chedorlaomer, king of Elam - the leader of the 4 kings that attack the 5 kings
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 14
The ancient name for modern Khuzestan (southwestern Iran), east of Babylon.
a. Amraphel, king of Shinar (Babylonia)
b. Arioch, king of Ellasar
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 14
The name Arioch appears in the ancient Near Eastern Mari archives (18th century BC) and the Nuzi tablets (15th century BC).
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 14
Ellasar This may be the Hebrew equivalent of the Akkadian phrase al ashshur, which indicates “city of Ashur” (Assyria).
c. Tidal, king of Goiim
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 14
This name may be a transcription of the Hittite royal name Tudchaliash. The name is attributed to four Hittite kings, the earliest of whom lived during the 17th century BC—chronologically too late to be identified with the king mentioned here.
Faithlife Study Bible Chapter 14
The Hebrew reads goyim, which is the generic word for “nations.” This may be its meaning here, although the context suggests a specific region. If so, that region is unknown.
2. Genesis 14:2 - the 5 kings
a. Bera, king of Sodom, Birsha, king of Gomorrah, Shinab, king of Admah, Shemeber, king of Zeboiim, an unnamed king of Bela (Zoar)
3. Genesis 14:3 - the location
4. Genesis 14:4 - the reason
a. these 5 city-states stopped paying taxes
5. Genesis 14:5-7 - the people defeated by Chedorlaomer and his alliance while on their way
a. Rephaim (giants)
i. Deuteronomy 2:10–11 “10 (The Emim formerly lived there, a people great and many, and tall as the Anakim. 11 Like the Anakim they are also counted as Rephaim, but the Moabites call them Emim.”
1. who are the Anakim?
a. Numbers 13:33 “33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.””
ii. Deuteronomy 3:11 “11 (For only Og the king of Bashan was left of the remnant of the Rephaim. Behold, his bed was a bed of iron. Is it not in Rabbah of the Ammonites? Nine cubits was its length, and four cubits its breadth, according to the common cubit.)”
b. Zuzim (giants)
i. Deuteronomy 2:17–21 “17 the Lord said to me, 18 ‘Today you are to cross the border of Moab at Ar. 19 And when you approach the territory of the people of Ammon, do not harass them or contend with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon as a possession, because I have given it to the sons of Lot for a possession.’ 20 (It is also counted as a land of Rephaim. Rephaim formerly lived there—but the Ammonites call them Zamzummim— 21 a people great and many, and tall as the Anakim; but the Lord destroyed them before the Ammonites, and they dispossessed them and settled in their place,”
1. conquered by Ammonites (Lot)
c. Emim (giants) - Dt 2:10-11
d. Horites (Edom - later conquered by ‘Esau’)
i. Deuteronomy 2:22 “22 as he did for the people of Esau, who live in Seir, when he destroyed the Horites before them and they dispossessed them and settled in their place even to this day.”
e. Country of the Amalekites and Amorites (Esau is Amalek’s grandfather. This is an important geographical place. Some remaining giants lived among these peoples. (Num 13:29 for example)
i. This marks the southern end of the promised land (Joshua 15:1–3)
1. God was using this alliance to judge the post-flood giants and start clearing the way in the promised land roughly 400 years before they would possess it because it wasn’t quite time to judge the Amorites (Canaanites) - possibly because they are about to help Abram in Gen 14:13
a. Genesis 15:16 “16 And they shall come back here in the fourth generation, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.””
6. Gen 14:8-10 - The first world war
a. The only detail we have about the battle is that these kings fled in defeat
7. Gen 14:11 - if you won’t pay us a tax, we’ll take everything (mobster mentality)
8. Gen 14:12-13 - but they overextended and took Lot, brining a third alliance into the battle
a. Is this the serpent trying to remove the seed of the woman?
i. Lot is much younger than Abraham
ii. Lot’s line gets corrupted, leading to the Moabites and Ammonites
a. they worship Chemosh and Molech
b. During the Exodus, they both refused to let the Israelites travel through their land
c. During the time of the Judges, they team up to conquer Israel
d. Saul and David eventually conquered them and made them pay taxes
e. Solomon married women from both, and he put up alters to their gods
f. Nebuchadnezzar conquered both, and integrated them completely, and ending Lot’s lineage.
b. How many Hebrews are there?
9. Gen 14:14-17 - Abram went out with his 318 men and the king of Sodom stayed home
a. God used Chedorlaomer’s alliance to judge giant clans and wicked humans. Then, He used Abram and some friends to return the judgment full circle
b. The battle took place in the king’s valley, which is associated with Jerusalem
c. Abram interceded another time on behalf of these wicked cities, but God soon brought judgment on those He delivered.
i. Deuteronomy 29:23 “23 the whole land burned out with brimstone and salt, nothing sown and nothing growing, where no plant can sprout, an overthrow like that of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, which the Lord overthrew in his anger and wrath—”
ii. Zoar was the only place in this alliance not destroyed very soon after this - and that was so Lot could escape there, though he was too scared to stay
1. Genesis 19:30 “30 Now Lot went up out of Zoar and lived in the hills with his two daughters, for he was afraid to live in Zoar. So he lived in a cave with his two daughters.”
2. The land of the Ammonites and Moabites was promised to Lot
10. Gen 14:18-20 - come back to this
11. Gen 14:21-24 - You can give the Amorites some of the spoils of war, but Abram isn’t a mercenary. He refuses to be the new tax-collector
a. He (by faith) belongs to a different Kingdom that he hasn’t even seen yet.
b. Only God gets credit for Abram’s blessings / Kingdom
Melchizedek
Read Genesis 14:18-20, Psalm 110:1-4, Hebrews 5:1-12, Hebrews 6:19-7:17
Titles
Hebrews 7:2 “2 and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace.”
1. King of righteousness first
a. Prophecy / typology
i. Jeremiah 23:5–6 “5 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’”
ii. Spurgeon said “Jesus is first and foremost the King of Righteousness”
2. Q: King of Salem = Jerusalem?
a. Prophecy / typology
i. Psalm 76:2 “2 His abode has been established in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion.”
ii. Salem (peace) is Jerusalem, where the Temple would be built
3. King of peace
a. Prophecy / typology
i. Isaiah 9:6 “6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Melchizedek’s gift
Read Genesis 14:18
a. He provided bread and wine for Abram, and then pronounced a blessing over him.
i. Something makes these special even before they are used at Passover
1. It is at minimum an act of hospitality and provision and part of the larger Biblical story leading towards Jesus
ii. Q: What might be the significance of this?
b. The first person explicitly identified as a priest in the O.T.
Melchizedek’s Priesthood
Read Psalm 110:1-4
Psalm 110:1–4 ESV
1 The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” 2 The Lord sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter. Rule in the midst of your enemies! 3 Your people will offer themselves freely on the day of your power, in holy garments; from the womb of the morning, the dew of your youth will be yours. 4 The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.”
1. Psalm 110:1 is one of the most quoted Scriptures in the New Testament. (at least 27 times) It establishes several things about the Messiah;
a. He is David’s Lord as well as his descendant - Is He Divine or something?
i. The Pharisees often questioned Jesus. This time, He questioned them using Psalm 110
1. Matthew 22:41–46 “41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.” 43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying, 44 “ ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet” ’? 45 If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?” 46 And no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.”
a. They didn’t understand, and they questioned Him no more
b. Jesus is higher than angels
i. Hebrews 1:13 “13 And to which of the angels has he ever said, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”?”
c. He sits at “God’s right hand” (Psalm 110:1)
d. He reigns in the midst of His enemies (Psalm 110:2)
e. He is a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek - whatever that means (Psalm 110:4)
2. Prophecy / typology
a. Psalm 110 is the ‘oath’ of the New Covenant - guaranteed through Jesus
i. Hebrews 7:20–22 “20 And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, 21 but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him: “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever.’ ” 22 This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant.” “20 And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, 21 but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him: “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever.’ ” 22 This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant.”
1. This says Psalm 110 was written about Jesus being not just Priest, but Priest forever.
b. Melchizedek is the only person in the Old Testament to be both priest and king
i. It was the original design for mankind. Adam held the duties, but not the titles (Gen 2:15)
ii. The Messiah, or the last ‘Adam’ would be both King and Priest forever (1 Cor 15:45)
3. What is the ‘order’ of Melchizedek’s Priesthood compared to the Levitical priesthood?
a. It is superior
i. Hebrews 7:4–10 “4 See how great this man was to whom Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth of the spoils! 5 And those descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their brothers, though these also are descended from Abraham. 6 But this man who does not have his descent from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. 7 It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior. 8 In the one case tithes are received by mortal men, but in the other case, by one of whom it is testified that he lives. 9 One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, 10 for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchizedek met him.”
b. One order descends from the Levites, according to the flesh. The other supersedes it because it was before Aaron, and remains eternally
i. Hebrews 7:23–24 “23 The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, 24 but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever.”
ii. Hebrews 6:19–7:3 “19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. 1 For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2 and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. 3 He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever.”
1. Is this saying;
a. Melchizedek is eternal?
b. His Priesthood is eternal?
c. Is it using the fact that Scripture does not show his genealogy (beginning or end) as a picture / type / shadow of Christ
c. Changing the Priesthood changed the law
i. Hebrews 7:11–12 “11 Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron? 12 For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well.”
Melchizedek’s God
Genesis 14:19–20 “19 And he blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; 20 and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!” And Abram gave him a tenth of everything.”
1. Melchizedek knows God
a. He serves God
b. He is a Priest of God
c. He blessed Abram in God’s Name over the bread and wine
d. Abram accepts his blessing, but not the king of Sodom’s
e. Abram gives him a tenth of everything
2. How does he know about ‘God Most High’? I thought God was starting a new people through Abram?
a. Was there a faithful remnant besides Abram’s household?
i. Did he know Noah? Does he know Shem? (There was overlap in their lifetimes)
ii. Noah’s sons would have shared what happened at the flood. But already there was idolatry widespread (Moses didn’t even get down the mountain before it started-as an example of how fast mankind turns away from God)
Our Priesthood
1. We also inherit a Priesthood, which is a higher order than the Levites (us being priests by the Spirit and they being priests after the flesh / by genealogy)
a. WHEN IS THIS? >>>>>>>>>>>>> (((((((((((((((((((((((((ESCHATOLOGY RABBIT-HOLE)))))))))))))))))))))
1. Revelation 5:10 “10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.””
2. 1 Peter 2:9 “9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”
a. IS THIS NOW?
3. Revelation 20:4–6 “4 Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. 5 The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended. This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy is the one who shares in the first resurrection! Over such the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him for a thousand years.”
4. 2 Timothy 2:11–12 “11 The saying is trustworthy, for: If we have died with him, we will also live with him; 12 if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us;”
5. Revelation 3:21 “21 The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.”
a. Did Paul think Jesus was already reigning when he quoted Psalm 110:1?
i. 1 Corinthians 15:25 “25 For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.”
1. Not future - until the final enemy is destroyed (death)
a. ((((((((((COMMONLY USED TO DEFEND A PRESENT MELLENNIUM KINGOM)))))))))))))))))))))))))
Historical views
1. Josephus (1st Century A.D.) sees Melchizedek as a historical human king and priest Jerusalem
2. Philo (20 B.C. - A.D. 50 2nd Temple) considers Melchizedek an allegorical / ‘Logos’ figure
3. The Priests of Qumran make Melchizedek a heavenly figure
4. Rabbinic traditions identify Melchizedek with Shem
1. Melchizedek is not described by Josephus in any Heavenly way - he seems human
a. Antiquities 1.179-182 (Chapter 10)
The Works of Josephus: New Updated Edition Chapter 10: How Abram Fought with the Assyrians and Overcame Them, and Saved the Sodomite Prisoners, and Took from the Assyrians the Prey They Had Gotten
2. (179) So Abram, when he had saved the captive Sodomites who had been taken by the Assyrians, and Lot also, his kinsman, returned home in peace. Now the king of Sodom met him at a certain place, which they called The King’s Dale, (180) where Melchizedek, king of the city Salem, received him. That name signifies the righteous king; and such he was without dispute, insomuch that, on this account, he was made the priest of God: however, they afterward called Salem Jerusalem. (181) Now this Melchizedek supplied Abram’s army in an hospitable manner, and gave them provisions in abundance; and as they were feasting he began to praise him, and to bless God for subduing his enemies under him. And when Abram gave him the tenth part of his prey, he accepted of the gift: (182) but the king of Sodom desired Abram to take the prey, but entreated that he might have those men restored to him whom Abram had saved from the Assyrians because they belonged to him; but Abram would not do so; nor would make any other advantage of that prey than what his servants had eaten; but still insisted that he should afford a part to his friends that had assisted him in the battle. The first of them was called Eschol, and then Enner, and Mambre.
b. Wars of the Jews 6.435-6.441 (Chapter 10)
The Works of Josephus: New Updated Edition Chapter 10: That Whereas the City of Jerusalem Had Been Five Times Taken Formerly, This Was the Second Time of Its Desolation. A Brief Account of Its History
CHAPTER 10
THAT WHEREAS THE CITY OF JERUSALEM HAD BEEN FIVE TIMES TAKEN FORMERLY, THIS WAS THE SECOND TIME OF ITS DESOLATION. A BRIEF ACCOUNT OF ITS HISTORY
1. (435) And thus was Jerusalem taken, in the second year of the reign of Vespasian, on the eighth day of the month Gorpieus [Elul]. It had been taken five times before, though this was the second time of its desolation; (436) for Shishak, the king of Egypt, and after him Antiochus, and after him Pompey, and after them Sossius and Herod took the city, but still preserved it; (437) but before all these, the king of Babylon conquered it and made it desolate, one thousand four hundred and sixty-eight years and six months after it was built. (438) But he who first built it was a potent man among the Canaanites, and is on our tongue called [Melchisedek], the Righteous King, for such he really was; on which account he was [there] the first priest of God, and first built a temple [there], and called the city Jerusalem, which was formerly called Salem. (439) However, David the king of the Jews, ejected the Canaanites, and settled his own people therein. It was demolished entirely by the Babylonians, four hundred and seventy-seven years and six months after him. (440) And from king David, who was the first of the Jews who reigned therein, to this destruction under Titus, were one thousand one hundred and seventy-nine years; (441) but from its first building, till this last destruction, were two thousand one hundred and seventy-seven years;
2. Philo associates Melchizedek with Logos/Reason, but doesn’t explicitly say the he was the preincarnate Logos
a. Allegorical Interpretation 3.79–82
i. XXV. (79) Moreover, God made Melchisedek, the king of peace, that is of Salem, for that is the interpretation of this name, "his own high Priest,"{36}{#ge 14:18.} without having previously mentioned any particular action of his, but merely because he had made him a king, and a lover of peace, and especially worthy of his priesthood. For he is called a just king, and a king is the opposite of a tyrant, because the one is the interpreter of law, and the other of lawlessness. (80) Therefore the tyrannical mind imposes violent and mischievous commands on both soul and body, and such as have a tendency to cause violent suffering, being commands to act according to vice, and to indulge the passions with enjoyment. But the other, the kingly mind, in the first place, does not command, but rather persuades, since it gives recommendations of such a character, that if guided by them, life, like a vessel, will enjoy a fair voyage through life, being directed in its course by a good governor and pilot; and this good pilot is right reason. (81) We may therefore call the tyrannical mind the ruler of war, and the kingly mind the guide to peace, that is Salem. And this kingly mind shall bring forth food full of cheerfulness and joy; for "he brought forth bread and wine," which the Ammonites and Moabites were not willing to give to the beholder, that is Israel; by reason of such unwillingness they are shut out from the companionship and assembly of God. For the Ammonites being they who are sprung from the outward sense of the mother, and the Moabites, who originate in the mind of the father, are two different dispositions, which look upon the mind and the outward sense as the efficient causes of all existing things, but take no notice of God. Therefore "they shall not come," says Moses, "into the assembly of the Lord, because they did not come to meet you with bread and water when you came out of Egypt,"{37}{#de 23:4.} that is, out of the passions. XXVI. (82) But Melchisedek shall bring forward wine instead of water, and shall give your souls to drink, and shall cheer them with unmixed wine, in order that they may be wholly occupied with a divine intoxication, more sober than sobriety itself. For reason is a priest, having, as its inheritance the true God, and entertaining lofty and sublime and magnificent ideas about him, "for he is the priest of the most high God."{38}{#ge 14:18.} Not that there is any other God who is not the most high; for God being one, is in the heaven above, and in the earth beneath, and there is no other besides Him."{39}{#de 4:39.} But he sets in motion the notion of the Most High, from his conceiving of God not in a low and grovelling spirit, but in one of exceeding greatness, and exceeding sublimity, apart from any conceptions of matter.
ii. Philo also saw the significance in Melchizedek’s bread and wine and interpreted them as spiritual nourishment and divine intoxication - which he says is a state of contemplating God.
3. Qumran Priests (2nd Temple period B.C.
a. The Dead Sea Scroll known as 11Q13 / 11QMelchizedek dates from the Second Temple period and presents Melchizedek in a very different way.
i. https://otstory.wordpress.com/2008/04/17/melchizedek-in-11q13-11qmelch/
ii. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/11Q13
iii. https://armstronginstitute.org/977-uncovering-the-identity-of-melchizedek-dead-sea-scroll-11qmelch
b. In these writings, Melchizedek is a Heavenly figure associated with the jubilee, freeing the captives, atonement, judgment, and end times
i. This is before Christianity.
ii. Jesus claimed these things when quoting Isaiah 61:1-3
1. Luke 4:18–19 “18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.””
c. Scholars debate whether they saw Melchizedek as;
i. An angel
ii. A Heavenly Messiah
iii. A Divine Intermediary
iv. Michael, the Archangel
v. Possibly a Title / Identification associated with YHWH
4. Later Rabbinic traditions identify Melchizedek as Shem, Noah’s son
a. Their lifetimes overlapped
b. Keep patriarchy alive from Adam > Seth > Noah > Shem / Melchizedek > Abram
5. The Book of Hebrews
a. Doesn’t state one way or the other, but uses Melchizedek's biblical character / presentation to explain Jesus' eternal priesthood.
More than a type?
Could Melchizedek be a Christophany?
1. Some say yes;
a. He appears suddenly with almost no background and has no recorded genealogy
b. He is both king and priest
c. He names / titles are Messianic
d. He is greater than Abraham
e. He resembles the Son of God
f. Psalm 110 connects him with Jesus, Who is the ultimate Priest / King
2. Some say no;
a. ‘resembles’ not ‘is’
b. Hebrews constantly distinguishes them ‘after the order of..”
c. Jesus has a Father and mother
d. see how great this ‘man’ was
e. how could he live a preincarnate life as a king of a city?
f. Melchizedek was the pattern, Psalm 110 was the Prophecy, Jesus is the fulfillment.
3. Verdict:
a. Scripture leaves open the possibility, but doesn’t go as far as saying that Melchizedek is a Christophany.
Exported from Logos Bible Study, 7:22 AM September 30, 2026.