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Was Melchizedek God? If so, was he Jesus?
The Christian Courier published a piece at https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/920-questions-about-melchizedek challenging the view that Melchizedek was God. The piece suggests that it was not Melchizedek who was without father, mother and genealogy, but rather, his priesthood. It states:
“None of the expressions in Hebrews 7:3 is to be assigned a literal meaning. Rather, they are terms that depict the nature of Melchizedek’s priesthood, in contrast to the Aaronic priesthood, as such prevailed under the Mosaic regime.
…
“It was not that Melchizedek was “without father, without mother” literally, or that he had no genealogical background.
“No, the truth being conveyed was this. Whereas the Aaronic priesthood resulted from being a part of a family line (i.e., the descendants of Aaron, Moses’ brother) the priesthood of Melchizedek was bestowed directly by God.
“And it was precisely in this manner that the Lord Jesus was appointed as our High Priest. He did not inherit it by means of a physical lineage (cf. Hebrews 7:14).”
The view expressed by the Christian Courier is not without problems. Hebrews 7:3 does not state that Melchizedek’s priesthood was without father, mother and genealogy. Rather, it states that Melchizedek was without father, mother and genealogy:
Heb 7:3 Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.
While the Christian Courier correctly points out that Melchizedek’s priesthood was like Jesus’ in that neither Melchizedek nor Jesus was from the line of Aaron/Levi, Hebrews also appears to indicate that Melchizedek himself was without father and mother. To state that a priesthood is without father and mother is illogical. Priests have fathers and mothers, not priesthoods.
If Hebrews 7:3 were referring to Melchizedek’s priesthood rather than Melchizedek himself, we would still need to account for Hebrews 7:8, which states:
Heb 7:8 In the one case, the tenth is collected by people who die; but in the other case, by him who is declared to be living.
This verse is a continuation of the discussion of Melchizedek from Hebrews 7:2-6. Melchizedek, who is declared to be living, collected the “tenth.”
It may be, as the Christian Courier points out, that the reference to “beginning of days or end of life” is referring not to Melchizedek’s life, but rather, to his priesthood:
“According to the biblical record, the Levitical priests served in the tabernacle from the time they were twenty-five years of age, until they were fifty (Numbers 8:24-25), but no such limit is suggested in the scripture record regarding Melchizedek.”
Yet even we conclude that the references to being without father, mother, genealogy, beginning and end of days are referring to Melchizedek’s priesthood rather than Melchizedek himself, Melchizedek could still be immortal on the basis of other statements in Hebrews. Hebrews 7:3 states that Melchizedek “remains a priest forever.” If he remains a priest forever, then Melchizedek must be immortal. Because only God is immortal (1Ti 6:16), Melchizedek must be God.
The Christian Courier published a piece at https://www.christiancourier.com/articles/920-questions-about-melchizedek challenging the view that Melchizedek was God. The piece suggests that it was not Melchizedek who was without father, mother and genealogy, but rather, his priesthood. It states:
“None of the expressions in Hebrews 7:3 is to be assigned a literal meaning. Rather, they are terms that depict the nature of Melchizedek’s priesthood, in contrast to the Aaronic priesthood, as such prevailed under the Mosaic regime.
…
“It was not that Melchizedek was “without father, without mother” literally, or that he had no genealogical background.
“No, the truth being conveyed was this. Whereas the Aaronic priesthood resulted from being a part of a family line (i.e., the descendants of Aaron, Moses’ brother) the priesthood of Melchizedek was bestowed directly by God.
“And it was precisely in this manner that the Lord Jesus was appointed as our High Priest. He did not inherit it by means of a physical lineage (cf. Hebrews 7:14).”
The view expressed by the Christian Courier is not without problems. Hebrews 7:3 does not state that Melchizedek’s priesthood was without father, mother and genealogy. Rather, it states that Melchizedek was without father, mother and genealogy:
Heb 7:3 Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.
While the Christian Courier correctly points out that Melchizedek’s priesthood was like Jesus’ in that neither Melchizedek nor Jesus was from the line of Aaron/Levi, Hebrews also appears to indicate that Melchizedek himself was without father and mother. To state that a priesthood is without father and mother is illogical. Priests have fathers and mothers, not priesthoods.
If Hebrews 7:3 were referring to Melchizedek’s priesthood rather than Melchizedek himself, we would still need to account for Hebrews 7:8, which states:
Heb 7:8 In the one case, the tenth is collected by people who die; but in the other case, by him who is declared to be living.
This verse is a continuation of the discussion of Melchizedek from Hebrews 7:2-6. Melchizedek, who is declared to be living, collected the “tenth.”
It may be, as the Christian Courier points out, that the reference to “beginning of days or end of life” is referring not to Melchizedek’s life, but rather, to his priesthood:
“According to the biblical record, the Levitical priests served in the tabernacle from the time they were twenty-five years of age, until they were fifty (Numbers 8:24-25), but no such limit is suggested in the scripture record regarding Melchizedek.”
Yet even we conclude that the references to being without father, mother, genealogy, beginning and end of days are referring to Melchizedek’s priesthood rather than Melchizedek himself, Melchizedek could still be immortal on the basis of other statements in Hebrews. Hebrews 7:3 states that Melchizedek “remains a priest forever.” If he remains a priest forever, then Melchizedek must be immortal. Because only God is immortal (1Ti 6:16), Melchizedek must be God.
