Who was Melchizedek?

Question: I read recently in the book of Hebrews that Jesus Christ has become “High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” Who was Melchizedek in the Bible, and how is He connected to Jesus?

Answer: The first reference to Melchizedek is found in Genesis 14:18–20: “Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. And he blessed him and said: ‘Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand.’ And he gave him a tithe of all.”

Three biblical clues connect the mysterious Melchizedek and Jesus Christ. The first is that Melchizedek and Christ are both exalted kings. The name “Melchizedek” means “king of righteousness,” as brought out in Hebrews 7:1–2: “For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated ‘king of righteousness,’ and then also king of Salem, meaning ‘king of peace.’”

Jesus also has the title of king—He was born to be king (John 18:37) and is called the “Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6), as well as “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” (Revelation 19:16).

Additionally, Melchizedek and Christ share a special connection to a certain city. Melchizedek was called “King of peace,” but Salem was also an ancient name for the city of Jerusalem. We read, “In Salem also is His tabernacle, and His dwelling place in Zion” (Psalm 76:2). Salem means “peace,” and the word Jerusalem means “city of peace.”

Jesus Christ will reign as King of kings and Lord of lords from Jerusalem, which is called “the city of the great King” (Matthew 5:35)—referencing Christ. When Jesus came to Jerusalem before His last Passover, He fulfilled a prophecy: “Behold, your King is coming to you, lowly, and sitting on a donkey” (Matthew 21:5; Zechariah 9:9). And we’re told that when Jesus returns to earth: “Jerusalem shall be called The Throne of the Lord, and all the nations shall be gathered to it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem” (Jeremiah 3:17).

We see that Melchizedek was king of the city that became known as Jerusalem, and Jesus will reign as King of Jerusalem. But not only that—He will reign over the whole earth (Revelation 11:15).

Finally, Melchizedek and Christ are both exalted priests. We learn that Melchizedek is “without father, without mother, without genealogy” (Hebrews 7:3), meaning that Melchizedek’s existence did not begin with a physical birth, “having neither beginning of days nor end of life”—that is, Melchizedek possesses eternal life—“but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.” Then we’re told, “Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils” (Hebrews 7:4).

The ancient Israelites were to pay their tithes to the tribe of Levi, all of whom came from Abraham. But Melchizedek, who did not come from the Levites, “received tithes from Abraham” (Hebrews 7:6) so that “even Levi… paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him” (vv. 9–10). In other words, Melchizedek was the priest to whom even the patriarch Abraham, and thereby all the Israelites, paid tithes. This priesthood was different from—and superior to—the priesthood of the Levites that would be established later.

Melchizedek Was Christ

As we’ve read, Melchizedek was “made like the Son of God”—that is, Jesus Christ—and “remains a priest continually” (Hebrews 7:3). Hebrews 7:17 quotes Psalm 110:4, saying Jesus Christ is “a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek,” and we likewise read that Jesus is the “High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 6:20). Other passages also point to Jesus Christ as High Priest: “Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God” (Hebrews 4:14).

Examining these clues leads to only one conclusion: The two are the same Being, and Melchizedek is the One who became Jesus Christ. Before He had either name, He was the Word, who was with God and who was God (John 1:1).