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BACKGROUND
DEFINITION OF TERMS
MELCHIZEDEK
MELCHIZEDEK
PRIEST
PRIESTS AND LEVITES
I. The biblical data
II. Wellhausen’s reconstruction
III. Some reactions to Wellhausen’s reconstruction
IV. Priesthood in the New Testament
The
full background to this teaching is available online at this link
DEFINITIONS - For serious students
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Online links to scriptures (New International Version [NIV] unless otherwise stated) are shown in blue
| THE PRIESTHOOD OF MELCHIZEDEK continued |
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| GAPS IN THE BIBLE |
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To get a true understanding of the developing revelation of God in the Bible it is necessary to understand that the Old Testament, rather than being a group of books covering a single time period, is really split into two, with a break of 400 years between them, of which there is no record. There is also a similar break of 400 years of unrecorded history between the Old Testament and the New.
Therefore, the Bible is split into three:
1. Genesis,
2. Exodus to Malachi and
3. Matthew to Revelation.
This means that there is to be an individual priesthood that applies to each of the three.
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| MELCHIZEDEK - PRIEST TO A FAMILY |
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 Abraham was chosen by God to reestablish His godly line upon the earth. God made a covenant (today a contract) with Abraham, promising him, who had no children that he would be the father of a godly line, which continues spiritually, through to believers today.
Genesis 15 :1-6
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 The godly line would only pass down through one member of the next generation, through Isaac and Jacob, thus continuing to limit the godly blessing to a specific family.
Presumably the reason for this is found in the nomadic nature of the people of the time. As the sons grew up, they would get married, leave their parents and form their own nomadic group, or family. The godly line remained restricted to a family until Jacob and his sons went to Egypt, where effectively, the Jewish nation was born.
We do not know how long Melchizedek was around, or even whether he met Abraham again, let alone Isaac or Jacob. But the family based principle of the Melchizedek priesthood was established through what is recorded in Genesis.
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| CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MELCHIZEDEK PRIESTHOOD |
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 Most of what we know about Melchizedek is contained in the New Testament book of Hebrews. The writer would have known of Melchizedek through Jewish tradition, handed down from generation to generation, but must also have had a revelation from God about the special role he played.
1. MEANING OF HIS NAME:
In these times, your name reflected you character and role in life.
Hebrews 7:2b
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 2. AN ONGOING PRIESTHOOD:
Without entering into arguments about his immortality, the key revelation here is that, like Jesus, his ministry is eternal. While we cannot fully understand this, the key point is the ministry of Melchizedek remains, even to today.
Hebrews 7:3
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 3. GREATER THAN ABRAHAM, FATHER OF THE LEVITICAL PRIESTHOOD:
Just think how great he was: Even the patriarch Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder! (Hebrews 7:4)
By implication, the priesthood of Melchizedek was greater than the Levitical one. This is then confirmed, when it is said that the Levitical priesthood effectively tithed to Melchizedek.
Hebrews 7:4, Hebrews 7:9-10
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 4. OF THE SAME ORDER AS JESUS:
Wow! Amazing! Beyond our comprehension!
Hebrews 7:17
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 5. OF SIMILAR CHARACTER TO JESUS:
Being of the same order implies a similar character. Hence why Melchizedek was greater than Abraham, who in spite of his admirable attributes, had his share of human failings also.
Hebrews 7:26
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 6. PERFECTION NECESSARY TO ENTER THE MELCHIZEDEK PRIESTHOOD:
Jesus is the only other one who has reached the mark of proven perfection to become a member of the Melchizedek priesthood.
Hebrews 5:7-10
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| A GAP OF 400 YEARS |
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 Between the end of Genesis and the beginning of Exodus there is a 400 year gap of unrecorded history.
Of course this does not mean that nothing was happening! Over the 400 years of living in Egypt the family multiplied and became a nation. The Egyptians taught them agriculture and crop production, which was necessary to a settled, as opposed to a nomadic lifestyle. The Egyptians also gave the Jews a written language and taught the governance skills necessary for a settled society to maintain itself.
In people terms, we move from Joseph to Moses. Over this time the Jews lived in the same physical location growing the formerly nomadic families into a settled nation of many, many people, perhaps 2.5 million. They had become a vital cog in Egyptian society, hence why the Pharoah was so reluctant to let them leave!
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| <i>NEXT WEEK:</i> A REVELATON OF....... THE 3 PRIESTHOODS continues |
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 ..... as we start our look at the better known priesthood of Aaron.
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| A NOTE FROM DAVID |
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 What truly amazes me is how the redemptive work of God upon the earth with His people, was planned and put into place right from the instant Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.
For redemption, we need the intervention of a priest acting to provide both sacrifice and blessings on our behalf.
Melchizedec was the first in this line of priests that culminated with the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross, for your sins and mine.
Thank you Jesus for the ultimate sacrifice you made for me!
BIBLE ARCHAEOLOGY
Siloam Inscription
Does this inscription reveal God's protection of Jerusalem and a miracle?
The Siloam Inscription is a description in ancient Hebrew of the cutting and completion of the Siloam Tunnel built by king Hezekiah (727-698 BC). King Hezekiah desiring to protect Jerusalem from the Assyrians had a tunnel cut through solid rock to bring water from the Spring of Gihon within the cities walls, after which the Spring was sealed off.
The carving was found in the tunnel itself in 1880 by a boy accidently. It records how two groups of workers started from opposite ends, digging through the solid rock underground and meeting in the middle. The Hebrew inscription talks about how one group miraculously heard sounds of pick-axes so they would know which way to go through the windy tunnel. The tunnel now channels water to the Pool of Siloam and can be seen in Jerusalem.
The Siloam Inscription is important in the study of Biblical Archaeology.
2 Kings 20:20 "And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his might, and how he made a pool, and a conduit, and brought water into the city, [are] they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?"
2 Chronicles 32:2-4 "And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib was come, and that he was purposed to fight against Jerusalem, He took counsel with his princes and his mighty men to stop the waters of the fountains which [were] without the city: and they did help him. So there was gathered much people together, who stopped all the fountains, and the brook that ran through the midst of the land, saying, Why should the kings of Assyria come, and find much water?"
John 9:5-7 "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay, And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (Meaning Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing."
The 6-Line Inscription Reads:
... the tunnel ... and this is the story of the tunnel while ...
the axes were against each other and while three cubits were left to cut? ... the voice of a man ...
called to his counterpart, (for) there was ZADA in the rock, on the right ... and on the day of the
tunnel (being finished) the stonecutters struck each man towards his counterpart, ax against ax and flowed
water from the source to the pool for 1200 cubits. and 100?
cubits was the height over the head of the stonecutters ...
Interesting Note: The inscription reveals 1200 cubits for approximately 1760 feet which confirms the Biblical measurement for a cubit to equal 18 inches as Josephus mentions in the construction of Herod's Temple.
Source: http://www.bible-history.com
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So until next week.......
MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND YOU BLESS GOD!
His servant and yours
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