Chapter 5: Abram and Melchizedek
Q1 - For the first time in Genesis 14:24 we learn that others accompanied Abram and his people into battle. What does this say of the relationship and trust these men had in Abram? What does this say of Abram’s character that as a newcomer to the area he could establish such trust?
A1 - Recall that in Genesis 14:13 the scriptures tell us that Abram had settled near terebinth or oak trees which had already been home to Mamre the Amorite, and that Eshcol and Aner were Mamre’s brothers. We also learn that Abram had made an alliance with these three men. So it seems that when Abram arrived in the area, he sought to make friends with those who already lived there rather than just coming in and taking over. These men must have held Abram in high regard for them to be willing to accompany him into battle against such formidable foes.
These men, Mamre, Eshcol, and Aner, must have been influential leaders and long-time residents in their home territories, as the area around the oak trees were named for Mamre. Then, centuries later, we learn in Numbers 13:23–24 that when the Israelites spied out the land of Canaan before settling there, one of the places they visited was the Valley of Eshcol, evidently named for the same Eshcol that Abram had befriended. This must have been a remarkably fertile area, as one cluster of grapes was so enormous it had to be carried on a pole between two men.
Q2 - Have you ever been somewhere, whether traveling or closer to home, when you happened to encounter another person of faith at a time or place that you would not have expected? How did that make you feel? How do you think Abram felt when he encountered Melchizedek?
A2 - It is both refreshing and encouraging when fellow believers are found in unexpected places and circumstances. As for Abram, God called him away from his family and home country, and while the people he left behind may have known about the one true God, there’s no indication they worshipped Him. Once Abram reached Canaan, so far as the scriptures tell us, Melchizedek is the only other person who worshipped God outside of his immediate household that he ever encountered there.
Q3 - Where was Jesus when the world was created? (See John 1:1–15.) How was He part of that relationship that had existed since the beginning?
A3 - The Apostle John tells us that Jesus has existed from the beginning of time along with God, and that all things were made through Him. Jesus Himself stated in John 10:30 that He and the Father are one. Other scriptures also tell us of Jesus’s closeness with His Father (see John 5:19–20, John 14:9–11, and John 17:21–23). The Apostle Paul tells us that Jesus, the Son, is the image of God, the firstborn of all creation, and that in Him all things in heaven and on earth were created, the visible as well as the invisible (see Colossians 1:15–17, 2:9).
Jesus’s closeness with His Father and His connection with the creation of all the world places Him in the perfect position to be our high priest and intercessor. He can fulfill those roles as no human priest ever could. It follows, then, that Jesus would not identify with the lineage of the Aaronic priesthood, even though He was born a Jew. The priesthood of Aaron was established by the Old Law which Moses received on Mount Sinai. That Law was never meant to be permanent, as it could not offer complete redemption of sins.
When Jesus came, He fulfilled that Law and offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for sin, once and for all time. He left us with the New Covenant under which we live today, and He established His priesthood. He ascended to sit at the right hand of God, where He continues to intercede on our behalf. He fulfilled what the scriptures foretold in Psalm 110:4 (NIV):
The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind:
“You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek.”
The writer of Hebrews, presumably the Apostle Paul, goes to great lengths to explain Jesus’s priesthood, particularly in chapters 5–7. Melchizedek was a priest of God long before the Law established the priesthood of Aaron. Fittingly, Jesus chose to tie Himself back to the priesthood of Melchizedek rather than the priesthood established by the Law.