After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley).
Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High.
Genesis 14:17-18 (NIV)
The Lord will extend your mighty scepter from Zion, saying,
“Rule in the midst of your enemies!”
Your troops will be willing
on your day of battle.
Arrayed in holy splendor,
your young men will come to you
like dew from the morning’s womb.
The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind:
“You are a priest forever,
in the order of Melchizedek.”
Psalm 110:2-4 (NIV)
The mysterious Melchizedek is mentioned twice in the Jewish scriptures – once here in Genesis 14, and once in Psalm 110, and it’s clear that David, the Psalmist sees a future messiah in this character.
The text says that Melchizedek is the “king of Salem,” which the rabbis say refers to Jerusalem. He is a king in the Promised Land, before the incursion of the Canaanites.
But there’s more to his name that describes this once and future king:
First, Salem means peace. So he is “malek shalem” or king of peace. But also, Melchizedek is a compound word, coming from “malek” and “tsedeq,” which means “king of righteousness.” And he’s also called a “priest” of God-most-high.
He’s obviously divine in some way. But… he doesn’t seem to do anything in the story, except BLESS Abram.
Who goes to war, bringing a band of young men, against the empires to rescue his people? It’s Abram. So who is the Psalmist talking about?
The Lord is at your right hand;
he will crush kings on the day of his wrath.
He will judge the nations, heaping up the dead
and crushing the rulers of the whole earth.
Psalm 110:5-6 (NIV)
On one level, the Psalmist is talking about Abram, because he is recounting Genesis 14. But he also sees a future person who does the same thing, attributing success to “the Lord.” But notice… this isn’t the ALL-CAPS Lord. This isn’t The Name of God here.
So while this can point to a future messiah, David also likely believed this psalm was about himself. As king over God’s people, he bore responsibility to protect. And in Genesis, he sees the presence of a greater king of righteousness and peace who will bless him.
If God’s promises are eternal, and prophecy is perpetual, this is perhaps true of all of God’s faithful people: we will all be victorious over the lesser kings in our lives, and the Great King will bless us in our triumph.
Because God is near us.
