Melchizedek is a character only mentioned twice in the entire Hebrew Bible and yet he becomes one of the main characters in the Letter to the Hebrews. What was it about this Melchizedek that was so important that he receives such a prominent place in Hebrews’ midrash on the Messiah? In this series we will investigate the passages referring to Melchizedek in the Hebrew Bible and the extra-Biblical references to him in 2nd Temple Jewish literature. We will especially focus upon the Melchizedek Scroll (11Q13) from Qumran which provides important parallels to the Letter to the Hebrews’ usage of Melchizedek. The Melchizedek Scroll depicts Melchizedek as the agent of YHWH who enacts an eschatological Jubilee on the Day of Atonement which is similar to the theme of Hebrews.
By analyzing the background sources as well as the Hebrew and Greek texts themselves, we will determine why Hebrews compares Melchizedek to Yeshua, what the “order of Melchizedek” actually is, what was actually changed after Yeshua’s death and resurrection, and what our role is now in the Kingdom of God.
This teaching is approximately 5 hours in length.