It is interesting to notice that the first person mentioned as a priest was not an Israelite even though he served Yahweh. In fact, there were people who were not of Jacob’s lineage who were priests. It might be, that in our own effort to become more spiritual, we have followed after the wrong priesthood. People think they are getting back to their roots by following Levitical priests but that is inaccurate. Instead, the roots of the priesthood precede the sons of Levi. We have talked about Melchizedek and who he was and the school he had in Jerusalem that Isaac and Jacob both attended. We have also talked about the Essenes and the Prophets that followed this school. But to gain a broader view of the original Priesthood we will look at two priests that predate the Israelites. We will look at the first holocaust offering in the Israelite camp as well. We will see if Jesus fulfills these requirements as priest. Who were the people serving El Elyon?
Genesis 14:18-20 (KJV) 18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
We should pay attention here that the word king is redundant. Melchizedek means “King of Righteousness”, so the verse reads: “King of Righteousness, King of Salem”. This is pointed out in the book of Hebrews. He was the priest of the most high, or the Supreme God El Elyon. The very first priest recorded in the Bible is a priest to El Elyon.
H4442
מלכּי־צדק malkı̂y - tsedeq
mal-kee-tseh'-dek
KJV Usage: Melchizedek.
Brown-Driver-Briggs' Hebrew Definitions
מלכּי־צדק
Melchizedek = "my king is Sedek"
1. king of Salem and priest of the Most High God to whom Abram paid tithe after the battle he fought to free Lot; 'the order of Melchizedek' the order of the priesthood to which Christ belongs
TWOT: 1199i
Parts of Speech: Proper Name Masculine
H410
אל 'êl ale
Shortened from H352; strength; as adjective mighty; especially the Almighty (but used also of any deity)
KJV Usage: God (god), X goodly, X great, idol, might (-y one), power, strong.
Compare names in “-el.”
Brown-Driver-Briggs' Hebrew Definitions
אל
1. god, god-like one, mighty one
a. mighty men, men of rank, mighty heroes
b. angels
c. god, false god, (demons, imaginations)
d. God, the one true God, Jehovah
2. mighty things in nature
3. strength, power
Origin: shortened from H352
TWOT: 93a
Parts of Speech: Noun Masculine
H5945
עליון ‛elyôn el-yone'
From H5927; an elevation, that is, (adjectively) lofty (comparatively); as title, the Supreme
KJV Usage: (Most, on) high (-er, -est), upper (-most).
Brown-Driver-Briggs' Hebrew Definitions
עליון
adj
1. high, upper
a. of Davidic king exalted above monarchs n m
2. Highest, Most High
a. name of God
b. of rulers, either monarchs or angel-princes
Origin: from H5927
TWOT: 1624g,1624h
Parts of Speech:
Jasher points out who he is and calls him by another name. The priest brought food for Abraham and his men.
Jasher 16:11 And Adonizedek king of Jerusalem, the same was Shem, went out with his men to meet Abram and his people, with bread and wine, and they remained together in the valley of Melech. 12 And Adonizedek blessed Abram, and Abram gave him a tenth from all that he had brought from the spoil of his enemies, for Adonizedek was a priest before God.
Adoni means “Lord”, and again zedek means “righteousness”. Melech was the name of the valley. Shem, the son of Noah was the priest of El Elyon. Josephus adds to the story.
Josephus Antiquities 1:10:2 So Abram, when he had saved the captive Sodomites, who had been taken by the Assyrians, and Lot also, his kinsman, returned home in peace. Now the king of Sodom met him at a certain place, which they called The King's Dale, where Melchisedec, king of the city Salem, received him. That name signifies, the righteous king: and such he was, without dispute, insomuch that, on this account, he was made the priest of God: however, they afterward called Salem Jerusalem. Now this Melchisedec supplied Abram's army in an hospitable manner, and gave them provisions in abundance; and as they were feasting, he began to praise him, and to bless God for subduing his enemies under him. And when Abram gave him the tenth part of his prey, he accepted of the gift: but the king of Sodom desired Abram to take the prey,…
The Works of Flavius Josephus.
Without dispute, Shem was a righteous king and he was a priest of God. Salem later was called Jerusalem as a combination of the Jebusite city. Isn’t it odd that we never hear about Shem? We never learn about him in Church or Sunday school, and we never exalt him for being a priest and teaching others. There is no doubt that Shem was the original priest of El Elyon. This is the original Order of the Priesthood. He knew Abraham well, and taught Isaac and Jacob as well as many others. Let’s look at Shem’s lineage.
Genesis 11:10-27 (KJV) 10 These are the generations of Shem: Shem was an hundred years old, and begat Arphaxad two years after the flood:
11 And Shem lived after he begat Arphaxad five hundred years, and begat sons and daughters.
12 And Arphaxad lived five and thirty years, and begat Salah:
13 And Arphaxad lived after he begat Salah four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters.
14 And Salah lived thirty years, and begat Eber:
15 And Salah lived after he begat Eber four hundred and three years, and begat sons and daughters.
16 And Eber lived four and thirty years, and begat Peleg:
17 And Eber lived after he begat Peleg four hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters.
18 And Peleg lived thirty years, and begat Reu:
19 And Peleg lived after he begat Reu two hundred and nine years, and begat sons and daughters.
20 And Reu lived two and thirty years, and begat Serug:
21 And Reu lived after he begat Serug two hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters.
22 And Serug lived thirty years, and begat Nahor:
23 And Serug lived after he begat Nahor two hundred years, and begat sons and daughters.
24 And Nahor lived nine and twenty years, and begat Terah:
25 And Nahor lived after he begat Terah an hundred and nineteen years, and begat sons and daughters.
26 And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
27 Now these are the generations of Terah: Terah begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran; and Haran begat Lot.
Shem and Eber ran the school in Salem. Eber is also known as “Heber", where the name Hebrew originates from. When we call someone a Hebrew, we are saying he is a descendent of Heber/Eber as Josephus tells us. Therefore Eber/Heber must have been a well known individual for people to call the sons of Jacob Hebrews, descendants of Heber/Eber. The Israelites are Hebrews, or the sons of Jacob are also sons of Heber.
Abraham’s linage is from Shem. Now let’s look forward. We seem to put blinders on when it comes to this bit of history, but Abraham had eight sons in total. Some of Abrahams sons learned from Shem/Melchizedek as well.
Jasher 25:1 And it was at that time that Abraham again took a wife in his old age, and her name was Keturah, from the land of Canaan. 2 And she bare unto him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak and Shuach, being six sons. And the children of Zimran were Abihen, Molich and Narim.
Let’s look at this genealogy of Midian.
Jasher 25:9 And the children of Midian, son of Abraham, went to the east of the land of Cush, and they there found a large valley in the eastern country, and they remained there and built a city, and they dwelt therein, that is the land of Midian unto this day. 10 And Midian dwelt in the city which he built, he and his five sons and all belonging to him. 11 And these are the names of the sons of Midian according to their names in their cities, Ephah, Epher, Chanoch, Abida and Eldaah. 12 And the sons of Ephah were Methach, Meshar, Avi and Tzanua, and the sons of Epher were Ephron, Zur, Alirun and Medin, and the sons of Chanoch were Reuel, Rekem, Azi, Alyoshub and Alad.
Why do we care about Midian? We see another pre-Israelite Priest from Midian, Reuel also known as Jethro.
Exodus 2:16-22 (KJV) 16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.
17 And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock.
18 And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day?
19 And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock.
20 And he said unto his daughters, And where is he? why is it that ye have left the man? call him, that he may eat bread.
21 And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.
22 And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land.
Reuel is also called Jethro. Reuel was a priest of Midian. It is easy to assume that Reuel could have been a pagan priest, but we will see shortly that he was not. In fact he was a priest of Yahweh.
Exodus 3:1-6 (KJV) 1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.
3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.
4 And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.
5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.
6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.
Moses learned about Yahweh while living in the land of Midian. The God of Abraham was the God of Shem and Eber. Moses had a tremendous experience on the mountain.
If we read the book of Jasher, we find that Moses was told to circumcise his oldest son, but did not as he was of the line of Abraham that did not have to circumcise their boys until around thirteen years of age. As per Reuel’s request and their custom of circumcision at the age of manhood, Moses did not circumcise Gershom as an infant. But once Moses left Reuel’s house and was on the road to Egypt to free the Hebrews the enemy sought this occasion to kill Moses. This was an opening for satan to attack Moses, so Zipphorah actually saved Moses’ life by circumcising the boy on the road from Midian to Egypt. Their second child Eliezer was circumcised at eight days.
Moses sent Zipporah, Gershom, and Eliezer back to Midian at some point, probably to protect them from Pharaoh. After Moses led the children of Jacob, the Hebrews, out of Egypt, Reuel/Jethro, Zipporah, Gershom, and Eliezer joined the children of Jacob in the wilderness.
Exodus 18:1-12 (KJV) 1 When Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father in law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, and that the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt;
2 Then Jethro, Moses' father in law, took Zipporah, Moses' wife, after he had sent her back,
3 And her two sons; of which the name of the one was Gershom; for he said, I have been an alien in a strange land:
4 And the name of the other was Eliezer; for the God of my father, said he, was mine help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh:
5 And Jethro, Moses' father in law, came with his sons and his wife unto Moses into the wilderness, where he encamped at the mount of God:
6 And he said unto Moses, I thy father in law Jethro am come unto thee, and thy wife, and her two sons with her.
7 And Moses went out to meet his father in law, and did obeisance, and kissed him; and they asked each other of their welfare; and they came into the tent.
8 And Moses told his father in law all that the LORD had done unto Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel's sake, and all the travail that had come upon them by the way, and how the LORD delivered them.
9 And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which the LORD had done to Israel, whom he had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians.
10 And Jethro said, Blessed be the LORD, who hath delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of Pharaoh, who hath delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.
11 Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods: for in the thing wherein they dealt proudly he was above them.
12 And Jethro, Moses' father in law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God: and Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses' father in law before God.
Moses paid great respect to Reuel/Jethro. Reuel rejoiced over the things that Yahweh had done for the children of Israel. Reuel made a burnt offering and sacrifices to Yahweh, in the camp of the children of Jacob. This is the first burnt offering made after the Exodus. This is a holocaust offering. The only other time a whole burnt offering was made prior to this was after the flood, Noah made a whole burnt offering. This burnt offering is also known as a holocaust, a wholly consumed sacrifice. This first whole burnt offering was made by someone from the line of Shem and Abraham, but not a child of Jacob.
G3646 LSJ Gloss:ὁλοκαύτωμαa whole burnt-offering, holocaust
Dodson: ὁλοκαύτωμα a whole burnt offering.
Thayer:
1) a whole burnt offering
1a) a victim the whole (and not like other victims only a part) of which was burned
ὁλοκαύτωμα
holokautōma hol-ok-ow'-to-mah From a derivative of a compound of G3650 and a derivative of G2545; a wholly consumed sacrifice (“holocaust”) KJV Usage: (whole) burnt offering.
Since whole burnt offerings have a very important place in Levitical law it is strange that we have not pointed out that the very first whole burnt offering was made by a priest who was not of the Levites. Why hasn’t anyone ever mentioned Reuel/Jethro was the person who made a whole burnt offering in the camp of Israel in the wilderness? At this time, the whole burnt offering and sacrifices were made, Aaron and the elders of Israel came together and ate before Yahweh. This is a spectacular picture, an heir of Abraham and Keturah was teaching an heir of Abraham and Sarah about whole burnt offerings. This is not a light matter. While I’m sure a good time was had by all, this holocaust offering was a prophetic announcement of a future high priest who would come from this order. After this, Moses meets with God again.
Exodus 19:3-8 (KJV) 3 And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;
4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.
5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:
6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
7 And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him.
8 And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD.
If they would obey Yahweh they would become a kingdom of priests. The whole nation, all the heirs of Jacob, could become priests if they would obey Yahweh. Imagine what that would look like. We do know what happened instead, even in the wilderness they worshipped idols and the cherubim. Now we see that it only took one generation for things to fall apart. Moses’ grandson was a Levitical priest, but he did not stick to Levitical law.
Judges 18:29-30 (AMP) 29 They named the city Dan, after Dan their forefather who was born to Israel; however, the name of the city was Laish at first.
30 And the Danites set up the graven image for themselves; and Jonathan son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.
If we read the whole story we find that Jonathan was a Levite looking for work and someone hired him to be a priest in the house of all the man’s idols. When the Danites came through the area they convinced him to leave and go with them.
Eli’s sons were really taking advantage of their position and a man of God came to prophesy to Eli. Who was this man? We don’t know, but it is possible that even though he was not a Levite, he was a prophet from Shem’s order.
1 Samuel 2:27-36 (KJV) 27 And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Did I plainly appear unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house?
28 And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer upon mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before me? and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel?
29 Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people?
30 Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
31 Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man in thine house.
32 And thou shalt see an enemy in my habitation, in all the wealth which God shall give Israel: and there shall not be an old man in thine house for ever.
33 And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thine heart: and all the increase of thine house shall die in the flower of their age.
34 And this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas; in one day they shall die both of them.
35 And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.
36 And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thine house shall come and crouch to him for a piece of silver and a morsel of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests' offices, that I may eat a piece of bread.
Those are very strong words from this prophet. If we read verse 30 in the Septuagint we see this a bit more clearly.
1 Samuel (1 Kings Sept.) 2:30 Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel, I said, Thy house and the house of thy father shall pass before me for ever: but now the Lord says, That be far from me; for I will only honour them that honour me, and he that sets me at nought shall be despised.
The plans regarding the entire nation being priests changed to the end that only those who honor Yahweh will Yahweh honor and those who treat Yahweh with contempt will be despised. This is now a priesthood by choice, not by birth. Eli’s house will fall and be hungry, while Yahweh will raise up a trustworthy priest.
David prophesies that the Lord said to David’s Lord that he, David’s Lord, is a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. Who is David’s Lord? The one that comes from David’s line, the Messiah.
Psalm 110:1 The Lord said to my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. 2 The Lord shall send out a rod of power for thee out of Sion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. 3 With thee is dominion in the day of thy power, in the splendours of thy saints: I have begotten thee from the womb before the morning. 4 The Lord sware, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchisedec. 5 The Lord at thy right hand has dashed in pieces kings in the day of his wrath. 6 He shall judge among the nations, he shall fill up the number of corpses, he shall crush the heads of many on the earth. 7 He shall drink of the brook in the way; therefore shall he lift up the head. Sept.
Jesus used this Psalm to confuse the Pharisees. The Pharisees knew that the Messiah was to come from the line of David, but they refused to believe Jesus was the Messiah. David’s Lord was the Son of the most high, who was to become a priest in Shem’s order. The Pharisees thought they were the priests and spiritual leaders, but as we have studied previously, they compromised and did not follow the Holy Spirit as the Essenes/Nazarenes/Therapeutaes and the Damascus community left service in the temple. The last verse of this Psalm is a little tricky. Let’s look.
Psalms 110:7G1537[from out of G54933 the rushing stream G1722in G3598 the way G4095He shall drink]; G1223on account of G3778this G5312he shall raise up high G2776a head.
5493Dodson: χείμαρρος a winter torrent a storm-brook, a winter torrent.
Thayer:
1) flowing in winter, a torrent
χείμαῤῥος
cheimarrhos khi'-mar-hros From the base of G5494 and G4482; a storm runlet, that is, winter torrent KJV Usage: brook.
2776LSJ Gloss: κεφαλή the head
Dodson: κεφαλή the head (a) the head, (b) met: a corner stone, uniting two walls; head, ruler, lord.
Thayer:
1) the head, both of men and often of animals. Since the loss of the head destroys life, this word is used in the phrases relating to capital and extreme punishment.
2) metaph. anything supreme, chief, prominent
2a) of persons, master lord: of a husband in relation to his wife
2b) of Christ: the Lord of the husband and of the Church
2c) of things: the corner stone
κεφαλή
kephalē kef-al-ay' Probably from the primary word κάπτω kaptō (in the sense of seizing); the head (as the part most readily taken hold of), literally or figuratively KJV Usage: head.
It is not a brook; a brook gives the impression of gentle water. This is a torrent, a winter run off from the mountain streams. The torrent this Lord and Priest of Melchizedek will drink from is flowing hard and fast. Because of being able to drink from this torrent, he will lift high his head, as a ruler and Lord. He is a chief cornerstone and he seizes his position by handling the torrential winter runoff. When it seems like we are standing in the midst of a torrential stream and we can barely stand up, we should keep Jesus in mind, as he overcame, prevailed, and is now the ruler over the church.
Hebrews gives us further insight as to this priesthood of Melchizedek with some very practical understanding.
Hebrews 5:1-10 (KJV) 1 For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins:
2 Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity.
3 And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins.
4 And no man taketh this honour unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron.
5 So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee.
6 As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;
8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;
9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;
10 Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec.
Jesus was of the tribe of Judah, not Levi; therefore Jesus’ priesthood was of Melchizedek, a different priesthood. Jesus did not make himself a priest, he was called. Israel could have become a kingdom of priests, but they did not obey and adhere to Yahweh’s commands. Yet the Levitical priesthood is a second priesthood, as Melchizedek’s priesthood was a first priesthood. So the first priesthood came out of Shem and Eber's school, grown not by lineage but by those who honor Yahweh, which is why the son of Abraham and Keturah could be a priest who first sacrificed holocaust offerings, or whole burnt offerings. Jesus is after the order of this priestly line. He fulfilled his priestly functions by being the holocaust offering.
Hebrews 6:17-20 (KJV) 17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:
18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:
19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;
20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
If we take into consideration Jacob who ministered in tents under Shem and Eber for over thirty years, we recognize that Jacob was a great priest of Yahweh. No matter what traditions say, the name Jacob does not only mean supplanter, but following after. As we have studied, Esau married two women that were not from Shem’s lineage and was not as interested in priestly functions. Esau traded his birthright or position as first born after running twenty miles from Nimrod’s men. Jacob obtained the blessing as well, but think that through. Rebekah knew that Jacob was an honorable priest of Yahweh, but Esau did not honor Yahweh. So thirty years after receiving the birthright, Jacob received the blessing. Jesus was born from Jacob’s lineage, and Jacob’s children received the blessing of being a set apart people because of Jacob’s honor to Yahweh. Jesus is the priest under Jacob’s priesthood, under Shem. This is the anchor that we have, our High Priest, Jesus, leads us in a priesthood not born out of lineage but by individual and personal dedication to Yahweh.
Hebrews 7:1-28 (AMP) 1 FOR THIS Melchizedek, king of Salem [and] priest of the Most High God, met Abraham as he returned from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,
2 And Abraham gave to him a tenth portion of all [the spoil]. He is primarily, as his name when translated indicates, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, which means king of peace.
3 Without [record of] father or mother or ancestral line, neither with beginning of days nor ending of life, but, resembling the Son of God, he continues to be a priest without interruption and without successor.
Why does the author of Hebrews say that Melchizedek has no father, no mother, no beginning of days or end of life? The author is pointing out that it does not matter the lineage of the Melchizedek priests, where they hail from or how long they continue because they are not bound to human terms. This priesthood is continual into the eons, practiced by those who want to be in the priesthood rather than born as destiny into the priesthood. Look what happened to Eli’s sons; they took their position as servants and twisted it to their own benefit. They probably did not want to be priests but were born to do it, so they took advantage of their position. Eli closed his eyes to their behavior and their entire family line became destitute. Notice Jonathan, Moses’ grandson. He went to work for a man as a priest in a house of idols. Essentially the tribe of Dan rescued him from working among idols and carved images. The Melchizedek priesthood is not a priesthood by birth, but by choice. Jesus lives eternally, he will always be a priest of this order. Shem now lives eternally, he will always be a priest to Yahweh.
Hebrews 7:4 Now observe and consider how great [a personage] this was to whom even Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth [the topmost or the pick of the heap] of the spoils.
5 And it is true that those descendants of Levi who are charged with the priestly office are commanded in the Law to take tithes from the people—which means, from their brethren—though these have descended from Abraham.
6 But this person who has not their Levitical ancestry received tithes from Abraham [himself] and blessed him who possessed the promises [of God].
7 Yet it is beyond all contradiction that it is the lesser person who is blessed by the greater one.
8 Furthermore, here [in the Levitical priesthood] tithes are received by men who are subject to death; while there [in the case of Melchizedek], they are received by one of whom it is testified that he lives [perpetually].
The author of Hebrews is trying to make the point that Levi payed tithes to Melchizedek via Abraham and this is a greater payment than what the Levites receive from their own brethren. Melchizedek proceeded Levi. Levi is of Melchizedek. We can see the author is making the same type of points that Paul and Jesus make regarding the Pharisees. The Essene/Nazarene/Therapeutae way is a more excellent way. Again, if we try to be spiritual people and want to go back to our roots, we have to understand history. We are not going back to our roots if we want to behave like Levites or Pharisees.
Hebrews 7:9 A person might even say that Levi [the father of the priestly tribe] himself, who received tithes (the tenth), paid tithes through Abraham,
10 For he was still in the loins of his forefather [Abraham] when Melchizedek met him [Abraham].
11 Now if perfection (a perfect fellowship between God and the worshiper) had been attainable by the Levitical priesthood—for under it the people were given the Law—why was it further necessary that there should arise another and different kind of Priest, one after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one appointed after the order and rank of Aaron?
Jesus had to come from Melchizedek as he was not of Levi. But again Melchizedek is a priesthood of choice, not of lineage, and as we saw, it only took one generation for the Levites to start to fail and falter. The primary priesthood has gone back to the original priesthood, therefore the laws regarding the priesthood and functions have changed. Remember that today there is no temple, therefore it is a necessity for the laws to change.
Hebrews 7:12 For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is of necessity an alteration of the law [concerning the priesthood] as well.
13 For the One of Whom these things are said belonged [not to the priestly line but] to another tribe, no member of which has officiated at the altar.
14 For it is obvious that our Lord sprang from the tribe of Judah, and Moses mentioned nothing about priests in connection with that tribe.
15 And this becomes more plainly evident when another Priest arises Who bears the likeness of Melchizedek,
16 Who has been constituted a Priest, not on the basis of a bodily legal requirement [an externally imposed command concerning His physical ancestry], but on the basis of the power of an endless and indestructible Life.
Think about this, Moses received instructions to make a tabernacle (a mobile structure) in the wilderness. Shem had a temple (a permanent structure) in Salem/Jerusalem/the City of David. David took their tabernacle to Shem’s temple and combined the priestly and prophetic functions. Solomon then built the structure of the temple around the temple of Shem, again combining the priests and prophets. Unfortunately, we know how this all turned out. The Zadok priests and prophets left the temple as there was over three hundred years of defilement in the temple, from the time of the kingdom split to the time of Ezekiel.
Hebrews 7:17 For it is witnessed of Him, You are a Priest forever after the order (with the rank) of Melchizedek.
18 So a previous physical regulation and command is cancelled because of its weakness and ineffectiveness and uselessness—
19 For the Law never made anything perfect—but instead a better hope is introduced through which we [now] come close to God.
The original priesthood once again supersedes the second priesthood. The law could not make the priesthood perfect. Why? Because any priesthood is maintained by choice not law. It is the heart of a priest that is valuable to the priesthood, and since there is no permanent structure to fulfill the law, the law has to change.
Hebrews 7:20 And it was not without the taking of an oath [that Christ was made Priest],
21 For those who formerly became priests received their office without its being confirmed by the taking of an oath by God, but this One was designated and addressed and saluted with an oath, The Lord has sworn and will not regret it or change His mind, You are a Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
22 In keeping with [the oath's greater strength and force], Jesus has become the Guarantee of a better (stronger) agreement [a more excellent and more advantageous covenant].
The oath is eternal, through the ages, the Levitical line continually changes with the death of the priests and the physical location for the offerings. Jesus now reigns forever.
Hebrews 7:23 [Again, the former successive line of priests] was made up of many, because they were each prevented by death from continuing [perpetually in office];
24 But He holds His priesthood unchangeably, because He lives on forever.
25 Therefore He is able also to save to the uttermost (completely, perfectly, finally, and for all time and eternity) those who come to God through Him, since He is always living to make petition to God and intercede with Him and intervene for them.
26 [Here is] the High Priest [perfectly adapted] to our needs, as was fitting—holy, blameless, unstained by sin, separated from sinners, and exalted higher than the heavens.
27 He has no day by day necessity, as [do each of these other] high priests, to offer sacrifice first of all for his own [personal] sins and then for those of the people, because He [met all the requirements] once for all when He brought Himself [as a sacrifice] which He offered up.
28 For the Law sets up men in their weakness [frail, sinful, dying human beings] as high priests, but the word of [God's] oath, which [was spoken later] after the institution of the Law, [chooses and appoints as priest One Whose appointment is complete and permanent], a Son Who has been made perfect forever.
Jesus was the holocaust offering, the whole burnt offering. He is the perfect High Priest. He did not need to serve in the earthly temple. In fact Jesus could only enter the outer courts of the temple in Jerusalem. Yet he reigns as the priest of the eons. The roots of the priesthood of El Elyon originate from Shem after the flood, or Enoch before the flood. The roots of whole burnt offerings start with Noah after the flood, or with Reuel in the camp of the Israelites in the wilderness. The priesthood laws changed and today we do not have to abide by Levitical laws for priestly service. There is no specific location required to serve as priest under the order of Melchizedek. There is however a requirement of choice. We choose to honor Him. Therefore, anyone who wishes to serve Yahweh can, and anyone who attempts to revive the imperfect second priestly order is mistaken. The Hebrews are heirs of Shem, they can serve under Shem’s order if they so choose.
