THE KING’S BUSINESS
1068
not think we can take these verses to mean - that literally "he was without father and mother. This explanation does not seem to me to be sufficient. The words seem to imply that Melchisedec was a supernatural personage, without earthly parentage, and there are many who think, (and there seems to be reason to think) that he was the same person as our Lord Jesus', living here among men before His incarnation in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. It is cer tainly clear, if one will take up all the passages on the subj ect, that that marvel ous person spoken of in the Old Testa ment as “the Angel of Jehovah,” (not merely an angel of Jehovah, but "the Angel 'o f Jehovah”! was our Lord Jesus. We have not time to go into the argument in full here. And it seems clear to me that Melchisedec was a supernatural person, living here upon earth, but many sound commentators do not take this view. For example, Dr. James M. Gray says on this passage: “He is a type of C h rist.... in the fact that he had ‘neither beginning of days nor end of life.’ This last does not mean that it was literally so in his case, but so far' as the record went, it appeared so.” My own opinion is that it means what it says, that he really was one who had “neither beginning of days nor end of life;” i. e., that he was an eternal being, in which case he must have been our Lord Jesus, and not merely a type of the Lord Jesus. Of course this is not a fundamental ques tion, and sincere believers in the Word of God may differ upon it.
v. ?, clearly shows) that He turned from His creative dealings with man to His destroying dealings. This was necessitated by man’s sin. The unchangeably holy God must destroy man who has become so sunken .in sin. It does not mean for one moment that God’s character changed, God remained the same in character that He had been when He created man, i. e., holy and hating sin with infinite hatred, and in His purpose to visit sin with judgment. And so, as man had become thoroughly sunken in sin, God changed from His cre ative dealings with man to His destroying dealings. If God remains the same; if His attitude toward sin and righteousness are unchangeable, then must His dealings with men change, as they turn from innocence^ to sin. God’s character remains ever the same-,'- but His dealings with men change as they change from a position that is pleas ing to His unchangeable love of righteous ness to one that is displeasing to His un changeable hatred of sin. How do you explain Hebrews 7 : 13 , es pecially the third verse? ■ The explanation frequently given is that Melchisedec did not receive his priesthood because he belonged to a priestly family, and as far as the record goes he was with out father, without mother,, and without genealogy, and that he received his priest hood simply by direct Divine decree, with out genealogy, just as the Lord Jesus re ceived- -His, not because he belonged to the Levitical family, but by the direct de cree of God. Those who so explain it. do
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