New Living Translation

New American Standard Bible

Melchizedek Is Greater Than Abraham

This Melchizedek was king of the city of Salem and also a priest of God Most High. When Abraham was returning home after winning a great battle against the kings, Melchizedek met him and blessed him.

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Melchizedek’s Priesthood Like Christ’s

For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,

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Then Abraham took a tenth of all he had captured in battle and gave it to Melchizedek. The name Melchizedek means “king of justice,” and king of Salem means “king of peace.”

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to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace.

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There is no record of his father or mother or any of his ancestors — no beginning or end to his life. He remains a priest forever, resembling the Son of God.

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Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually.

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Consider then how great this Melchizedek was. Even Abraham, the great patriarch of Israel, recognized this by giving him a tenth of what he had taken in battle.

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Now observe how great this man was to whom Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth of the choicest spoils.

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Now the law of Moses required that the priests, who are descendants of Levi, must collect a tithe from the rest of the people of Israel,a who are also descendants of Abraham.

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And those indeed of the sons of Levi who receive the priest’s office have commandment in the Law to collect a tenth from the people, that is, from their brethren, although these are descended from Abraham.

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But Melchizedek, who was not a descendant of Levi, collected a tenth from Abraham. And Melchizedek placed a blessing upon Abraham, the one who had already received the promises of God.

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But the one whose genealogy is not traced from them collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises.

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And without question, the person who has the power to give a blessing is greater than the one who is blessed.

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But without any dispute the lesser is blessed by the greater.

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The priests who collect tithes are men who die, so Melchizedek is greater than they are, because we are told that he lives on.

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In this case mortal men receive tithes, but in that case one receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives on.

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In addition, we might even say that these Levites — the ones who collect the tithe — paid a tithe to Melchizedek when their ancestor Abraham paid a tithe to him.

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And, so to speak, through Abraham even Levi, who received tithes, paid tithes,

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For although Levi wasn’t born yet, the seed from which he came was in Abraham’s body when Melchizedek collected the tithe from him.

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for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.

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So if the priesthood of Levi, on which the law was based, could have achieved the perfection God intended, why did God need to establish a different priesthood, with a priest in the order of Melchizedek instead of the order of Levi and Aaron?b

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Now if perfection was through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the people received the Law), what further need was there for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be designated according to the order of Aaron?

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And if the priesthood is changed, the law must also be changed to permit it.

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For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of law also.

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For the priest we are talking about belongs to a different tribe, whose members have never served at the altar as priests.

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For the one concerning whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no one has officiated at the altar.

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What I mean is, our Lord came from the tribe of Judah, and Moses never mentioned priests coming from that tribe.

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For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, a tribe with reference to which Moses spoke nothing concerning priests.

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Jesus Is like Melchizedek

This change has been made very clear since a different priest, who is like Melchizedek, has appeared.

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And this is clearer still, if another priest arises according to the likeness of Melchizedek,

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Jesus became a priest, not by meeting the physical requirement of belonging to the tribe of Levi, but by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed.

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who has become such not on the basis of a law of physical requirement, but according to the power of an indestructible life.

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And the psalmist pointed this out when he prophesied,
“You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.”c

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For it is attested of Him,
“YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER
ACCORDING TO THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK.”

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Yes, the old requirement about the priesthood was set aside because it was weak and useless.

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For, on the one hand, there is a setting aside of a former commandment because of its weakness and uselessness

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For the law never made anything perfect. But now we have confidence in a better hope, through which we draw near to God.

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(for the Law made nothing perfect), and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.

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This new system was established with a solemn oath. Aaron’s descendants became priests without such an oath,

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And inasmuch as it was not without an oath

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but there was an oath regarding Jesus. For God said to him,
“The LORD has taken an oath and will not break his vow:
‘You are a priest forever.’”d

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(for they indeed became priests without an oath, but He with an oath through the One who said to Him,
“THE LORD HAS SWORN
AND WILL NOT CHANGE HIS MIND,
‘YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER’”);

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Because of this oath, Jesus is the one who guarantees this better covenant with God.

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so much the more also Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant.

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There were many priests under the old system, for death prevented them from remaining in office.

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The former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers because they were prevented by death from continuing,

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But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever.

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but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently.

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Therefore he is able, once and forever, to savee those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.

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Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

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He is the kind of high priest we need because he is holy and blameless, unstained by sin. He has been set apart from sinners and has been given the highest place of honor in heaven.f

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For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens;

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Unlike those other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices every day. They did this for their own sins first and then for the sins of the people. But Jesus did this once for all when he offered himself as the sacrifice for the people’s sins.

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who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.

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The law appointed high priests who were limited by human weakness. But after the law was given, God appointed his Son with an oath, and his Son has been made the perfect High Priest forever.

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For the Law appoints men as high priests who are weak, but the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, made perfect forever.

Parallel

New Living Translation

New American Standard Bible

Hebrews 7

Hebrews 7