Episode Summary: "According to the Order of Melchizedek"

Podcast: The Lord of Spirits
Hosts: Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick & Fr. Stephen DeYoung
Date: September 23, 2021
Theme: The Seen and Unseen World in Orthodox Christian Tradition; the mysterious biblical figure of Melchizedek and his profound connection to Christ, priesthood, kingship, and the messianic hope.

Overview

This episode delves deeply into the enigmatic character of Melchizedek who appears briefly in Genesis 14 and resurfaces in Psalm 110 and the Epistle to the Hebrews. The hosts explore Melchizedek’s historical, spiritual, and theological significance, his role as a type and pattern of Christ, and what his story reveals about the priesthood, kingship, and the unfolding of biblical prophecy in both the seen and unseen spiritual worlds. The episode also unpacks the Old Testament’s ongoing tradition of prefiguring Christ and uses ancient Jewish texts to show how Second Temple Jews already anticipated a messianic Melchizedek figure closely resembling the Christian Christ.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Genesis Context: War, Giants, and Melchizedek’s Arrival

[00:49–04:30]

• Setting: The episode opens with the context of Genesis 14—Abram (Abraham) enters the narrative after the War of the Five Kings, a conflict involving Mesopotamian expansion and battles against Canaanite city-states and the "giant clans."
  • "Melchizedek... just disappears, and he sort of comes out of nowhere and disappears into nowhere." – Fr. Stephen [04:04]
• Giant Clans & Their Significance:
  • The Elamite king Chedorlaomer (Kedorlaomer) and his vassal kings are named; the Canaanite city kings resisting him are not, signifying the loss of importance to the biblical narrative (and their association with evil).
  • The city-states sided with both run-of-the-mill pagans and terrifying "giant clans" — tribes noted for extreme depravity (demonic activity, cannibalism, human sacrifice).
• Abram’s Role:
  • Abram, motivated by Lot’s capture, musters 318 men for a rescue mission, interpreted by the Orthodox liturgical tradition as a type of rescue from spiritual captivity (paralleling the Fathers' fight against heresy).
  • The number 318 is symbolically linked to the Holy Fathers at the First Ecumenical Council.

Memorable Quote:
"What the Fathers are doing is not trying to impose their power ... they're trying to rescue people who have been taken captive by the doctrines of demons ... and set them free." – Fr. Stephen [15:09]

2. Melchizedek, King of Salem – Historical and Spiritual Identity

[21:39–41:21, 45:01–50:48]

• Meaning of His Name & City:
  • Melchizedek = Melchi (my king) + Tzedek (justice OR the name of a local pagan god).
  • King of Salem = Uru-shalem = “city of Shalem,” a local Canaanite deity, not a simple literary “king of peace.”
  • Comparison made to later kings of Jerusalem with explicit divine-titles (e.g., Adoni-Tzedek, "my lord is Tzedek").
• The Pagan Hypostasis Context:
  • Ancient pagans saw gods as possessing many "bodies" (hypostases) in different places (temples, celestial bodies), which contrasts with Hebrew monotheism and is key to understanding the confusion around Melchizedek's role.
  • Tzedek, as a hypostasis of the sun god Shemesh, shows how Jerusalem was originally devoted to pagan worship.
  • Despite all cultural indicators, Melchizedek is presented as a priest not of a local idol but "of God Most High," emphasizing his anomaly and typological role.

Memorable Quote:
"Anyone in the ancient world reading that first sentence ... that's a pagan. He's just as pagan as Chedorlaomer and everybody else. ... But every single [verse] has the phrase 'Most High God.' They're trying to tell you: This is different." – Fr. Stephen [51:11]

3. Theology of the Priest-King and Remnant Faithfulness

[53:53–57:49]

• Priest-King Motif:
  • Melchizedek is both king and priest—something later separated in Israelite tradition.
  • "He comes out and finds Abram to offer the thank offering, which in this case is bread and wine...it's a Eucharist, as it were." – Fr. Stephen [55:37]
• Spiritual Remnant:
  • Melchizedek as an icon of the faithful "remnant" still worshipping the Most High God amidst the world's idolatry, echoing the 'remnant theology' later made prominent in Elijah’s story.
• Eucharistic Typology:
  • Bread and wine as a thank offering/Eucharist, which is distinct from tainted pagan spoils, suggest Melchizedek as a type of Christ, the eternal High Priest.

Memorable Quotes:
"Here's a guy that Abram can actually worship with because they worship the same God." – Fr. Andrew [56:21]
"There's at least two [men], and presumably more, out there in the world, even this far after Babel, who are still worshipping the Most High God..." – Fr. Stephen [52:06]

4. Messianic Typology: From Judah's Scepter to David’s Covenant

[67:32–84:17]

• The Blessing to Judah (Genesis 49):
  • Jacob's testament singles out Judah as the royal tribe: "The scepter shall not depart from Judah... until he comes to whom it belongs." (Genesis 49:8–12)
  • This points prophetically to both David and, ultimately, the Christ.
• Davidic Monarchy and Messianic Hope:
  • David is depicted as a "prince," not king, because the ultimate king is still to come.
  • "The Messiah is something bigger" — the king to come, the Messianic Son of Man, will unite God’s kingdom and David’s house.
  • Deuteronomy and 1 Samuel’s view of kingship—the Old Testament is not anti-monarchy but anti-usurpation of God’s kingship.

Memorable Quotes:
"The kingship that the Melchizedek-Messianic priest has is not limited to earth. It's actually the kingship, the presidency, over the highest possible court – the court, truly, of the heavens." – Fr. Stephen [123:01]

5. Melchizedek in Psalm 110 and the Messianic Priesthood

[100:54–129:03]

• Psalm 110’s Importance:
  • The most quoted OT text in the NT.
  • "The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand..." — interpreted as Yahweh inviting the Messiah to co-rule.
  • Christ points out that David calls the Messiah "Lord," indicating the coming One is greater than David (Luke 20:44).
• Order/Pattern of Melchizedek:
  • "You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek" (Ps 110:4) – the Messianic king shares Melchizedek’s dual office.
  • Order here means "pattern" or "type" — not a religious fraternity, but a way of being both king and priest in one person.
• High Priesthood Unbounded by Levitical Limitations:
  • Christ is priest "after the pattern of Melchizedek" (not Aaron)—his priesthood is eternal, cosmic, and heavenly, not simply earthly or hereditary.

6. Second Temple Jewish Messianic Expectations

[130:30–140:43]

• Qumran’s Melchizedek Text (11Q13):
  • An ancient text from the Dead Sea Scrolls (ca. 100 BC) interprets Melchizedek as an eschatological figure who delivers captives, judges demons, and establishes God's kingdom.
  • Clearly pre-Christian Jewish sources anticipated a divine-messianic Melchizedek who would be "your God" and defeat the powers of darkness.
  • Example: “Your God is Melchizedek, who would deliver them from Belial (the devil/pagan powers).” [136:41–137:43]
• Demonstration of Continuity:
  • The New Testament’s interpretation of Melchizedek is not arbitrary or a stretch, but follows actual ancient Jewish expectation.
  • Christian readings are not eisegesis (reading back into the OT), but a natural unfolding of scriptural patterns.

Noteworthy Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Typology of Spiritual Battle:
  • "What HAPPENS to people of the Church with heresy ... is that they're taken captive by the doctrines of demons. The Fathers are trying to rescue them and set them free." [15:09]
• On the Strange Insertion of Melchizedek:
  • "He sort of comes out of nowhere and disappears into nowhere ... and St. Paul’s Epistle to the Hebrews comments on this fact." [04:04]
• On the Nature of the Divine Council and Priesthood:
  • "He is the Great High Priest because he is God and man—can both lead worship and receive worship validly, unlike the pagan priest-kings and God-kings of Abraham's day." [126:54]
• On the Old Testament’s Cohesive Structure:
  • "Once you start digging into the Scriptures, even a little bit, you see there are these structures... There are ideas, there are realities the text is an expression of—...all pointing to the one person, Jesus Christ." – Fr. Stephen [147:43–148:35]
• On the Christ-centered Reading of Scripture:
  • "If it's not finally all being referred back to Christ... not only are we wasting our time, we might be harming ourselves." – Fr. Andrew [142:12]

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [00:49–04:30] – Genesis context, arrival of Melchizedek
• [14:57–17:47] – Why the Fathers’ rescue of heretics is paired with Abram’s rescue
• [24:55–28:35] – The meaning of Melchizedek’s name; city of Salem; Tzedek as a local god
• [35:00–37:07] – Pagan and biblical views of hypostasis
• [41:02–46:50] – Shemesh worship in Jerusalem; how the city was pagan before David
• [53:53–57:49] – Melchizedek as priest of God Most High; Eucharistic offering of bread and wine
• [67:32–84:17] – The scepter promise, Judah’s prophecy, Messiah’s kingship
• [100:54–108:05] – Psalm 110, Messianic age and Christ’s rule in the midst of his enemies
• [116:07–119:02] – “Order of Melchizedek,” high priesthood language, superiority over Levitical priesthood
• [130:30–140:43] – Dead Sea Scrolls (11Q13); pre-Christian Melchizedek Messiah
• [142:12–145:11] – The need to see all Scripture pointing to Christ

Conclusion and Final Reflection

The episode masterfully demonstrates that the story of Melchizedek is not a random biblical curiosity but the revelation of a profound pattern pointing to Christ. From his fleeting appearance in Genesis, through the central prophecy of Psalm 110, and into ancient Jewish and Christian prayers, Melchizedek is the eternal archetype of the true king-priest—the one who unites heaven and earth, intercedes for creation, defeats darkness, and brings his people into the light. All scriptural roads lead to Christ, and Melchizedek’s scriptural cameo unveils a central Christian mystery: Christ as the priest after the order of Melchizedek, eternally offering and reconciling humanity through himself.

Notable Quote:
"All of it orients us toward... the Holy Trinity—God the Father, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, Yahweh the God of Israel. All of it orients us toward who Christ is and what he will do." – Fr. Stephen [149:51]

References for Deeper Study:

• Genesis 14:17–24
• Psalm 110
• Hebrews 5, 7
• Dead Sea Scrolls 11Q13 ("The Coming of Melchizedek")
• Deuteronomy 17, 1 Samuel 8, Zechariah 9:9
• The pattern of priest-king in Second Temple Judaism and its fulfillment in Christ

For listeners wanting to understand how ancient Israelite history, liturgy, and scriptural typology unites in the figure of Christ, this episode is a deep, engaging, and eye-opening guide.