Biblical Hebrew Forum

[ben.crick AT argonet.co.uk (Ben Crick)]

On Thu 16 Feb 2006 (11:08:45), kwrandolph AT email.com wrote:
> 1 Samuel 8:18 has puzzled me for years, as it seems 
> to say that David, a man after God's own heart, was violating God's
> command that the priesthood be limited to the descendants of Aaron and 
> conferring it to his sons. Even the pointing indicates that reading.
>
 Dear Karl,

 This had me wondering too when I was at Uni. Our Hebrew tutor drew
 our attention to Psalm 110 which links a Davidic king to a Melchizedek
 priesthood. He then drew attention to Abraham's meeting with Melchizedek
 king of Salem in Genesis 14:18ff, and then to Adonizedek in Joshua 10.
 There appears to have been a hereditary kingly priesthood in (Jeru)Salem,
 however degraded this may have become by the time of Joshua.

 Joshua failed to conquer Salem, and it remained until the time of David.
 2 Samuel 5:6-10 describes the capture of Jerusalem from the Jebusites,
 and David taking the stronghold of Zion. By this act of conquest, our
 tutor suggested, David took over the kingly priesthood dating back to
 Melchizedek. He made two of his sons CoHeNiYM; it does not tell us which
 two; hardly Adonijah or Absalom?  Solomon and ANOther: the Heir and the
 Spare.

 The Scribes could not answer a related question in Matthew 22:41
 concerning Psalm 110. We have to turn to Hebrews 5,6 and 7 for a
 biblical explanation of Jesus' conundrum. The O.T. Scripture most quoted
 in the N.T. is Psalm 110. The Sitz im Leben of Psalm 110 is ostensibly
 the coronation of Solomon, the rightful Davidic heir after the failed
 coups of Adonijah and Absalom. From the root of Jesse comes the
 righteous Branch, the Messiah who is King, Priest and Prophet. A greater
 than Solomon is here; great David's greater Son. Psalm 89 is predictive
 of the eternal Messianic King.

 Shalom,
 Ben
-- 
 Revd Ben Crick, BA CF                                       ZFC Hf
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