We return to the subject of Melchizedek. He is a mostly unknown person to us, but he was Abraham’s priest. Abraham, the father of the nation of Israel, had a descendant named Levi, and God had commanded all priests to be descendants of Levi. When the writer claims Jesus acted as High Priest when he paid for their sin on the cross, the Jews objected because Jesus was not a descendant of Levi. The writer points to Melchizedek who was a priest before Levi was born. He argues that Melchizedek was greater than Israel’s priest because he was the priest of their father, Abraham. We know nothing of his ancestry, when he was born or when he died, yet he is a great priest because God appointed him. Therefore, Jesus is like Melchizedek in that he is a priest, not because he descended from Levi, but because God appointed him.
You may be thinking that you don’t care about all those Old Testament rules, so this doesn’t have anything to do with you. To an extent, that’s true. This was written to Jewish Christians who were having trouble making the transition from their former way of life following the Old Testament law to depending on Jesus alone for their salvation. However, it is good to note that the writer is treating the Old Testament with respect and showing the God of the Old is the same God as in the New Testament. God is always faithful to keep his promises!