Could you shed some light on who Melchisedec was?

The Bible tells us of Melchizedek in three primary passages: Genesis 14:17-20 [17] And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king's dale. [18] And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. [19] And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: [20] And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
See All..., Psalm 110:4The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
See All..., and Hebrews 7:1-28 [1] For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; [2] To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; [3] Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. [4] Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils. [5] And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham: [6] But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises. [7] And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better. [8] And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. [9] And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham. [10] For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him. [11] If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? [12] For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law. [13] For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar. [14] For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood. [15] And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, [16] Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life. [17] For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. [18] For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof. [19] For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God. [20] And inasmuch as not without an oath he was made priest: [21] (For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec:) [22] By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament. [23] And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death: [24] But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. [25] Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. [26] For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; [27] Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself. [28] For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore.
See All.... He met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings that had taken Lot captive and he blessed Abraham. He is identified as the king of Salem in Genesis 14:18And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
See All.... In Psalm 110:4The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
See All..., the psalmist prophesied of “a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.” Hebrews 7 clearly identifies this as a prophecy pointing to Jesus Christ.

However, though we know that Christ was a priest after the order of Melchizedek, this still leaves the question of Melchizedek’s identity open. The most common teaching is that he is an unknown person who had a special relationship with God. According to this approach, all guesses as to his identity are total speculation. It is his unknown nature that makes him a type of Christ.

However, there has always been a contrarian position by a minority of Bible students that identifies Melchizedek as a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ. This position has one problem with the teaching of Hebrews 7 in that the chapter obviously compares Jesus Christ to Melchizedek. (How can someone be compared with themselves?) Yet, I believe that this position is the one that takes the Bible at face value to the greatest degree and it is the position for which I will try to make a brief case here.

Before we start, let me make one appeal for careful consideration on this issue. Hebrews 5:10-11 [10] Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec. [11] Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.
See All... says this of Christ: “Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec. Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.” The author of Hebrews states plainly that the things concerning the priesthood of Christ after the order of Melchizedek are things hard to be uttered. That is, they are difficult to understand. We must accept some differences among God’s people on this matter.

However, despite this difficulty, we know many things about Melchizedek. Please consider the following about him as we look at the definitive passage in Hebrews 7. We will look at reasons to believe that Melchizedek was an appearance of Jesus Christ long before He was born as a baby in the manger.

His titles fit the Son of God more than they fit a mere man.

1. He is the priest of the most high God (Hebrews 7:1For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him;
   See All...).  In Mark 5:7And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.
   See All..., Jesus is called the “son of the most high God.”
2. He is the King of Righteousness (Hebrews 7:2To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;
   See All...). Of Christ it is prophesied that “a king shall reign in righteousness” (Isaiah 32:1Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment.
   See All...).
3. He is also called the King of Salem (Hebrews 7:1-2 [1] For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; [2] To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;
   See All...; Genesis14:18). Salem is another name for Jerusalem (Psalm 76:1-2 [1] In Judah is God known: his name is great in Israel. [2] In Salem also is his tabernacle, and his dwelling place in Zion.
   See All...) and means peace. Hebrews 7:2To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;
   See All... makes a strong point of the fact that Melchizedek is “first” the King of righteousness and “after that” the King of peace. This order of righteousness followed by peace is found in numerous places in the scriptures. In Isaiah 32:17And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever.
   See All..., “the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever.”

This order is important because it is the divine order. This world will never have true peace until it has righteousness first. This matches the comings of Christ to the world. In His first coming, He came to fulfill righteousness (Matthew 3:15And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.
See All...; 10:34-36
See All...). In His second coming, He will come to fulfill peace (Isaiah 9:6-7 [6] For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. [7] Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
See All...). There will be no true peace on the earth until the coming of the King of Righteousness.

This order is also found in God’s work in the believer. Romans 5:1Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:
See All... states, “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Justification is the judicial act by which God declares us righteous (just) on the basis of the work of Christ for redemption. By it, we have imputed righteousness. According to this verse, this act of justification makes way for us to have peace with God. That is, peace follows righteousness.

By themselves, these titles do not prove that Melchizedek was Christ. However, they do show that his work matches closely the work of Christ. But there is more—much more.

His eternity proves Melchizedek to be Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 7:3Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.
See All... makes several statements about Melchizedek that strongly point to a divine identity.

1. He is said to be without father (certainly in reference to an earthly father).
2.  He is without mother. This is historically true if Melchizedek is a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ (Christ did not have an earthly mother at that time), but it is untrue if he is a man who becomes a type of Jesus later (Matthew 1:18Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.
   See All...; 2:11For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it.
   See All...).
3. He is without descent. This does not fit a type of the earthly Jesus since Jesus had an earthly genealogy (Matthew 1:1-17 [1] The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. [2] Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren; [3] And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; [4] And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; [5] And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; [6] And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias; [7] And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia; and Abia begat Asa; [8] And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram; and Joram begat Ozias; [9] And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz; and Achaz begat Ezekias; [10] And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon; and Amon begat Josias; [11] And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren, about the time they were carried away to Babylon: [12] And after they were brought to Babylon, Jechonias begat Salathiel; and Salathiel begat Zorobabel; [13] And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim; and Eliakim begat Azor; [14] And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim; and Achim begat Eliud; [15] And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan; and Matthan begat Jacob; [16] And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. [17] So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations.
   See All...) Therefore, it must refer to a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ.
4. He is without beginning of days. Does this fit a mere mortal? All explanations of this that deny his identity with Jesus make light of the meaning of these words. Without mother does not mean he had no mother; without descent does not mean that he had no descent; without beginning of days does not mean without beginning; without end of life does not mean his life did not end. They all simply mean that we are not told of these matters in the biblical record. Of course, this could be said of many people in the Bible who make a brief appearance. But why not take scripture at its word? If we do this, it reads like an Old Testament appearance of Jesus Christ (see Micah 5:2But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
   See All...; John 8:58Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.
   See All...). He is the only one who matches all the qualifications.
5. He is without end of life. As such, he “abideth a priest continually” (Hebrews 7:3Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.
   See All...). Where is Melchizedek abiding as a priest today, unless Melchizedek can be identified with Jesus Christ? Hebrews 7:8And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth.
   See All... says that of him “it is witnessed that he liveth.” Who can this be but Jesus Christ Himself?

He must be Christ because He is “like unto the Son of God” (Hebrews 7:3Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.
See All...).

Though many teachers use this as a proof that Melchizedek was not Jesus Christ, it does the very opposite. It is a strong argument that the two are the same.

An almost identical phrase is used one other time in scripture. It occurs when Nebuchadnezzar says of the fourth man in the fiery furnace that “the form of the fourth is like the Son of God” (Daniel 3:25He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
See All...). The term “like” is used to remind us that this One who appears as a man is also God.  This phrase is only used of pre-incarnate appearances of Christ because He had not yet been declared to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead (Romans 1:3-4 [3] Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; [4] And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:
See All...). This declaration did not make Him the Son of God.  He had that relationship in eternity. It only declared Him to be so. However, in the earlier appearances, He is said to be like the Son of God though He was indeed the very Son of God.

The opposite phrase, like unto the Son of man, is also used in references to Christ. It always refers to the post-resurrection Christ (Daniel 7:13I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.
See All...; Revelation 1:13And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.
See All...; 14:14
See All...). This phrase is used to remind us that this One who is obviously God also lived as and remains a man. These phrases using like do not mean that the one described is not the Son of God or the Son of man. They are rather used to show that when Christ is obviously God or obviously man, He is also the other. That is, these phrases are descriptions of the One who is both God and man. Therefore, its use in Hebrews 7:3Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.
See All... supports the identity of Christ with Melchizedek.

He must be Christ because of His Superiority to Abraham (Hebrews 7:4Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils.
See All..., 6-7).

Who else but Jesus would be superior to Abraham? We see this superiority in the following:

1. He received tithes of Abraham (Hebrews 7:4Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils.
   See All..., 2; Genesis 14:14-17 [14] And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan. [15] And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. [16] And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people. [17] And the king of Sodom went out to meet him after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer, and of the kings that were with him, at the valley of Shaveh, which is the king's dale.
   See All...).
2. He blessed Abraham (Hebrews 7:6-7 [6] But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises. [7] And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better.
   See All...). According to the argument of this passage, Abraham had the promises (Hebrews 7:6But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises.
   See All...; Galatians 3:16Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.
   See All...). Then, Melchizedek blessed Abraham (Hebrews 7:6But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises.
   See All...; Genesis 14:19And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
   See All...). Therefore, Melchizedek must be superior to Abraham, since the less is blessed of the better (Hebrews 7:7And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better.
   See All...; Luke 24:50-51 [50] And he led them out as far as to Bethany, and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them. [51] And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven.
   See All...). Perhaps only a devout Jew could understand the significance of this comparison. Suffice it to say that they had trouble thinking of anyone who was superior to Abraham.

He must be Christ because of his superiority to Levi (Hebrews 7:5And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham:
See All..., 9-10).

This made Him superior to the Levitical priesthood.

Levi was in the loins of Abraham (Hebrews 7:10For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him.
See All...). He was a grandson of Abraham through Isaac and Jacob. However, not only had Levi not been born at this time (Genesis 14), neither had his grandfather Isaac. If Abraham had died at this time, Levi would have died with him. As such, Levi was in Abraham and whatever Abraham did was in effect also done by his grandson Levi.

The sons of Levi received the office of the priesthood and were commanded to take tithes of the Jewish people (v.5). Yet, Levi (the tithe-receiver) paid tithes in Abraham proving that Melchizedek is the better.

He must be Christ because of His unchangeable priesthood (Hebrews 7:11-15 [11] If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? [12] For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law. [13] For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar. [14] For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood. [15] And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest,
See All..., 23-24).

This distinguishes Melchizedek from any earthly priesthood. The Levitical priesthood was limited because of its inability to bring perfection (Hebrews 7:11If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron?
See All...). This demonstrates a need for another priesthood—one that would not have to change; one after the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 7:15And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest,
See All...; Psalm 110:4The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
See All...). The fulfillment of the unchangeable priesthood comes through the person of Jesus Christ (v.23-24).

Certainly, men will continue to have trouble with the idea that Melchizedek can be identified as a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus Christ—though most of these same men have no trouble identifying the “angel of the LORD” as Old Testament appearances of Christ. However, the evidence taken at face value shows Melchizedek to be more than mere human. His endless life and superiority to the founders of Judaism give him something beyond mortal qualities. Many will continue to conclude as I have that He is indeed the Lord Jesus Christ appearing under special circumstances.