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Thursday, 26 June 2008

A Royal Priesthood

A Royal Priesthood
Numerous days ago, I wrote two posts firm with the mean of priesthood in the Old Tribute. The crucial post "Jesus: A In seventh heaven Cleric When the Show of Melchizedek," dealt with the priesthood of David and the fact that he familial the religious traditions of Jerusalem and became a priest in the identical way Melchizedek served as priest and king of the old Jebusite borough.

That be against along with dealt with the priesthood of Jesus. Jesus, a man from the race of Judah, became a priest, not what he was a Levite or from the race of Levi, but what he was a preschooler of David. As such, he was considered licensed to shipping on the tradition initiated by David. So, Jesus was a priest according the tradition sure by Melchizedek and adopted by David.

The later be against, "Rereading 2 Samuel 8:18: 'David's Sons Were Priests,'" dealt with the clich in 2 Samuel 18:8 that the sons of David were priests. Excluding the correspondent of History was not amenable to assert that David's sons may perhaps party as priests, the be against thorough that David's sons were enormously priests. They did not become priest what they were Levites. David's sons exercised the priesthood what, as sons of the king of Jerusalem, they followed the identical tradition sure by Melchizedek and continued by David when he became king of Jerusalem.

Today I swanky to discourse the conduit in 1 Peter 2:9 and give a new indicate for the very well understanding of the fact that Christians are called "a public priesthood." My indicate is based on my other engagement in the articles beyond. I put on that you show read citizens articles; if you show not read them, I suggest that you do so for the very well understanding of the engagement less than.

The detail in Peter reads: "But you are a designate zoom, a public priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own procure, that you may command the excellencies of him who called you out of duskiness fashionable his huge light" (1 Peter 2:9 ESV).

The pronounce "a public priesthood," has been interpreted in many different ways. Greatest extent commentators understand this pronounce as unfolding the aver of the religious role that Christians show attained (see 1 Peter 2:5). This pronounce was obsessed from Exodus 19:6. In Exodus the extensive nation of Israel was to be a be given of priests. So, for Peter, Christians were set reserved to give spiritual sacrifices to God.

The word "public" has been understood in different ways: that these priests belong to the king, that they are priests of the be given of God, that this dub demonstrates the anticyclone cut of believers, or the aver of their role as priests, or that they belong to God, the king, and for this details, all of God's partners are public.

Peter H. Davids, in his section on "The In the beginning Communication of Peter" (p. 87) wrote:

The label for "priesthood" is found in the NT cleanly put forward [2:5] and in 2:9. The latter counsel shows noticeably that Peter sees the church in expressions of Israel's religious functions, for it alludes to Exod. 19:6. And other NT authors go for up the district using different words (e.g, Rev. 1:6; 5:10; 20:6)-such phraseology is hand-me-down engrossed cleanly of Christ as a priest in Hebrews and of the Aaronic priesthood in Jerusalem.

The pronounce in 1 Peter 2:9 "a public priesthood, a holy nation," is obsessed from Exodus 19:6:

"You shall be to me a be given of priests and a holy nation."

All English translations understand the pronounce as "a be given of priests." The Septuagint (LXX) translates the Hebrew pronounce as "a public priesthood" in Exodus 19:6 and in Exodus 23:22, in spite of the stretched detail of Exodus 23:22 does not mutiny in any English edition. It is unclog that the organization in 1 Peter 2:9 was obsessed from the Septuagint.

Equally is lost in all the engagement of 1 Peter 2:9 and in all the commentaries of the detail is the record reveal question: how may perhaps Gentile Christians become priests of God? To the same extent record believers were not Jews, the ground of a Levitical priesthood is out of the question. How may perhaps non-Levites act as priests of God even when they cleanly unfilled spiritual sacrifices (as in 1 Peter 2:5)?

The blend seems to be in the way David's sons served as priests. To the same extent David, a man from Judah, served as a priest subsequent the tradition sure by Melchizedek, king of Jerusalem, David's sons exercised a "public priesthood," a priesthood based on the pro delegated by their start off, who was a king.

Jesus, a man from Judah, exercised the priesthood subsequent the tradition sure by Melchizedek and continued by his ancestor David. His partners became priests by the pro approved to them by their Lady, who was the Ruler of kings.

All the sons of David and the partners of Christ did not spend a Levitical priesthood what they were not from the race of Levi or from the method of Aaron. They exercised a "public priesthood," the type of priesthood sure by Melchizedek who was the king and priest of Jerusalem and adopted by David when he became the travel of the Canaanite populace who continued to stay alive in Jerusalem at the back the suppression of the borough.

Reference: Peter H. Davids, The In the beginning Communication of Peter. New Conglomerate Notes on the New Tribute. Superior Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Rank, 1990.

Claude Mariottini


Professor of Old Tribute

Northern Baptist School

Tags: 2 Peter 2:9, David, Melchizedek, Priesthood, Priests