You are the one who delivered Abraham from ancestral godlessness,
and appointed him heir of the world, AND SHOWED TO HIM YOUR CHRIST;
the one who appointed Melchizedek a high priest in your service ...
The above emphasized words are thought to be Christian interpolations. A reasonable interpretation of the entire quotation is that it identifies Melchizedek, who was shown to Abraham, as the Christ.
Most of the documents found in recent years near the Dead Sea at Qumran are books of the Old Testament and related materials of the Old Testament period as seen through the eyes of the Essenes. Cayce provides the interesting insight that the Essenes grew out of the teachings of Melchizedek as propagated by prophets, such as Elijah, Elisha, and Samuel. (254-109) From the documents at Qumran, we know there was much interest in Melchizedek among these Essenes. This Melchizedekian influence could be the result of traditions dating back through the school of prophets to Melchizedek himsell We also now know that the Qumran Essene priesthood was modeled after that of Melchizedek." The Essenes' preoccupation with Melchizedek may also be the basis for the detailed discussion of him in Hebrews.12
Anumber of Essenic documents referred to a Teacher of Righteousness. In the Essene Commentary on the Book of Habakkuk, the Teacher of Righteousness is referred to as one "to whom God has made known all the mysteries of His servants the prophets."13 This Teacher of Righteousness was expected to return and usher in the Messianic Age and, according to Jewish tradition, to be Elijah or Phinehas or Melchizedek.14 At least one respected Dead Sea Scroll authority has stated that Jesus in these documents "appears in many respects as an astonishing reincarnation of the Teacher of Righteousness."Is
Not all of the documents found at Qumran have yet been translated or at least been made available to the public. But at least one treatise now publicly available bears directly on the question of Melchizedek's relationship to the promised messiah.
The Lost Jubilee. A Sermon "Melchizedek Texts" (also known as "I IQ Melchizedek Text" or " I I Q Melchizedek"), found at Qumran and considered a part of what is commonly known as the Dead Sea Scrolls, refers in messianic terms to a future King of Righteousness. In the text, this King of Righteousness is described as passing judgment in the time of the tenth or last Jubilee on Belial and his followers. After the judgment in heaven comes the destruction of those who have followed Belial rather than God. The text states that "the one designed, by God's favor, for the King of Righteousness (which is what, by his very name, Melchizedek prefigures) will come into his dominion." The time of his coming "into his dominion" is identified as the period which Isaiah termed the year of favor (or "acceptable year of the Lord"):
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord has anointed me to bring good tidings to the afflicted, he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captive, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn ... (Isaiah 61:1-2)
It should be noted here that when Jesus made his first appearance in Nazareth after beginning his public ministry, he spoke at the synagogue there, and the book of Isaiah was handed to him. Luke records that he then found and read the two verses quoted above (Luke 4:17-19), but stopped after the phrase "the year of the Lord's favor" in verse two. Biblical analysts have concluded that by suspending reading without referring to God's day of vengeance, Jesus was distinguishing between his present ministry of grace and the second advent when he would carry out God's judgments. On the other hand, his stopping after that phrase may have been for the purpose of emphasis, for it truly was the "year of the Lord." After Jesus had concluded his reading, verse 21 adds: "And he began to say unto them, 'Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.' "
Thus in Luke 4:2 1, Jesus seems to identify himself as the one promised by Isaiah "to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor" when he said, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." And the Melchizedek Texts from the Dead Sea Scrolls identify Melchizedek as the person who will fulfill that prophecy.
The Qumran Melchizedek Texts contain several comments which seem clearly to identify the King of Righteousness as the promised messiah. They discuss the role of this future King in overthrowing Belial and executing God's avenging judgment and clearly state that this King will be "Melchizedek redivivus" (or reincarnated). One scholar has summarized the document thusly-
In this fragment, written in Hebrew, Melchizedek appears as an eschatological saviour who has a heritage. His mission is to bring back at the end of days the exiles to announce to them their liberation ... and the expiation of their sins.16
Asimilarity between Melchizedek and Enoch (Metatron) has also been noted:
Anumber of clear parallels between the heavenly Melchizedek of Qumran and the Metatron of 3 Enoch at once suggest themselves: both figures hold exalted, if not pre-eminent, positions among the angels; both are heavenly judges ... and both, apparently, had earthly lives prior to their exalted, heavenly states.17
This parallel from ancient documents adds credence to the Cayce proposition that Enoch and Melchizedek are the same soul.
One of the documents found at Nag Hammadi in Egypt in the late 1940s is a text entitled Melchizedek. Little is known about its authorship or significance in early Christian theology, but at least one gnostic sect named itself after Melchizedek. The following quote is from this text
And you crucified me from the third hour of the Sabbath-eve until the ninth hour. And after these things I arose from the dead. My body came out of the tomb to me.[ ] they did not find anyone greeted me [ ]They said to me, Be strong, Melchizedek, great High Priest of God Most High [ . ] [Brackets indicate missing fragments or illegible wording.]18
There can be little doubt that this quote and the related material-from a group of early Christians-are referring to the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.
In commenting on the above text, noted authority Birger A. Pearson states, "Furthermore, the tractate's apparent identification of Melchizedek with Jesus Christ ... is also documented elsewhere in early Christianity, particularly in Egypt."19 IntheexpandedNagHommadiLibrary, Pearsonadds:
We are drawn to the conclusion that, in the revelation which the priest Melchizedek has received, he has seen that he himself will have a redemptive role to play as the suffering, dying, resurrected and triumphant Savior, Jesus Christ!
... From what we read . . . it seems that the victory of Jesus Christ is the victory of Melchizedek and that, in fact, they are one and the same.20
In correspondence with the author, Pearson adds: "I did and do understand the (very fragmentary!) text of the first tractate to imply that Melchizedek was prophesied to return again, as Jesus."
This tractate contains other material that may be relevant to the lives of the Master. In one section (1 2, 1), which appears to quote an angelic source, there is a list of several Biblical personages. Because parts of the text are missing, it is not clear what this list purports to be. Scholars have added the names of Noah and Abel to the list, but probably because they were included in some other documents, not because they were a part of the legible text. It has been surmised that the list may be of ancient heroes who also functioned as priests. The listing concludes with the name of Melchizedek, who, as indicated, is identified elsewhere in the document as Jesus Christ. The other two legible names on the list are Adam and Enoch. It may easily be deduced that these names are given as other earlier incarnations of the Master.
As we have seen, there is evidence, aside from Cayce, identifying Melchizedek with Jesus. In fact, a prophecy was made before the time of Jesus that the Christ or messiah would be Melchizedek returned; and another, written by early Christians, actually identifies Christ Jesus as Melchizedek. It should be noted that these documents were not available, however, until after Edgar Cayce's death.
Melchizedek was obviously a very advanced soul. One might logically wonder why it was necessary for this soul to incarnate further, as Cayce states, until reaching Christhood as Jesus. Presumably each intervening life was a learning experience, and, even when entering the earth as Jesus, there was more for this soul to learn. Hebrews 5:8 says: "Although he [Jesus] was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered."
Thomas Sugrue wrote the definitive biography of Edgar Cayce, There Is a River. In compiling the philosophy section of that book, he obtained direct advice and guidance from Cayce through psychic readings. From this section, we get an additional theory as to why the Master soul again incarnated after the experience as Melchizedek:
The Christ soul helped man. As Enoch, as Melchizedek, it took on flesh, to teach and lead ... Enoch and Melchizedek were not born, did not die. The Christ soul realized after these assumptions of flesh that it was necessary to set a pattern for man, to show him the way back to himself. It assumed this task and was bom of woman, beginning voluntarily a new individuality, a new soul record; though behind this new individuality shone the pure Christ soul. But on this the veil dropped, and the Son of God began His pilgrimages. Thus, the Master soul, after incarnating as Melchizedek, apparently assumed the mission of relating directly to humanity and of becoming the pattern for its return to the Creator through fleshly incarnations and births begotten of human parentage. These lives then should offer special significance and meaning to us, the first of which, according to Cayce, was as Joseph who was sold into slavery by his brothers.Scattered throughout esoteric religious writings of the centuries, and even the Bible itself, have been references to the priestly order of Melchizedek, as though it were an order of special and high spiritual attainment. Melchizedek established this order, and it was infinitely higher and more perfect than the priesthood of Aaron. The Aaronic priesthood ended with death, but the priesthood of Melchizedek was a spiritual order whose priests were priests forever. The Aaronic-Levitical priests offered sacrifices for the sins of their people; Jesus gave his life as the sacrifice for his people. By resurrecting his body, he made the Jesus-Melchizedek priesthood eternal. This priesthood, according to the Encyclopedia Judaica's interpretation of Hebrews, "is excellent, superior to that of Abraham's descent, and transcends all human, imperfect orders."22
The author of Hebrews would use Melchizedek as the standard by which to validate the priestly ministry of Jesus and say of Melchizedek:
See how great he is! Abraham the patriarch gave
In view of such New Testament and early Christian veneration of Melchizedek and the rich messianic tradition about him which we have found, Christians should in no way find it demeaning to link the soul of Melchizedek with that of Jesus. Certainly both individuals were important instruments of God, and each life marks an historic step in the spiritual evolution of humanity.
him a tithe of the spoils. (Hebrews 7:4)
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