Good Morning.
Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. And he blessed him and said: “Blessed be Abram of God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” And he gave him a tithe of all. (Genesis 14:18-20)
This mysterious figure, Melchizedek, was called the “king of Salem,” or in Hebrew שלם shalem. This word comes from the same root that gives us the word, שלום shalom. Most understand this to be a greeting for “hello” or “goodbye” but in reality it means “peace or wholeness.” So Melchizedek — the king of righteousness — was the “king of peace and wholeness.”
It is also understood that Salem was the place that would later be called Jerusalem. In Hebrew we say Yerushalayim which is believed to be a composite of the Hebrew words יראה yireh and שלם shalem. The word yireh means “He will be seen” or “He will see to it” and is used in Genesis 22 when Abraham called Mount Moriah, יהוה יראה YHWH Yireh – “In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen” (Gen. 22:14). Consequently, Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) means “He will see to it” that all is made “complete and whole.”
When the Messiah He will rule and reign from Jerusalem. In that day, His Word will go forth from Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:3) and all nations will come there to worship Him In that day, the earth will be made whole and dwell in peace. That also means that we, as individuals, will be made whole and will be at peace. Though we struggle in this world with our mortality and corruptible bodies, there is coming a day when corruption will put on incorruption and mortal will put on immortality (1 Corinthians 15:53). In that day, our King of Righteousness and Prince of Peace will gather us to Him in the City of the Great King.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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