The Office of Priesthood

 

(This article is part of a series on the subject of the priesthood of Christ, based off of John Owen's excellent and comprehensive treatise on this subject).

Key Texts on Christ's Priesthood:

- Matthew 20:28

- John 1:29

- Ephesians 5:2

- Romans 3:25

- Romans 8:34

- 1 John 2:1-2

- Revelation 1:5

כֹּהֵן - "priest" This is based off of the Hebrew Piel verb kahan, which literally means "to exercise the office of priesthood". The LXX renders it most of the time as ἱερουργέω, but also rendered it as λειτουργέω in 2 Chronicles 11:4. 

- The first person in Scripture who is called a "priest" is Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18). 

- What Melchizedek offered to God in sacrifice was not bread and wine, as the Romanists allege. Rather, it was most likely the tithes that he received from Abraham (Gen. 14:20), though we are not certain what the exact sacrifice of Melchizedek was, nor do we need to be. Among those spoils were likely animals meet for sacrifice (cf. Numbers 31:32-33). 

-The Roman historian Herodotus testifies that akrothinia (the word used by the LXX to signify the tithes/spoils of war received by Melchizedek from Abraham) were offered to gods in sacrifice. 

- Sometimes the ministers of false gods are given the same title (Genesis 41:45; 1 Samuel 5:5)

- Sometimes the term "priest" is used for secondary princes (2 Samuel 8:18; 20:26).

The primary function of the office of priesthood is to offer sacrifices to God.