15 And it was this
same Melchizedek to whom Abraham paid tithes; yea, even our father Abraham paid
tithes of one–tenth part of all he possessed.
16 Now these ordinances
were given after this manner, that thereby the people might look forward on the
Son of God, it being a type of his order, or it being his order, and this that
they might look forward to him for a remission of their sins, that they might
enter into the rest of the Lord.
17 Now this
Melchizedek was a king over the land of Salem; and his people had waxed strong
in iniquity and abomination; yea, they had all gone astray; they were full of
all manner of wickedness;
18 But Melchizedek
having exercised mighty faith, and received the office of the high priesthood
according to the holy order of God, did preach repentance unto his people. And behold, they did repent; and Melchizedek
did establish peace in the land in his days; therefore he was called the prince
of peace, for he was the king of Salem; and he did reign under his father.
19 Now, there were many
before him, and also there were many afterwards, but none were greater;
therefore, of him they have more particularly made mention.
20 Now I need not
rehearse the matter; what I have said may suffice. Behold, the scriptures are before you; if ye
will wrest them it shall be to your own destruction.
21 And now it came to
pass that when Alma had said these words unto them, he stretched forth his hand
unto them and cried with a mighty voice, saying: Now is the time to repent, for
the day of salvation draweth nigh;
22 Yea, and the voice
of the Lord, by the mouth of angels, doth declare it unto all nations; yea,
doth declare it, that they may have glad tidings of great joy; yea, and he doth
sound these glad tidings among all his people, yea, even to them that are
scattered abroad upon the face of the earth; wherefore they have come unto us.
Alma 13:15-22
Alma identifies the high priest Melchizedek as the high
priest to whom Abraham paid his tithes.[1]
Tithes have been, and still are, an essential part of the Gospel. Malachi warned, “Will a man rob God? Yet ye have
robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we
robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye
are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring
ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house,
and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows
of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to
receive it” (Malachi 3:8-10).
The Lord emphasized the importance of paying tithing to
Joseph Smith. “Behold, now it is called today until the coming of the Son of Man, and
verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he
that is tithed shall not be burned at his coming” (D&C 64:23).[2]
On his way home, Abraham stops to
meet with Melchizedek, king of Salem and priest of the most high God, to
receive a blessing at his hand. Abraham recognizes Melchizedek's priesthood
authority and pays his tithes to him (cf. Alma 13:15). On this occasion,
according to the Prophet Joseph Smith, Melchizedek taught Abraham about the
priesthood and the coming of the Savior. The Prophet taught, "Abraham says
to Melchizedek, I believe all that thou hast taught me concerning the
priesthood and the coming of the Son of Man; so Melchizedek ordained Abraham
[D&C 84:14] and sent him away. Abraham rejoiced, saying, Now I have a
priesthood."4 Latter-day
Saints are fortunate to have important JST additions to the biblical text in
Genesis 14 (Genesis 14:25–40 JST), which restore much knowledge about
Melchizedek and the blessing he pronounced upon Abraham.[3]
Elder Ronald Poelman testifies of tithing.
Living the law of the tithe was a
privilege and would bring blessings. I did not doubt it because my mother knew
it. Those feelings have remained and intensified throughout my life … Obedience
to [the law of tithing], among others, has enabled me to be ordained to the
holy priesthood, to be endowed in the house of the Lord, to serve a full-time
mission, and to be sealed to family members for time and eternity. In addition,
I have been privileged to return to the temple repeatedly to serve others and
to be instructed regarding things of eternal importance … You and I are now
among those generations given the privilege to know and to live the law of the
tithe. The blessings that flow from obedience to that law are both temporal and
spiritual, as many among us can testify …
As a young married couple, my wife
and I were expecting the birth of our first child. I was studying law at the
university and working nights in a gasoline station. We had very little money.
We had furnished our small basement apartment with some used furniture and many
wooden boxes … It was our practice at that time to pay our tithing each
month on fast Sunday. As that day approached, we discussed the possibility of
postponing the paying of our tithing so that we could make an initial
payment on a baby bed. In the spirit of the fast, and after praying, we decided
to pay the tithing and trust our Heavenly Father. A few days later, I
was walking in the business district of the city and unexpectedly met my former
mission president, who asked if I was in school or working at a job. I replied
that I was doing both. Was I married? “Yes!” Did we have children? “No, but our
first child will be born in just a few weeks.” “Do you have a bed for the
baby?” he asked. “No,” I replied reluctantly, startled by the direct question. “Well,”
he said, “I am now in the furniture business, and it would please me to have a
baby bed delivered to your apartment as a gift.”[4]
The purpose of the ordinances the Lord gives us is to help
us to look forward to Christ. In the 5th
Article of Faith, Joseph Smith wrote, “We
believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands
by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances
thereof” (5th Article of Faith).
Alma emphasizes it helps us look forward to receiving a remission of our
sins.[5]
Who was Melchizedek?
He was king of Salem. The people
of Salem were a wicked lot. Melchizedek
exercised, nevertheless, exercised faith.
He became the high priest.
Through his leadership his people repented and peach was established
throughout the land. He was called the
prince of peace and ruled under his father.
In contrast with the wicked people
of Ammonihah, who had chosen Nehor as their model, the faithful were admonished
by Alma to "humble [themselves] even as the people in the days of
Melchizedek, who was also a high priest after this same order which I have
spoken" (Alma 13:14). Whereas Nehor was a lying murderer and a promoter of
priestcraft, Melchizedek was a man of "mighty faith" who
"received the office of the high priesthood according to the holy order of
God" (Alma 13:18). Whereas the name of Nehor brings to mind popular
priests supported by money from the deceived masses (see Alma 1:3–6),
Melchizedek "did preach repentance unto his people" and "did
establish peace in the land in his days; therefore he was called the prince of
peace, for he was the king of Salem" (Alma 13:18).[6]
The phrase “ruled under his father” is an example of
Hebraisms in the Bible. Here, “under”
means “instead of.” So, Melchizedek
ruled instead of his father.[7]
There were high priests both before and after Melchizedek;
none were greater than he.[8] The Lord explained to Joseph Smith, “There are, in the church, two priesthoods,
namely, the Melchizedek and Aaronic, including the Levitical Priesthood. Why
the first is called the Melchizedek Priesthood is because Melchizedek was such
a great high priest. Before his day it was called the Holy Priesthood, after
the Order of the Son of God. But out of respect or reverence to the name of the
Supreme Being, to avoid the too frequent repetition of his name, they, the
church, in ancient days, called that priesthood after Melchizedek, or the
Melchizedek Priesthood” (D&C 107:1-4).
For Alma, Melchizedek was a great
high priest who took upon him the high priesthood forever after the order of
the Son that Alma has described. Melchizedek's people were wicked, but through
repentance, they became humble and were taught by certain ordinances how to
look forward on the Son of God for a remission of sins. In this way,
Melchizedek established peace in the land of Salem, where he ruled under his
father.
Having taught them these things, Alma called upon the people
to repent now. “I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments” (Psalms 119:60).
“Blessed are those servants, whom the
lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall
gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve
them” (Luke 12:37).
[1] “And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth
bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him,
and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor [OR creator]of
heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine
enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes
of all” (Genesis 14:18-20).
[2] The law of tithing, as understood today, had
not been given to the Church previous to this revelation. The term "tithing" in the prayer
just quoted and in previous revelations (64:23; 85:3; 97:11) had meant not just
one–tenth, but all free–will offerings, or contributions, to the Church
funds. The Lord had previously given to
the Church the law of consecration and stewardship of property, which members
(chiefly the leading elders) entered into by a covenant that was to be
everlasting. Because of failure on the
part of many to abide by this covenant, the Lord withdrew it for a time, and
gave instead the law of tithing to the whole Church. The Prophet asked the Lord how much of their
property he required for sacred purposes.
The answer was this revelation (D&C 119:Heading).
[3] Revelation,
Reason, and Faith – Genesis 15 in Light of the Restoration, David Rolph
Seely, Maxwell Institute, accessed April 25, 2015.
[4] Tithing:
A Privilege, Elder Ronald E. Poelman, April 1998 General Conference.
[5] “And those priests were ordained after the order
of his Son, in a manner that thereby the people might know in what manner to
look forward to his Son for redemption” (Alma 13:2).
[6] The
Temple in Time and Eternity – Conflicting Orders: Alma and Amulek in Ammonihah,
Thomas R. Valletta, Maxwell Institute, accessed April 25, 2015.
[7] One
Small Step, Reviewed by John A. Tvedtnes and Matthew Roper, Maxwell
Institute, accessed April 25, 2015.
[8] “Yea, and behold I say unto you, that
Abraham not only knew of these things, but there were many before the days of
Abraham who were called by the order of God; yea, even after the order of his
Son; and this that it should be shown unto the people, a great many thousand
years before his coming, that even redemption should come unto them” (Helaman
8:18).
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