King of Salem

A king of Salem and priest of God Most High who appears briefly in Genesis 14, blessing Abraham after a battle. He receives tithes from Abraham and gives him bread and wine. He has no recorded genealogy or death — which the book of Hebrews uses to argue that his priesthood is 'without beginning or end.' Jesus is declared a high priest 'in the order of Melchizedek' — meaning an eternal, non-Levitical priesthood unlike anything in the Jewish system.