Was Melchizedek a real person?

By CopticBot.ai (Coptic Space Inc.) · Last reviewed 2026-10-10

Yes, according to the Coptic Orthodox faith and the teachings of the Holy Fathers, Melchizedek was a real, historical person. He was a literal king of the city of Salem (which later became Jerusalem) and a priest of the True God during the time of the Patriarch Abraham.

While there have been various heretical interpretations throughout history—some claiming he was a divine incarnation, an angel, or a manifestation of the Holy Spirit—the Church defines him as a human being who functioned as a "type" or "shadow" of Jesus Christ.

Here is why he is understood to be a real person:

1. The Interaction with Abraham

The account in Genesis 14 describes a historical encounter. Melchizedek brought out physical bread and wine and received physical tithes from Abraham. St. Paul uses this historical event in the Epistle to the Hebrews to prove that a priesthood existed that was superior to the Levitical priesthood. If Melchizedek were not a real person, the legal and theological argument for Christ’s priesthood being "according to the order of Melchizedek" would lack its foundational proof.

2. "Without Father or Mother"

When St. Paul describes him as being "without father, without mother, without genealogy" (Hebrews 7:3), it is a literary and theological description of how he appears in the Scriptures, not a biological statement. In the book of Genesis, lineage is usually recorded meticulously (the "generations"). By intentionally omitting Melchizedek's birth, parents, and death from the text, the Holy Spirit presented him as a prophetic icon of Christ, who is eternally the High Priest.

3. Patristic Teaching

The Alexandrian tradition and Church Fathers such as St. Cyril of Alexandria and St. Athanasius treat him as a human figure. They emphasize that he was a righteous king who remained a priest of the "God Most High" amidst a pagan world. He represented the "natural law" and the priesthood of the firstborn that existed before the Law of Moses was given.

4. Distinction from Christ

It is important to remember that while he is a type of Christ, he is not the Christ. He was a man who died, but his "order" of priesthood is what is eternal. We honor him in the Coptic Church as a righteous man of the Old Testament whose offering of bread and wine (rather than animal blood) most perfectly prefigured the Divine Liturgy of the New Covenant.