Journal: Bibliotheca Sacra
Volume: BSAC 176:702 (Apr 2019)
Article: Jesus The Messiah As Prophet, Priest, And King
Author: Glenn R. Kreider

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BSac 176:702 (April-June 2019) p. 174

Jesus The Messiah As Prophet, Priest, And King

Glenn R. Kreider

Glenn R. Kreider is professor of theological studies, Dallas Theological Seminary, Dallas, Texas.

This article will be included in the forthcoming Moody Handbook of Messianic Prophecy, ed. Michael Rydelnik and Edwin A. Blum (Chicago: Moody, 2019).

Abstract

Ever since John Calvin popularized the view that Jesus was the first person to fulfill the three roles of prophet, priest, and king, this view has been a commonplace in biblical studies. This article demonstrates that Jesus was not the first to fulfill the three roles. Several Old Testament characters did, although not always in an official office. In Jesus, the three functions are realized in perfection. Each of the earlier persons was a type of the coming Messiah.

The perspective that the Messiah fulfills the three offices of prophet, priest, and king has a long and continuing legacy in the history of biblical interpretation.1 The London Baptist Confession (1689), for instance, puts it this way: “This office of mediator between God and man is proper only to Christ, who is the prophet, priest, and king of the church of God; and may not be either in whole, or any part thereof, transferred from him to any other.”2 John Calvin is often credited with popularizing this view, although

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he was not the first to make the observation.3 Berkhof writes, “While some of the early Church Fathers already speak of the different offices of Christ, Calvin was the first to recognize the importance of distinguishing the three offices of the Mediator and to call attention to it in a separate chapter of his Institutes.”4 Here is Calvin’s claim: “Therefore, that faith may find a firm basis of salvation in Christ, and thus rest in him, this principle must be laid down: the office enjoined upon Christ by the Father consists of three parts. For he was given to be prophet, king, and priest.”5

These three functions figure prominently in the biblical story, from the Old through the New Testament books.6 Both the functions and individuals in narrative texts who hold the office can be seen as types of the Messiah. Other texts predict a messianic prophet, priest, or king. This article will argue that although there are many prophets, priests, and ...

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