King David Giving Bread and Wine

Dr. Scott Hahn’s Kinship by Covenant highlighted a detail of Scripture that I had often missed. He quotes the passage in 2 Sam 6:12-19 that recounts how David brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem with dancing and liturgical pomp.

We remember that David wore an ephod and made sacrifices – rather bold moves for a man who wasn’t a Levite. David even “blessed” the people. However, I never noticed one detail in particular until Dr. Hahn placed two words of the passage in bold print: bread and wine!

“he distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, to each a cake of bread and a measure of wine.” (2 Sam 6:19)

So David truly is a priest in the order of Melchizedek who “brings out bread and wine” (Gen 14:18). Christ fulfills this priestly role through the Eucharist. Christ is not a Levite but a Judean – the Lion of Judah who bears the mystical royal priesthood of Melchizedek and David. Christ’s priesthood surpasses the Levitical priesthood because it is anchored his eternal status as the only begotten Son of God.