On the Road to Bethlehem #8: A Faithful Priest

“And I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest, who shall do according to what is in My heart and in My mind. And I will build him a sure house, and he shall go in and out before My anointed forever.”—1 Samuel 2:35

In Israel, God had designated the tribe of Levi to serve before Him as priests, with Aaron and his descendants anointed and consecrated to serve as a prototype of what would become the high priesthood (see Exodus 28:1-2 and 29:4-5 for examples of priestly responsibilities). Fast forward several hundred years later and through a series of successions by his sons, the torch of priesthood made its way to the branch of Ithamar with Eli becoming the high priest. However, Eli’s sons made a mockery of the priesthood by disregarding God’s law (1 Samuel 2:14) by sleeping with the girls who served at the Tabernacle (1 Samuel 2:22), incurring God’s wrath and decree of death (1 Samuel 2:34).

After the decree, God prophesies concerning the faithful priest that He will raise up. He will not be a parental failure such as Eli, nor will He be one who takes advantage of the people such as Eli’s sons. He will be faithful and will do all that God has purposed and planned for Him. It cannot be a priest in the very near future, because no one qualifies with having had a “sure house” built, which is to say, it will endure forever. Such similar language is used in reference to David’s dynasty established in 2 Samuel 7:16. David is told that he will have a “house and…kingdom [that will] endure forever.” This priesthood will be established by God and will endure forever.

This faithful priest will also do “according to what is in My [God’s] heart and in My [God’s] mind.” No one has ever done that except Jesus, who “always do [did] the things that are pleasing to Him"—John 8:29.

Jesus is our great High Priest,  

“Therefore He had to be made like His brothers in every respect, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people”—Hebrews 2:17. 

 The book of Hebrews describes Jesus as our High Priest numerous times (Hebrews 3:1; 4:14-15; 5:1, 5, 10; 6:20; 7:1, 26-28; 8:1, 3; 9:7, 11, 25; 13:11). He is the faithful one who intercedes on our behalf, who offered Himself as the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and He is the one who is faithful in God’s house (Hebrews 3:6).

Jesus paid the price for our sins—all of them. It doesn’t matter what we have done, God is ready and willing to forgive us with open arms (Luke 15:20). As the author of Hebrews wrote,  

“Consequently, He is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them”—Hebrews 7:25. 

We can trust in Him during this Advent season and thank God the Father who sent His Son to die on the cross for our sins so that we might experience the joy of knowing and being with Him for all eternity. Amen.