Melchizedek

Melchizedek, a priest-king in the Old Testament (see Genesis 14:18-20). In the biblical episode Melchizedek encountered Abraham on the latter's return from battle with the Mesopotamian kings. He gave Abraham bread and wine (thus, according to some Christian scholars, prefiguring the Eucharist) and in return received a tithe of Abraham's booty. In Psalms 110 he is referred to as a prototype of the Messiah. The New Testament's Epistle to the Hebrews cites the two Old Testament references to demonstrate that Melchizedek foreshadowed Christ.