Book of Common Prayer

¹⁷ So when God wanted to show all the more clearly to the heirs of the promise just how unchangeable his will was, he guaranteed it with an oath, ¹⁸ so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God should tell a lie, those of us who have come for refuge should have solid encouragement to take hold of the hope which lies before us. ¹⁹ We have this hope like an anchor, secure, solid, and penetrating into the inner place behind the curtain, ²⁰ where Jesus has gone in ahead of us and on our behalf, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

Melchizedek, the great priest-king

7 For this Melchizedek, “king of Salem, priest of the most high God, met Abraham as he was coming back after defeating the kings, and blessed him; ² and Abraham portioned out to him a tenth of everything.”

To begin with, if you translate Melchizedek’s name, it means “king of righteousness”; then he is also “king of Salem,” which means “king of peace.” ³ No mention is made of his father or mother or genealogy, nor of the beginning or end of his earthly life. He is described in a similar way to the son of God; and he continues as a priest forever.

⁴ Look and see what an exalted status he has. Abraham the patriarch gave him a tenth of the spoils! ⁵ Those of Levi’s sons who receive the priesthood have a command to take tithes from the people according to the law—from, that is, their own brothers and sisters, although they, too, are physical descendants of Abraham. ⁶ But this man, who doesn’t share their genealogy at all, received tithes from Abraham, and blessed the man who possessed the promises. ⁷ It is beyond all question that the lesser is blessed by the greater. ⁸ In the former case, mortal humans receive tithes; in the latter case, the one who received them was one of whom scripture declares that he is alive. ⁹ And, if I can put it like this, even Levi paid tithes through Abraham—Levi, the one who receives tithes! ¹⁰ He was still in his ancestor’s loins, you see, when Melchizedek met him.

Sower and reaper rejoice together

²⁷ Just then Jesus’ disciples came up. They were astonished that he was talking with a woman; but nobody said “What did you want?” or “Why were you talking with her?” ²⁸ So the woman left her water-jar, went into the town and spoke to the people.

²⁹ “Come on!” she said. “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! You don’t think he can be the Messiah, do you?”

³⁰ So they left the town and were coming out to him.

³¹ Meanwhile the disciples were nagging him.

“Come on, Rabbi!” they were saying. “You must have something to eat!”

³² “I’ve got food to eat that you know nothing about,” he said.

³³ “Nobody’s brought him anything to eat, have they?” said the disciples to one another.

³⁴ “My food,” replied Jesus, “is to do the will of the one who sent me, and to finish his work! ³⁵ Don’t you have a saying, ‘Another four months, then comes harvest’? Well, let me tell you, raise your eyes and see! The fields are white! It’s harvest time already! ³⁶ The reaper earns his pay, and gathers crops for the life of God’s coming age, so that sower and reaper can celebrate together. ³⁷ This is where that saying comes true, ‘One sows, another reaps.’ ³⁸ I sent you to reap what you didn’t work for. Others did the hard work, and you’ve come into the results.”

³⁹ Several Samaritans from that town believed in Jesus because of what the woman said in evidence about him, “He told me everything I did.” ⁴⁰ So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them. And he stayed there two days.

⁴¹ Many more believed because of what he said.

⁴² “We believe, too,” they said to the woman, “but it’s no longer because of what you told us. We’ve heard him ourselves! We know that he really is the one! He’s the savior of the world!”