"David took the Philistine's head and brought it to Jerusalem"
1 Samuel 17:54.

• Back home to Bethlehem: perhaps – to show the head of Goliath as a trophy of victory to his aged father Jesse?
• Or perhaps to Shiloh, to the Tabernacle – in an act of thanksgiving to God for victory over the Philistine hero.

understand the motive of this young sheep-herder/harpist from Bethlehem, who had suddenly become a national military hero, we need to look into his personal mental world.

The answer lies in his special regard for their great ancestor Abraham.

Without doubt the roots of David's faith were in the holy traditions of Abraham. Family visits to worship at Shiloh would have allowed him to hear readings from the sacred Torah with its stirring examples of Abrahamic faith, a faith in which Abram had honoured the king of the ancient Amorite city of Salem, which David's family passed by on each trip to Shiloh.

had counted Amorites and Jebusites among his friends. Not only had he worshipped God at their open-air sanctuaries in Shechem and in Mamre (Genesis 12:6;13:18), but he had even referred to God in the terms used by Salem's Amorite/Jebusite king when publicly rebuking the king of Sodom (Genesis 14:18-23, about 2085 BC/BCE).

Adoni-zedek of Jebus (Jerusalem), who had later led the war against Israel during Joshua's great conquest of the Land, was very unlike his distant predecessor – Melchi-zedek. Adoni-zedek was severely defeated (about 1409 BC/BCE), and Joshua left his city to be conquered and occupied by Benjamin's tribe – but it never happened.

The Jebusites continued on in their defiant hill-top town.

their city-state of Jebus (one of the ten nations in Abram's time between the southern limit of Palestine at Wadi el Arish and its northern limit at Upper Euphrates in Syria, Genesis 15:21, the north-south limits of the Promised Land) was part of Canaan's Amorite culture, its king had been very different from the other leaders of his time.

Under his godly rule Jebus had become called/characterized as Salem – 'Peace'. His personal conduct had turned the word 'righteousness/justice' (zedek) into a throne-name, a royal title. (*Melchi means 'king of', from Melech).

than this, Melchizedek led his people to worship the Most High. He was a priest on their behalf (this was often a royal function at that time) and probably a prophet of God to them. This latter aspect shows in the blessing he pronounced upon Abram the Hebrew.

It has a rhyming structure in the Hebrew which sets it apart from the narrative text, probably as prophetic (inspired) speech (Genesis 14:19-20). Abram then recognises this by adopting Melchizedek's terminology in his public reply to the king of Sodom.

David remembered Melchizedek, and later with inspired speech announced the future messianic king of Israel as –

In contrast to the inherited priesthood in the order of Aaron, Melchizedek's priestly recognition by God was earned! His life in its context set a standard – recognized by God forever.

wonder young David, in the flush of awed gratitude to God for his impossible victory over Goliath (a wonderment which he later penned in Psalm 8), took his grisly trophy-head to Melchizedek's ancient city.

David made Jerusalem his own. After his seven-and-a-half-year rule over Judah, the rest of Israel eventually acknowledged his leadership, and David implemented his plan.

Jebus/Salem was captured and became David's capital without driving the Jebusite's out (1 Chronicles 21:18). Why? Could it be for Melchizedek's sake?

Now here is an even more significant clue. Two high priests served simultaneously before the Lord under David in Jerusalem – Zadok (of Eleazar's line from Aaron) and Abiathar. Both were of Aaron's line through their fathers, but one had a Jebusite name – Zadok. Not only does this indicate intermarriage between Israel and the Jebusites, it also indicates a religious compatibility that is unparalleled in Israel's history.

No other explanation does justice to this situation; than that it was for the sake of Melchizedek and his influence in Jebus/Salem; their ancient godly king.

In 971 BC Zadok became Israel's sole high priest, and later Ezekiel prophesied that the future true priests of Israel would be descendants of this Zadok.

city was eye-witness to the prophesied sign of Israel's messiah on Sunday, 10 Abib/Nisan in the year 30 AD –

Four days later, its priesthood handed him over to the Romans for crucifixion. Early, 17 Nisan, many families throughout that city were stunned by the appearance of their deceased loved ones (Matthew 27:53) while Jesus was appearing to Mary Magdalene at His tomb.

Forty days later, He gathered His disciples back to that same city for His departure from its eastern flank on the Mount of Olives (probably the old open-air worship site of Melchizedek – 2 Samuel 15:32).

The witnessing angels reminded these stunned Galilean disciples that –

His ascension was thus a direct anticipation of His prophesied future return to that same place –

exodus of a Jerusalem-in-mourning, encircled by her enemies? This is even more impossible than a dividing of the Red Sea for her escape from Egypt!

With this unimaginable act, Christ returns accompanied by His Bride/Church (Zecharaiah 14:5) to the city that had dishonoured Him – to cleanse it and to change it.

His return to this city is not for David's sake! David's city was Bethlehem and he was king for seven years in Hebron before he moved his court to Jerusalem.

The city was not chosen for the sake of its Temple. The Temple was placed there because David had made this city his capital and even then only after it was true to its name of Salem (peace), not vice versa.

Surely not! Isn't this all symbolic, for the Bible also says that "the earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof"? Why single out one piece of geography? Melchizedek is long dead. These things are only symbols of a greater more spiritual reality.

Yes, they are symbolic. But the symbolic does not negate the value/meaning of the historical upon which it is based.

Christ's return to this city is for this city's sake.

Not just for its inhabitants, which change year by year.
That city holds its significance from the time of Abraham the friend-of-God who paid a tenth of his war-plunder to honour Melchizedek.

Melchizedek's sake! For his sake it became David's city and for his sake it is honoured forever,

because –

Lord, thank you for the example to us of this godly Gentile king of Jerusalem to all generations, forever –

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