“And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an oath (for they have become priests without an oath, but He with an oath by Him who said to Him: “The Lord has sworn and will not relent, ‘You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek’”) by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant” (Hebrews 7:20-22).
As the inspired penman has already pointed out in Hebrews 6:13-18, when God swears an oath we can place complete trust and confidence in the promise it is connected to. Every jot and tittle of the promise God made will assuredly come to pass.
Not only did God swear an oath to Abraham at Mount Moriah (in Genesis 22:16-18) that all the nations of the earth would be blessed by his coming seed—Christ (Galatians 3:16)—and His gospel (Galatians 3:8), He also swore an oath to David’s Lord (the Christ, Matthew 22:41-45).
Just as there is strong consolation to be gleaned from God’s oath and promise to Abraham (Hebrews 6:18), there is great surety and confidence to be gleaned from God’s oath to the forever priest according to the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 7:22).
Unlike the Old Testament priests who descended from Aaron and became the legitimate priests of God without a divine oath, the better covenant’s High Priest became the legitimate priest of the new covenant with a divine oath. God swore and will at no time change His mind about the matter—Jesus will always be the High Priest of the new covenant.
That divine oath—recorded by David in Psalm110—was fulfilled almost two thousand years ago and will remain fulfilled until the end of time.
