Zadok

[B-A-C]

Probably many of you know about the priest named Zadok.
He is mentioned about 50 times or so in the old testament. Mostly in 2 Sam 15-20; and 1 Kings 1.
But I notice in Ezek 44; it says...

Ezek 44:15; “But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who kept charge of My sanctuary when the sons of Israel went astray from Me, shall come near to Me to minister to Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer Me the fat and the blood,” declares the Lord God.
Ezek 44:16; “They shall enter My sanctuary; they shall come near to My table to minister to Me and keep My charge.
Ezek 44:17; It shall be that when they enter at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and wool shall not be on them while they are ministering in the gates of the inner court and in the house.

Ezek 43:19; You shall give to the Levitical priests who are from the offspring of Zadok, who draw near to Me to minister to Me,’ declares the Lord God, ‘a young bull for a sin offering.

I am curious... what does anyone think it means to "minister" to the Lord?

 

[Fragrant Grace]

That is an interesting question @B-A-C , I am interested to what answers come up.

 

[amadeus2]

It is the Lord, whose servants we are. To minister as the scripture uses it throughout, OT and NT, simply means to serve, to be a servant. A true minister is truly a servant. He is not a boss. His job is exactly what God says it is, no more and no less. He had better learn his job and do it right.

To the question: All of us who have surrendered to God are now His servants. We have made a vow to Him:

"When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.

Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay." Ecc 5:4-5

"...it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." Matt 4:10

"No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." Matt 6:24

 

[Psalm23Rick]

I know that I'm coming in a wee bit late on this thread, but want to share a few things.. The good Lord has been reminding me of the sons of Zadok lately.. He told me about 2 years ago that I was one of the sons - at the time I didn't have a clue what it meant, but I've got a pretty darned good idea now. If you want a pretty good overview and perhaps your spirit will be quickened in the hearing of the word, checkout on Youtube the following videos -- (interview of CR Oliver) -

1. Sons of Zadok - Part 1
2. Sons of Zadok - Part 2

There's ~3 hours of material between the two. In a nutshell, people who have this calling, will do anything for the Lord as they will be likely shunned by both society and the church as they do anything that the Lord asks of them. These are the people that the Lord has put into service to open the eyes of His church to their unrighteous ways, their services devoted to man and not to God. Listen to these messages and may your eyes be opened to what the Lord is doing at this time. His winds of change are coming...

 

[Br. Bear]

Greetings,

If we were Hebrew and heard the words written in Scripture regarding Zadok, and the sons of Zadok, we would hear it, thus,
the sons of righteousness (or something akin to that) but of course we also would hear the word, 'righteousness' from a Hebrew understanding.

This might help in answering the question you asked @B-A-C ?

I am curious... what does anyone think it means to "minister" to the Lord?

It may also be worth noting that the one entitled Melchizedek 'means' King of righteousness. The 'zedek' and 'zadok' are akin to each other.

As noted elsewhere, we need to pray for interpretation in order for understanding of what we hear.


Bless you ....><>

 

[Psalm23Rick]

Thanks... Yes, I believe the scriptures can be interpreted directly here regarding ministering.. I believed firmly that those who the Lord has chosen to be Son's of Zadok will have very tight (for lack of a better way to describe it) walk with the Lord.. These past two weeks have codified this thought in my own life as He's been giving me conversations multiple times per week recently.. I've got a new healthy respect for Him and what He wants to do in this crazy world. I'm also very aware of the Melchizedek priesthood and I'm also of the opinion that there's a sort of overlap or perhaps that they may be almost the same..

 

[Br. Bear]

Thanks... Yes, I believe the scriptures can be interpreted directly here regarding ministering.. I believed firmly that those who the Lord has chosen to be Son's of Zadok will have very tight (for lack of a better way to describe it) walk with the Lord.. These past two weeks have codified this thought in my own life as He's been giving me conversations multiple times per week recently.. I've got a new healthy respect for Him and what He wants to do in this crazy world. I'm also very aware of the Melchizedek priesthood and I'm also of the opinion that there's a sort of overlap or perhaps that they may be almost the same..

Greetings,

So i suppose the original question still stands?

.. what does anyone think it means to "minister" to the Lord?

Regarding your reply and thoughts about it @Psalm23Rick , may you be encouraged by what the Lord is revealing to you now.

The thought of being a Son of Righteousness is very sobering and not something that any should take lightly , except in faith. We also can get a glimpse of what may be a better overall interpretation of the message we have heard? Given that the 'theme' of Righteousness runs all through Scripture, it is certainly something to sit up and take note of... and consider our ways (preferably more than we consider other's ways)

Perhaps this is something to the answer of what it means to 'minister' to the Lord?


Bless you ....><>

 

[Psalm23Rick]

I'm tempted to quote some of what the Lord told me.. Maybe it will talk to someone's heart here.. I've been capturing the sentences & thoughts He's been giving me for the past couple of weeks -- I capture it in a journaling app I use on my laptop. I certainly now have a healthy fear of the Lord. That is for sure!

 

[Psalm23Rick]

ok.. I guess I'll go ahead and post a snippet of a bigger prayer reply He gave me as I mentioned above. Perhaps it will resonate with someone.. The following excerpt is a reply to a prayer request I verbalized one morning last week to go WAY deeper in my walk with Him.

<....> I am your Creator! My heart is yours as much as yours is mine! I will not be hampered nor will any of my plans. I love you and will be holding onto your hand every step of the way. Fear not, for I have already conquered the world. Walk with Me o son. Listen to my voice, hear my whispers and heed what I tell you, teach you. You are the son of my loins and I search to and fro across the earth for willing vessels such as yourself, but find few that listen to the call of My heart. I am glad that you have heeded and listened to My call to your heart. I will take you deeper in your walk with me. I will be right there with you at your side. We will walk and run together through thick and thin, through the good and bad. I will ALWAYS be with you, you will not be forsaken or forgotten. You are the fruit of my loins and one of my chosen. I will guide you into all truth and pick you up when you stumble. You are mine and I am yours. I am your Shepard - hear MY voice! Listen only to me! I may continue to trim your branches of undesirable growth to achieve my goals for your life -- your destiny is set. I have established you so that you may do what I have foreordained for you to do. <.....>​

 

[Lanolin]

Well to the first question I would say to minister means to look after. It can also mean to serve, but thinking of ministry is looking after people, if we minister to God as the sons of Zadok did they were looking after the temple where God was dwelling. They were serving up the offerings to God...

Will have a search of scripture and get back to you. I am reminded of how Jesus said to Peter do you love me? Feed my sheep. Feed my lambs. Jesus had just caught a load of fish and had much to share.

Its like when someone goes away on holiday and asks you to look after their pets. By doing that, feeding them we show love, not just to the pets but to the owner.

 

[Psalm23Rick]

I was talking to the Lord about the whole concept of ministering to Him as it is mentioned in the 44th chapter of Ezekiel - that the sons of Zadok would minister to Him. I believe that the Lord showed me that to minister means that we are to be in complete harmony with Him always. What pains Him, pains us. What makes Him smile makes us smile. What troubles His heart troubles our heart. When He gives us a task to do, we are obedient to perform that task, without asking why or how. We just do it. We are an extension of Him here on earth. Just as His life and light shines upon us, we are to reflect that life & light in ALL that we do. There is just so much depth to this very thought and so much scripture that backs it all up. His heart is our heart. His troubles are our troubles. His tears are our tears, and sooo much more. That I believe is what it means to minister to Him. We are to be in one accord with Him in all areas & aspects of life. All areas & aspects! We are not to waver in anything that we do. We are to do it joyously and with peace that only He can give us, because He has already conquered the world. We are victorious overcomers when we minister in truth to Him in all areas & aspects of life as we know it.

 

[Br. Bear]

Moses comes to mind

 

[Br. Bear]

From Easton's Bible Dictionary (Matthew George Easton 1823-1894)

ZADOK

righteous. (1.) A son of Ahitub, of the line of Eleazer (2 Sam. 8:17; 1 Chr. 24:3), high priest in the time of David (2 Sam. 20:25) and Solomon (1 Kings 4:4). He is first mentioned as coming to take part with David at Hebron (1 Chr. 12:27, 28). He was probably on this account made ruler over the Aaronites (27:17). Zadok and Abiathar acted as high priests on several important occasions (1 Chr. 15:11; 2 Sam. 15:24-29, 35, 36); but when Adonijah endeavoured to secure the throne, Abiathar went with him, and therefore Solomon "thrust him out from being high priest," and Zadok, remaining faithful to David, became high priest alone (1 Kings 2:27, 35; 1 Chr. 29:22). In him the line of Phinehas resumed the dignity, and held it till the fall of Jerusalem. He was succeeded in his sacred office by his son Azariah (1 Kings 4:2; comp. 1 Chr. 6:3-9).
(2.) The father of Jerusha, who was wife of King Uzziah, and mother of King Jotham (2 Kings 15:33; 2 Chr. 27:1).
(3.) "The scribe" set over the treasuries of the temple by Nehemiah along with a priest and a Levite (Neh. 13:13).
(4.) The sons of Baana, one of those who assisted in rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem (Neh. 3:4).

 

[Br. Bear]

From Smith's Bible Dictionary (edited by Sir William Smith 1813-1893)

ZADOK

(just ).

Son of Ahitub and one of the two chief priests in the time of David, Abiathar being the other. Zadok was of the house of Eleazar the son of Aaron, ( 1 Chronicles 24:3 ) and eleventh in descent from Aaron. ( 1 Chronicles 12:28 ) He joined David at Hebron after Sauls death, ( 1 Chronicles 12:28 ) and thenceforth his fidelity to David was inviolable. When Absalom revolted and David fled from Jerusalem, Zadok and all the Levites bearing the ark accompanied him. When Absalom was dead, Zadok and Abiathar were the persons who persuaded the elders of Judah to invite David to return. ( 2 Samuel 19:11 ) When Adonijah, in Davids old age, set up for king, and had persuaded Joab, and Abiathar the priest, to join his party, Zadok was unmoved, and was employed by David to anoint Solomon to be king in his room. ( 1 Kings 1:34 ) For this fidelity he was rewarded by Solomon who "thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto the Lord," and "put in Zadok the priest" in his room. ( 1 Kings 2:27 1 Kings 2:35 ) From this time, however, we hear little of him. Zadok and Abiathar were of nearly equal dignity. ( 2 Samuel 15:35 2 Samuel 15:36 ; 19:11 ) The duties of the office were divided, Zadok ministered before the tabernacle at Gibeon, ( 1 Chronicles 16:39 ) Abiathar had the care of the ark at Jerusalem.
According to the genealogy of the high priests in ( 1 Chronicles 6:12 ) there was a second Zadok, son of a second Ahitub son of Amariah, about the time of King Ahaziah. It is probable that no such person as this second Zadok ever existed, but that the insertion of the two names is a copyists error.
Father of Jerushah, the wife of King Uzziah and mother of King Jotham. ( 2 Kings 15:33 ; 2 Chronicles 27:1 )
Son of Baana, and 5. Son of Immer, persons who repaired a portion of the wall in Nehemiahs time. ( Nehemiah 3:4 Nehemiah 3:29 )
In ( 1 Chronicles 9:11 ) and Nehe 11:11 mention is made, in a genealogy, of Zadok, the son of Meraioth, the son of Ahitub; but it can hardly be doubtful that Meraioth is inserted by the error of a copyist, and that Zadok the son of Ahitub is meant.

 

[Br. Bear]

From Nave's Topical Bible (Orville James Nave 1841-1917)

ZADOK

The high priest during the time of Davids reign
2 Samuel 19:11 ; 20:25 ; 1 Chronicles 15:11 ; 16:39
Removes the ark of the covenant from Jerusalem at the time of Absaloms usurpation; returns with the ark of the covenant at Davids command
2 Samuel 15:24-36 ; 2 Samuel 17:15 2 Samuel 17:17-21
Stands aloof from Adonijah at the time of his attempted usurpation
1 Kings 1:8 1 Kings 1:26
Summoned by David to anoint Solomon to be king
1 Kings 1:32-40 1 Kings 1:44 1 Kings 1:45
Performs the function of a high priest after Abiathar was deposed by Solomon
1 Kings 2:35 ; 1 Chronicles 29:22

 

[Psalm23Rick]

One final notion that came to me yesterday in talking over the whole "ministering to the Lord" concept with a christian brother or mine. As we are to be in one accord with Christ, one heart, one mind. The thought came to me of Holy Matrimony - WE are to be in Holy Matrimony with Christ -- we are the bride of Christ and just as a married couple become one flesh, that is true, o so true with ministering to the Lord. We become one flesh with Him who dwells within us. Yikes that's deep! Praise the good Lord! May His name be glorified and magnified each and every day!

 

[Christ4Ever]

Amen brother @Psalm23Rick

Truth!!!

If one is to Minster. One must know the one to whom they Minster to and what they require of you to do.

Obedience as our Lord lived comes to my spirit as the example that would benefit any to live and follow.

Thank you for sharing.

With the love of Christ Jesus.
YBIC
Nick
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