The City of the Great King

In the Sermon on the Mount, the Savior said this: “Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne: Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King” (Matt. 5:33-35).  What caught my attention was the last phrase which is not in the Book of Mormon account of this sermon.  We are not to swear by “Jerusalem” which is the “city of the great King”.  The phrase in Matthew appears to be a quotation from Psalms 48:2, which reads, “Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.”  So who is the “great King” of Jerusalem? 

                One who comes to mind as a king who could be meant by this phrase as the “great king” of the holy city is Melchizedek.  In the Old Testament we read briefly of “Melchizedek king of Salem” who liked around the time of Abraham.  The Book of Mormon gives us more detail and has powerful language about Melchizedek’s leadership role: “Melchizedek did establish peace in the land in his days; therefore he was called the prince of peace, for he was the king of Salem; and he did reign under his father.  Now, there were many before him, and also there were many afterwards, but none were greater; therefore, of him they have more particularly made mention” (Alma 13:18-19).  I understand that phrase about none being greater than Melchizedek to be a reference to the fact that he was the greatest king of the city (and not necessarily that he was the “greatest” person in general).  In the JST we also have language that speaks very highly of him: “And this Melchizedek, having thus established righteousness, was called the king of heaven by his people, or, in other words, the King of peace” (JST Genesis 14:36).  Melchizedek was a great king—presumably at or near the current city of Jerusalem—and it’s possible that the phrase in Matthew and Psalms was meant to be applied to him.

                The most obvious answer, though, of course is the Savior Himself.  We know that Jesus is “the king of heaven” and the “king of kings” (2 Nephi 10:14, Alma 5:50, 1 Timothy 6:15).  When Pilate spoke to the multitude with Jesus in his possession, he told them, “Behold your king!” and asked them, “Shall I crucify your King? (John 19:14-15)  When the wise men searched for Jesus they inquired of Herod, “Where is he that is born King of the Jews?” (Matt. 2:2)  At his death were written these words as the “superscription” of the cross: “THE KING OF THE JEWS” (Mark 15:26).  And in our dispensation the Savior told us of a future time in which we “shall have no king nor ruler, for I will be your king and watch over you” (D&C 38:21).  Clearly the scriptures teach us that Christ was and is our King and so we can perhaps say as well that He is the “great king of Jerusalem.”  And we look forward certainly to that future day when He as king will cause “the word of the Lord from Jerusalem” to go forth.