Includes bibliographical references (pages 275-284) and indexes.

List of sidebars -- Series preface -- Preface -- Abbreviations -- Part 1. Introduction: Priesthood and the project of Catholic exegesis -- Part 2. "The sons of Aaron in their splendor: "The glory of the Lord appeared" (Lev. 9:23): priesthood as theophany -- "Like people, like priest" (Hosea 4:9): priestly sin and the prophetic critique -- "I will clothe you with festal apparel" (Zech. 3:4): the promise of a new priesthood -- Part 3. "The order of Melchizedek": "Feed my sheep" (John 21:17): the inauguration of new covenant ordo -- "A spiritual temple, a holy priesthood" (1 Pet. 2:5): priestly sacrifice and the new law -- Conclusion: Jesus as charismatic founder of a hierarchical church -- Suggested resources -- Selected bibliography -- Subject index -- Scripture and other ancient sources index.

This series on the seven Sacraments provides readers with a deeper appreciation of God's gifts and call in the Sacraments through a renewed encounter with God's Word. In this volume, a leading Catholic scholar offers a biblical theology of the priesthood rooted in the Old and New Testaments. Half a millennium after the Protestant Reformation and in the midst of an ongoing clerical crisis in the Catholic Church, this book presents a comprehensive biblical vision and defense of the sacramental priesthood and an informed theological response to the problem of priestly sin. It gives expression to the ministerial priesthood's biblically grounded, sacramental share in the sacrificial ministry of Jesus Christ. Series editors are Timothy C. Gray and John Sehorn. Gray is president of the Augustine Institute, which has one million subscribers to its online content channel, Formed.org. Gray and Sehorn teach at the Augustine Institute Graduate School of Theology, which prepares students for Christian mission through on-campus and distance education programs.