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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Heb_7:1-3
1For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, 2to whom also Abraham apportioned a tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all, by the translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then also king of Salem, which is king of peace. 3Without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually.
Heb_7:1 "Melchizedek" He was a Gentile king/priest of the old Canaanite city then called Salem, which later became Jebus and then later Jerusalem. His name means "my king of righteousness" (very similar to the name of the king of Jerusalem in Jos_10:1, "my lord is righteous"). His lineage is never mentioned, but Abraham pays homage to him. This is why he is such an appropriate OT type for Jesus Christ. He is only mentioned in Gen_14:18-20 and Psa_110:4. There has been much discussion about his identity.
1. for Philo, he is a figure of the human soul
2. for Origen, he is an angel
3. for Ambrose, he is the angel of the Lord
4. for others, he is the national angel of Israel, Michael
5. for Epiphanius, he is the incarnation of Holy Spirit
6. for the Melchizedekites, he is greater than the Messiah and all prayer goes through him
7. for some Jews, Jerome and Luther, he is Shem, Noah's son
Melchizedek is used as a type of Jesus' priesthood for four reasons:
1. Abraham offered a tithe to him (inferiors always tithe to superiors) and by rabbinical hermeneutics thereby Levi also offered a tithe (cf. Heb_7:4-9)
2. his parents are not listed, so rabbinical theology said he was without parents and thereby eternal (cf. Heb_7:3; Psa_110:4 b)
3. he was leader in the later holy city, Jerusalem (Salem, cf. Gen_14:18)
4. he was a priest of God Most High (i.e., El Elyon, cf. Gen_14:18)
5. he allows the author to establish a legitimate priesthood apart from the Levitical Priesthood.
▣ "king. . .priest" He is the only person in the OT who combines royalty and priesthood (i.e., Psalms 110).
▣ "and blessed him" The greater blesses the lesser; therefore, Abraham (and by rabbinical implications his descendant, Levi), was blessed by Melchizedek (cf. Gen_14:19), which shows his superiority over the Aaronic priesthood. It also shows that Jesus, who was from the line of Judah, could be a priest of a different order.
Heb_7:2 "a tenth" Notice that the tithe (cf. Gen_14:20) is older than the Mosaic law. It was a way like the Sabbath and first fruits of showing God's ownership of all (cf. Gen_14:19 c).
▣ "by the translation of his name" The specific etymology of the phrase "king of righteousness" is uncertain but a similar title is used for the Messiah in Jer_23:6 ("the Lord our righteousness") and Jer_33:16 ("the Lord is our righteousness"). Also, the Messiah will be righteous and bring peace (cf. Isa_9:6; Isa_26:3; Isa_26:12; Isa_32:17; and Isa_54:10).
▣ "King of righteousness" For "righteousness" see Special Topic at Heb_1:9.
▣ "Salem" The city may have gotten its name from the Hebrew term shalom which means "peace." Some scholars think it refers to a Jebusite deity. The city is called Salem in Genesis 14, but Psa_76:2 relates it to Jerusalem (i.e., Zion), which was called Jebus during the Canaanite period.
Heb_7:3 This is rabbinical hermeneutics (midrash, see Appendix Three) based on the fact that Melchizedek's lineage is not given in Gen_14:18-20. Like all human beings Melchizedek had parents, but he serves as another type of the eternal Messiah (cf. Heb_7:8). This is developed in Heb_7:8; Heb_7:12; Heb_7:16-17; Heb_7:21; Heb_7:24-25; Heb_7:28.
▣ "beginnings" See Special Topic: Archç at Heb_3:14.