Hebrews Chapter Seven, King Of Salem

 

Hebrews 7:2 to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning, “king of peace,” [3] without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.

 

Moving along, the writer explains that when Melchizedek met with Abram, the patriarch tithed to him. “And he gave him a tithe (or tenth) of all,” Genesis 14:20. What may be considered from this? First, Abraham’s tithe clearly assumes Melchizedek’s role as priest of God Most High. The king-priest blessed the patriarch, and Abraham have him a tenth of all the spoils.

Later, it is the Levites who receive tithes from the rest of the children of Israel as their portion amongst God’s people; it is considered their wages, as it were, for ministering at the altar. “Then the Lord said to Aaron: “You shall have no inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel. Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting,” Numbers 18:20, 21.

 

It appears then that Melchizedek was well known to Abram, and the patriarch honored him by giving him the tithe due the work he performed in the name of El Elyon. The writer explains that Melchizedek’s name translates as, “king of righteousness.” And since he rules in Salem, which means “peace,” Melchizedek, being king, is “king of peace.” It is unknown at this point who specifically lived in Salem as subjects of Melchizedek. We know from Biblical history that the Jebusites inhabited Jerusalem since before the days of Israel’s conquest of the land, Joshua 15:63, Judges 1:21. We learn of the genealogy of the Jebusites if we turn to Genesis chapter 10, “The Table of Nations.” The people were the offspring of Ham, youngest son of Noah. One of Ham’s sons was Canaan, the patriarch of the nations Israel would drive out, Genesis 10:6, 14-18.

 

Among the list of those descended from Ham were the Jebusites, and verse 18 relates, “the families of the Canaanites were dispersed.” It seemed this dispersion correlates with the rise of Ham’s most infamous grandson Nimrod, the founder of Babel and Assyria, among others, Genesis 10:10. This is worth noting because as was explained in Genesis 10:18, the Jebusites and their sibling nations were dispersed around Nimrod’s time. Nimrod founded Babel, at whose heart lay an apostate religion, Genesis 11:2, 4. God divided the nations with the confusion of tongues (Genesis 11:7) around the time Eber begot Peleg (whose name means division), making the chronology line up for the statement made in Genesis chapter 10 that the Canaanites, including the Jebusites, were dispersed from Shinar, or Babel.

 

Were the Jebusites entirely wicked? God does explain to Abraham that His intention for the people the patriarch will beget is to employ them as a vehicle of divine justice against the Canaanites: “But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete,” Genesis 15:16. The OT makes it abundantly clear that between Abraham’s time as a wanderer to Joshua’s time leading the conquest into Canaan the nations had become grossly immoral to the point of human sacrifice, lying with animals and practicing magic arts to gain power from demons. Yet In Abram’s time many still retained knowledge of God. Pharaoh of Egypt at this time was a morally sound man who walked uprightly, Genesis 12:17-20. Likewise, Abimelech king of Gerar recognized the voice of God and responded, rectifying a wrong committed against Abraham when God made it known, Genesis 20:2-7. The iniquity of the Amorites (representative of the nations Israel later dispossessed) not being complete seems to mean that they have elected to sin beyond repentance. As Pharaoh later hardened his own heart until God did so for him, the nations comprising Canaan believed the lie of Satan rather than the truth until such time that God sent them strong delusion so He might destroy them all, the Jebusites included. What of the residents of Salem in Melchizedek’s time? Only inference can be made since details are scant, so it would be wise not to press the topic further.

 

Verse 3 begins a controversial portion of Hebrews that tends to divide the readership into two camps. There is the naturalist camp. This camp, of whom A. W. Tozer was a part, suggests that the language employed, while extraordinary, means only that Melchizedek’s lineage, unlike Jewry, is untraceable. There is no history of his parentage, birth or death. His is an enigma, a man that lived serving in a priesthood that antedates the Aaronic one, having lived in Salem during the time of Abraham. This posits him as a type of Christ, like Adam, Abraham, Moses, Solomon, etc. The sundry men of Scripture conveyed aspects of Jesus’ person and ministry. Of whom, Melchizedek joins their ranks.