Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Hebrews 7:5-7

"And they indeed of the sons of Levi that receive the priest`s office have commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though these have come out of the loins of Abraham: but he whose genealogy is not counted from them hath taken tithes of Abraham, and hath blessed him that hath the promises. But without any dispute the less is blessed of the better." — Hebrews 7:5-7 (ASV)

(5–6a) Here the meaning of the payment of the tithe is spelled out. Not only was such a payment widely customary, but the law required it to be made. The writer speaks of “the descendants of Levi who become priests” as “collecting a tenth from the people.” In the law it was provided that the people were to pay tithes to the Levites (Numbers 18:21, 24). But the Levites similarly paid tithes to the priests (Numbers 18:26ff.); so it could well be said that the people paid tithes to the priests (and in the first century it seems that the priests themselves carried out the whole tithing operation). The writer is strongly interested in “the law” (GK 3795), which he mentions fourteen times. Here it means the law of Moses. The law required tithes to be taken from people of whom the priests were “brothers.” There is a sense in which the priests had no inherent superiority, for they were related to those who gave tithes to them. They owed their ability to collect tithes to the provision made in the law and not to any natural superiority. But with Melchizedek it was different. He “did not trace his descent from Levi.” Melchizedek was not simply one among a host of brothers. He was a solitary figure of grandeur. And he exacted tithes not simply from his brothers but from Abraham. His greatness stands out.

(6b–7) Not only did Melchizedek exact tithes from Abraham, but he also blessed him. The giving of a blessing was a significant act in antiquity. As used here, it is an official pronouncement given by an authorized person. When that happens, there is no denying that it proceeds from a superior: “The lesser person is blessed by the greater.” In the Genesis account Melchizedek makes no claims, nor does Abraham concede anything in words. But both Abraham’s giving of tithes and his receiving a blessing from Melchizedek implicitly acknowledge the superior place of Melchizedek. The situation is clear to all parties. The author is simply drawing attention to what the narrative clearly suggests about the superior status of Melchizedek. Even when Abraham is seen as the one “who had the promises,” Melchizedek is superior.