Hebrews 7:1–10

THE GREATNESS OF MELCHIZEDEK

7For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of God Most High, met Abraham and blessed him as he returned from defeating the kings, ²and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means king of righteousness, then also, king of Salem, meaning king of peace. ³Without father, mother, or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God,^k he remains a priest forever.

⁴Now consider how great this man was: even Abraham the patriarch^l gave a tenth of the plunder to him. ⁵The sons of Levi who receive the priestly office have a command according to the law to collect a tenth from the people^m—that is, from their brothers and sisters—though they have also descended from Abraham. ⁶But one without this^A lineage collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises.^{n 7}Without a doubt, the inferior is blessed by the superior. ⁸In the one case, men who will die receive a tenth, but in the other case, Scripture testifies that he lives.^{o 9}And in a sense Levi himself, who receives a tenth, has paid a tenth through Abraham, ¹⁰for he was still within his ancestor^B when Melchizedek met him.