On Melchizedek
De Melchisedech
The Parentless Melchizedek§1
1Paul described Melchizedek as being without father and without lineage. That the greatest of the priests, Melchizedek, did not ascend from the earth, no one has the power to oppose; for he did not grow from an oak nor from a rock, nor, having been taken from the earth, is he fashioned according to Adam, being shaped by hand.
And shortly thereafter: What then could anyone say? For Melchizedek is recorded to us as being without father. Even if he might be pleasing to God and the Word, and the whole universe seems to us to bear his image and to preserve his character, he is not without father, nor is he without lineage; for to Christ there is both mother Mary and the royal lineage of David, and from the root of Jesse the flower of all our fragrance rises, and his fleshly lineage is genealogized, while that of Melchizedek is considered ungenealogized.
Would not someone say that Melchizedek is ungenealogized because he is not from the seed of Abraham, nor is he ever genealogized by Moses, but his race is Canaanite and he springs from that seed? And it is just regarding those appearing by themselves and not springing from ancestors, nor from any righteous seed.
It was not right, therefore, to genealogize and to trace up to the race of Canaan the one emerging into the height of righteousness, for it was not fitting to entwine the one having reached the height of righteousness with the race having reached the height of iniquity. Therefore the Scripture says that he is without lineage and without father, not regarding the ancestors as worthy of the virtue of a righteous and temperate man.
Greek · §1
De Melchisedech (fragmenta) Ἀμήτορά που καὶ ἀπάτορα τὸν Μελχισεδὲκ ἐξέφρασεν ὁ Παῦλος. Ὅτι μὲν τοίνυν ἐκ γῆς οὐκ ἀνέτειλεν ὁ μέγιστος τῶν ἱερέων Μελχισεδέκ, οὐδεὶς ἀντειπεῖν ἔχοι· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐκ δρυὸς οὐδ' ἀπὸ πέτρας ἔφυ, οὐδ' ἐκ γῆς ληφθεὶς πηλουργεῖται κατὰ τὸν Ἀδὰμ πλαττόμενος καὶ τῶ χεῖρε πλαστουργεῖται. Καὶ μετ' ὀλίγον τόπον· Τί οὖν ἄν τις εἴποι; ἀμήτωρ γὰρ ἡμῖν ὁ Μελχισεδὲκ ἱστορεῖται. Καίτοι γε εἰ ἐμφερὴς τυγχάνοι τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Λόγῳ καὶ τὸ ξύμπαν ἡμῖν ἔοικεν αὐτῷ τὴν ἐκείνου φέρων εἰκόνα καὶ τὸν ἐκείνου σώζων χαρακτῆρα, οὐκ ἀμήτωρ οὐκ ἀπάτωρ ἐστίν· ἔστι γὰρ τῷ Χριστῷ καὶ μήτηρ Μαρία καὶ γένος τὸ βασιλικὸν τοῦ ∆αυὶδ καὶ ἐκ τῆς ῥίζης τοῦ Ἰεσσαὶ τὸ τῆς ὅλης ἡμῖν εὐωδίας ἄνθος ἀνατέλλει καὶ γενεαλογεῖται τὸ κατὰ σάρκα γένος αὐτοῦ, τὸ δὲ τοῦ Μελχισεδὲκ ἀγενεαλόγητον εἶναι θεωρεῖται. Οὐκοῦν εἴποι τις ἂν τὸν Μελχισεδὲκ ἀγενεαλόγητον εἶναι διὰ τὸ μὴ εἶναι ἐκ τοῦ σπέρματος Ἀβραὰμ μηδὲ ὑπὸ Μωσέως γενεαλογεῖσθαι πώποτε, εἶναι δὲ Χαναναῖον τὸ γένος καὶ ἐκ τῆς ἐπαράτου ἐκείνης σπορᾶς ὁρμᾶσθαι, δίκαιον δὲ τῶν καθ' ἑαυτὸν ἀποφανθέντα καὶ οὐκ ἐκ προγόνων ὁρμώμενον δικαίων οὐδ' ἀπό τινος δικαίας σπορᾶς. Οὐ θέμις οὖν ἦν γενεαλογεῖν καὶ εἰς τὸ τοῦ Χαναὰν γένος ἀνάγειν τὸν εἰς ἄκρον δικαιοσύνης νεύοντα, οὐδὲ γὰρ πρεπωδέστατον ἦν τὸν τῆς ἄκρας δικαιοσύνης ἐπιλελημμένον συμπλέκειν τῷ τῆς ἄκρας ἀδικίας ἐπιλελημμένῳ γένει. ∆ιὸ ἀπάτορα καὶ ἀμήτορά φησιν αὐτὸν εἶναι ἡ γραφή, οὐκ ἀξίους τοὺς προγόνους ἡγουμένη τῆς ἀρετῆς τοῦ δικαίου καὶ σώφρονος ἀνδρός.
Melchizedek's Canaanite Origin and Christ's Lineage§2
2That Melchizedek's race is shown to be Canaanite, it is clearly evidenced also from those whom he ruled and over whose regions he reigned; for he was closer to Sodom, and closer to Abraham dwelling by the Mamre oak. And I think also that he happened to be king of Salem, which is this much-throned Jerusalem. And shortly after.
If then Melchizedek is clearly like the Son of God, he will not be without father, nor without mother, nor without genealogy, but the things of the flesh will be genealogized according to the nature of the flesh, while something else regarding the being without genealogy will be seen, just as we also neglect the matter concerning Christ; for Christ indeed is genealogized according to the body, but according to the highest rank he has an unstated genealogy, as we have previously demonstrated.
Regarding this, Chrysostom says: Many, not having understood the things said about Melchizedek, have spoken of this one as greater than Christ and have established for themselves a heresy, who are also called Melchizedekians. Therefore, emulating and desiring to show that Melchizedek is greater than Christ, they bring to us as witness the Scripture saying: 'You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek' (Psalm 110:4). For how, he says, could he not be greater, of whom Christ priestens according to the icon and the order? But others, having been led astray, say that he is the Holy Spirit. But we say him...
Greek · §2
Ὅτι δὲ Χαναναῖος τὸ γένος δείκνυται ὁ Μελχισεδέκ, ἔστι δήπου τεκμήρασθαι καὶ ἀπ' αὐτῶν ἐκείνων ὧν ἐκράτει καὶ ἐβασίλευε κλιμάτων καὶ οἷς ἐπλησίαζεν· ἀστυγείτων μὲν γὰρ ἦν Σοδόμων πλησιαίτερος δὲ τῷ Ἀβραὰμ οἰκοῦντι πρὸς τῇ δρϋὶ τῇ Μαμβρῇ. Οἶμαι δὲ <ὅτι> καὶ Σαλὴμ ἐκείνης ἐτύγχανε βασιλεύς, ἥ ἐστιν ἡ πολυθρύλητος αὕτη Ἱερουσαλήμ. Καὶ μετ' ὀλίγον τόπον. Οὐκοῦν εἰ σαφῶς ἔοικεν ὁ Μελχισεδὲκ τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὐκ ἀπάτωρ οὐδὲ ἀμήτωρ οὐδὲ ἀγενεαλόγητος ἔσται, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν τῆς σαρκὸς κατὰ τὴν φύσιν τῆς σαρκὸς γενεαλογηθήσεται, θάτερον δέ τι τὸ ἀγενεαλόγητον ὀφθήσεται καθάπερ οὖν ἀμέλει καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ· καὶ γὰρ ὁ Χριστὸς κατὰ μὲν δὴ τὸ σῶμα γενεαλογεῖται, κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἀνωτάτω τάξιν ἀδιήγητον ἔχει τὴν γενεὰν ὡς προαποδεδώκαμεν. 2 Τοῦ Χρυσοστόμου εἰς αὐτό· Πολλοὶ μὴ νοήσαντες τὰ περὶ τοῦ Μελχισεδὲκ εἰρημένα μείζονα τοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦτον εἰρήκασι καὶ συνεστήσαντο ἑαυτοῖς αἵρεσιν, οἳ καὶ λέγονται Μελχισεδεκιανοί. Φιλονεικοῦντες οὖν καὶ βουλόμενοι δεῖξαι ὅτι μείζων ἐστὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὁ Μελχισεδὲκ προφέρουσιν ἡμῖν μάρτυρα τὴν γραφὴν λέγουσαν· Σὺ ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδέκ. Πῶς γάρ, φησίν, οὐκ ἂν εἴη μείζων, οὗ κατὰ τὴν εἰκόνα καὶ τὴν τάξιν ἱερατεύει ὁ Χριστός; Ἄλλοι δὲ πλανηθέντες λέγουσιν αὐτὸν εἶναι τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον. Ἡμεῖς δὲ λέγομεν αὐτὸν
Melchizedek's Nature and Type§3
3He is a man sharing our passions, neither greater than Christ, nor even John the Baptist, nor is he the Holy Spirit. As for those saying that he is not greater than Christ, what kind of domain do they say he is in? Is it heavenly? Is it earthly or of the underworld?
If indeed it is a heavenly or some other domain, let them hear that every knee shall bend to him and the following verses. If, therefore, the knee bends, the one worshiping is lesser than the Christ who is being worshiped. But the talents do not know the following verse: to the one made unlike the Son of God, just as we also became like God according to the image.
But perhaps one of the listeners asks and says: why is it that he is called without father, without mother, and without genealogy? To those, we will say that the Jews have claimed he was born of a prostitute and because of this was not genealogized by the Scripture. To them, we will say: you have spoken badly. For we find also others born of a prostitute and having been genealogized: namely Solomon from Uriah, and then also Abimelech, the son of Gideon.
Why, then, is he not genealogized? Because he was a type of Christ and bore this icon; for this reason the Scripture left out his father and mother, so that in that icon we might behold the truly without-father, without-mother, and without-genealogy Christ.
Greek · §3
εἶναι ἄνθρωπον ὁμοιοπαθῆ ἡμῖν καὶ μήτε μείζονα Χριστοῦ, ἀλλ' οὔτε Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ, οὔτε μὴν εἶναι αὐτὸν τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον. Ὅτι δὲ οὐκ ἔστι μείζων τοῦ Χριστοῦ, εἰπάτωσαν ἡμῖν οἱ τοῦτο λέγοντες ποίου χωρίου αὐτὸν εἶναι λέγουσιν; ἆρα οὐρανίου; ἆρα ἐπιγείου ἢ καταχθονίου; Εἰ μὲν οὐρανίου ἢ ἄλλου τινὸς χωρίου, ἀκουσάτωσαν ὅτι αὐτῷ κάμψει πᾶν γόνυ καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Εἰ οὖν κάμπτει γόνυ, ἐλάττων εἴη ὁ προσκυνῶν τοῦ προσκυνουμένου Χριστοῦ. Ἀλλ' οὔτε τὸν ἐπιόντα στίχον ἴσασιν οἱ τάλανες· τῷ ἀφομοιουμένῳ τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ· ὥσπερ καὶ ἡμεῖς κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ ὁμοίωσιν Θεοῦ ἐγενόμεθα. Ἀλλ' ἴσως τις ἐπερωτᾷ τῶν ἀκροατῶν καὶ λέγει· τί οὖν ἔστι τὸ ἀπάτορα αὐτὸν λέγεσθαι καὶ ἀμήτορα καὶ ἀγενεαλόγητον; Πρὸς ὃν ἐροῦμεν ὅτι Ἰουδαῖοι μὲν αὐτὸν εἰρήκασιν ἐκ πόρνης γεννηθῆναι καὶ διὰ τοῦτο μὴ γενεαλογηθῆναι ὑπὸ τῆς γραφῆς. Πρὸς οὓς ἐροῦμεν ὅτι κακῶς εἴπατε. Εὑρίσκομεν γὰρ καὶ ἄλλους ἐκ πόρνης γεννηθέντας καὶ γενεαλογηθέντας· εὐθὺς ὁ Σολομῶν ἐκ τῆς τοῦ Οὐρίου, εἶτα καὶ ὁ Ἀβιμέλεχ υἱὸς Γεδεών. Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν οὐ γενεαλογεῖται; Ἐπειδὴ τύπος ἦν τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ τούτου εἰκόνα ἔφερε, διὰ τοῦτο παρέλιπεν αὐτοῦ ἡ γραφὴ τὸν πατέρα καὶ μητέρα, ἵνα ἐν ἐκείνῳ καθάπερ εἰκόνι τὸν ἀληθῶς ἀπάτορα καὶ ἀμήτορα καὶ ἀγενεαλόγητον Χριστὸν ἐνοπτρισώμεθα. Ἀπάτωρ
Melchizedek as Type of Christ§4
4For Christ is upon the earth according to the flesh, and without a mother in the heavens according to the Spirit and divinity; such is the one possessing neither a beginning of days nor an end of life. For the Scripture did not record the genealogy of Melchizedek, but left behind his birth and his end, so that, just as we have said before, we might behold this one in him.
For Melchizedek is interpreted as King of Righteousness, who is Christ, possessing neither a beginning of days nor an end of life; for neither in a beginning of days was the God Word generated, nor did He ever reach an end or pass away, for Christ remains forever. Thus, Melchizedek became a righteous man and truly bore the image of God within himself; having understood that the offering to be presented to God by Christ was to be brought forward, and being moved by a prophetic spirit, he raised up God with bread and wine, imitating the coming Christ.
Since in the assembly of the Jews the order of Aaron offered sacrifice to God, not of bread and wine, but of calves and lambs, glorifying God with bloody sacrifices, God cried out toward Jesus, who was to be born from the virgin Mary, saying: 'You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek' (Psalm 110:4), not according to Aaron, who worships with bloody sacrifices, but according to the order of Melchizedek, presenting the offering of the Gentiles in bread and wine perpetually.
Greek · §4
γὰρ ἐπὶ γῆς Χριστὸς κατὰ σάρκα, ἀμήτωρ ἐν οὐρανοῖς κατὰ πνεῦμα κατὰ τὴν θεότητα· τοιοῦτόν ἐστι καὶ τὸ μήτε ἀρχὴν ἡμερῶν μήτε ζωῆς τέλος ἔχων. Οὐ γὰρ ἐγενεαλόγησεν ἡ γραφὴ τὸν Μελχισεδέκ, ἀλλὰ παρέλιπεν αὐτοῦ τὴν γέννησιν καὶ τὴν τελευτήν, ἵνα, καθὰ προείπαμεν, ἐν ἐκείνῳ τοῦτον θεωρήσωμεν. Βασιλεὺς γὰρ δικαιοσύνης ἑρμηνεύεται Μελχισεδέκ, ὅς ἐστι Χριστὸς μήτε ἀρχὴν ἡμερῶν ἕχων μήτε ζωῆς τέλος· οὔτε γὰρ ἐν ἀρχῇ ἡμερῶν ὁ Θεὸς Λόγος ἐγεννήθη, οὔτε ἔληξέ ποτε ἢ ἐτελεύτησεν, εἰς ἀεὶ γὰρ ὁ Χριστὸς διαμένει. Οὕτως οὖν ὁ Μελχισεδὲκ ἀνὴρ δίκαιος γέγονε καὶ ἀληθῶς εἰκόνα Θεοῦ φέρων ἐν ἑαυτῷ· προφητικῷ τοίνυν πνεύματι κινούμενος τὴν μέλλουσαν ὑπὸ Χριστοῦ προσφορὰν τῷ Θεῷ προσκομίζεσθαι νοήσας, ἄρτῳ καὶ οἴνῳ τὸν Θεὸν ἐγέραιρεν μιμούμενος τὸν μέλλοντα Χριστόν. Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἐν τῇ Ἰουδαίων συναγωγῇ ἡ τάξις τοῦ Ἀαρὼν θυσίαν προσέφερε τῷ Θεῷ, οὐκ ἄρτον καὶ οἶνον, ἀλλὰ μόσχους καὶ ἀμνούς, ἐναίμοις θυσίαις δοξάζουσα τὸν Θεόν, ὁ Θεὸς πρὸς τὸν μέλλοντα γεννᾶσθαι ἐκ τῆς παρθένου Μαρίας Ἰησοῦν ἐβόα λέγων· Σὺ ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδέκ, οὐ κατὰ τὸν Ἀαρὼν τὸν ἐναίμοις θυσίαις λατρεύοντα, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδὲκ ἐν ἄρτῳ καὶ οἴνῳ τὴν τῶν ἐθνῶν προσκομίζων προσφορὰν εἰς τὸ διηνεκές.