i—2,
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κοπῆς τῶν βασιλέων, καὶ εὐλογήσας αὐτόν 2. ᾧ καὶ δεκάτην ἀπὸ
πάντων ἐμέρισεν ᾿Αβραάμ' πρῶτον μὲν ἑρμηνευόμενος βασιλεὺς
δικαιοσύνης, ἔπειτα δὲ καὶ βασιλεὺς Σαλὴμ, ὅ ἐστι βασιλεὺς εἰρήνης "
grammatical alterations] from Gen. xiv. 17, 18, 19. Whether Salem stands for Jerusalem or for Salim in the vale of Shechem, John iii. 23, has been disputed from Epiphanius downwards. See Bleek, who contends that Jerusalem cannot be meant because Jebus was its old name. This, however, is now denied, see Moore, πάρος, p. 413, who says that the common opinion that Jebus was the mative name of the city, has no real ground in Ο.Τ. Inthe Amarna tablets Urusalim is used and no trace is tound of any name corresponding to Jebus. But it is not the locality that is impor- tant, but the meaning of Salem. tep- εὺς ... “priest of the Most High God”. According to Aristotle (Pol., iii. 14), the king in heroic times was general, judge and priest. Cf. Virgil (42n., iii. 80) ‘ Rex Anius, rex idem hominum, Phoebique sacerdos,’’ and see Gardner and Jevon’s Greek Antiq., 200,
201. The ideal priesthood is also that ofaking. τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ὑψίστου. πὸ Nea the Most ) high “God! 7) 18
found in the mouth of Demoniacs, Mark v. 7; Luke viii. 28; cf. also Acts xvi. 17 and vii. 58, also Luke i. 32, 35, 70, Vi. 35. It was a name known alike to the Canaanites, Phoenicians and Hebrews. See Fairbairn, Studies in the Philosophy oj Religion, Ῥ. 317. ὕψιστος was also a title of Ζεύς, Pind., xi. 2. Cf. also Dalman, Words of Fesus, p. 198; and especially Charles’ edition of Book of Fubilees, pp. 191, 213, who shows that it was the specific title chosen by the Maccabean priest-kings. ἀπὸ τῆς κοπῆς “from the slaughter,’ rather “ overthrow ”’ ; ‘‘ Niederwerfung’”’ (Weiz- sacker); ‘‘clades rather than caedes”’ (Vaughan) translating in Genesis xiv. 17,
mia. τῶν βασιλέων ‘the
kings”; well-known from Gen. xiv., viz.: Amraphel, Arioch, Chedorlaomer and Tidal, 2.6., Khammurabi, Eriaku, Kudurlachgumal and Tudchula, But Boscawen (First of Empires, p. 179) disputes the identification of Amraphel with Khammurabi. The monuments show us that these kings were contem- poraries two thousand three hundred years B.c,, and furnish many interesting particulars regarding them; see Driver in Authority and Archaeology, pp. 39-45.
Kal εὐλογήσας αὐτόν, asserting thus at once his superiority (ver. 7) and his priestly authority.
Ver. 2. @ kal δεκάτην... “to whom also Abraham divided a tenth of all” [the spoil]. The startling conclusion which this act carried with it is specified in vv. 4-10. The offering of a tithe of the spoils to the gods was a custom of antiquity. See Wetstein for examples and especially Arnold’s note on Thucydides, iii. 50. ‘* Frequently the ἀναθήματα were of the nature of ἀπάρχαι, or the divine share of what was won in peace or war.
The colossal statue of Athena Promachos on the Athenian Acropolis hill was a votive offering from a tithe of the booty taken at Marathon ” (Gardner and Jevon’s Greek Ant., 181.) For the Ο.Τ. law of tithe see Num. xviii. 21-24; Lev. xxvii. 30-32. In offering to Mel- chizedek a tithe Abraham acknowledged him as priest.
The following clauses ought not to be in brackets, because they are inserted as indicating the ground of the main affirma- tion, μένει εἰς τὸ διηνεκέ. The name and description of Melchizedek already given are now interpreted, and are so interpreted as to illustrate the clause ἀφωμοιωμένος τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ and thus prepare for the closing statement. πρῶτον μὲν ἑρμηνενυόμενος... ‘being first, by interpretation, King of righteousness and then also King of Salem, which is King of peace”. The form of the sentence is significant. [Cf. Plutarch, Timoleon, iv. 4, τοῦ δὲ Τιμοφάνους πρῶτυν μὲν αὐτῶν κατα- γελῶντος, ἔπειτα δὲ πρὸς ὀργὴν ἐκφερο- μένου] ““ἢτδὲ ” by his very name, “then” by his actual position; probably the peace of his kingdom is considered as a consequence of its righteousness. Righteousness and peace are character- istic properties of the Messianic King- dom. “In his days shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth,” Ps, Ixxii. 7; similarly Isa. ix. 6, 7; Zech. ix. g; cf. Rom. v. 1; Eph. ii. 4, 15, 17. In Gen. xiv. 18 the name and title occur together