It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior.
The writer of Hebrews is comparing two priesthoods. Here he pauses on a rule no one could argue with: the one who gives a blessing stands above the one who receives it. From that plain fact he draws a hard conclusion. Abraham, the ancestor of Israel's priests, bowed to a greater priest.
The rule and the proof
The argument rests on who does what. Abraham handed over a tenth of the spoil. Melchizedek handed back a blessing. Neither man did the other's part.
William KellyAbram did more than pay tithes to Melchizedek. Melchizedek also blessed him, and, as we are told, "It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior." The person who gives a blessing is greater than the person who receives it. So Abram did not presume to bless Melchizedek. Abram's act showed that he stood under Melchizedek. Melchizedek's act showed that he stood above Abram. Together they give a double picture and proof of that greater dignity.
Look at who was on the receiving end.
Hamilton SmithGod said Abraham would be a blessing, and that through his seed all the nations of the earth would be blessed. Yet here Abraham himself is the one who is blessed, and beyond dispute "the inferior is blessed by the superior."
Rank, not character
Melchizedek was the priest-king who met Abraham. The verse is often read as a comment on the two men's spiritual worth.
F. B. HoleRemember what the point here is. It is not that Melchizedek was a greater man than Abraham in character, or that he knew more of God — about that we have no information, one way or the other. The point is simply that God gave him a higher position, and that has to be admitted. In that higher position, or order, he was a picture of Christ.
What this costs Israel's priests
Israel's priests came from Abraham's line. So what their father did that day, they did.
Hamilton SmithSo, in the person of their father Abraham, the priests of Aaron's order paid tithes and received the blessing, instead of receiving tithes and giving out blessing. What is more, they were dying men, and they paid tithes to one who, Scripture testifies, lives. Clearly, then, the rank of the Melchizedek priesthood is far above that of Aaron.
The same rule outside the priesthood
The rule is not confined to priests. Jacob, an old refugee, blessed the king of Egypt.
F. B. HoleAt that moment Jacob was only a displaced person, a refugee standing in front of the great king. Yet he knew he was the greater man, because he knew the true God. He knew enough of Him to be sure that God's pledged presence and guidance was worth more than all the glory Egypt had to offer. He had the better, and Pharaoh, for all his outward majesty, had the less... Are we always alive to the favour we stand in, and so lifted above the favours and attractions of the world?
If blessing flows downward, how can we bless God?
Believers also bless God. Does that turn the rule around?
H J VineBlessing always starts with the greater one. It is just so for those who belong to God's "spiritual house" today — all their blessing came from God. Our response is of such a kind that God accepts it through Jesus Christ, in the Spirit's grace and power. We may reverently say that blessing God in that sense ministers to His happiness! What an honour given to the redeemed today!
The picture behind the argument
The scene is more than an argument about rank. It shows in advance what Christ does for those who trust God.
Leslie M. GrantMelchizedek lived long before Levi. He received tithes from Levi's great ancestor Abraham, and blessed him as the greater man. Lovely picture of the blessing of the Lord Jesus Christ bestowed on the man of faith!
Summary
- Rule — the greater blesses; the lesser receives. Abraham took the blessing and gave the tithe. He never blessed Melchizedek in return.
- Rank — the greatness here is the position God gave, not personal character or knowledge. Commentators keep those two apart.
- Reach — Israel's priests came from Abraham. Their whole line received blessing where it should have been giving it.
- Reflection — the same rule explains Jacob blessing Pharaoh. The man who knows God stands above the world's greatest, however small he looks.
- Result — all blessing starts with the greater, so ours starts with God. What we give back is response. Christ is the greater priest who blesses those who trust Him.