Hebrews 7:4

4 You can see how great Melchizedek was. Abraham, the great father, gave him a tenth of everything that he won in battle.

Hebrews 7:4 Meaning and Commentary

Hebrews 7:4

Now consider how great this man was
Melchizedek, of whom so many great and wonderful things are said in the preceding verses: and as follows,

unto whom the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils;
of Abraham's giving tithes to him, (See Gill on Hebrews 7:2) and Melchizedek's greatness is aggravated, not only from this act of Abraham's, but from Abraham's being a "patriarch", who did it; he was the patriarch of patriarchs, as the sons of Jacob are called, ( Acts 7:8 Acts 7:9 ) he is the patriarch of the whole Jewish nation, and of many nations, and of all believers, the friend of God, and heir of the world; how great then must Melchizedek be, to whom he paid tithes? and how much greater must Christ, the antitype of Melchizedek, be?

Hebrews 7:4 In-Context

2 and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything he had brought back from the battle. First, Melchizedek's name means "king of goodness," and he is king of Salem, which means "king of peace."
3 No one knows who Melchizedek's father or mother was, where he came from, when he was born, or when he died. Melchizedek is like the Son of God; he continues being a priest forever.
4 You can see how great Melchizedek was. Abraham, the great father, gave him a tenth of everything that he won in battle.
5 Now the law says that those in the tribe of Levi who become priests must collect a tenth from the people -- their own people -- even though the priests and the people are from the family of Abraham.
6 Melchizedek was not from the tribe of Levi, but he collected a tenth from Abraham. And he blessed Abraham, the man who had God's promises.
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.