Hebrews 7:6

6 But this man, a complete outsider, collected tithes from Abraham and blessed him, the one to whom the promises had been given.

Hebrews 7:6 Meaning and Commentary

Hebrews 7:6

But he whose descent is not counted from them,
&c] That is, Melchizedek, whose genealogy or pedigree is not reckoned from the Levites, nor from any from whom they descend; his lineal descent is not the same with theirs; and so did not receive tithes by any law, as they did, but by virtue of his superiority: received tithes of Abraham; not from the people, or his brethren, but from Abraham, the father of the people of Israel, and of Levi himself:

and blessed him that had the promises;
of a Son, and of the Messiah, that should spring from him, in whom all nations should be blessed, and of the land of Canaan, and of the blessings of grace and glory. This shows that Melchizedek had a descent, though it was not known; and that, since his descent was not the same with the Levites, he was a more proper type of Christ, who belonged not to that, but another tribe.

Hebrews 7:6 In-Context

4 You realize just how great Melchizedek is when you see that Father Abraham gave him a tenth of the captured treasure.

5 Priests descended from Levi are commanded by law to collect tithes from the people, even though they are all more or less equals, priests and people, having a common father in Abraham.

6 But this man, a complete outsider, collected tithes from Abraham and blessed him, the one to whom the promises had been given.

7 In acts of blessing, the lesser is blessed by the greater.

8 Or look at it this way: We pay our tithes to priests who die, but Abraham paid tithes to a priest who, the Scripture says, "lives."