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having been deemed worthy of his order, supposedly from the saying that was spoken, “you are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek”; so that he is, he says, inferior to Melchizedek. For if he were not placed in some secondary introduction, he would not have been in need of his order. But concerning Melchizedek himself, they say that he was “without mother, without father, without genealogy,” wishing to prove it from the holy Paul's epistle to the Hebrews. And they invent for themselves forged books, deceiving themselves. 2.325 But from these very sayings their refutation comes. For as David says, prophesying about the Lord, that he is established as a priest according to the order of Melchizedek, in the same way the divine scripture recounts that Christ will be a priest. And it is found immediately saying * “being made like unto the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.” But if he is made like the Son of God, he is not equal to the Son of God. For how can the servant be equal to the master? For Melchizedek was a man, and “without father, without mother” is said not because he did not have a father or a mother, but because he was not named most clearly in the divine scripture. For the profoundest parts of the divine scripture, both glorious and surpassing the understanding of human nature, have led many astray into fantasies. For those in Petra of Arabia, which is called both Rokom and Edom, admiring Moses because of the divine signs, having at one time fashioned his image to worship, † worshipped it, being deceived, not because the righteous one was the cause for them, but because their own error, through the righteous one, in their ignorance brought together for them a fantasy of the thing. And in Sebasteia, once called Samaria, having deified the daughter of Jephthah, they still perform a rite for her every year. So these too, hearing the glorious and wise words of scripture, turned aside to foolishness, and being lifted up to an arrogant mind, they left the way of truth, and having fashioned myths for themselves, they will be refuted in every way. 2. For among some, the father and mother of Melchizedek 2.326 are mentioned; but this is not found in the explicit and canonical scriptures. And some have said that his father was called a certain Heraklas, and his mother Astaroth, also called Astorianē. And he was from one of the sons of the local people at that time who dwelled in the plain of Shaveh. And the city was called Salem, about which one person has reported one thing and another another. For some say that it is the city now called Jerusalem, but once called Jebus, while others said that there was another Salem in the plain of Sichem, opposite the city now called Neapolis. So whether from here or from there—for the places are not far distant from one another—nevertheless the subject reveals the work. “He brought forth,” it says, “bread and wine to Abraham, and he was a priest of the most high at that time,” who blessed Abraham and received a tenth from him. For it was necessary for the priest of the most high to be honored by a servant of God, and first for Abraham to bring an offering to the priest who ministered in uncircumcision, since from him, 2.327 Abraham, the priesthood from circumcision was about to come, so that “every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God” might be humbled, so that circumcision, boasting in its priesthood, might not be able to contradict the priesthood of the holy church of God, which does not observe circumcision of the flesh or uncircumcision, but has the greater and most perfect circumcision, the washing of regeneration. For if Abraham brought a tenth to Melchizedek, and those from Abraham bring offerings to Levi and to Aaron, and after a time, when the priesthood was again from circumcision through Aaron and his sons in succession, the scripture says through David, after twelve generations from the birth of Levi, and seven from the succession of Aaron, that the priesthood is established in Melchizedek, he showed by nature that the priestly office is not in the old priesthood of circumcision

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καταξιωθέντα τῆς ἐκείνου τάξεως, δῆθεν ἐκ τοῦ ῥητοῦ τοῦ εἰρημένου «σὺ εἶ ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδέκ»· ὡς εἶναι αὐτόν, φησίν, ὑποδεέστερον τοῦ Μελχισεδέκ. εἰ μὴ γὰρ ἦν ἐν δευτέρᾳ τινὶ εἰσαγωγῇ κείμενος, οὐκ ἂν τῆς ἐκείνου τάξεως ἐπεδέετο. περὶ αὐτοῦ δὲ τοῦ Μελχισεδέκ φασιν ὅτι «ἀμήτωρ, ἀπάτωρ, ἀγενεαλόγητος» ἐγένετο, ἐκ τῆς πρὸς Ἑβραίους τοῦ ἁγίου Παύλου ἐπιστολῆς παριστᾶν βουλόμενοι. πλάττουσι δὲ ἑαυτοῖς καὶ βίβλους ἐπιπλάστους, ἑαυτοὺς ἀπατῶντες. 2.325 Ἐξ αὐτῶν δὲ τῶν ῥητῶν ἡ αὐτῶν ἀνατροπὴ γίνεται. ὡς γὰρ λέγει περὶ τοῦ κυρίου ὁ ∆αυὶδ προφητεύων, κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδὲκ ἱερέα αὐτὸν καθίστασθαι, ἐν ταὐτῷ ἔσεσθαι τὸν Χριστὸν ἱερέα διηγεῖται ἡ θεία γραφή. εὑρίσκεται δὲ εὐθὺς λέγων * «ἀφομοιούμενος τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ θεοῦ μένει ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸ διηνεκές». εἰ δὲ ἀφομοιοῦται τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ θεοῦ, οὐκ ἴσος τυγχάνει τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ θεοῦ. πῶς γὰρ δύναται τὸ δοῦλον εἶναι ἴσον τῷ δεσπότῃ; ὁ μὲν γὰρ Μελχισεδὲκ ἄνθρωπος ἦν, τὸ δέ «ἀπάτωρ, ἀμήτωρ» οὐ διὰ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν αὐτὸν πατέρα ἢ μητέρα λέγεται, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸ μὴ ἐν τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ κατὰ τὸ φανερώτατον ἐπωνομάσθαι. πολλοὺς γὰρ ἐφαντασίασε τὰ βαθύτατα τῆς θείας γραφῆς καὶ ἔνδοξα καὶ ὑπεραίροντα διάνοιαν ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως. οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἐν τῇ Πέτρᾳ τῆς Ἀραβίας, τῇ Ῥοκόμ τε καὶ Ἐδὼμ καλουμένῃ, τὸν Μωυσέα διὰ τὰ θεοσήμεια θαυμάζοντες προσκυνεῖν τὴν αὐτοῦ ποτε εἰκόνα ἀνατυπωσάμενοι † προσεκύνουν πεπλανημένοι, οὐ τοῦ δικαίου αἰτίου αὐτοῖς γενομένου, ἀλλὰ τῆς πλάνης αὐτῶν διὰ τοῦ δικαίου ἐν τῇ ἀγνοίᾳ φαντασίαν πράγματος αὐτοῖς συναγούσης. ἐν δὲ τῇ Σεβαστείᾳ τῇ ποτὲ Σαμαρείᾳ καλουμένῃ, τὴν θυγατέρα Ἰεφθάε θεοποιήσαντες ἔτι ταύτῃ τελετὴν κατ' ἔτος ἄγουσιν. οὕτω καὶ οὗτοι ἀκούοντες τὰ ἔνδοξα καὶ σοφὰ τῆς γραφῆς ῥήματα εἰς ἀνοησίαν ἐξέτρεψαν καὶ εἰς ὑπέρογκον διάνοιαν ἀρθέντες τὴν ὁδὸν τῆς ἀληθείας κατέλιπον, καὶ μύθους ἑαυτοῖς πλασάμενοι κατὰ πάντα ἐλεγχθήσονται. 2. Καὶ γὰρ παρά τισι τοῦ Μελχισεδὲκ ὁ πατήρ τε καὶ ἡ μήτηρ 2.326 ἐμφέρεται· οὐκ ἔχει δὲ κατὰ τὰς ῥητὰς γραφὰς καὶ ἐνδιαθέτους τοῦτο. εἶπον δέ τινες Ἡρακλᾶν τινα καλεῖσθαι τὸν αὐτοῦ πατέρα, μητέρα δὲ Ἀστάρθ, τὴν δὴ καὶ Ἀστοριανήν. ἦν δὲ οὗτος ἐξ ἑνὸς τῶν υἱῶν τῶν ἐπιχωρίων κατ' ἐκεῖνο καιροῦ τῶν ἐν Σαυῇ τῇ πεδιάδι κατοικούντων. Σαλὴμ δὲ ἡ πόλις ἐκαλεῖτο, περὶ ἧς ἄλλος ἄλλως ἐξέδωκε καὶ ἄλλος ἄλλως. οἱ μὲν γάρ φασιν αὐτὴν εἶναι τὴν νῦν Ἱερουσαλὴμ καλουμένην, ποτὲ δὲ Ἰεβοὺς λεγομένην, ἄλλοι δὲ ἔφασαν ἄλλην τινὰ Σαλὴμ εἶναι ἐν τῷ πεδίῳ Σικίμων, κατάντικρυ τῆς νυνὶ Νεαπόλεως οὕτω καλουμένης. εἴτε οὖν ἐντεῦθεν ἢ καὶ ἐκεῖθεν οὐ μακρὰν γὰρ ἀλλήλων ἀφεστήκασιν οἱ τόποι ὅμως ἡ ὑπόθεσις δηλοῖ τὸ ἔργον. «ἐξήνεγκε», γάρ φησι, «τῷ Ἀβραὰμ ἄρτους καὶ οἶνον, καὶ ἦν ἱερεὺς τοῦ ὑψίστου κατ' ἐκεῖνον τὸν χρόνον», ὃς εὐλόγησε τὸν Ἀβραὰμ καὶ δεκάτην ἔλαβε παρ' αὐτοῦ. ἔδει γὰρ τὸν ἱερέα τοῦ ὑψίστου παρὰ δούλου θεοῦ τιμηθῆναι, καὶ πρῶτον μὲν τὸν Ἀβραὰμ προσενέγκαι τῷ ἐν ἀκροβυστίᾳ ἱερεῖ ἱερουργοῦντι, ἐπειδὴ ἐξ αὐτοῦ 2.327 ἔμελλε τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ ἐκ περιτομῆς γίνεσθαι ἡ ἱερωσύνη, ἵνα «πᾶν ὕψωμα ἐπαιρόμενον κατὰ τῆς γνώσεως τοῦ θεοῦ» ταπεινωθῇ, πρὸς τὸ μὴ αὐχοῦσαν τὴν περιτομὴν ἐπὶ τῇ ἱερωσύνῃ δύνασθαι ἀντιλέγειν τῇ τῆς ἁγίας θεοῦ ἐκκλησίας ἱερωσύνῃ, τῇ μὴ παρατηρουμένῃ σαρκὸς περιτομὴν ἢ ἀκροβυστίαν, ἔχουσαν δὲ τὴν μείζονα καὶ τελειοτάτην περιτομήν, τὸ λουτρὸν τῆς παλιγγενεσίας. εἰ γὰρ Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Μελχισεδὲκ προσήνεγκε δεκάτην, οἱ δὲ ἀπὸ Ἀβραὰμ τῷ Λευὶ προσφέρουσι καὶ τῷ Ἀαρών, μετὰ χρόνον δὲ τοῦ πάλιν εἶναι τὴν ἱερωσύνην ἐκ περιτομῆς διὰ Ἀαρὼν καὶ τῶν υἱῶν αὐτοῦ καθεξῆς φάσκει ἡ γραφὴ διὰ τοῦ ∆αυὶδ μετὰ γενεὰς δεκαδύο τῆς τοῦ Λευὶ γεννήσεως, ἑπτὰ δὲ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀαρὼν διαδοχῆς ἐν τῷ Μελχισεδὲκ τὴν ἱερωσύνην ἵστασθαι, φύσει ἔδειξεν οὐκ ἐν τῇ παλαιᾷ τῆς περιτομῆς ἱερωσύνῃ τὸ ἱερατικὸν