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continually offering gifts, first having offered himself through the cross, in order to abolish every sacrifice of the old 2.330 covenant, and having ministered the more perfect and living one for the whole world; himself the sacrificial animal, himself the victim, himself the priest, himself the altar, himself God, himself man, himself king, himself high priest, himself sheep, himself lamb, having become all things in all for us, so that life might come to us in every way, and he might establish the unshakable foundation of his priesthood forever, no longer dividing it according to lineage and successions, but granting that it be kept by right in the Holy Spirit. 5. But again others imagine, saying other things about this Melchizedek. For such men have been examined carnally, not having understood spiritually the things spoken by the holy apostle in the same epistle to the Hebrews. And Hieracas the Egyptian heresiarch thinks this Melchizedek to be the Holy Spirit on account of “being made like,” he says, “to the Son of God, he remains a priest forever”; as from the word which the holy apostle said, “but the Spirit intercedes for us with unutterable groanings.” But he who knows the mind of the Spirit knows that he intercedes with God for the elect. But this one also has completely fallen away from the subject at hand. For 2.331 the Spirit never put on flesh; and not having put on flesh, he could not be king of Salem and priest of a certain place. But at the time when I shall make the refutation concerning this Hieracas and his heresy, then I will speak at length about these things, but for now I will take up the sequence of the argument. How many things indeed others imagine about this Melchizedek. For the Samaritans think him to be Shem the son of Noah. But they too will be found ridiculous. For the divine scripture, securing everything with order, has in every way fortified the truth, not in vain having arranged the times and numbered the years of each of the fathers' lives and successions. For when Abraham was eighty-eight or ninety years old, more or less, Melchizedek met him and brought out bread and wine to him, prefiguring the enigmas of the mysteries; types of the body of the Lord, our Lord himself saying, “I am the living bread,” and types of his blood which flowed from his side for the cleansing of the defiled and for the sprinkling and salvation of our souls. But Abraham's father Terah, being in his 70th 2.332 year, begat Abraham, and it came to 160 years, more or less. And Nahor begat Terah, being 79 years old, and it came to 239 years. And Serug begat Nahor, being 130 years old, and it became 369 years. And Reu begat Serug, being 132 years old, and it became the 501st year. And Peleg begat Reu, being 130 years old, and it became 631 years. And Eber begat Peleg in the 134th year of his life, and it became 765 years. And Shelah begat Eber, being in the 130th year of his age, and it became 895 years. And Cainan begat Shelah, being in the 109th year of his life, and it became 1,004 years. And Arphaxad, being 135 years old, begat Cainan, and it became 1,139 years. And Shem, in the 102nd year of his life, the aforementioned and imagined by the Samaritans to be Melchizedek, begat Arphaxad, and together it became 1,241 years until the time of Abraham, at which time he met Melchizedek returning from the slaughter of the kings with Amraphel and Arioch and Chedorlaomer and Tidal. But Shem did not live so many years according to their nonsensical fantasy, but being 102 years old he begat Arphaxad, in the second year after the

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διηνεκὲς δῶρα προσφέρων, πρῶτον μὲν ἑαυτὸν διὰ τοῦ σταυροῦ προσενέγκας, ἵνα λύσῃ πᾶσαν θυσίαν παλαιᾶς δια2.330 θήκης, τὴν ἐντελεστέραν δὲ καὶ ζῶσαν ὑπὲρ παντὸς τοῦ κόσμου ἱερουργήσας· αὐτὸς ἱερεῖον, αὐτὸς θῦμα, αὐτὸς ἱερεύς, αὐτὸς θυσιαστήριον, αὐτὸς θεός, αὐτὸς ἄνθρωπος, αὐτὸς βασιλεύς, αὐτὸς ἀρχιερεύς, αὐτὸς πρόβατον, αὐτὸς ἀρνίον, τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσιν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν γενόμενος, ἵνα ἡμῖν ζωὴ κατὰ πάντα τρόπον γένηται, καὶ τῆς ἱερωσύνης αὐτοῦ τὸ ἀμετάστατον ἑδραίωμα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας ἀπεργάσηται, οὐκέτι κατὰ τὰ σπερματικὰ καὶ τὰς διαδοχὰς μερίζων, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὸ δικαίωμα φυλάττεσθαι ἐν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ δωρούμενος. 5. Φαντάζονται δὲ πάλιν ἄλλοι, ἄλλα περὶ τούτου τοῦ Μελχισεδὲκ λέγοντες. σαρκικῶς γὰρ οἱ τοιοῦτοι ἀνεκρίθησαν, πνευματικῶς μὴ νενοηκότες τὰ ὑπὸ τοῦ ἁγίου ἀποστόλου ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ ἐπιστολῇ τῇ πρὸς Ἑβραίους εἰρημένα. καὶ ὁ μὲν Ἱερακᾶς ὁ Αἰγύπτιος αἱρεσιάρχης νομίζει τοῦτον τὸν Μελχισεδὲκ εἶναι τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον διὰ τό «ἀφομοιούμενος, φησί, τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ θεοῦ μένει ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸ διηνεκές»· ὡς ἀπὸ τῆς λέξεως ἧς εἶπεν ὁ ἅγιος ἀπόστολος «τὸ δὲ πνεῦμα ὑπερεντυγχάνει ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν στεναγμοῖς ἀλαλήτοις». ὁ δὲ ἐπιστάμενος τὸ φρόνημα τοῦ πνεύματος οἶδεν ὅτι ὑπὲρ ἐκλεκτῶν ἐντυγχάνει τῷ θεῷ. ἐξέπεσε δὲ καὶ οὗτος παντελῶς τοῦ προκειμένου. οὐ 2.331 γὰρ σάρκα ἐνεδύσατο τὸ πνεῦμά ποτε· σάρκα δὲ μὴ ἐνδυσάμενον οὐκ εἶχεν εἶναι βασιλεὺς τῆς Σαλὴμ καὶ ἱερεὺς τόπου τινός. καιρῷ δὲ ὅτε περὶ τούτου τοῦ Ἱερακᾶ καὶ τῆς αὐτοῦ αἱρέσεως τὴν ἀνατροπὴν ποιήσομαι, τότε ἐν πλάτει περὶ τούτων διηγήσομαι, τῆς δὲ ἀκολουθίας τὰ νῦν ἐπιλήψομαι. Πόσα δὲ περὶ τούτου τοῦ Μελχισεδὲκ καὶ ἄλλοι φαντάζονται. Σαμαρεῖται μὲν γὰρ τοῦτον νομίζουσιν εἶναι υἱὸν τοῦ Νῶε τὸν Σήμ. καταγέλαστοι δὲ καὶ αὐτοὶ εὑρεθήσονται. ἀσφαλιζομένη γὰρ ἡ θεία γραφὴ πάντα μετὰ εὐταξίας κατὰ πάντα τὴν ἀλήθειαν ὠχύρωσεν, οὐκ εἰς μάτην τοὺς χρόνους τάξασα καὶ τὰ ἔτη ἑκάστης τῶν πατέρων ζωῆς καὶ διαδοχῆς ἀριθμήσασα. ὅτε γὰρ Ἀβραὰμ ὑπῆρχεν ὀγδοήκοντα ὀκτὼ ἢ καὶ ἐνενήκοντα ἐτῶν πλείω ἐλάσσω, ὁ Μελχισεδὲκ αὐτῷ ὑπηντᾶτο καὶ ἐξέβαλεν αὐτῷ ἄρτους καὶ οἶνον, προτυπῶν τῶν μυστηρίων τὰ αἰνίγματα· ἀντίτυπα τοῦ σώματος τοῦ κυρίου, αὐτοῦ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν λέγοντος ὅτι «ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ἄρτος ὁ ζῶν», καὶ ἀντίτυπα τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ τοῦ ἐκ τῆς πλευρᾶς αὐτοῦ ῥεύσαντος εἰς κάθαρσιν τῶν κεκοινωμένων καὶ ῥαντισμὸν καὶ σωτηρίαν τῶν ἡμετέρων ψυχῶν. ὁ δὲ τοῦ Ἀβραὰμ πατὴρ Θάρρα ἑβδομηκοστὸν 2.332 κατάγων ἔτος τὸν Ἀβραὰμ ἐγέννησεν, καὶ γέγονεν ἔτη ἑκατὸν ἑξήκοντα πλείω ἐλάσσω. Ναχὼρ δὲ ἐγέννησε τὸν Θάρρα ἑβδομήκοντα ἐννέα ἐτῶν ὑπάρχων, καὶ γέγονε ˉσˉλˉθ ἔτη. Σεροὺχ δὲ ἐγέννησε τὸν Ναχὼρ ˉρˉλ ἐτῶν ὑπάρχων, καὶ γεγόνασιν ἔτη ˉτˉξˉθ. Ῥαγαῦ δὲ ἐγέννησε τὸν Σεροὺχ ὑπάρχων ˉρˉλˉβ ἐτῶν, καὶ γέγονε πεντακοσιοστὸν πρῶτον ἔτος. Φάλεκ δὲ ἐγέννησε τὸν Ῥαγαῦ ὢν ˉρˉλ ἐτῶν, καὶ γέγονεν ἔτη ἑξακόσια τριάκοντα ἕν. Ἔβερ δὲ ἐγέννησε τὸν Φάλεκ ἐν ἔτει ˉρˉλˉδ τῆς αὐτοῦ ζωῆς, καὶ γεγόνασιν ἑπτακόσια ἑξήκοντα πέντε ἔτη. Σάλα δὲ ἐγέννησε τὸν Ἔβερ ἑκατοστὸν τριακοστὸν ἔτος κατάγων τῆς αὐτοῦ ἡλικίας, καὶ γέγονεν ὀκτακόσια ἐνενήκοντα πέντε ἔτη. Κηνᾶ δὲ ἐγέννα τὸν Σάλα ἔτος κατάγων ˉρˉθ τῆς αὐτοῦ ζωῆς, καὶ γέγονεν χίλια τέσσαρα ἔτη. Ἀρφαξὰδ δὲ ἐτῶν ˉρˉλˉε ὢν ἐγέννησε τὸν Κηνᾶν, καὶ γέγονεν χίλια ˉρˉλˉθ ἔτη. Σὴμ δὲ ˉρˉβ ἔτει τῆς αὐτοῦ ζωῆς, ὁ προειρημένος καὶ φαντασιαζόμενος παρὰ τοῖς Σαμαρείταις εἶναι Μελχισεδέκ, ἐγέννησε τὸν Ἀρφαξάδ, καὶ ὁμοῦ γέγονεν ἔτη χίλια διακόσια τεσσαράκοντα ἓν ἕως τοῦ χρόνου τοῦ Ἀβραάμ, καθ' ὃν συνήντησε τῷ Μελχισεδὲκ ἐπανιὼν ἀπὸ τῆς κοπῆς τῶν περὶ Ἀμαρφὰλ καὶ Ἀριὼχ καὶ Χοδολλογομὸρ καὶ Θαλγὰ τῶν βασιλέων. οὐκ ἔζησε δὲ Σὴμ τοσαῦτα ἔτη κατὰ τὴν τούτων ληρώδη φαντασίαν, ἀλλὰ ˉρˉβ ἐτῶν ὢν ἐγέννησε τὸν Ἀρφαξάδ, ἐν τῷ δευτέρῳ ἔτει μετὰ τὸν