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On Melchizedek (fragments)

Paul somewhere described Melchizedek as without mother and without father. Now, that Melchizedek, the greatest of priests, did not spring from the earth, no one could deny; for he did not grow from an oak nor from a rock, nor was he taken from the earth and worked from clay like Adam, being molded and his hands fashioned. And after a short space: What then might one say? For Melchizedek is recorded for us as without mother. And yet, if he should happen to be like God and the Word and in all things resembles him, bearing his image and preserving his character, he is not without mother, not without father; for Christ has both a mother, Mary, and the royal lineage of David, and from the root of Jesse the flower of all fragrance arises for us, and his lineage according to the flesh is recorded, but that of Melchizedek is considered without genealogy. Therefore, one might say that Melchizedek is without genealogy because he is not of the seed of Abraham, nor was his genealogy ever recorded by Moses, but that he was a Canaanite by race and sprang from that accursed seed, yet he was shown to be righteous on his own account, not descending from righteous ancestors nor from any righteous seed. It was not right, therefore, to record the genealogy and trace back to the race of Canaan one who was inclined to the height of righteousness, for it was not at all fitting to connect one who had attained the height of righteousness with a race that had attained the height of unrighteousness. For this reason scripture says he is without father and without mother, not considering his ancestors worthy of the virtue of the just and prudent man.

That Melchizedek is shown to be a Canaanite by race, it is possible to infer from those very regions which he controlled and ruled and which he was near; for he was a neighbor of Sodom, and very near to Abraham who dwelt by the oak of Mamre. And I think that he was also king of that Salem, which is this much-celebrated Jerusalem. And after a short space. Therefore, if Melchizedek clearly resembles the Son of God, he will not be without father nor without mother nor without genealogy, but the things of the flesh will be genealogized according to the nature of the flesh, while the other aspect will be seen as without genealogy, just as indeed is the case with Christ; for Christ is indeed genealogized according to the body, but according to the highest order he has an indescribable generation, as we have previously demonstrated.

2 From Chrysostom on the same: Many, not understanding the things about Melchizedek

said have said that this man is greater than Christ and have established for themselves a heresy, and they are called Melchizedekians. Being contentious, therefore, and wishing to show that Melchizedek is greater than Christ, they bring forward to us the testimony of scripture which says: You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. For how, it says, could he not be greater, according to whose image and order Christ serves as priest? But others, having gone astray, say that he is the Holy Spirit. But we say that he is a man of like passions with us, and neither greater than Christ, nor even than John the Baptist, nor indeed that he is the Holy Spirit. But that he is not greater than Christ, let those who say this tell us of what place they say he is? Is it heavenly? Is it earthly or of the underworld? If of heaven or of some other place, let them hear that to him every knee shall bow, and so on. If therefore he bows the knee, the one who worships would be less than the Christ who is worshiped. But the wretches do not even know the following verse: 'made like unto the Son of God'; just as we too were made in the image and likeness of God. But perhaps one of the listeners asks and says: what then is it for him to be called without father and without mother and without genealogy? To whom we will say

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De Melchisedech (fragmenta)

Ἀμήτορά που καὶ ἀπάτορα τὸν Μελχισεδὲκ ἐξέφρασεν ὁ Παῦλος. Ὅτι μὲν τοίνυν ἐκ γῆς οὐκ ἀνέτειλεν ὁ μέγιστος τῶν ἱερέων Μελχισεδέκ, οὐδεὶς ἀντειπεῖν ἔχοι· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐκ δρυὸς οὐδ' ἀπὸ πέτρας ἔφυ, οὐδ' ἐκ γῆς ληφθεὶς πηλουργεῖται κατὰ τὸν Ἀδὰμ πλαττόμενος καὶ τῶ χεῖρε πλαστουργεῖται. Καὶ μετ' ὀλίγον τόπον· Τί οὖν ἄν τις εἴποι; ἀμήτωρ γὰρ ἡμῖν ὁ Μελχισεδὲκ ἱστορεῖται. Καίτοι γε εἰ ἐμφερὴς τυγχάνοι τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Λόγῳ καὶ τὸ ξύμπαν ἡμῖν ἔοικεν αὐτῷ τὴν ἐκείνου φέρων εἰκόνα καὶ τὸν ἐκείνου σώζων χαρακτῆρα, οὐκ ἀμήτωρ οὐκ ἀπάτωρ ἐστίν· ἔστι γὰρ τῷ Χριστῷ καὶ μήτηρ Μαρία καὶ γένος τὸ βασιλικὸν τοῦ ∆αυὶδ καὶ ἐκ τῆς ῥίζης τοῦ Ἰεσσαὶ τὸ τῆς ὅλης ἡμῖν εὐωδίας ἄνθος ἀνατέλλει καὶ γενεαλογεῖται τὸ κατὰ σάρκα γένος αὐτοῦ, τὸ δὲ τοῦ Μελχισεδὲκ ἀγενεαλόγητον εἶναι θεωρεῖται. Οὐκοῦν εἴποι τις ἂν τὸν Μελχισεδὲκ ἀγενεαλόγητον εἶναι διὰ τὸ μὴ εἶναι ἐκ τοῦ σπέρματος Ἀβραὰμ μηδὲ ὑπὸ Μωσέως γενεαλογεῖσθαι πώποτε, εἶναι δὲ Χαναναῖον τὸ γένος καὶ ἐκ τῆς ἐπαράτου ἐκείνης σπορᾶς ὁρμᾶσθαι, δίκαιον δὲ τῶν καθ' ἑαυτὸν ἀποφανθέντα καὶ οὐκ ἐκ προγόνων ὁρμώμενον δικαίων οὐδ' ἀπό τινος δικαίας σπορᾶς. Οὐ θέμις οὖν ἦν γενεαλογεῖν καὶ εἰς τὸ τοῦ Χαναὰν γένος ἀνάγειν τὸν εἰς ἄκρον δικαιοσύνης νεύοντα, οὐδὲ γὰρ πρεπωδέστατον ἦν τὸν τῆς ἄκρας δικαιοσύνης ἐπιλελημμένον συμπλέκειν τῷ τῆς ἄκρας ἀδικίας ἐπιλελημμένῳ γένει. ∆ιὸ ἀπάτορα καὶ ἀμήτορά φησιν αὐτὸν εἶναι ἡ γραφή, οὐκ ἀξίους τοὺς προγόνους ἡγουμένη τῆς ἀρετῆς τοῦ δικαίου καὶ σώφρονος ἀνδρός.

Ὅτι δὲ Χαναναῖος τὸ γένος δείκνυται ὁ Μελχισεδέκ, ἔστι δήπου τεκμήρασθαι καὶ ἀπ' αὐτῶν ἐκείνων ὧν ἐκράτει καὶ ἐβασίλευε κλιμάτων καὶ οἷς ἐπλησίαζεν· ἀστυγείτων μὲν γὰρ ἦν Σοδόμων πλησιαίτερος δὲ τῷ Ἀβραὰμ οἰκοῦντι πρὸς τῇ δρϋὶ τῇ Μαμβρῇ. Οἶμαι δὲ <ὅτι> καὶ Σαλὴμ ἐκείνης ἐτύγχανε βασιλεύς, ἥ ἐστιν ἡ πολυθρύλητος αὕτη Ἱερουσαλήμ. Καὶ μετ' ὀλίγον τόπον. Οὐκοῦν εἰ σαφῶς ἔοικεν ὁ Μελχισεδὲκ τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὐκ ἀπάτωρ οὐδὲ ἀμήτωρ οὐδὲ ἀγενεαλόγητος ἔσται, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν τῆς σαρκὸς κατὰ τὴν φύσιν τῆς σαρκὸς γενεαλογηθήσεται, θάτερον δέ τι τὸ ἀγενεαλόγητον ὀφθήσεται καθάπερ οὖν ἀμέλει καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ· καὶ γὰρ ὁ Χριστὸς κατὰ μὲν δὴ τὸ σῶμα γενεαλογεῖται, κατὰ δὲ τὴν ἀνωτάτω τάξιν ἀδιήγητον ἔχει τὴν γενεὰν ὡς προαποδεδώκαμεν.

2 Τοῦ Χρυσοστόμου εἰς αὐτό· Πολλοὶ μὴ νοήσαντες τὰ περὶ τοῦ Μελχισεδὲκ

εἰρημένα μείζονα τοῦ Χριστοῦ τοῦτον εἰρήκασι καὶ συνεστήσαντο ἑαυτοῖς αἵρεσιν, οἳ καὶ λέγονται Μελχισεδεκιανοί. Φιλονεικοῦντες οὖν καὶ βουλόμενοι δεῖξαι ὅτι μείζων ἐστὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὁ Μελχισεδὲκ προφέρουσιν ἡμῖν μάρτυρα τὴν γραφὴν λέγουσαν· Σὺ ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδέκ. Πῶς γάρ, φησίν, οὐκ ἂν εἴη μείζων, οὗ κατὰ τὴν εἰκόνα καὶ τὴν τάξιν ἱερατεύει ὁ Χριστός; Ἄλλοι δὲ πλανηθέντες λέγουσιν αὐτὸν εἶναι τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον. Ἡμεῖς δὲ λέγομεν αὐτὸν εἶναι ἄνθρωπον ὁμοιοπαθῆ ἡμῖν καὶ μήτε μείζονα Χριστοῦ, ἀλλ' οὔτε Ἰωάννου τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ, οὔτε μὴν εἶναι αὐτὸν τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον. Ὅτι δὲ οὐκ ἔστι μείζων τοῦ Χριστοῦ, εἰπάτωσαν ἡμῖν οἱ τοῦτο λέγοντες ποίου χωρίου αὐτὸν εἶναι λέγουσιν; ἆρα οὐρανίου; ἆρα ἐπιγείου ἢ καταχθονίου; Εἰ μὲν οὐρανίου ἢ ἄλλου τινὸς χωρίου, ἀκουσάτωσαν ὅτι αὐτῷ κάμψει πᾶν γόνυ καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. Εἰ οὖν κάμπτει γόνυ, ἐλάττων εἴη ὁ προσκυνῶν τοῦ προσκυνουμένου Χριστοῦ. Ἀλλ' οὔτε τὸν ἐπιόντα στίχον ἴσασιν οἱ τάλανες· τῷ ἀφομοιουμένῳ τῷ υἱῷ τοῦ Θεοῦ· ὥσπερ καὶ ἡμεῖς κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ ὁμοίωσιν Θεοῦ ἐγενόμεθα. Ἀλλ' ἴσως τις ἐπερωτᾷ τῶν ἀκροατῶν καὶ λέγει· τί οὖν ἔστι τὸ ἀπάτορα αὐτὸν λέγεσθαι καὶ ἀμήτορα καὶ ἀγενεαλόγητον; Πρὸς ὃν ἐροῦμεν