are not proper, but appellative names; that falem is no more the name of a place than zedek, but both expreffive of the characters of this great perfon, the one, as the apostle observes, fignifying King of righteousness, the other, King of peace : and that the reason of his being called a priest of the most High, is, because that he appeared in the habit of a priest when he met Abraham. This opinion, I must confess, is more eligible, and carries a greater appearance of truth in it, than those before mentioned; yet there are fome things which oblige me not to come into it; that the Son of God did appear to Abraham, and to the other patriarchs, in a human form, I do not at all doubt, but that he appeared fo to Abraham in the habit of a priest, when he returned from the flaughter of the kings, I fee no reason to believe: when Melchizedek is faid to be like to the Son of God, it rather proves him a diftinct perfon from him, than the fame; and when an endlefs life and an eternal priesthood are ascribed to him, it is to be understood of him, not really and properly, but myftically and typically; he having no predeceffor nor fucceffor in his priesthood; and when Chrift, the Son of God, is faid to be of his order; it is evident to me, that he must be diftinguished from him. But let us proceed now to confider the opinions of the latter fort, who have thought him to be but a mere man, and of thefe,

१

Some have thought that he was Shem, the Son of Noah; and this was the constant opinion of the Hebrew Doctors; which opinion might arise partly from that esteem he was in for his piety and knowledge. Hence the Targumists call him Shem the Great; and frequently make mention of the school of Shem the Great. And Ben Sira fays, that Shem and Seth obtained glory among men : and partly from an unwillingness in the Jews to believe that a ftranger should be greater than Abraham; that one of another nation should be preferable to him who was the author of theirs. This opinion has alfo been embraced by perfons of a confiderable figure in the chriftian world; what has induced them to it, are thefe confiderations, namely, that he was then living, and that he had lived an hundred years before the flood, and there was none born before that time then living; fo that his parentage might well be unknown: that God is called the Lord God of Shem, and fo he may fitly be called the priest of the most high God; that he was a righteous perfon, and fo juftly called Melchizedek: that he was the most honourable in the earth, and fo greater than Abraham; that he was the root of the church, and from whence Abraham and his pofterity fprang; as also the Meffiah according to the flesh; to him the promise was made, Gen. ix. 26. and

Targ. Jon. & Jeruf. in Gen. xiv. 18. Midrash Agadah in R. Sol. in idem & R. Abendana in not. in Miclol Jophi in idem. Baal Hatturim in loc. Targ. Jon. in Gen. xxii 15. Targ, Jeruf Eccles. xlix. 16.

in Gen. xxiv 62. Targ Jon. & Jeruf, in Gen. xxv. 22.

• Alftideus, Danæus, &c.

and upon all accounts the most proper person then living to blefs Abraham. This opinion was oppofed by Epiphanius, on the account of his being then dead, as he imagined: but that was a mistake of his, as is manifeft from chronology; for he was then living, and lived fome years afterwards: nevertheless, there are fome things which may diffuade us from embracing this opinion; for it cannot be faid of Shem, that he was without father, and without mother, and without descent; no, not in the common fenfe that is given of the words; for Shem's genealogy is well known, and a full account of it we have in scripture: befides, if Melchizedek was Shem, then Levi must be in his loins, as well as in the loins of Abra. bam; and fo the apostle's argument would be of no force to prove the superexcellency of Melchizedek's priesthood to Levi's: nay the apostle tells us, that Melchizedek's defcent is not counted of them, that is, the Levites, their defcent is different; nay more, it does not feem credible that Shem fhould come into the land of Canaan, and reign in a country that belonged to his brother Ham and his pofterity nor does it appear probable that Abraham fhould be a ftranger there, if it were fo, and be obliged to buy a piece of ground to bury his dead, when he had one so near akin to him a king there: nor is it reasonable to suppofe, that Abraham fhould give to him, but rather he to Abraham.

Others have thought him to be of the pofterity of Canaan, the fon of Ham: that he was a king in Salem, in the land of Canaan: that he was a man of great piety and knowledge, whom the Lord had remarkably raised up in that corrupt generation, and endued with the knowledge of him and his true worship: his name feems to make it manifeft that he was a Canaanite, it being usual with thofe people to interpofe God in compounded names, as in Adonizedek, Abimelek, &c. as alfo the place of his kingdom, Salem, which was a city in the land of • Canaan and likewife he is faid to have a defcent different from the Levites and their ancestors: and this feems well to agree with the defign of the author of the epiftle to the Hebrews, to cut off all boafting from the Jewish nation concerning the law of Mofes, and priesthood of Levi; as also to magnify the grace of Chrift among the Gentiles. Many, both antient and later divines, have been of this opinion.

Others who think him to be a meer man, of whofe genealogy the fcripture is filent, on purpose that he might be as fit a type of Chrift as the state of a meer man would allow of, not only think it in vain, but finful to inquire who he was; and I must confefs, we ought not to be too nice in our difquifitions, nor too pofitive in our determinations in this affair; but I cannot fee that the laft opinion which I have mentioned breaks in upon this; which, at prefent, 1 am moft inclined to embrace.

Hypolytus, Irenæus, Eufebius, Epiphanius, &c.

Thus

Rivet. Paræus, Junius, &c. This

is alfo the opinion of Jofephus, as appears from his book De Bello Jud. 1. 7. c. 18.

Thus much in answer to the first part of the question, Who he is? Let us now confider,

2dly, What he was: firft we are told in Gen. xiv. 18. that he was king of Salem; which, according to fome, is the fame place which afterwards was called Jerufalem: fo all the three Targums upon the place carry it: and we find that Jerufalem is called by this name in David's time, Pfal. Ixxvi. 2. in Salem alfo is his tabernacle; though others think that it was Shalem, a city of the Shechemites, in the Land of Canaan, mentioned in Gen. xxxiii. 18. which by another name was called Shechem, and afterwards Salim; near to which John was baptizing, John iii. 23. and here Jerom fays, in his time, was fhown the palace of Melchizedek; the magnificence of which was manifeft by its ruins: but this could not be true, for this city was beat down and fowed with falt by Abimelek, Judges ix. 45. and I am most inclined to think that it was Jerufalem of which Melchizedek was king; who herein was a glorious type of Chrift, who was constituted king over Zion; and in this very city, as our great high priest, offered up himself a facrifice of a sweet smelling favour to God.

one that was called by and by this title diftinwe are not told; but

2dly, He is alfo faid to be a priest of the most high God, God to that office, was employed in the service of God; guished from the priests of idols: what his facrifices were, no doubt they were fuch, which other priests offered who were fo by divineappointment and certain it is, that the bread and wine which he brought out to Abraham; were not his facrifice; for he did not do that as a priest, but as a king, out of his royal and princely bounty, to refresh Abraham and his weary foldiers; as will be hereafter shown. So that Melchizedek was both a King and a Priest; inftances of which indeed we have among the heathens, and perhaps they borrowed or rather stole the practice from this inftance: yet we find this was not allowed among the Jews; the priesthood belonged to one tribe, and the kingdom to another: neither David, nor any of his pofterity, were allowed the exercise of both offices, till the Meffiah came, who was prefigured herein by Melchizedek.

Thus have I confidered both who and what he was: and I conclude that he was neither an angel, nor a divine power, nor the holy Ghoft, nor the Son of God himself, but that he was a mere man; yet not Shem the Son of Noah, but a Canaanitish prince, who was remarkably raised up and endued by God with piety and knowledge, and was both king of Salem, that is, Jerufalem, and priest of the most high God, and herein a glorious type of Chrift Jefus. I fhall now confider,

Secondly, How Chrift may be faid to be of the order of Melchizedek. Aben Ezra renders it, according to the custom, or manner of Melchizedek: and the apoftle VOL. I.

Y

* Rex Anius, Rex idem Hominum, plæbique Sacerdos, Virg. Æneid. 3,

according

כמנתב y

according to the fimilitude"; and in all thofe places where these words are mentioned in the epiftle to the Hebrews, they are also rendered by the Syriac, in the fimilitude, or likeness of Melchizedek; fo that the fenfe of the words is, that just in the fame way and manner that Melchizedek was a priest, Chrift is, or that there is a fimilitude and likeness between Chrift and Melchizedek: which we shall confider in a few particulars.

ift, There is a likeness or fimilitude between them in their names and titles; Melchizedek's name by interpretation, is, King of righteousness; and well agrees with Chrift, who loves righteousness and hates iniquity: who is a king that reigns in righteoufnefs, who fits upon the throne of David, and upon bis kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment, and with justice. The Scepter of his kingdom is a Scepter of righteousness, and his throne is established thereby: be is king of faints, and all his ways are just and true; all his regal administrations are according to juftice and truth; for righteousness is the girdle of bis leins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. As alfo he may well be called King of righteousness, because he is the author of one, he has wrought out and brought in an everlasting one, which is commenfurate to the requirements of the law; and therefore fufficient for all thofe, for whom he effected it; this is called the righteousness of God; not that it is the effential righteoufnefs of God, but it is a righteoufnefs, which Chrift, who is God as well as man, has wrought out for all his people: for he who knew no fin, was made fin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him; to this righteousness of his should we fubmit, on this should we depend, and in it defire to be found living and dying, and then we fhall not be found naked. Again;

Melchizedek's title is King of Salem, which by interpretation is, King of peace; which may well be applied to the Lord Jesus Christ, whofe title in Ifaiah ↳ is The prince of peace; his kingdom is a kingdom of peace, his government and his peace are of equal duration; as there will be no end of the one, so neither will there be of the other: in his days fhall the righteous flourish, and abundance of peace fo long as the moon endureth : which was fulfilled in Solomon, who herein was an eminent type of Chrift, and to whom those words are principally to be referred, as the Jews themselves acknowledge. Also he may be fo called, because that he is both the author and giver of peace; he has made peace between God and finners, a lasting and an inviolable one: he has been at great pain and charges to obtain it, it has coft him his precious blood; he hath made peace by the blood of his crofs; the tidings of which are brought unto us in the gofpel; and therefore that is called the gospel of peace; he is alfo the giver of all the inward, fpiritual, confcience-peace, which faints enjoy: as he himself saida,

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you; thus is Chrift not only king of righteoufnefs, but king of peace; as he is the author of the one, fo he is of the other; and from him alone muft we expect them both.

Secondly, There is a likeness or fimilitude between Chrift and Melchizedek, in the account that is given of him in Heb. vii. 3. without father, without mother, without defcent; having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; not but that Melchizedek had both a father and mother, and likewife defcent and beginning of days, and end of life; but the fcripture gives us no account who were his father and mother, nor of what ftock he defcended; neither when he was born, nor when he died and these things are on purpose concealed from us, that he might be a proper type of Chrift. The Syriac renders it thus, " neither whose "father nor mother are written in the genealogies; neither the beginning of his

days, nor the end of his life;" and another learned f interpreter thus, "of an unknown father, and of an unknown mother, the original of whose "ftock cannot be declared;" now this may be referred both to the perfon and priesthood of Christ.

ift, To the person of Chrift; the feveral branches of this account given of Melchizedek, may very fitly be applied to Chrift.

First, He is faid to be without father; this is true of Chrift, as man; for as God he has a Father; God is the God and Father of our Lord Jefus Chrift: and frequent intimations did he give of this to the Jews; for which, more than once, they took up ftones to ftone him as fuch he made his application to God in his agonies in the garden, and as fuch he commended his Spirit to him, when ready to expire on the cross; and also afcended to him as his God and our God, as his Father and our Father: but as man he had no father; for Jofeph was only his fuppofed, and not his real father; and herein lies the wonderful and aftonishing mystery of the incarnation, which was fo long prophefied of by Isaiah, Bebold a virgin fhall conceive and bear a fon, and shall call his name Immanuel: and therefore when the tidings hereof were brought to the virgin, it is no wonder that she made the reply fhe did, how fhall this be, feeing I know not a man? But the answer which the angel returned unto her, was entirely fatisfactory, The boly Ghost fhall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee; therefore that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. In Christ's incarnation, as there was a furprizing difplay of God's grace, fo there

Cujas nec pater nec mater fcripti funt in genealogiis, neque principium dierum ejus neque finis vitæ ejus. Tremell. interpr. f Ignori patris, ignoræ matris, cujus generis origo non poffit

reddi. Erafm.

Ifai. vii. 14.