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Hebrews 7:3 – having neither beginning of days nor end of life
While Pickup (Marty Pickup, “According to the Order of Melchizedek,” A Tribute to Melvin D. Curry, Jr) does not believe in the supernatural identity of Melchizedek, he does not agree with the Rabbinic principle regarding the silence of the Scripture, that is, “what is literarily true of Melchizedek is literally true of Christ. If this is indeed the Hebrew writer’s argument, then one must admit that he employs an illegitimate form of reasoning. There are many Old Testament characters besides Melchizedek whose births and deaths are not mentioned. When the psalmist said in Psalm 110 that the Messiah’s priesthood would be likened to that of Melchizedek, he could hardly have intended the silence of the Scripture regarding Melchizedek’s birth and death to be a foretelling of the divine nature of the Messiah.” (ibid., p.127) After all, the scriptures are not silent on the birth and death of Jesus! In fact, they are an intricate and essential part of his kingship and ironically priesthood.
Pickup simply interprets the phrase “in the context of genealogical record-keeping.” (p.128). The Levitical High Priest served until his death. The absence of the birth and death records only implies that Melchizedek’s priesthood was not the succession type. “Yes, the Hebrew writer finds significance in the silence of the Scripture, but only because the information Scripture was silent about regarding Melchizedek was information indispensable to the Levitical priesthood.” (ibid., p.129)
Furthermore on the silence of Scriptures, Pickup correctly observes, “These other instances in Hebrews where argument is made from the silence of Scripture are not of the rabbinic variety (1:5; 7:14 – PDH). Are we now to conclude that in 7:3 the writer departs from this mode of legitimate argumentation from the silence of Scripture to employ the fanciful method of the rabbis?” (ibid., p.128)
Conclusion from Pickup – “The Hebrew writer is pointing out that the absence of Melchizedek’s record of birth and death serves to amplify the fact that his priesthood was not one that was passed on to successors.” (ibid., p.129)
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