Thank you, my dear friend, for this very good question! In short, even though Scripture does not reveal to us the lineage or life history of this man, Melchizedek was in fact a mere man, and he did in fact have parents, and ultimately, he did die; therefore, he was not God, but a human man. Scripture simply does not give us many details about his life and times, except what we find in Genesis 14 and in Hebrews 7. So, why does the Holy Spirit bring out the incident recorded in Genesis? To be sure, Melchizedek is seen in the Scriptures as what we might call a “type” of Christ Jesus, and perhaps this is why the Holy Spirit chose him to be such an important Scriptural picture of Christ. To see and understand the Spiritual impact of this curious man’s life, we might consider the entire chapter of Hebrews 7 to see how Melchizedek can be a type or picture of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Thus, to begin with, please note Hebrews 7:2-3 (NKJV): “…to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,” without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.” Here, we see Melchizedek as the king of Salem, and the word “Salem” means peace. We know that Christ Jesus is called the Great King, and He is also referred to as the “Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6; regarding Christ’s everlasting reign as King see Revelation 11:15 and Revelation 19:16, Revelation 17:14, and Daniel 7:13,14; see also Micah 5:2). It is well to note here also that Salem is the ancient name for Jerusalem, and in the angel’s statement to Mary in Luke 1:31-33, we see that Jesus was called the Son of the Highest, and that He would one day rule forever in Jerusalem upon the throne of David.

But now, what about Hebrews 7:3 where we read of Melchizedek: “…without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life…”? Melchizedek did certainly have parents, but these are not recorded for us, so it is as though he had none; and again, we do not read of his birth or of his death, so in these things he appears as a type or a picture of Christ who had a human mother, but God was His Father, and being eternal, He has no beginning or end-He was from everlasting (Micah 5:2; John 1:1; Hebrews 13:8).  

But what is the crux of the thought expressed by the Holy Spirit in Hebrews 7? I believe that in this chapter, the Spirit of God is bringing before us how the priesthood of our Lord Jesus Christ is more excellent and more significant to us than that of Melchizedek, which follows his, rather than Aaron’s order. We furthermore see why and how Christ’s priesthood is unique and is of the order of Melchizedek rather than that of Aaron. I think that William MacDonald in his Bible Commentary on Hebrews 7 summarizes the thrust of Hebrews 7 very simply: “Our Lord has become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. His eternal priesthood guarantees our eternal preservation. Just as surely as we have been reconciled to God by His death, so surely are we saved by His life as our Priest at God’s right hand (Rom. 5:10).”

I truly hope this helps. The typology here can seem a bit complex, so I have tried to keep things as basic as I know how. I would certainly recommend a good Bible Commentary on Hebrews 7 for more information.  (SF)  (662.5)