מלכיצדק מלך שלם - The King of Shalem - Nov 4, 2025 - The curious 3-verse interjection of Avraham's interaction with Malkizedek, king of Shalem, who is a Kohen to "El Elyon", seems to interrupt the flow of the story of Avraham's great victory over the eastern Empires and the successful rescue of the hostages taken from the cities of the plain. We explore this interaction, asking a larger question about Shalem - why wasn't this city itself subject to the tribute owed to the eastern kings? And why does the king give Avraham a double-blessing - and why is it immediately followed with a resumption of the narrative of Avraham's interaction with the king of S'dom? All this and more is discussed in this shiur.