You see is a possible literal translation of the word for “see.” Most translations take it as a command, “See!” though in the case of such intellectual events, the response must be voluntary and cannot be determined by another person. Other ways of avoiding the imperative “see” are “you can see” (Bijbel in Gewone Taal), “notice” (Bible en français courant), “look how outstanding” (Phillips), “consider” (Translator’s New Testament, New English Bible, Bible de Jérusalem), and “think” (Jerusalem Bible). The Greek term rendered see in Good News Translation is a reference to an intellectual event and not a matter of actual vision. One may then translate the Greek verb as “You can recognize,” “You can realize,” or simply “Consider” (as imperative).

How great he was is an exclamation, not an expression of quantity or a question, as Revised Standard Version shows with “how great he is!” Great, as the context shows, means “important,” “of high status.”

The second sentence in verse 4 of Good News Translation is the reason for recognizing the greatness of Melchizedek, and it may be useful to begin the second part with a conjunction meaning “for.”

Our famous ancestor is emphasized (literally the patriarch in Good News Bible‘s first through third editions). Although Abraham was himself one of the founders of Israel, the implication is that he recognized that Melchizedek was more important than himself.

The Greek term rendered our famous ancestor may also be translated as “the one who began our nation” or “the one who was the father of our nation.”

The rare word which Revised Standard Version translates “spoils” originally meant “first fruits,” and it may imply that Abraham picked out the best of the spoil to offer to Melchizedek. New English Bible‘s “a tithe of the finest of the spoil” reflects this but is otherwise a little ambiguous; the intended meaning is “the best tenth of the spoil.” Most translations take “spoils” to refer to all he got in the battle. All he got in the battle might suggest what Abraham received during the actual fighting, as though he were gathering up spoils while others fought. It may therefore be better to translate all he got in the battle as “all that he and his followers took from those who had been defeated.”

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Letter of the Hebrews. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .