Mediterranean, and so the word which denoted it was borrowed from the
old language of Chaldæa, like the word for "palace," _hêkâl_, the
Sumerian _ê-gal_, or "Great House." It is noteworthy that Harran, the
resting-place of Abraham on his way from Ur to Palestine, the half-way
house, as it were, between East and West, also derived its name from a
Sumerian word which signified "the high-road." _Harran_ and _Ur_ were
two of the gifts which passed to Canaan from the speakers of the
primaeval language of Chaldæa.

We can now understand why Melchizedek should have been called the "king
of Salem." His capital could be described either as Jeru-salem or as the
city of Salem. And that it was often referred to as Salem simply is
shown by the Egyptian monuments. One of the cities of Southern
Palestine, the capture of which is represented by Ramses II. on the
walls of the Ramesseum at Thebes, is Shalam or Salem, and "the district
of Salem" is mentioned between "the country of Hadashah" (Josh. xv. 37)
and "the district of the Dead Sea" and "the Jordan," in the list of the
places which Ramses III. at Medînet Habu describes himself as having
conquered in the same part of the world.

It may be that Isaiah is playing upon the old name of Jerusalem when he
gives the Messiah the title of "Prince of Peace." But in any case the
fact that Salim, the god of peace, was the patron deity of Jerusalem,
lends a special significance to Melchizedek's treatment of Abram. The
patriarch had returned in peace from an expedition in which he had
overthrown the invaders of Canaan; he had restored peace to the country
of the priest-king, and had driven away its enemies. The offering of
bread and wine on the part of Melchizedek was a sign of freedom from the
enemy and of gratitude to the deliverer, while the tithes paid by Abram
were equally a token that the land was again at peace. The name of