In a sense even Levi himself paid tithes to Melchizedek since he was still in the loins of Abraham when Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek. In the ancient Near Eastern view of things, people regarded a descendant as in one sense participating in the actions of his ancestors ( Genesis 25:23; Malachi 1:2-3; Romans 9:11-13). This is true to reality in certain respects (cf. Romans 5:12-21; 1 Corinthians 15:22), though we are responsible for our own actions too ( Ezekiel 18:20). Levi, the head of the priestly tribe in Israel, had not yet begun his independent existence, but he was involved, in this sense, in everything that Abraham did. [1][source]