7:4
Abraham was the patriarch of the nation of Israel. The nation was formed by God from Abraham. The Jews regarded themselves as Abraham’s children, his descendants. So whatever Abraham did, or the way that God interacted with him, is of crucial importance. Paul uses this line of argument when saying that Abraham was made righteous by his faith. So if Abraham gave a tenth, a tithe, to Melchizedek, then Melchizedek must have been very important. Melchizedek was probably not paid too much attention, given the two mentions in the Old Testament. The writer is showing how significant he actually is, and that the two mentions are of great importance.
7:5
Giving a tithe was an important aspect of Jewish religion, of the Law. All the descendants of Abraham were required to give a tenth, and this was collected by the Levites. So even though the people were descendants of Abraham, they had to give a tenth. The Law required the people to give, Abraham freely chose to give a tenth to Melchizedek.
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