Just because Quest
Forums articles frequently deal with contentious issues does not mean they
always must. This question provides an example. It is just an historical
curiosity from the Bible. Also, it is one where I will probably leave more
questions than answers. But the point is, this is something we sometimes wonder
about, particularly at this time of year, and it is interesting to look into it.
The Wise Men and the Birth of Jesus
Fewer people than ever in this country are
really familiar with the story of Jesus Christ’s birth, and those who still are
can always use a refresher, so it is probably a good idea to take a moment to
read Matthew
1:18–2:12. Also, if you want the full story of the Nativity, you can check
out Luke
2:1–38, but I am going to be looking mostly at the Matthew passage because
that is where the wise men are mentioned.
The first thing worth
pointing out about the wise men is that their inclusion in every manger scene
is a conflation. Yes, Jesus was born in a stable and placed in a manger, and
yes, he had visitors that first night, but they were local shepherds, not
wealthy foreigners. This is made clear by Matthew
2:7, 16. The wise men had only had a general estimate of the time of Jesus’
birth to share with King Herod, apparently of more than a year, and only by
assuming the star had appeared at the same time he was born. If that was the
case, as seems likely, then they had traveled for a while after Jesus was born
before they finally found Him. Also, it is noteworthy that they found Jesus in
a “house” (Matthew 2:11), not a stable. The wise men were there shortly after,
but not on, Christmas night.
Really, though, that is
an aside. More to the point, we are trying to determine something about the
identity of the wise men. What can we learn from the biblical text? Well, not
as much as we might like. They are not named, and neither is their home country
or the prophecy that brought them to Judea. But there are a number defining
characteristics mentioned about them that we can take in turn.
Their Title
The first and most
important one is their title. We most often call them “wise men” or “the three
kings.” The second of those is not really accurate. By the middle of the 3rd
Century, Christians like Tertullian were calling them kings, probably because
of the value of the gifts they brought. And since there were three gifts, it
seemed natural to assume there were three wise men. That is entirely possible,
but we cannot be certain. Making them monarchs is much more of a stretch.
“Wise men” is a much
better title because it is very nearly a direct translation of the term used
for them in the original language of the New Testament. That word is magos, and
from its plural form, we get the word Magi, another name by which we are
familiar with the wise men. It is also the source for our words “magic” and
“magician,” which tells us a little bit about what these men did in their
homeland. And for one last connection, the Old English word for “wise man” was
“wizard.” So it all ties together. Also, if you happen to imagine Gandalf and
Merlin showing up to welcome Jesus to the world, it creates a funny but
more-or-less accurate mental picture.
The Magi of the ancient
world really were thought to have supernatural powers, but who exactly were
they? The Bible gives a bit more detail outside of Matthew 2. In Acts
8:9–25, a man named Simon is discussed as someone who practiced magic (a
better translation than “sorcery”). And in Acts
13:6–12 we can read the story of Elymas the Magician (again, better than
“sorcerer”). Finally, we can also look at Daniel
2:2, 10, to read about magicians. Of course, it should be noted that
“magicians” here is a translation from Hebrew rather than Greek. But the Old
Testament was translated into Greek in the 3rd Century B.C., and magos
shows up in that translation, so I am counting it.
The thing all these
other biblical examples of magicians have in common is that they are not
presented in the best light. Their powers are dubious at best, they are
manipulative, idolatrous, and they are put in their place by those who act in
the true power of God. Only the wise men of Matthew 2 are discussed positively,
and even so, early Christian authors made a connection. They believed that Isaiah
8:4 was a prophecy of the visit of the Magi. It says, “Before the child
shall have knowledge to cry ‘My father’ and ‘My mother,’ the riches of Damascus
and the spoil of Samaria will be taken.” The aforementioned Tertullian said,
The Magi themselves, on recognizing [Jesus], honored
Him with gifts, and adored Him on bended knee as Lord and King. They did this
on the evidence of the guiding and indicating star. Accordingly, they became
the “spoils of Samaria,” that is, of idolatry—by believing, namely, on Christ.
In other words, the
wise men had been idolaters of the worst type, just as the Samaritans of the
Old Testament had been. By coming to see Jesus, however, their old religion was
despoiled. Of course, this is a pretty tentative connection as a prophecy. It
is true enough as a conversion story, though, whether Isaiah 8:4 applies to it
or not. Their appearance in Matthew 2 is meant to be shocking. While the
religious authorities of Judea missed their own Messiah’s coming, He was found
and worshipped by a group of foreigners who had only known false gods all their
lives. They showed both that Christ was for all people, and that those of
Jesus’ own people who refuse Him have a special shame.
If we go outside the
Bible, we can learn a bit more of interest to our investigation. By the time
the New Testament was written, a magos was anyone who practiced magic
anywhere in the Greco-Roman world. It does not necessarily tell us anything
about the wise men’s place of origin. But it might still suggest the original
home of the Magi.
Their Homeland
As a formal group,
rather than a general title, the Magi were the priests of the Zoroastrian
religion. Zoroastrianism was founded in Persia (modern-day Iran), probably
sometime in the middle of the 2nd Millennium B.C. It was an
influential regional faith by the time of the Babylonian Captivity of the Jews
in the 6th Century B.C., explaining the appearance of Magi as
members of Nebuchadnezzar’s court. And they were still noteworthy at the time
of Jesus’ birth.
There is no need here
to get into their beliefs, but it is at least noteworthy that Zoroastrians
practice astrology, providing a possible link to the wise men. And this is in
keeping with the small amount of geographical information Matthew gives us.
All we are told in the
gospel is that the wise men came from “the East.” There is an awful lot to “the
East” of Bethlehem, so we do not really have a way to narrow it down with
absolute certainty. But Persia does fall under that heading, and would allow
them to be actual Magi rather than simply magicians. It also further undercuts
the idea of them as kings, since their priestly functions would have been separated
from political rule. We would be justified, at this point, in thinking that the
wise men traveled to see Jesus from the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula.
Their Star
There is one other intriguing
possibility, however. People have wondered for a long time what the star was
that led the wise men on their westward journey. Also, how could it have been
missed by those living closer to home? A brightly shining, brand new star would
be hard to miss, wouldn’t it? And finally, where did it go?
One of the most
interesting suggestions I have heard asks us to think small (or big, depending
on perspective). Look back at Matthew 2. It does not say that the star was
bright. It only says that the wise men saw it. Navigating by the stars is
certainly nothing new, so we do not have to picture it wandering around the sky
like an arrow on Google Maps. It may have simply been a small point of light
that was out of place.
And it could also have
been impermanent. Rather than being a new star, it was a dead one. The
suggestion is that the star was a supernova, an exploded star either not
normally visible or slightly more visible than it had previously been. Without
telescopes, it could be difficult to notice without the most expertly trained eyes.
The average person could miss it. Even most ancient astrologers failed to see some
of them. Furthermore, they eventually burn down. But they are visible for
months, or even a few years, which also fits the details of Matthew 2.
What does this have to
do with identifying the wise men? Well, the Magi of Persia were not known to
have identified anything like a supernova. The only ones doing that remotely
near the time of Jesus’ birth were Chinese astronomers. The first accepted,
documented recording of a supernova was in the late 2nd Century. It
is at least possible, however, that they noticed one 200 years earlier and
merely did not leave a record. Also, if the wise men were from China, it could
explain why it took them so long to reach Judea. It is a much longer trip than
from Persia.
Their Prophecy
With all that said,
however, I still think the Persian connection is more likely. Just because
there are no Zoroastrian records of supernova-type stellar activity does not
mean no one there saw anything of the kind. Beyond that, it seems likely that
the wise men needed to have some type of affinity to Judea and the religion of
the Old Testament. Chinese astronomers were not likely to have access to
Israelite prophecies or to speak a language understandable in Jerusalem.
Persia is another
matter. The Persian Empire had once included Judea, and it had played an
important role in Jewish history. The first Persian emperor, Cyrus the Great,
had liberated the Jews from the Babylonian Captivity, returned them to their
homeland, and directed them to restore their temple and religion. It is not
beyond the realm of possibility that educated men from Persia could have spoken
Hebrew. But even if they did not, they would have known Aramaic, the common
tongue of the Ancient Near East, as well as Greek, which would have been
brought to them by the conquests of Alexander the Great in the 4th
Century B.C., just as it had been to all other Bible lands.
Magi, then, can easily
be assumed to have been familiar with the languages of Jerusalem. What’s more,
they could have known a great deal about the Jewish religion. Not only had the
Persians once ruled Judea, but there had been Jewish communities in Persia, as
the book of Esther illustrates. There are a few points of similarity between
Judaism and Zoroastrianism, making cross-reference a worthwhile pursuit for
those with an interest. These outsiders must have known the Old Testament, the
Torah, in order to see the star as the fulfillment of prophecy and as a
guidepost to the Messiah.
But what prophecy? The
religious leaders in Jerusalem did not seem to know, though they did know well
enough to identify Bethlehem as the city where He was to be born. Also, Matthew
does not say how the wise men knew to associate the star with the birth of
Christ. While we cannot be certain, then, it does seem plausible to make a
connection to Numbers
24:17–19: “I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near; a Star shall
come out of Jacob; a Scepter shall rise out of Israel…. Out of Jacob One shall
have dominion.”
These verses are part
of a prophecy, but they are not the words of an Israelite prophet. Instead,
they come from Balaam. Balaam was a Mesopotamian (modern-day Iraq) soothsayer
who had been hired by an enemy of the Israelites to curse them on their exodus
to the Promised Land, but who was instead forced by the Lord to bless them.
This passage is part of one of those blessings.
It is possible, though
not necessarily likely, that Balaam was Zoroastrian, an early mage and a
precursor to the wise men. Even if he was not, later magi may have felt a
certain affinity to him. It could have led them to give his words recorded in
Hebrew Scripture special notice. If so, they would have known to expect a
mighty king to be born out of Israel. And if a “new” star appeared in the night
sky, it is plausible that they would have connected the dots and realized the
Star mentioned by Balaam 1,500 years before had finally arrived.
Their Gifts
One last detail Matthew
gives us is worth discussing here. The gifts themselves can potentially tell us
something about the wise men. Gold is ubiquitous, but frankincense and myrrh
are slightly more unusual. Both are aromatic wood gums found mostly in the
Middle East. They are also of great importance to the Israelite religion. Myrrh
was used in the making of anointing oil, and frankincense was an ingredient in
the incense used in the temple (see Exodus
30:22–38). These scents were symbols of holiness. If the wise men were as
familiar with Judaism as I am suggesting, then they would have known this.
Their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, would have been a statement of
Jesus’ royalty and sanctity.
One other point about
the gifts has long been noted, though it stretches even my willingness to
speculate to think the wise men did it purposefully. Still, it is worth
mentioning. Frankincense is only discussed once in the account of Jesus’ life
on earth, here in Matthew 2. Myrrh, on the other hand, is mentioned three
times. In Matthew 2, it is part of the story of His birth. In Mark
15:23 and John
19:38–40, it is present at His death. Again, I cannot see the wise men
having known this would be the case and pointing to what would happen three
decades later. But I do believe in the power of Providence. For them the gifts
were merely an offering, but to God they served as identifying markers: Gold
for Christ as King, Frankincense for Christ as Priest, and Myrrh for Christ as
Sacrifice. His entire mission is spelled out in what the wise men presented to
Him.
Their Purpose
With all the evidence
we have in hand, I believe we can draw some conclusions. None of them is
unassailable, but taken together they make a strong case. The wise men were
familiar enough with the Prophecy of Balaam to recognize the coming of the
Messiah. They understood enough of the Hebrew religious system to know the
right gifts to bring. They had enough astronomical knowledge to recognize a
stellar event most other people overlooked. They were from far enough away for
their journey to take some time, and yet near enough to have a shared language
and contact with the religion of the Jews. Taken together, the likeliest
candidates are those named in the text. The wise men were Persian Magi.
There is one last
characteristic of the wise men worth mentioning, however, and it encompasses
their entire story. It is their purpose in the biblical narrative. The reason
they came to Jesus was to acknowledge Him as King. In so doing, they still
stand as an illustration of what we ought to do. They remind us of the
importance of the holiday we are about to celebrate.
The Incarnation is an
incredible miracle that is all too easily overlooked. Jesus was, is, and always
shall be eternal God, but He entered humanity in a moment of time. Rather than
doing so in an explosion of glory, He came as the baby of a humble family and
in the most humbling of circumstances. His birth was only noticed by a few,
even when those supposedly waiting for Him were told about it. There is a
lesson in that. But above all, it allowed for the most important event in all
of history. A few decades later, Jesus was unjustly murdered and became the
sacrifice for our sins, satisfying the justice of God on our behalf. And three
days after that, He rose again, proving Himself to be the Way to eternal life
and the open Door to resurrection. Christmas leads to Easter, and is worthy of
celebration for that reason more than any other.
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