“We three kings of Orient are…” – OK, OK, last year I promised that I wouldn’t sing in any of my articles again so I’ll stop right there. It’s just a cheap way of introducing the subject of this article. So who were these wise men anyway? And how many were there? To handle the second question first, I’m sure that many of you are well aware that the Bible never says how many there were. So if you already knew that, my apologies for stating the obvious, if not, grab a Bible and check it out.
The so called “wise men” of the New Testament were a religious caste out of the east, especially from Persia. They were known as the Magi. They were reputed for their knowledge of religion, astronomy and the spiritual significance of astronomical events. So how did they know about the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ?
In the Old Testament, you will notice that during the time of Israel’s captivity in Babylon, men like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego served in the royal courts. Eventually, the Persian empire defeated Babylon (recorded in Daniel 6) and at that time Daniel had a very high position in the royal courts. In fact, Daniel was even made ruler over the Magi. This is where the message of the coming Messiah would have been made known to the Magi. Since they excelled in astronomy, they would have eagerly embraced the Biblical prophecies in God’s Word concerning the Messiah as written in the stars.
It is interesting to note that the Word of God relates that it was only the Magi that were cognizant of the birth of Christ as written in the stars. They are the only ones who are recorded as having used the heavens to predict the birth of Christ. Yes, I’ve seen the books and TV shows that depict the shepherds using a bright star to locate the new born Jesus. Just because people choose to present it that way is no guarantee for the truth of God’s Word. The sign that the shepherds were given by the angel is that they would find the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. That is exactly what happened – there is no star mentioned that night (My apologies to Hollywood).
Tradition, which is the root of most generally accepted Christmas rituals, has also shown three wise men arriving at the night of Jesus Christ’s birth. The clear record of God’s Word is that the Magi (with no designation as to their number) arrived in Bethlehem over a year and three months after the birth of Jesus. It Is Written in Matthew 2:9-11 that the Magi found a “young child”. According to Luke 2:16 the shepherds on the other hand had found a newly delivered baby. The words used in the text are completely different. When the Magi arrive, there is no mention of shepherds because they had come over a year before.
Did you ever wonder why King Herod had all children “two years old and under” killed after he had diligently inquired of the Magi as to when the Messiah was born? If Jesus had just been born, Herod would not have needed to specify two years as the upper limit. However, since it was over one year and three months later, this makes perfect sense. If we just let the Word of God speak for itself, there are never any contradictions.
With the arrival of the Magi and the wonderful gifts that they presented to the Messiah, God again made sure that His only begotten son would be provided for. The arrival of the Magi would also have been reassurance to Mary and Joseph of the watchful care and concern of God over their lives as they continued to raise the young child that had been entrusted to them. What a wonderful God.