Sample file. Creative Learning Connection, 8006 Old Madison Pike, Ste 11-A Madison, AL

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Bruce Newton
6 years ago
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How often during the Christmas season, or other times of the year, do we consider the Wise Men and their trip to see Christ? I would guess that for most of us, it is not often enough.

2 How often during the Christmas season, or other times of the year, do we consider the Wise Men and their trip to see Christ? I would guess that for most of us, it is not often enough. Maybe we see three wise men on camels in some of our nativity sets, and we might sing We Three Kings among our Christmas carols, but what do we really know about them, and what do we think we know? The Gospels of Matthew and Luke both record portions of the Christmas story, but only Matthew tells us of the visit of the Magi (the Wise Men). The complete passage is at the back of the book, and the pertinent portions are quoted throughout. Let s examine what we know from scripture, history, legends, and songs: 3

3 Who Were They? How Many Were There? Where Did They Come From? Where Did They Worship the Christ Child? Scripture tells us of them first in Matthew 2:1, There came wise men from the east. In some versions they are referred to as Magi. The wise men were certainly astronomers, and possibly astrologers. They may not have actually been kings, but they could have been royalty. The scriptures don t give us many details about them, including an exact number of the wise men. From Scripture we know there were at least two, possibly, three, but possibly even more than that. In Western tradition the number is generally set at three, because they brought three gifts, but in Eastern tradition the number is actually set at twelve. Also, in Western tradition, the Magi have been identified since about 500 A.D. as Melchior, a Babylonian scholar, Caspar (or Gaspar) a Persian scholar, and Balthazar an Arab scholar. Marco Polo claimed to have been shown their tombs when he went through Persia (in present-day Saveh, Iran), in the thirteenth century. What do we see of them in our Christmas Carols? In The First Noel we sing: Three Wise Men came from country far. But in O Holy Night a new detail is added: So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming Here come the wise men from Orient land. And of course, they get their own song We Three Kings, which begins with We three kings of Orient are Bearing gifts, we traverse afar. Two of the carols reinforce the idea that there were three wise men, and two speak of them coming from the Orient. From scripture we see that they were from the east, but no more details are given as to their starting location. It is generally assumed that they were from some portion of Persia, though Chinese Christians, among others, believe that China was their original home. 4

How Did They Travel? How Far Did They Travel? How Long Would They Have Travelled? Where Did They Travel To? Many pictures of the wise men show them arriving at the home of Christ with their camels.

4 How Did They Travel? How Far Did They Travel? How Long Would They Have Travelled? Where Did They Travel To? Many pictures of the wise men show them arriving at the home of Christ with their camels. But it is also possible that they travelled on horseback. Again, many of the paintings show them travelling alone, just the three of them. But there is a good possibility that they would have travelled in a much larger group for safety, even if there were only three Magi. And because of their positions they would possibly have brought servants along with them. So the number of their group may actually have been quite large. I especially like this late nineteenth century painting I found of the Magi: The Magi Journeying by James Joseph Jacques Tissot, 1890 If they came from somewhere in Persia, they likely travelled approximately one thousand miles, and may have been travelling west for anywhere from three to twelve months. If they came from farther east, of course, their travels would have been even longer. We see in the second chapter of Matthew that the wise men travelled first to Jerusalem where they met King Herod: Behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. After inquiring of his priests and scribes, Herod informs the wise men that according to the prophesies the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem. He sends them off to Bethlehem to deliver their gifts: 5

5 Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also. When they had heard the king, they departed So we certainly see the Magi being sent from Jerusalem the short distance to Bethlehem, and most tellings of this tale assume they went to Bethlehem and saw the Christ Child there. But the scriptures are actually silent on where they actually travelled to worship Him. Matthew 2 tells us in verses nine and ten: When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. It is possible that the Star led them to Nazareth, not to Bethlehem. According to Luke, our other scriptures that tell of Christ s birth, after the birth the family stayed in Bethlehem the required time, then went to Jerusalem for Christ s presentation at the temple, and then travelled home to Nazareth. We do not know exactly when the wise men arrived, though we do know that the verses in Matthew refer to Jesus as a child, not a baby. And we can deduce from Herod s response to the wise men not returning to him that he understood the child King to be under two years of age. Could it be that even though Herod sent them to Bethlehem, that the star led them to Nazareth? It certainly seems possible to me. Otherwise, combining what we know from Matthew and Luke, the wise men would have arrived in Bethlehem very close to the time of Christ s birth, or the family would have had to return to Bethlehem at some point after they had gone back to Nazareth. Since the scriptures are silent on these exact details, all we can do is speculate based on what we do know. 6

6 What Was the Star They Followed? Why Did the Wise Men Think It Was Significant? Many attempts have been made to come up with a reasonable explanation of what the star was that the wise men had seen. The Greek word, aster means heavenly body, and some think it could have been a comet, a supernova, a grouping of planets (a conjunction), or retrograde planetary motion. There are astronomical reasons that each of those are not likely to have been what they saw, and I personally think it was more likely to have been a supernatural occurrence to point them toward the supernatural birth of Christ. But whatever it was, the Magi understood that it was significant, and spent a great deal of time and money following it to the home of Christ. If they were from Persia, it is possible that they understood its significance because of the earlier work there by Daniel, who had been one of the Babylonian wise men for many years. 7

HIS CHRISTMAS Matthew 2:1-12 after Jesus was born East came to Jerusalem Where is He worship Then secretly star young Child worship star young Child

HIS CHRISTMAS Matthew 2:1-12 after Jesus was born East came to Jerusalem Where is He worship Then secretly star young Child worship star young Child HIS CHRISTMAS Matthew 2:1-12 Now after Jesus was born (not before) in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East (probably Persia) came to Jerusalem, (not Bethlehem